Just looking for a little insight on the size of my beardie

[Austinthedragonwhisperer]

So this is Charizard, he is just about 5 months old but seems to be growing at a massive rate (7 inches in a little under 2 months or an inch a week about). Is this common? Do I potentially have a German giant? Or is she just going to be a really big beardie?

First time owner and I’m curious what to expect. I’m looking to buy a new tank and don’t know if I should go with a 75 or 120 gallon. From a space standpoint I do not really have the room for a 120 but I want the best life for her so I’m willing to make sacrifices is need be.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated. I have referred to charts but they don’t really compare to the knowledge of a beardie enthusiast

Thank you

 

[Sadie]

So this is Charizard, he is just about 5 months old but seems to be growing at a massive rate (7 inches in a little under 2 months or an inch a week about). Is this common? Do I potentially have a German giant? Or is she just going to be a really big beardie?

First time owner and I’m curious what to expect. I’m looking to buy a new tank and don’t know if I should go with a 75 or 120 gallon. From a space standpoint I do not really have the room for a 120 but I want the best life for her so I’m willing to make sacrifices is need be.

Any insight would be greatly appreciated. I have referred to charts but they don’t really compare to the knowledge of a beardie enthusiast

Thank you

Charizard is going to grow at different rates -- it is hard to tell if hes a German Giant - he may be having all these growth spurts now and then come to a screeching halt - it also depends on his husbandry and diet -- good UVB NO coils and good basking temps - those should be surface temps NOT air or ambient --- temps should be taken w /a digital probe thermometer for actual temps - placed on the spot where he basks -- basking bulb should be a CLEAR bright white basking bulb NO off white NO colored NO yellowish and NO day time bulbs they have a neodymium they have a coating on them not good for the eyes -- I would recommend a 120 gallon if you can do it if not get a 75 gallon --

 

[Austinthedragonwhisperer]

Charizard is going to grow at different rates -- it is hard to tell if hes a German Giant - he may be having all these growth spurts now and then come to a screeching halt - it also depends on his husbandry and diet -- good UVB NO coils and good basking temps - those should be surface temps NOT air or ambient --- temps should be taken w /a digital probe thermometer for actual temps - placed on the spot where he basks -- basking bulb should be a CLEAR bright white basking bulb NO off white NO colored NO yellowish and NO day time bulbs they have a neodymium they have a coating on them not good for the eyes -- I would recommend a 120 gallon if you can do it if not get a 75 gallon --

Thanks for the info! I am pretty solid on everything you said besides the coil uvb. I’ll make a purchase as soon as possible. Appreciate your involvement in this forum. I have learned a lot so far

 

[Sadie]

Thanks for the info! I am pretty solid on everything you said besides the coil uvb. I’ll make a purchase as soon as possible. Appreciate your involvement in this forum. I have learned a lot so far

Ok so you need to replace the coil? If so I recommend a Zoo Med w/ 22" reptisun 10.0 T 5 or a Arcadia pro T 5 w/ a 12% bulbor a sunblaster nano tech- 6400 bulb- 24" fixture for a 40 gallon tank or bigger- please do this ASAP please

 

[Austinthedragonwhisperer]

Ok so you need to replace the coil? If so I recommend a Zoo Med w/ 22" reptisun 10.0 T 5 or a Arcadia pro T 5 w/ a 12% bulbor a sunblaster nano tech- 6400 bulb- 24" fixture for a 40 gallon tank or bigger- please do this ASAP please

 

[Austinthedragonwhisperer]

Hey Sadie I ordered the zoomed 22” hood and the light you mentioned. Now the only possible concern I have right now is that my bearded dragon eats all their meals on Schedule but tends to hide out for about an hour or so under their hide after the meals. I seem to be able to entice her out with more food after a little while to come back out of the hide. noticed this trend as Soon as I brought my tank home for Christmas about 5 days ago. (I travel home about 4 hours for holidays). The poop is consistent and she has plenty of energy when I decide to take her out of the cage in addition I make sure she gets a balance of about 30% veggies to 70% live insects. I do about 50% meal worms 50% crickets for live feed. She eats the salad on her own and I don’t have to force her to walk over and eat it (Everything dusted accordingly) . so is this relocation stress, the previous UVB setup or potentially something else? Basking temp at 103-105 F (Temp gun) humidity (30%) cold temp 80 F day and 70 F nighttime. Also have a heat pad under the warm hide (which she is hiding under) Which I unplug during the day

 

[Sadie]

