New member from Ohio

[rowsley]

Hi everyone. Just recently acquired a baby bearded dragon the other day. Not sure if its a male or female. Ill assume male for now until i try the flashlight method. but we named it Kujo.

Pet store called it a hypo, but I really don't know that it is for sure. Right now its just in a 10 gallon until I can get my 100 gallon set up.

I was recommended by pet store a 50w basking bulb by eco terra and a 13w reptile desert uvb bulb by eco terra. They are just in 5 1/2 inch fixtures sitting on top of screen.

Was told they were all being fed and eating flukers buffet blend, which occasionally ive seen him do so. Also got the Dubia roaches which he loves. With the flukers calcium with vitamin d3 which was also recommend to use a couple times a week.

Hes got a root type basking spot where hes spends quite a bit of time and a little log hideaway but doesnt use it.

I went and bought a acu rite digital thermometer indoor/outdoor with indoor humidity. Not sure how accurate but seems to be reading somewhat accurate. 110 basking spot and 79 on the cool side right now. Humidity says 62% which seems a little high if its right.

He seems fine and has had no problems eating. He slept on his basking spot last night after lights went off. While Holding him he likes to cuddle it seems like.

I know my setup isn't nothing special but just trying to get by for now and would appreciate any comments tips, ideas, or if im doing something wrong. Don't have a ton of money for real fancy stuff but would like to make it as comfortable for him as I can.

I know about bathing him but haven't done it yet. Anyhow thanks for looking. Ive kept fish most of my life but I really think I have a new addiction. Bearded dragons are amazing creatures.

 

[Dragonmama]

Welcome to the crazy world of Beardies! lol What a cute little guy you have! One thing you will quickly discover is how much fun they are to have as a pet family member. I am a proud beardie Mama of 3 and each one of them are unique. Lighting is a crucial thing for Kujo. Keep up on it and make sure those bulbs get changed out at least every six months. Also try getting some fresh greens down him. Regular lettuce is not going to cut it, as it has zero nutritional value, instead opt for kale, mustard greens, collard greens, arugula etc. There are many good resources online with complete bearded dragon food lists. Butternut squash is another favorite in my house Don't forget to dust his veggies with Calcium to promote bone development! I dust my adults food 2-3x per week, and my young one everyday. Keep them bones healthy! You are going to experience many changes especially in the first year. Shedding, temperament and even picky eating habits. Just keep reading all the info you can get your hands on! On a side note, try to find a good Vet in your area that specializes in lizard health care. I live in a pretty big city and the closest one to us is an hour away. Well worth the trip for a good Doctor to care for your beardie. Best of luck to you and your new baby!!!

 

[PatsyB]

Welcome to the forum, he's a cutie! Like dragonmama said, try getting some fresh veggies in him a couple of good sites are http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html and http://greathousefarm.com/Greathouse-Reptile-Nutrition-List.pdf. I'm not a big fan of the dry diets. Those hard red pellets expand when they get wet so make sure you wet them down before he eats them. Live bugs are the best because not only do they get the protein but they also get the exercise hunting their food.

 

[rowsley]

Welcome to the crazy world of Beardies! lol What a cute little guy you have! One thing you will quickly discover is how much fun they are to have as a pet family member. I am a proud beardie Mama of 3 and each one of them are unique. Lighting is a crucial thing for Kujo. Keep up on it and make sure those bulbs get changed out at least every six months. Also try getting some fresh greens down him. Regular lettuce is not going to cut it, as it has zero nutritional value, instead opt for kale, mustard greens, collard greens, arugula etc. There are many good resources online with complete bearded dragon food lists. Butternut squash is another favorite in my house Don't forget to dust his veggies with Calcium to promote bone development! I dust my adults food 2-3x per week, and my young one everyday. Keep them bones healthy! You are going to experience many changes especially in the first year. Shedding, temperament and even picky eating habits. Just keep reading all the info you can get your hands on! On a side note, try to find a good Vet in your area that specializes in lizard health care. I live in a pretty big city and the closest one to us is an hour away. Well worth the trip for a good Doctor to care for your beardie. Best of luck to you and your new baby!!!

