newbe..Concerned for new baby beardy..need advice

[kjpetriel]

My son asked for a beardy for his birthday.
We have no previous experience with reptiles.
The people at the different pet stores I have stopped at seem to be fairly consistent with their advice.

"Feed the baby beardy 8 - 10 small crickets in the morning and 8 in the after noon. Make sure that there are non left in the cage when switch to the night light."

We got "Spike" two days ago. He seems alert and active. I never knew a lizard could actually have a personality.
BUT.... he doesn't seem to eat very much.. Yesterday and today, more than half of the crickets remain alive. They even walk right up to him and over his front feet.
He seemed to enjoy the kale I gave him.

Temperature in the cage is around 80 on the floor up to 100 at the top of the log which just under the uva/uv-b bulb.

 

[Germ]

When a new BD is brought home, there is an acclimation period that generally lasts as much as a week to 10 days. During this time it is best to handle the BD as little as possible, other than for necessary husbandry & enclosure maintenance, to make the transition as stress free for the animal as possible. It is common for their appetite to be affected during this time & may eat less or maybe not at all in the beginning.

I suggest reading over this BD Basic Care Guide along with the color coded Greens Nutrition list & doing further research ...
Bearded Dragon Basic Care Guide
Beautiful Dragons Nutrition List

It is also suggested that a fresh supply of appropriate sized cut greens be made available daily, even if it does not eat them to start with, so they are there when it chooses to test them out. Some take to their greens right away, others not for months.

If the BD is a Juvenile the basking temp should be in the vicinity of 110F. How old is it? What size is the enclosure? What brand & type are the Basking & UVB Bulbs.

Pictures of the enclosure are a great help & we always like to see other's BDs. We will do our best to answer questions that you may have.

Good Luck

 

[Aleena]

My son asked for a beardy for his birthday.

"Feed the baby beardy 8 - 10 small crickets in the morning and 8 in the after noon. Make sure that there are non left in the cage when switch to the night light."

Welcome to BDF!

There shouldn't be a night light at all. Lights at night bother the poor thing, and make it difficult for them to sleep. Those reptile kits with night lights don't apply to bearded dragons, they apply to different kinds of reptiles. Baby beardies can eat upwards of 30 crickets/day to stay healthy and growing if they're a big eater... but they may not eat much in the first week of being placed in their new environment. Make sure you are providing food for him just in case!

 

[Germ]

Yup missed the night light . Would like to add, night heat is not needed or wanted, unless the ambient room temps drop below the Mid to Low 60sF at night. If this happens to be the case, a CHE (Ceramic Heat Emitter) is recommended, fits in a regular light socket like a bulb, emits heat but no light. BDs should be allowed to cool at night, slows the metabolism for a good nights sleep.

What type of substrate are you using?

 

[kjpetriel]

Having now read must of the beginners guide, it seems that much of the advice given by the local pet shops are contrary to what is truely required.
For instance, nowbody said anything about dusting the BD. You would have thought that the pet shop would like to sell more products.
The night light we have is red, and is there for heat. We're cheap and during the winter the bedrooms can get down to 50 degrees. He has ample space under his log is he needs darkness.

At the directions of all the pet shops (including one names Dave's Dragons) the whole family (all six of us) have been handling the poor thing many times a day. I had him on my shoulder as I was working on my laptop, and he was content to just sit and watch.

I was told not to feed him anything larger than the space between his eyes. But that greens could be put in whole and that he would nibble as needed.
Apples, berries, squash to be softened and cut.

The pet shop said crickets one day and meal worms the next. Although he hasn't eatten even one of the worms. The other thing we were told was to keep a small supply of dry baby BD pellets in a bowl. This didn't make sense to me, but that what we did.

There is also a water bowl from him to splash around in. Again he is not interrested.
We were also told to spray him with water once a day so he gets water.

Thanks for your help!
-Kevin

View attachment 1503

 

[Aleena]

Having now read must of the beginners guide, it seems that much of the advice given by the local pet shops are contrary to what is truely required.
For instance, nowbody said anything about dusting the BD. You would have thought that the pet shop would like to sell more products.
The night light we have is red, and is there for heat. We're cheap and during the winter the bedrooms can get down to 50 degrees. He has ample space under his log is he needs darkness.

At the directions of all the pet shops (including one names Dave's Dragons) the whole family (all six of us) have been handling the poor thing many times a day. I had him on my shoulder as I was working on my laptop, and he was content to just sit and watch.

I was told not to feed him anything larger than the space between his eyes. But that greens could be put in whole and that he would nibble as needed.
Apples, berries, squash to be softened and cut.