Hey Sadie I ordered the zoomed 22” hood and the light you mentioned. Now the only possible concern I have right now is that my bearded dragon eats all their meals on Schedule but tends to hide out for about an hour or so under their hide after the meals. I seem to be able to entice her out with more food after a little while to come back out of the hide. noticed this trend as Soon as I brought my tank home for Christmas about 5 days ago. (I travel home about 4 hours for holidays). The poop is consistent and she has plenty of energy when I decide to take her out of the cage in addition I make sure she gets a balance of about 30% veggies to 70% live insects. I do about 50% meal worms 50% crickets for live feed. She eats the salad on her own and I don’t have to force her to walk over and eat it (Everything dusted accordingly) . so is this relocation stress, the previous UVB setup or potentially something else? Basking temp at 103-105 F (Temp gun) humidity (30%) cold temp 80 F day and 70 F nighttime. Also have a heat pad under the warm hide (which she is hiding under) Which I unplug during the day

Please lay off the meal worms those should be as a treat not a staple --- the basking light your using is a CLEAR bright white bulb ? NO off white NO yellowish NO colored bulbs No daytime bulbs they have a coating called Neoyidium bad for the eyes --- good example is a Exo Terra Intense basking bulb - or a Zoo Med Repti basking bulb -- the coil UVB could be causing the issue -- shut it off ---- when is the Zoo Med coming in? Please get a basking temp w/ a digital probe thermometer especially if your using a hammock for the basking decor --- the IR guns cannot read off of hammocks --- please get rid of the heat mat ---- they can cause burns we just had someone post on another forum that the dragons foot got burned w/ a heat mat -- if you need extra heat please get a ceramic heat emitter it needs to be in dome w/ a ceramic socket placed on the top of the tank center ----- you dont need it if the tank is 65 or better -- if your tank is falling below 65 at nite then use it -- I have one that sits on my tank center keeps temps around 70 -- 100 watt for a 120 gallon tank -- it is used when our temps here are below zero air temp not counting wind chill --- but for the most part my tanks stay house temp of 70-- I would get her some different worms and try another staple feeder like dubia roaches --- go here www.dubiaroaches.com they are supposed to be closed now for 2 weeks for holiday but I think they may still be shipping --- get her some horn worms - they are a hydrating worm order small amounts they grow really fast - you can get small and I mean they are tiny and grow them out -- let me know if you order so I can tell you how to keep those roaches -- 10 gallon tank for like 200 of them -- you can get dubia food and dubia dew as well --

 

[Austinthedragonwhisperer]

Please lay off the meal worms those should be as a treat not a staple --- the basking light your using is a CLEAR bright white bulb ? NO off white NO yellowish NO colored bulbs No daytime bulbs they have a coating called Neoyidium bad for the eyes --- good example is a Exo Terra Intense basking bulb - or a Zoo Med Repti basking bulb -- the coil UVB could be causing the issue -- shut it off ---- when is the Zoo Med coming in? Please get a basking temp w/ a digital probe thermometer especially if your using a hammock for the basking decor --- the IR guns cannot read off of hammocks --- please get rid of the heat mat ---- they can cause burns we just had someone post on another forum that the dragons foot got burned w/ a heat mat -- if you need extra heat please get a ceramic heat emitter it needs to be in dome w/ a ceramic socket placed on the top of the tank center ----- you dont need it if the tank is 65 or better -- if your tank is falling below 65 at nite then use it -- I have one that sits on my tank center keeps temps around 70 -- 100 watt for a 120 gallon tank -- it is used when our temps here are below zero air temp not counting wind chill --- but for the most part my tanks stay house temp of 70-- I would get her some different worms and try another staple feeder like dubia roaches --- go here www.dubiaroaches.com they are supposed to be closed now for 2 weeks for holiday but I think they may still be shipping --- get her some horn worms - they are a hydrating worm order small amounts they grow really fast - you can get small and I mean they are tiny and grow them out -- let me know if you order so I can tell you how to keep those roaches -- 10 gallon tank for like 200 of them -- you can get dubia food and dubia dew as well --

okay I’ll cut back on the mealworms and only use them for snacks. The heat pad is on the old tank so I will not install them. She doesnt need them as we keep the house around 65-70. My bulbs are good besides the uvb coil which I ordered, coming in 2 days but I do have a mercury bulb that can supplement and has been supplementing additional uvb. I live with roommates so growing my own feeders is not an option sadly. Thanks for the advice. After changing a few things with room temperature I believe it may have been a little too hot as the cold side of the tank rose from 75-90. I have the temperatures regulated back to 105 (warm) 75 (cool)

 

[Sadie]

okay I’ll cut back on the mealworms and only use them for snacks. The heat pad is on the old tank so I will not install them. She doesnt need them as we keep the house around 65-70. My bulbs are good besides the uvb coil which I ordered, coming in 2 days but I do have a mercury bulb that can supplement and has been supplementing additional uvb. I live with roommates so growing my own feeders is not an option sadly. Thanks for the advice. After changing a few things with room temperature I believe it may have been a little too hot as the cold side of the tank rose from 75-90. I have the temperatures regulated back to 105 (warm) 75 (cool)