Thank you very much for replying. Will be getting veggies for him today to try. Thanks for the info about replacing the bulb at 6 months. The lady at our mom and pop shop pet store said it would be good for a year. Ide rather be safe than sorry. He's liking it right under the light. Just kinda worried about the temp right now. It has gradually risen and showing 114 around where he is basking. So maybe need to figure a way to raise the light a little.

Do you let yours on the floor? I did the day I got him and he started running really fast. Was funny and cute but I felt like I was a worried first time parent lol.

Thanks again for replying.[emoji2]

 

[rowsley]

Welcome to the forum, he's a cutie! Like dragonmama said, try getting some fresh veggies in him a couple of good sites are http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html and http://greathousefarm.com/Greathouse-Reptile-Nutrition-List.pdf. I'm not a big fan of the dry diets. Those hard red pellets expand when they get wet so make sure you wet them down before he eats them. Live bugs are the best because not only do they get the protein but they also get the exercise hunting their food.

Thanks PatsyB.

The dry food was just something she said they were eating at the pet store. Yes he really loves the dubia roaches. As soon as they hit the floor he is on them and they are gone. Thank you for the links. I will be sure to check them out.

 

[PatsyB]

You should probably consider getting a different type of UVB. Either a mercury vapor bulb (I don't know much about them) or a tube style UVB. You want the UVB to cover about 2/3's of the tank. With the coil bulbs they are only getting the UVB in that one spot. Plus, coil bulbs have been known in the past to cause eye problems.

114 in the basking area is on the high side but it's okay I wouldn't go any higher. I've always let mine out on the floor but I limit the rooms they can go into and watch them carefully. I know that there are no cracks in the wall that they can get into and nothing laying on the floor that they can eat. Occasionally one will decide to lay under a bookcase or something and I need to fish them out, LOL.

 

[Dragonmama]

I use tube lighting for my UVB on all the tanks, when you can try and save/look into changing out the fixtures. Patsy's link to greathouse farms...omg Beth is awesome! I have met her at Repticon and she is very helpful and good with all beardie questions. I have ordered several products from greathouse and have not been unsatisfied. Great link to check out for sure! I do let my adults run around the couch in the evening before they go to sleep, the baby, not so much I still just hold her mostly, only because she is quick and I don't want her to take a death defying leap off of me onto the ground lol. I will try and up load my set ups

 

[rowsley]

I do have a light fixture that takes t5 bulbs that I used on my planted tank. It holds 2 bulbs. Would I need 2 uvb bulbs or would 1 be plenty?

its a bit longer than this little tank but maybe i could cover part of the bulb in foil so only part of the tank gets ubv?
Sorry for all the questions but if I can make this fixture work, that would save me some money.

Thanks again

 

[Dragonmama]

My girls tank has the uvb tube going across the entire top of her tank, when I upgrade hers im still going to keep the old fixture and just move the basking light next to the tube fixture as opposed to in front of it. The set up has been working for us, but I too am always looking for suggestions =) She currently has one light in her fixture but my boys have 2 lights in theirs, I didn't set up their tank so I will have to ask my husband what he did/has running in there.
There are never enough questions to ask regarding these little guys. I still ask questions all the time, and learn new things about them everyday. Its almost trial and error sometimes =)

 

[rowsley]

Sweet. This little 10 gallon is only temporary. I've got to rehome some fish then he will have a 100 gallon tank. Let me know what your husbands says as far as using 1 light to 2. Maybe just covers more area for a wider enclosure.

 

[rowsley]

Well just did the flashlight test in the dark. There were no black spots like the male would have. Almost positive kujo is a female

 

[Elemental Dragon Lord]

First off you may want to wait to sex, wait until 6 months unless you want to pruine him. Second you want to feed babies 3 times a day until they are about 6 months old. Third you want to get rid of that dry food, chances are high it's a gmo and you dont want to hurt your dragon. Fourth, welcome to your new addiction

 

[PatsyB]

The T5 bulb is strong, I would only use one bulb. I forgot to comment something on your original post. Hypo means lacking in black pigment, you can easily tell if you have a hypo by looking at the nails. If all 10 nails are completely clear then you have your self a hypo.

