New Dragon Mom

[alicesfalling]

Hello,

My name is Toni. I have a baby bearded dragon named Clara (pronounced Clah-Rah after The Doctor's companion in Doctor Who). I was thrust into Dragon motherhood when my husband decided to buy Clara for my daughter while I was at work about three weeks ago.

Needless to say, she is my responsibility and I'm in very unknown territory. I've done a lot of research and I do my best to give her what she needs but it's like having a newborn again:
Is she crying because she's gassy or because she has internal injuries and she's going to die? Is she sleeping in the corner instead of her regular spot tonight because she is depressed and her health is dwindling or did she just feel like a change of pace?

I have a million questions but the most pressing right now are:
What can I put up on the sides of her tank so she'll stop obsessing over her reflection? She glass dances and runs back and forth and when she catches sight of herself, she stops eating to gaze at herself and there's no getting her to eat after that. I need to know the best inside covering that's fairly inexpensive that crickets can't crawl up. And how to reduce the glare on the front glass.

Floor, I've tried paper towels and cereal boxes and crickets can hide under both even when I tape them down. If Clara can't see them, she won't eat them. I've seen tile suggested but I would have absolutely no idea how to go about that. Any info on tile or any other suggestions welcome.

Thermometer. I have a stick on thermometer I can barely read in the hot spot and another one with a cord I can dangle inside the tank and read the temp outside. That one works great but I have to move it back and forth in the tank to get temps for all areas. I need to know what kind of thermometer is best and also humidity gauge and how to make tank more or less hot/humid if readings are off.

Calcium and vitamins, what to get and where to get it . Read a lot about Calcium and Calcium + D3, switching off but there's also some super calcium that has everything? My husband got our stuff from the person who sold Clara. That person also sent Clara home with a substrate that was supposedly easily washable and the rocks were glued on but when rinsed, tons of orange dye and rocks puddled in the bath. So if he thought that was safe, I doubt the calcium and vitamins are high quality.

Veggies. I've read babies don't like veggies but they're supposed to eat them anyway. How? I've tried many things and all shell eat is mustard greens, maybe, if I'm lucky. The most she'll eat is one and then she won't touch them and they shrivel up and go to waste, every day. Ideas?

I bathe her twice a week in warm water and rub her belly and she always poops. I give her love and snuggle her at least once a day for at least 10-20 mins. I know about the height thing, I am very careful. I wrap her up in my robe when she gets cold. I have an ExoTerra 2 in 1 bulb. She does not have a hidey spot in her tank but I'm considering getting something just for nighttime. Any suggestions? When I let her out, she loves to curl up inside a sweater or blanket or underneath a stuffed animal. She also managed to wedge herself into this tight spot in my daughter's play kitchen oven and tried to go to sleep... Seemed uncomfortable but to each her own.

Sorry, that was more than I intended. I hate to ask so much when I just got here but I've had her for three weeks and this is the first time I've actually been able to sit down and compose a message. And even now my daughter is making giant messes and rocking violently in her rocking chair to try to steal my attention. But that's having and almost five year old child... and a husband child.... and a lizard baby.

I can't wait to talk with some of the people on here. Hope everyone is having a good day.

Toni

 

[baldegale14]

Hello,

My name is Toni. I have a baby bearded dragon named Clara (pronounced Clah-Rah after The Doctor's companion in Doctor Who). I was thrust into Dragon motherhood when my husband decided to buy Clara for my daughter while I was at work about three weeks ago.

Needless to say, she is my responsibility and I'm in very unknown territory. I've done a lot of research and I do my best to give her what she needs but it's like having a newborn again:
Is she crying because she's gassy or because she has internal injuries and she's going to die? Is she sleeping in the corner instead of her regular spot tonight because she is depressed and her health is dwindling or did she just feel like a change of pace?