Ok set the cool side for 80's daytime --- the roaches would be in a 10 gallon aquarium - more for feeding not breeding- they dont stink and they dont make any noise and they dont escape -- they are there for feeding and more for convenience and not having to run to the store every week to get feeders crickets are terrible to keep -- dubias are the best feeder anyway -- less hassle --- I have a 10 gallon I keep mine in and it has been the best way to feed the dragons- I did start out w/ crickets going to the pet store every week to buy them and I live 30 miles from town -- huge hassle - so I started getting them on line and it has been the best way plus they are alot cheaper

 

[Tina W.]

Charizard is going to grow at different rates -- it is hard to tell if hes a German Giant - he may be having all these growth spurts now and then come to a screeching halt - it also depends on his husbandry and diet -- good UVB NO coils and good basking temps - those should be surface temps NOT air or ambient --- temps should be taken w /a digital probe thermometer for actual temps - placed on the spot where he basks -- basking bulb should be a CLEAR bright white basking bulb NO off white NO colored NO yellowish and NO day time bulbs they have a neodymium they have a coating on them not good for the eyes -- I would recommend a 120 gallon if you can do it if not get a 75 gallon --

Hi. My dragon is 5 months old also and has just gone thru a huge growth spurt too. He's grown about 4 inches quickly and it seems like in a constant shed. He's a normal mixed with citrus. Nothing fancy. The charts can be confusing because of the wide ranges they give. You obviously have good husbandry or your baby wouldn't be growing so well. I think its pretty typical at this age for a big growth spurt. I feed mine dubias as his staple and treat with wax worms and mealworms.

 

[Sadie]

Hi. My dragon is 5 months old also and has just gone thru a huge growth spurt too. He's grown about 4 inches quickly and it seems like in a constant shed. He's a normal mixed with citrus. Nothing fancy. The charts can be confusing because of the wide ranges they give. You obviously have good husbandry or your baby wouldn't be growing so well. I think its pretty typical at this age for a big growth spurt. I feed mine dubias as his staple and treat with wax worms and mealworms.

 

[Sadie]

@Tina W. Please hold off on the mealworms- at least till he's 9-10 months - the exoskeleton is it too harsh on their intestines- try some superworms and hornworms

 

[Austinthedragonwhisperer]

Hi. My dragon is 5 months old also and has just gone thru a huge growth spurt too. He's grown about 4 inches quickly and it seems like in a constant shed. He's a normal mixed with citrus. Nothing fancy. The charts can be confusing because of the wide ranges they give. You obviously have good husbandry or your baby wouldn't be growing so well. I think its pretty typical at this age for a big growth spurt. I feed mine dubias as his staple and treat with wax worms and mealworms.

Thanks for the response. Mine seems to be shedding every 10-14 days or so if you were curious on that. I have noticed a lot of feedback on Dubias in the community, As they are way too expensive for me to buy far north I think I have no choice but to start a colony. My beardie sucks them up like a vacuum when I am able to provide them. As we have dragons of similar ages don’t be afraid to thread me into a post so we can discuss some new trends. Thanks again

 

[Sadie]

Thanks for the response. Mine seems to be shedding every 10-14 days or so if you were curious on that. I have noticed a lot of feedback on Dubias in the community, As they are way too expensive for me to buy far north I think I have no choice but to start a colony. My beardie sucks them up like a vacuum when I am able to provide them. As we have dragons of similar ages don’t be afraid to thread me into a post so we can discuss some new trends. Thanks again

Are you in the states?

 

[Austinthedragonwhisperer]

Are you in the states?

Niagara in Buffalo

 

[Sadie]

Niagara in Buffalo

Ok are you buying insects from pet stores?

 

[Austinthedragonwhisperer]

Niagara in Buffalo

The only dubias I can have shipped to me are about 25 cents cheapest per medium about 22 per small. When looking at crickets being about 7 cents per it is much more affordable. At this point I think id rather just invest in starting up a colony like you mentioned

 

[Austinthedragonwhisperer]

The only dubias I can have shipped to me are about 25 cents cheapest per medium about 22 per small. When looking at crickets being about 7 cents per it is much more affordable. At this point I think id rather just invest in starting up a colony like you mentioned

 

[Austinthedragonwhisperer]

Yes only a local pet store

 

[Sadie]

Yes only a local pet store

Try this place a lot of people get roaches from here a long w/ horn worms- www.dubiaroaches.com I can post other sites later today