New Baby Beardie Parent/Grandparent?!

[Motherofdragons0727]

Hello! We actually just bought a 2 month old baby beardie for our son, for his birthday. He is in love with him and has named him Godzilla. He was eating meal worms but we've changed to little crickets as Godzilla was having trouble and come to find out, the "reptile expert" at Petland where we got him, totally misinformed us. I set up his tank and bulb and all and had done some research before getting into this but while buying him, the guy tells us a heating pad under the tank will work for night time so we buy one of those. Along with meal worms. After turning his day lamp off and heating pad on, the tank temp started dropping at a crazy rate. I was checking on him every 20 minutes during the night as I didn't want anything to happen to him but i fell asleep and woke up an hr later and his tank was 64 degrees Fahrenheit and he looked barely alive. I felt horrible. So I ended up turning his day lamp back on and praying he'd be okay with no sleep, being so young but I figured it'd be better than him getting to cold. So we went to a DIFFERENT pet store the next day and got a night bulb for him. He seems good with that though we do plan to get the ceramic heat emitters to replace the red night bulb as soon as we can for better sleep for him. He is now eating feeder crickets and loving them as I also read after bringing him home that newborn beardies can't correctly digest the meal worms due to their hard outer shells. He ate 5 right away of the worms the first night but then only a worm and a half the next day so we chose to switch. Our son had also put a little dinosaur toy in the tank and he seemed to like it but then that night, he was tank surfing and I read that as a sign of stress, so no more dinosaur toy. He's doing amazing now. We've had him about a week and he even looks forward to feeding times since we feed him same times daily. It started out as a difficult journey but definitely worth it!!

 

[Dexter_Dragon]

Awww luv the pics. I'm a new mom, too. My baby is a little over 2 months now. Sorry you had difficulties at the first store. I tend to come here first and ask advice then go get what I need. Lots of experienced peeps willing to help out. I made the mistake of trying to offer Dex meal worms, too, when I first got him. Thanking goodness he didn't seem interested in eating them. Phew! lol Also made the mistake of giving him romaine lettuce. Learned that's not good to give him at all. It's a learning curve for sure. Awww, luv the pic of him and his dino. Too bad he didn't take to it. Dex surfs once in a while now, but not very often. Mostly after I change something in his tank. I added his hammock last night and figured he'd surf, but he seems to be too busy treating it like a jungle gym to surf. lol Good luck with Godzilla. If you have any questions, ask away. Peeps here are friendly and helpful.

 

[Motherofdragons0727]

Yeah we're definitely in calmer waters now. Ive read that lettuce was dangerous, glad you found out before it was too late! I also heard that they do alot of tank surfing when they first move to a home as well so maybe that's why Godzilla was tank surfing? Im not positive but I figured while he's adjusting here, we're gonna try not to change too much so he can relax and feel at home a bit. Maybe dinosaur will have another trial run in a few months? Who knows!! And Dex is soo cute btw!!

 

[Dexter_Dragon]

Yeah we're definitely in calmer waters now. Ive read that lettuce was dangerous, glad you found out before it was too late! I also heard that they do alot of tank surfing when they first move to a home as well so maybe that's why Godzilla was tank surfing? Im not positive but I figured while he's adjusting here, we're gonna try not to change too much so he can relax and feel at home a bit. Maybe dinosaur will have another trial run in a few months? Who knows!! And Dex is soo cute btw!!

Yay! Yeah, glad I found out about the lettuce, too. Love this forum. I heard that too, about new environments causing surfing. Dex did surf for a bit when we first brought him home. He was in a tank with a sibling when I got him so being suddenly by himself may not have helped. He adjusted fairly quickly, though. Awww, glad to hear you'll try the dino again. lol I never thought to put a little buddy in Dex's tank. It's adorable. Might go upstairs and see if there are any dino's in the bins of toys I kept from when my children where young.

Thanks I think he's cute, too, but I'm biased being his mom. lol He's feeling a little under the weather at the moments as he's shedding. His appetite is a little down, but not alarmingly so. I'm concerned about his tail at the moment. He doesn't seem to be shedding it well. He's getting another bath this morning and maybe a brushing along his tail with a soft toothbrush.

 

[Motherofdragons0727]

I don't think i know a mom who isn't biased Fpur legged, scaley, human, etc haha
Aww, Poor little guy! Let me know how it goes!! Godzilla hasn't shredded yet but I know its coming

 

[Dexter_Dragon]

I don't think i know a mom who isn't biased Fpur legged, scaley, human, etc haha
Aww, Poor little guy! Let me know how it goes!! Godzilla hasn't shredded yet but I know its coming

lol IKR! Yeah, think he's just about done except for his tail. Hope Godzilla fairs better than Dex. His tail is being a pain.

 

[Motherofdragons0727]

lol IKR! Yeah, think he's just about done except for his tail. Hope Godzilla fairs better than Dex. His tail is being a pain.

For all the shedding posts ive read on, it seems like the tail is always a tricky spot. When you bathed him, how often dis you do it before he atarted shedding? And do you bathe him in distilled water or tap?

 

[Dexter_Dragon]

For all the shedding posts ive read on, it seems like the tail is always a tricky spot. When you bathed him, how often dis you do it before he atarted shedding? And do you bathe him in distilled water or tap?

I had only been giving him baths like every 3 days as he was still getting used to them. Initial bath freaked him out a little, I think. lol He went all spread eagle and never moved. Now he seems to enjoy them a little bit more and will lower himself to get at the water. One morning I noticed that he was a grayer/lighter color than normal and had little flakes around his chin and at the base of his tail. I gave him a bath and set him back on his basking rock. When I checked on him a bit later he was even more flaky. Since then I've giving him a bath every day. Once I gave him a bath twice in one day as he looked miserable and was hiding out in his cave rock. Looks like he still has a bit of flakes here and there, but think he's heading out of it. Except for the bottom half of his tail. Still looks grayish to me. If it doesn't shed or brighten up before his wellness check next week, I'm going to ask the doc about it.

 

[Motherofdragons0727]

Do you use any soap? I know when we had our hedgehog, all we could use was baby soap.

 

[averyhanna_]

you don’t need to use soap! baths aren’t so much for cleaning in that way. they help with shedding and digestion. your little guy looks so cute, and your son seems to love him too! very cute pictures!

in the photo of his enclosure, what are you using for substrate? is it loose? sometimes they can accidentally eat it and it and they can become impacted. you can also add some more branches and maybe a hammock to his enclosure to give him more to do. good luck!

 

[Motherofdragons0727]

Oh okay, cool. And yes, Godzilla couldn't be in a more loving home! Lol Thank you!! It's not loose sand, It's actually a mat that just looks like his natural environment. We have been looking for a hammock, vines, etc for his tank as well as a bigger tank for him too. I read before we got him that especially small dragons can get impacted from the certain substrates so we were very careful. Before i put it in his tank, I even shook off the excess and anything that was loose, went in the trash

 

[Silver dragons]

Hello and welcome to the Forum! If you have any questions feel free to ask!

 

[Motherofdragons0727]

Hello and welcome to the Forum! If you have any questions feel free to ask!

Thanks a ton!