I have a million questions but the most pressing right now are:
What can I put up on the sides of her tank so she'll stop obsessing over her reflection? She glass dances and runs back and forth and when she catches sight of herself, she stops eating to gaze at herself and there's no getting her to eat after that. I need to know the best inside covering that's fairly inexpensive that crickets can't crawl up. And how to reduce the glare on the front glass.

Floor, I've tried paper towels and cereal boxes and crickets can hide under both even when I tape them down. If Clara can't see them, she won't eat them. I've seen tile suggested but I would have absolutely no idea how to go about that. Any info on tile or any other suggestions welcome.

Thermometer. I have a stick on thermometer I can barely read in the hot spot and another one with a cord I can dangle inside the tank and read the temp outside. That one works great but I have to move it back and forth in the tank to get temps for all areas. I need to know what kind of thermometer is best and also humidity gauge and how to make tank more or less hot/humid if readings are off.

Calcium and vitamins, what to get and where to get it . Read a lot about Calcium and Calcium + D3, switching off but there's also some super calcium that has everything? My husband got our stuff from the person who sold Clara. That person also sent Clara home with a substrate that was supposedly easily washable and the rocks were glued on but when rinsed, tons of orange dye and rocks puddled in the bath. So if he thought that was safe, I doubt the calcium and vitamins are high quality.

Veggies. I've read babies don't like veggies but they're supposed to eat them anyway. How? I've tried many things and all shell eat is mustard greens, maybe, if I'm lucky. The most she'll eat is one and then she won't touch them and they shrivel up and go to waste, every day. Ideas?

I bathe her twice a week in warm water and rub her belly and she always poops. I give her love and snuggle her at least once a day for at least 10-20 mins. I know about the height thing, I am very careful. I wrap her up in my robe when she gets cold. I have an ExoTerra 2 in 1 bulb. She does not have a hidey spot in her tank but I'm considering getting something just for nighttime. Any suggestions? When I let her out, she loves to curl up inside a sweater or blanket or underneath a stuffed animal. She also managed to wedge herself into this tight spot in my daughter's play kitchen oven and tried to go to sleep... Seemed uncomfortable but to each her own.

Sorry, that was more than I intended. I hate to ask so much when I just got here but I've had her for three weeks and this is the first time I've actually been able to sit down and compose a message. And even now my daughter is making giant messes and rocking violently in her rocking chair to try to steal my attention. But that's having and almost five year old child... and a husband child.... and a lizard baby.

I can't wait to talk with some of the people on here. Hope everyone is having a good day.

Toni

1) what size tank do you have? give measurements if you dont know the standard gallons

2) i think you can buy etched glass vinyl film on amazon and put it on the inside

3) you can use ceramic tiles, repticarpet (green or brown felt essentially), or artificial grass

4) thermometers, youre gonna want two stick on thermometers, one on the basking side, one on the cool side, and a hygrometer in the middle

5) calcium, if i remember correctly you use calcium WITH d3 once every week or two, but calcium without d3 all the time mainly

6) ive never had issues with them eating veggies so i dont know how to go about this. but just off basic knowledge id try and mix some brightly colored squash in there to see if she goes at it

7) 2 in 1 bulb, so no uvb? youre gonna wanna get a “Reptisun T5HO UVB” fixture and a “reptisun T5HO 10.0 bulb” that goes along with the length, thats gonna cost like $50-$70 combined i think. i can send links if necessary

8) youre gonna wanna put a hide in there, mine doesnt use his personally but that doesnt mean yours wont, theyre all different

9) mine always tries to find a warm spot and curls up, especially if its chilly in the room. i always try to turn off all fans and windows to eliminate any draft


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[Hdrydr31]

Hello,

My name is Toni. I have a baby bearded dragon named Clara (pronounced Clah-Rah after The Doctor's companion in Doctor Who). I was thrust into Dragon motherhood when my husband decided to buy Clara for my daughter while I was at work about three weeks ago.

Needless to say, she is my responsibility and I'm in very unknown territory. I've done a lot of research and I do my best to give her what she needs but it's like having a newborn again:
Is she crying because she's gassy or because she has internal injuries and she's going to die? Is she sleeping in the corner instead of her regular spot tonight because she is depressed and her health is dwindling or did she just feel like a change of pace?