The pet shop said crickets one day and meal worms the next. Although he hasn't eatten even one of the worms. The other thing we were told was to keep a small supply of dry baby BD pellets in a bowl. This didn't make sense to me, but that what we did.

There is also a water bowl from him to splash around in. Again he is not interrested.
We were also told to spray him with water once a day so he gets water.

Thanks for your help!
-Kevin

This is a lot of info, so sorry:

I'm sorry you were so misled. So were most of us when we started out! As Germ mentioned earlier, all veggies and fruit need to be finely chopped for your baby. There's also a vitamin supplement I put on my veggies. It is always best to provide fresh veggies for your beardie every day, even though they usually ignore it when they're babies they will eventually become curious and start to nibble at it.

Meal worms aren't the best choice for young dragons as they are difficult to digest and can cause impaction in young dragons. Don't dust your dragon, dust the crickets !

If that is a ten gallon, unfortunately it is not large enough. You will need a 20 long in order to provide the proper heat gradient for your baby, however it will need a 40 breeder as it grows so it is up to you if you want to get the larger enclosure earlier on.

I provide a water dish for all my dragons, but it isn't required. My adults will go lounge in it when they want, but they still get a bath 1-2 times a week that they can't escape. They won't like their baths, just make sure it isn't very deep for your baby, it should be able to stand in it without its back being completely covered. You can also mist your dragon.

Colored light is an irritant to Bearded Dragons, if your enclosure can drop below mid 60's at night is the only time that heat should be provided at night, they need the cool down period. There are ceramic heat emitters or CHE's for night time heat that emit no light and would be better for your Beardie.

The reptile carpet works great for beardies, as it has no particles and can't be run through the digestive system so that's great that you have that.

 

[Germ]

Hey Kevin,

I am going to go out on a limb here & guess that you may be using this kit or something very similar.

Although it has been asked, you have not mentioned if you are using an actual UVB bulb & it sounds like you may not have one. This is a required part of the husbandry where there is no compromise & is explained below. This is feeling like a Dejavu & I am not going to pull any punches. If you check recent posts (Do a search for the words 'Died', then 'Dead'), this week, on this forum alone, there have been 2 youngsters die, as a direct result of being kept in the above setup, which is all wrong & quite dangerous to the health & wellbeing of the animal! The keepers asked for help too late or did not heed the advice in time.

Pellets should never be fed dry. Requires too much of their bodily fluids in order to digest them & can very quickly lead to dehydration. Pellets should always be moistened prior to feeding, which will also aid in hydration. I have used those same RepCal pellets & still use the adult version, I put just enough water in the feeding dish to moisten them until they swell & are soft right through, then drain off any excess water prior to feeding. Leaving any excess water in the dish makes them too wet and won't stick to their tongue, difficult to grab with their mouth & they soon tire of trying.

Very few BDs will recognize standing water. Many of us do not provide a water dish for this reason, none of mine will use it & it just raises the humidity in the enclosure unnecessarily. Humidity is quite high where I live so I don't need any more.

Basking Temps should be taken directly at the basking spot (The closest area the BD can get to the Heat Bulb) & should be in the vicinity of 110F for a Juvenile, 95F-105F for an adult. The cool side temp should be taken at the opposite end of the enclosure from the basking Bulb, near or on the floor & should be in the 80F-85F range, providing the necessary Heat gradient, for them to choose & regulate their body temps, which is virtually impossible to achieve in a 10 Gal tank. Analog thermometers are well known for their inaccuracy (have been known to be out as much as 20%) & are difficult to get accurate temps in the right spots. Digital thermometers with a sensor that can be placed anywhere in the enclosure, or an Infrared thermometer (Temp Gun) are highly recommended.

Both Heat & UVB lights (Specialty Fluorescent Coil or Tube Bulbs formulated to emit UVB) should be above, covering the basking spot, on for 12-14 hrs a day, off for the rest, consistently, On/Off at the same time of the day, everyday. An electronic timer is a really good, inexpensive option. These are not Cats or Dogs & should not be treated as such pets. Extended time spent outside of a properly set up enclosure, robs them of the time under the basking heat needed to digest their food properly, along with the UVB rays, missing in captivity from the sun, required for their body to manufacture Vit D3, which in turn enables their system to process their much needed Calcium intake. Without sufficient UVB exposure they can not process their calcium, leading to, among other serious ailments, crippling & often deadly MBD (Metabolic Bone Disease). UVB cannot pass through solid filters such as glass or plastic, so placing the enclosure in front of a window is not beneficial to them & can cause quite dangerous heat spikes in the enclosure because of the sun's heat magnification through the glass.

