Brumation Practices

[Red Ink AUS]

Hi Guys,

As it is nearly time for the big sleep up where you guys are (opposite here, but i live in bizzaro land as most people know we have giant mice with in built purses hoping along all over the place and a duck beaver hybrid as well as walking pine cones lol), I was wondering what you guys do when they go down for the year as people seem to do different things.

Cheers,

 

[zebraflavencs]

Well Francis, Orion so far is the only one that showed going down for brumation. Once I tested all three (L.A. hadn't joined us yet ) I allowed him to choose his time, and turned off his lights and heat. He crawled into his blanket and zzzzzz.
Once a week I woke him up for a bath and a weigh in...
After 3 weeks or so, give or take a day, yesterday he decided to wake up. Bathed, and oh what is this ? Paled out for a shed... So I made sure he had a nice salad, and some worms, some roaches.. and let him be..Around 5 Pm, he crawled right back into his blanket... I'll let him be down, as long as he chooses.
As for the other two... Yardley is looking like he seriously wants to spend the "winter" in his hammock... so be it.
Gem hasn't decided one way or the other.. but he was always slow to any new idea... Once he decides, the same as the other two.

Does that answer your question for my practices ?
Janie

 

[DragonMom]

:-X

 

[ladyknite]

I get to shut off the lights, bask in the power bill's left over financial fund and sleep for a change. Oh wait.............not everything i have brumates.................damn

Got a pic of that duck beaver?? LOL...............i bet he's a freaky little fool

 

[Red Ink AUS]

During brumation, i shut the lights down. I usually would only run the MVBs for three - four hours a day 10 am to 2 pm. I also lower the temps to about 15 C overnight.

I run all my enclosures on thermostats which is a practice that does'nt seem to be commonly used or even frowned upon over there. Down here if you tell an aussie keeper not to use a thermostat in their enclosure and you'll get a funny look.

I like thermostats they give me ultimate temperature control as well as knowing i don't have to worry about having to experiment with multiple wattage bulbs.

I dont wake them up either for hydration, all i do is a heavy misting once every couple of weeks to keep the humidity up. I replicate their natural situations in the wild. Oh unless i see them awake for two or three days straight i don't even bother offering food.

Cheers,

 

[DragonMom]

:-X

 

[Red Ink AUS]

I don't use the thromostats on the basking bulbs Sandy as the dragon needs a constant light source and basking spot available to it when they want. I only connect the thermostats to my night time heating to control the temp fluctuations at night, specially in winter (in summer my CHEs never go on as it never gets cold enough). What i suggest you could do instead of moving the lights is just provide multiple basking surfaces at different heights, that way if it gets to hot or cold your dragon would just move accordingly to where it is comfortable.

I pretty much just have wall mounted thermostats, they are attched to the back wall of my enclosures and are wired to the CHEs.

Here they are on my stack enclosure that houses my shingleback skink.

They are connected to the CHE (black bulb)

Here's the BD enclosure

He moves along that basking log closer or further to the MVB depending on how he feels for better temp gradient. If you check the back wall you can see the thermostat in that enclosure as well.

Cheers,

 

[DragonMom]

:-X

 

[beardielover17]

as far as my brumation practices, my male magellan is a weird one...he will sleep for days and then he will be up and super active then knock back out again....since i never know when hes gonna be up i keep all of his lights on but shorten the day to 12/12...i keep his temps as is since he prefers lower temps to bask at...i feed and soak him when hes up but thats about it...he goes into his cave on his own and burries himself in his little blankey he has