I have a million questions but the most pressing right now are:
What can I put up on the sides of her tank so she'll stop obsessing over her reflection? She glass dances and runs back and forth and when she catches sight of herself, she stops eating to gaze at herself and there's no getting her to eat after that. I need to know the best inside covering that's fairly inexpensive that crickets can't crawl up. And how to reduce the glare on the front glass.

Floor, I've tried paper towels and cereal boxes and crickets can hide under both even when I tape them down. If Clara can't see them, she won't eat them. I've seen tile suggested but I would have absolutely no idea how to go about that. Any info on tile or any other suggestions welcome.

Thermometer. I have a stick on thermometer I can barely read in the hot spot and another one with a cord I can dangle inside the tank and read the temp outside. That one works great but I have to move it back and forth in the tank to get temps for all areas. I need to know what kind of thermometer is best and also humidity gauge and how to make tank more or less hot/humid if readings are off.

Calcium and vitamins, what to get and where to get it . Read a lot about Calcium and Calcium + D3, switching off but there's also some super calcium that has everything? My husband got our stuff from the person who sold Clara. That person also sent Clara home with a substrate that was supposedly easily washable and the rocks were glued on but when rinsed, tons of orange dye and rocks puddled in the bath. So if he thought that was safe, I doubt the calcium and vitamins are high quality.

Veggies. I've read babies don't like veggies but they're supposed to eat them anyway. How? I've tried many things and all shell eat is mustard greens, maybe, if I'm lucky. The most she'll eat is one and then she won't touch them and they shrivel up and go to waste, every day. Ideas?

I bathe her twice a week in warm water and rub her belly and she always poops. I give her love and snuggle her at least once a day for at least 10-20 mins. I know about the height thing, I am very careful. I wrap her up in my robe when she gets cold. I have an ExoTerra 2 in 1 bulb. She does not have a hidey spot in her tank but I'm considering getting something just for nighttime. Any suggestions? When I let her out, she loves to curl up inside a sweater or blanket or underneath a stuffed animal. She also managed to wedge herself into this tight spot in my daughter's play kitchen oven and tried to go to sleep... Seemed uncomfortable but to each her own.

Sorry, that was more than I intended. I hate to ask so much when I just got here but I've had her for three weeks and this is the first time I've actually been able to sit down and compose a message. And even now my daughter is making giant messes and rocking violently in her rocking chair to try to steal my attention. But that's having and almost five year old child... and a husband child.... and a lizard baby.

I can't wait to talk with some of the people on here. Hope everyone is having a good day.

Toni

Welcome to the forum and to the world of beardies!!
Alot of your questions can be answered by taking a look at the links below several of our comments, we have put together info for new comers that goes over all areas of care of these critters.
The most important items are Lighting: UVB Reptisun T5 HO 10.0 fixture and bulb or the like. You need a basking bulb for heat. They need both of these items for proper digestion and absorption of the nutrients and synthesis of D3 and calcium.. NO lighting at night time, no colored lighting at all as this doesn't allow their eyes to function well, lighting of any color at night doesn't allow them to actually sleep as they have an organ ontop of their head called the 3rd eye parietal eye that senses light/shadows.
Temps: In the link we've got the ranges of temps you need to reach... The stick on gauges only read the temps on the glass that they are stuck to so get yourself a IR temp gun (I got mine from an auto parts store for 20 bucks, that way you can read the temps where ever you point the beam)
Substrate: Ceramic tiles, slate, repticarpet, paper towels, newspaper, non stick shelf paper..
You may want to cover 3 sides of the glass with the shelf liner (I've done that with all 3 of mine) to cut down on the reflection as well as making them feel more relaxed.
Hides: you want to do 1 on the cool side and 1 on the warm side so they can hide if they want to and sleep..

