Glass surfing and general restlessness in beardies

[Bonnie C.]

Hey so I have a younger bearded dragon (don’t know the exact age but she is definitely over a year). She is always glass surfing and scratching at her tank and banging her head against the glass. And when I take her out and put her in my window (which gets direct sunlight and great heat) she does the same thing. And the same thing to my walls if I put her on my floor to let her run around. Does anyone know why she is so restless no matter what I do?

-she eats at least 3 times a week and the occasional snack

-her tank temperature is usually between 80-85 degrees Fahrenheit

-her tank looks to be about 20gal

-she poops every day and it is always cleaned

-she has a UV and heat source and a cool side of her tank

-and plenty of things to climb on in her tank

 

[WICKEDPOGONA]

Sounds like she is gravid you need to give her deep substrate to dig in or a laybox she is going to be laying eggs soon. 20gallon is not big enough at all that needs to be upgraded asap, can you show us your enclosure for her? Could also be scratching at her reflection they think its another dragon haha.

 

[Bonnie C.]

Yes here is her tank. Also I would swap my bearded dragons for a bit (I have another female beardie who is about 2 years older and much calmer) so that I could focus on what I was doing and my younger beardie could be in the larger tank (which has a dig box in it) and she hasn’t used the dig box that is in my older beardies tank. Do you think that could be a territorial thing? Or is something wrong?

 

[Sadie]

Yes here is her tank. Also I would swap my bearded dragons for a bit (I have another female beardie who is about 2 years older and much calmer) so that I could focus on what I was doing and my younger beardie could be in the larger tank (which has a dig box in it) and she hasn’t used the dig box that is in my older beardies tank. Do you think that could be a territorial thing? Or is something wrong?

First off please stop swapping the dragons between the two tanks-- if one dragon is sick the other one will get sick as well -- you need to sanitize both tanks w/ Rescue or Zoo Meds Wipeout ASAP--- next the 20 gallon tank is way too small-- for a adult dragon they need a 75 or 120 gallon tank --- both need long tube UVB's NO coils they are NO good --- basking temps need to be 95-100 taken w/a digital probe thermometer-- when you get everything set up we will see if this corrects the glass surfing issue -- it could be the tank is too small it could be incorrect basking temps it could be incorrect UVB -- this all plays a factor in the overall health and behavior of the dragon --- I recommend a 24" fixture like a Zoo Med Sunblaster or Arcadia for a 40+ gallon tank -- a Reptisun 10.0 T 5 bulb ---- look on www.petmountian.com for this lighting and digital probe thermometers --- there should be NO colored bulbs NO heat mats -- we wont know the exact cause for the glass surfing until all this is fixed ---

 

[Bonnie C.]

A lot of great information thank you! And thank you for pointing out my mistakes. I’m glad you caught this so I can correct it before any harm could be done. I will definitely look into this website and getting new equipment (for lack of a better word) for my beardie! I greatly appreciated it!

 

[Sadie]

A lot of great information thank you! And thank you for pointing out my mistakes. I’m glad you caught this so I can correct it before any harm could be done. I will definitely look into this website and getting new equipment (for lack of a better word) for my beardie! I greatly appreciated it!

When you get the UVB post back on here so I can help you get it properly placed in the tank w/ distance etc---- what size tank is this going to be used on and what type of screen is it? Fine mesh like a screen door or a wide hole type ?

 

[WICKEDPOGONA]

Yes here is her tank. Also I would swap my bearded dragons for a bit (I have another female beardie who is about 2 years older and much calmer) so that I could focus on what I was doing and my younger beardie could be in the larger tank (which has a dig box in it) and she hasn’t used the dig box that is in my older beardies tank. Do you think that could be a territorial thing? Or is something wrong?

The minimum size enclosure for an adult bearded dragon is 48x24x24 and that's the minimum you always wanna strive for improvement in this hobby that fish tank is severely too small and I say this in the sake of the animal. Also coils have an inadequate amount of uvb for a beardie to sustain healthy bone growth and so much more, beardies grow to 18 inches or bigger you need a linear uvb tube from either Reptisun 10.0 or Arcadia 12% not the coil but the fluorescent tube a 24inch one so the beardie can fit his whole body under the UV rays.
What are his temperatures and diet consisting of?
She is defiently gonna lay if she hasn't already so you should give jet the proper conditions to lay her eggs comfortably. If you need help finding the right supplies just post so and theirs a whole community wanting to help

 

[WICKEDPOGONA]

Is that pink stuff on the tank insulation ? That's nasty stuff which will cause cancer from long term exposure. Defiently will cause respiratory issues and skin issues. I work around that stuff and i wear a carpterners masks you don't want fiberglass anywhere near your reptiles REMOVE IMMEDIATELY

 

[Bonnie C.]

Yes it is. It gets really cold in my house at night and I noticed it makes the temperature in her tank drop so I put it there to keep the heat in. But it does not have fiberglass.

 

[WICKEDPOGONA]

Yes it is. It gets really cold in my house at night and I noticed it makes the temperature in her tank drop so I put it there to keep the heat in. But it does not have fiberglass.

You could use something much safer like a towel that stuff makes you sneeze and sinuses burn that what you have on your tank is fiberglass there are three common types of insulation Foam, Wool and fiberglass I'm a Jack of all trades. The fiber glass isnt only bad for you to be breathing next to but is directly above your beardie and THat stuff crumbles into bits that you can barely see DUST

 

[Bonnie C.]

Good idea! I’ll definitely switch it out with one of my old towels. Thank you for the advice!

 

[Frank the baby beardry]

Hey so I have a younger bearded dragon (don’t know the exact age but she is definitely over a year). She is always glass surfing and scratching at her tank and banging her head against the glass. And when I take her out and put her in my window (which gets direct sunlight and great heat) she does the same thing. And the same thing to my walls if I put her on my floor to let her run around. Does anyone know why she is so restless no matter what I do?

-she eats at least 3 times a week and the occasional snack

-her tank temperature is usually between 80-85 degrees Fahrenheit

-her tank looks to be about 20gal

-she poops every day and it is always cleaned

-she has a UV and heat source and a cool side of her tank

-and plenty of things to climb on in her tank

It is most likely because of the lighting. What uvb does she have she need a t5 10.0 uvb NOT s coil one. 20 gallons is wayyyy to small she need 120 gallons of space. The cool side of the enclosure should be 80-85% the warm side 85-95% and the basking spot should be 95-103

 

[Skybug]

You can also cut a piece of cardboard and tape it to the top, please get rid of the pink Insulation it has fiber glass in it and is so so unsafe (i work in construction and have to go in attics all the time(i wear a quality mask and im still coughing the rest of the day) please please clean the tank im positive the fiberglass is all over it, it was a good idea but the wrong material.