Hello, all.
I recently purchased a BD from my local Petco and brought him home. I set up its tank and put him in. at first, he seemed just lazy, but would still walk around and eat properly. I soaked him 3 times a week, always had romaine lettuce or Bearded Dragon bites for him, and constantly had a supply of crickets. I had his Heat lamp on 12 hours a day and his UVA/UVB lamp on all day. i handled him frequently, let him run around, and made sure he always had water. My only mistake, was using a orange sand substrate that came with the Bearded Dragon starter kit i bought, that came with two lamps, 2 bulbs, the tank, a screen for the top, a water and food dish, some dry BD food, some water treatment liquid, vitamins, and calcium powder. After about a week, i took the substrate out, after reading about Impaction in a book, a care sheet, and this website. ;D (Thanks all!
) i replaced this with paper towels, and eventually a reptile pad (that reminds me of green outdoor carpet). My little buddy (Who i named Dorito, because his claws were stained by the dang substrate, so he looked as if he was munching on doritos... lol) eventually pooped after about a day of owning him. it was quite runny, and this set off alarms, because i was told to watch for this, as it means he could have parasites. He was also very lethargic, but i thought this was normal since he was a reptile. after about 2 weeks of owning him, he wasn't moving at all. he would sleep all day, and wouldn't move unless i moved him. he would poop and sleep in it, seemingly not caring. My brother eventually commented that it looked as if he was losing weight, so after sixteen days of owning him, i reluctantly took my little buddy back to the store. Looking back at pictures of him, and pictures of Beardies from this website, i realized he was already extrememly thin. Normal beardies are wide, but Dorito was thin. (Pics later). any comments or advice? i want my next BD to be healthy and happy for years to come.
I recently purchased a BD from my local Petco and brought him home. I set up its tank and put him in. at first, he seemed just lazy, but would still walk around and eat properly. I soaked him 3 times a week, always had romaine lettuce or Bearded Dragon bites for him, and constantly had a supply of crickets. I had his Heat lamp on 12 hours a day and his UVA/UVB lamp on all day. i handled him frequently, let him run around, and made sure he always had water. My only mistake, was using a orange sand substrate that came with the Bearded Dragon starter kit i bought, that came with two lamps, 2 bulbs, the tank, a screen for the top, a water and food dish, some dry BD food, some water treatment liquid, vitamins, and calcium powder. After about a week, i took the substrate out, after reading about Impaction in a book, a care sheet, and this website. ;D (Thanks all!
) i replaced this with paper towels, and eventually a reptile pad (that reminds me of green outdoor carpet). My little buddy (Who i named Dorito, because his claws were stained by the dang substrate, so he looked as if he was munching on doritos... lol) eventually pooped after about a day of owning him. it was quite runny, and this set off alarms, because i was told to watch for this, as it means he could have parasites. He was also very lethargic, but i thought this was normal since he was a reptile. after about 2 weeks of owning him, he wasn't moving at all. he would sleep all day, and wouldn't move unless i moved him. he would poop and sleep in it, seemingly not caring. My brother eventually commented that it looked as if he was losing weight, so after sixteen days of owning him, i reluctantly took my little buddy back to the store. Looking back at pictures of him, and pictures of Beardies from this website, i realized he was already extrememly thin. Normal beardies are wide, but Dorito was thin. (Pics later). any comments or advice? i want my next BD to be healthy and happy for years to come. 
thanks for bearing with me... its 3 am and im logged in on my cellphone. Haha. Id also like to thank you guys for all the help, tips, and advice given. Its helped me alot, and hopefully my next beardie will be with me for a long time.