This will get you going in a good direction...read the info in the links (can also be found in the general care section at the top of the posts) as that will help alot..

 

[alicesfalling]

This is the bulb I have
http://www.exo-terra.com/en/products/solar_glo.php
She is in a 20 gallon tank, I'm not sure of her exact age but she's about 8.5 inches long. Do I need to get a 40 gallon tank right now or can it wait awhile? If so, when will I need to upgrade?
Do I have to cook the squash? Is yellow squash okay? Or prechopped butternut squash?

 

[baldegale14]

This is the bulb I have
http://www.exo-terra.com/en/products/solar_glo.php
She is in a 20 gallon tank, I'm not sure of her exact age but she's about 8.5 inches long. Do I need to get a 40 gallon tank right now or can it wait awhile? If so, when will I need to upgrade?
Do I have to cook the squash? Is yellow squash okay? Or prechopped butternut squash?

you’re gonna wanna upgrade within a few months to a 40 BREEDER probably, also youre gonna need a different UVB im pretty sure. uncooked butternut squash is fine


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[Hdrydr31]

This is the bulb I have
http://www.exo-terra.com/en/products/solar_glo.php
She is in a 20 gallon tank, I'm not sure of her exact age but she's about 8.5 inches long. Do I need to get a 40 gallon tank right now or can it wait awhile? If so, when will I need to upgrade?
Do I have to cook the squash? Is yellow squash okay? Or prechopped butternut squash?

The sooner the better to get a bigger tank as they don't always like change to much lol
No you don't need to cook the squash some people grate it up, any squash is good. If you take a look at the links below several of our comments you will find some links there is a food link and they tell you how often an item is to be fed, how to prep it..
MVB are good bulbs they can be on the pricey side but good ones

 

[Hdrydr31]

you’re gonna wanna upgrade within a few months to a 40 BREEDER probably, also youre gonna need a different UVB im pretty sure. uncooked butternut squash is fine


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Actually baldegale14 the UVB bulb is fine it's a Mercury vapor bulb they are a combo basking and UVB bulb, they are more pricey and some really like them and some don't.

 

[alicesfalling]

Yeah, I'm going to need a bigger tank. She's losing her mind. I painted the back and sides outside the tank with my daughter's washable paints. I guess the look of it made her think she could climb it or something because she launched herself at the wall and toppled over. The front glass is the most reflective and she was madly pawing at it today and rubbing her nose on the glass. She really wants to meet this mysterious other lizard that always seems to be watching her. I'm really worried. I let her run around for 30 minutes today and when she started to get cold and tired I put her under my shirt and did the dishes while she slept on me. She seemed to be better after that but an hour or two after she was stressing out again.

On the bright side, she loves butternut squash!!! she ate like 5 or six pieces willingly! It made me feel a bit better since she has barely eaten for a couple days. She just lets the crickets roam and pays them no mind. She's eaten a few but not nearly what she had before. She has been rubbing the sides of her face on her stick which I think means she's shedding, that may explain the lack of appetite but even so, I know she's stressed and something needs to be done.

I read that mercury bulbs like the one I have supply all the d3 so I ordered calcium and vitamins without d3. The stuff we've been giving her has d3 so I hope she hasn't been getting toxic levels.

Thank you everyone for the replies, you have all been so helpful.

 

[Hdrydr31]

Yeah, I'm going to need a bigger tank. She's losing her mind. I painted the back and sides outside the tank with my daughter's washable paints. I guess the look of it made her think she could climb it or something because she launched herself at the wall and toppled over. The front glass is the most reflective and she was madly pawing at it today and rubbing her nose on the glass. She really wants to meet this mysterious other lizard that always seems to be watching her. I'm really worried. I let her run around for 30 minutes today and when she started to get cold and tired I put her under my shirt and did the dishes while she slept on me. She seemed to be better after that but an hour or two after she was stressing out again.