Like dragonmama, I have the UVB running across the entire top of my tank too. I just make sure they have plenty of places to hide to get away from the light if they want to.

 

[rowsley]

First off you may want to wait to sex, wait until 6 months unless you want to pruine him. Second you want to feed babies 3 times a day until they are about 6 months old. Third you want to get rid of that dry food, chances are high it's a gmo and you dont want to hurt your dragon. Fourth, welcome to your new addiction

Was only saying I thought I had a female after watching this video of this guy showing how to sex them using a light pen.

I dunno he just says they can be sexed very young. More or less just curious if I could tell.

Im looking into different food. Like I said it was recommended by the pet shop. Kujo doesnt seem interested in it anyhow.

Thanks for the response. I appreciate it.

 

[rowsley]

The T5 bulb is strong, I would only use one bulb. I forgot to comment something on your original post. Hypo means lacking in black pigment, you can easily tell if you have a hypo by looking at the nails. If all 10 nails are completely clear then you have your self a hypo.

Like dragonmama, I have the UVB running across the entire top of my tank too. I just make sure they have plenty of places to hide to get away from the light if they want to.

Good to know on the t5. Im definitely looking to get a bulb for the fixture tomorrow. It won't go across the entire length though. Maybe later down the road. I just actually got home. We went and got a new terrarium. My wife picked out another baby beardie. Ill post some pics of the new setup when light is back on. Kujo and yoshi are both sleeping.

Ill also check out their nails. Thanks for the info.

 

[PatsyB]

I wouldn't house the two together. BD's are solitary animals and one will usually dominate over the other. Also, you don't want to house a male and a female together unless you want babies.

 

[rowsley]

I wouldn't house the two together. BD's are solitary animals and one will usually dominate over the other. Also, you don't want to house a male and a female together unless you want babies.

Well they are in the same terrarium together as of now. We have been watching them closely. Usually one is laying on top of the other. Yoshi is the new baby on the left. Kujo's colors have exploded in the last few days.

 

[rowsley]

But regardless I do understand what you're saying. Once I can rehome my cichlids ill have my 100 gallon available. I just got started a few days ago, and its definitely been a learning experience. I surely dont want any harm to them after what we have put into them.

Ordered new 36inch t5 fixture and uvb bulb from dr foster and smith today too.

I do take what you and everyone else says very seriously. And appreciate it very much so thank you
Oh and got some butternut squash to try

 

[Dragonmama]

ok. sorry for my late reply regarding lighting, in our adult males tanks (they are separated but share the UVB lighting fixture) it is a 10.0 UVB 32 W, each have basking lights with 150w bulbs. Each adult is in a 40 gallon enclosure. The baby who is 4 months old is in a 20 gallon tank, soon to be moved up to 40. Her UVB is a 10.0 32 W as well, with a 100 W basking bulb.

Hey! how did the butternut squash go? lol hope everyone following this thread is having a great weekend!

 

[rowsley]

ok. sorry for my late reply regarding lighting, in our adult males tanks (they are separated but share the UVB lighting fixture) it is a 10.0 UVB 32 W, each have basking lights with 150w bulbs. Each adult is in a 40 gallon enclosure. The baby who is 4 months old is in a 20 gallon tank, soon to be moved up to 40. Her UVB is a 10.0 32 W as well, with a 100 W basking bulb.

Hey! how did the butternut squash go? lol hope everyone following this thread is having a great weekend!

Hey. I've had no luck at all getting them to touch it. I also tried strawberries, and a vegetable mix that's made for bearded dragons. Any tips?

So about lighting. This is what i ordered this morning. Hopefully its good, and should definitely be a upgrade from what I'm using now.

Exo Terra Sun Glo Basking Spot Lamp 100W

Med ReptiSun T5 HO High Output Terrarium Hood 36"
That will fit exactly across my entire terrarium.

ReptiSun 10.0 UVB T5 HO High Output Linear Lamp 39W, 34"