The majority of the feeders they eat have a very poor Calcium/Phosphorus ratio, so feeders must dusted with Calcium in order to supplement this.

Although BDs are well known for their calm demeanor & their ability to tolerate handling well, most BDs would just as well be left alone.

BDs don't really chew their food, they crush or tear until it is small enough or in a shape or form that can be attempted to be swallowed whole. Large pieces of Greens that are not fastened to something, as they would be on the plant, make it very difficult for a BD to tear a piece off small enough to swallow, so they should served in smaller portions.

Pet Stores are notorious for giving false information, very few are specific species husbandry knowledgeable. Whether it be because they just really don't know better or they are just there for the sale, not knowing the specific store or branch, it is unknown. As a whole, the majority of Pet Stores are very poor sources of good info. There is the odd exception, but they are few & far between, leaving the unwary customer at the mercy of the ones that aren't.

It is imperative that the enclosure size & lack of UVB issues (if it is not already being provided) be rectified as soon as possible.

Good Luck to you & yours

 

[Germ]

Every thing that has been said, is for the sake of the animals. I feel for the ones that have suffered the loss of their pet & more for the pets that have been lost. Possibly others can learn from it.

 

[kjpetriel]

Thank you all very much.
Germ is exactly correct. The picture above is the kit I purchased at the recommendation of the young girl at the store. However, I replace almost everything that came with it. All the stores used the same reasoning for starting with a 10 gallon tank. They said the little guy would get frustrated chasing the crickets and would just sulk in the corner
Fortunately, We purchased the kit and set it up a week before buying Spike.
The white bulb provided in the kit does not give UV-B, nor did it keep the basking area anywhere near the correct temperature.
We replaced it with a UV-A/UV-B light which holds the basking area at the top of the log at about 110. The floor and extreme end of the tank is about 85.

This afternoon, we bought the calcium dust and the ceramic heater. We dusted 4 crickets and dumped them in and he ate them all within 3 minutes.

The kids are a little disappointed that they can't hold him as much as they'd like, but they understand that its for his good.

Again, thank you for your experience and help!
-Kevin

 

[I.heart.my.bd]

As someone who lost one this week listen to Germ!! I used the kit shown in this thread and didn't get the help I needed in time and it was fatal! Now, I have a new one and he seems to be doing very well thanks to all the help prior to getting the one I have now! Goos luck!

 

[kjpetriel]

The intent was to keep Spike in this small tank only until he doubles in size (3 months or so). Is there any DIY information about building a super nice habbitat that is appropriate for BD. Since this animal is going to be with us for quite a while, I'd really like to give him a nice enclosure. Since we don't have cental heat or central A/C, the two sides facing the wall would be insulated.

 

[Germ]

There are many DIY plans that can be found by Googling it & on YouTube. I can't help but think that you may be missing the point on the enclosure size. There is no way to achieve the 'Heat Gradient' required, without getting it much too close to the Bulb/Screen, for the BD to be able to Thermoregulate it's body heat when it needs to. If you want it to be around for 'quite a while', a larger enclosure is needed, minimum 20 Gal Long, as soon as possible & would be needed to be upgraded again in 3-4 months. That enclosure is too small for any size BD.

Good Luck

@I.heart.my.bd - Thank you so much for your input, I know it must have been hard to do

.

 

[Aleena]

Thank you all very much.
All the stores used the same reasoning for starting with a 10 gallon tank. They said the little guy would get frustrated chasing the crickets and would just sulk in the corner
Fortunately, We purchased the kit and set it up a week before buying Spike.
The white bulb provided in the kit does not give UV-B, nor did it keep the basking area anywhere near the correct temperature.
We replaced it with a UV-A/UV-B light which holds the basking area at the top of the log at about 110. The floor and extreme end of the tank is about 85.

This afternoon, we bought the calcium dust and the ceramic heater. We dusted 4 crickets and dumped them in and he ate them all within 3 minutes.

The kids are a little disappointed that they can't hold him as much as they'd like, but they understand that its for his good.

Again, thank you for your experience and help!
-Kevin

That makes me so mad! Pet stores can give out such bad information! I have week old hatchlings that are chasing crickets around a 20 long to their hearts content! My babies are even starting to eat their finely chopped greens now... As long as you don't put too much stuff in there for them to get overwhelmed by, they are quite content to zip from one end to the other happily.

I am so glad that you had bought this setup prior to letting Spike adopt you. That could have wound up in a bad place.