On the bright side, she loves butternut squash!!! she ate like 5 or six pieces willingly! It made me feel a bit better since she has barely eaten for a couple days. She just lets the crickets roam and pays them no mind. She's eaten a few but not nearly what she had before. She has been rubbing the sides of her face on her stick which I think means she's shedding, that may explain the lack of appetite but even so, I know she's stressed and something needs to be done.

I read that mercury bulbs like the one I have supply all the d3 so I ordered calcium and vitamins without d3. The stuff we've been giving her has d3 so I hope she hasn't been getting toxic levels.

Thank you everyone for the replies, you have all been so helpful.

Provide her with lots of hiding spots in the bigger tank and know that they have poor depth perception, her behavior isn't uncommon for young dragons. They glass surf, they act crazy..
Make sure you are getting accurate temp readings with the MVB and a small tank it might be too hot in there? if she's starting a shed it can explain things it's like having a sunburn that's peeling off. itchy itchy..
sounds like your doing just fine with supplements in the links we have a detailed program written out.. The only addition would be that repashy has a fantastic all in one powder that is perfect for everyday use called calcium plus..

 

[alicesfalling]

Hey all, I started feeding her superworms day before yesterday and she loves them, more than the crickets, I fed some crickets and some superworms yesterday morning, and she ate 13 superworms covered in calcium last night. This morning I turned her light on and she was resting in her usual spot on her stick. I leave the room and come back and it looks like she threw up a large pile of undigested superworms. She was lying flat on her belly next to them. I got her to drink a little water then she moved to her rock in the corner and is still flat on her belly, like she doesn't want to move. Also half of her tail has been darker/black since last night. Help??!!

 

[alicesfalling]

Pics

 

[Hdrydr31]

Hey all, I started feeding her superworms day before yesterday and she loves them, more than the crickets, I fed some crickets and some superworms yesterday morning, and she ate 13 superworms covered in calcium last night. This morning I turned her light on and she was resting in her usual spot on her stick. I leave the room and come back and it looks like she threw up a large pile of undigested superworms. She was lying flat on her belly next to them. I got her to drink a little water then she moved to her rock in the corner and is still flat on her belly, like she doesn't want to move. Also half of her tail has been darker/black since last night. Help??!!

That's alot of supers for a night time feeding, how long did she have with the lights on before the lights went out for the night?? Be careful with supers as they are high in fat and they really like them and will tend to hold out for them. They are a really good feeder However you need to give them along with another good feeder like dubia, silkworms, and so on..
If they don't have enough time to digest they may throw them up as digestion needs heat and UVB. Or they ate too many and will throw them up.
Also you may want to add some hides for her to help her feel more secure..

 

[alicesfalling]

I guess I should have checked how much to feed her before I went ahead. I just got so excited that she was eating because she hasn’t wanted to eat much. Light was on for 3-4 hours before lights out.

 

[baldegale14]

I guess I should have checked how much to feed her before I went ahead. I just got so excited that she was eating because she hasn’t wanted to eat much. Light was on for 3-4 hours before lights out.

definitely sounds like you fed too much because i always heard to feed at least 2 hours before bed time


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[Hdrydr31]

definitely sounds like you fed too much because i always heard to feed at least 2 hours before bed time


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Yea the typical time is 2 hours prior to lights off is ideal min of an hour but isn't recommended.

 

[Hdrydr31]

I guess I should have checked how much to feed her before I went ahead. I just got so excited that she was eating because she hasn’t wanted to eat much. Light was on for 3-4 hours before lights out.

I hear ya on the excitement been there done that lol
I only give mine 2-4 1 time per day to every few days. Your doing fine we've all done things and this is how we learn we all started new to things.

 

[baldegale14]

Yea the typical time is 2 hours prior to lights off is ideal min of an hour but isn't recommended.

i feed morning/afternoon anyways, never really applied to me tbh


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[Sander Andrade]

As of the tail, mine has the same tail coloring. Shes all gray with a smokey looking half end of her tail. It's very vague coloring but it's there for about almost 2 months now. And she's just undergone into a shed so I'm guessing it's fine.

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