Tank Decor Recommendations for Zeus

[Bailey]

Hey everyone! I have recently decided I will be making my boys enclosure a bit more natural looking and I want to do it desert themed! I want people to look at his enclosure and think it is a mini-desert.

Here are some items I am looking for to fit this theme, please link me to the following if you have any suggestions:

1.) Rocky or Sandy looking background. (Preferably a hard foam one of good quality). Paper backgrounds work too.
2.) A nice big basking rock or log (he doesn't enjoy his hammock anymore, he needs something new!)
3.) Some nice fake plants or decorations that would be nice to add. Looking for something that looks more realistic.

I want you to post pictures of your beardie's enclosure too so I can get some ideas flowing. The idea is to just add enrichment and make his cage look less bland. I'm open to any ideas, this is just what I had in mind at the moment .

 

[Skybug]

sorry for the over saturated and blurry pics , they look fine on my phone , i like the sand/rock matts , yes the rocks fall off/but also my beardie has never had sharp nails so its a trade off, i have a corkbark tile for my other wall I really like this out of the 3. I have a fake moss carpet for my background, my beardy is already destroying the carpet and its only been in there a month so i cant particularly recommend this one if u have a rambunctious dragon , im gonna change it out to half sand matt half cork bark basically bringing the walls in, i dont recommend bark chips as a substrate FYI , ive never had a problem with my beardy eating things and i use it as a lizard litter.

 

[Bailey]

sorry for the over saturated and blurry pics , they look fine on my phone , i like the sand/rock matts , yes the rocks fall off/but also my beardie has never had sharp nails so its a trade off, i have a corkbark tile for my other wall I really like this out of the 3. I have a fake moss carpet for my background, my beardy is already destroying the carpet and its only been in there a month so i cant particularly recommend this one if u have a rambunctious dragon , im gonna change it out to half sand matt half cork bark basically bringing the walls in, i dont recommend bark chips as a substrate FYI , ive never had a problem with my beardy eating things and i use it as a lizard litter.View attachment 25433View attachment 25434

I want to find a loose substrate that is safe for them to digest, I don't trust my guy not to eat some substrate the way he is haha, know of anything?

I've heard bad things about the loose substrate wood chips, sand, soil, etc. and I don't want to take any chances what so ever. Right now I am using a non-adhesive shelf liner and I want something more decorative but easy to clean or replace.

 

[Skybug]

I want to find a loose substrate that is safe for them to digest, I don't trust my guy not to eat some substrate the way he is haha, know of anything?

I've heard bad things about the loose substrate wood chips, sand, soil, etc. and I don't want to take any chances what so ever. Right now I am using a non-adhesive shelf liner and I want something more decorative but easy to clean or replace.

Yea bark chips are a huge no-no im surprised someone hasn’t taken me to task on my substrate(but my beardy has honestly never eaten it) and i make shure i bowl/tong feed ,t here really isn’t anything thats 100% safe if they eat any amount of substrate they’re gonna get a bad tummy ache, let me ask you, whats his settup now? Does he ever get outside time? If u want sand in ur tank make shure its rated as “play sand” I wouldn’t do a foam background, i had one my girl sctatched all the texture off it and it got really ugly fast , it was homemade too(im quite handy, i made it well). if u want durable id recommend the cork bark tiles, excavator clay is also very nice(but onece again all this depends on ur guys temperament, if u have no trust in him id make a substrate 60%sand 15%spagnummoss 15%coco fiber and the other 10% large rocks he cant swallow, are u trying to do a semi bio active? Cause its sounding like u want to go down that road ? In the wild bearded dragon will leave their hide of sand/rock/wood and go climb wood to bask, i tried simulating that with my setup i had plants but they all get destroyed, so dont buy anything you cant easily replace, im looking at palm trees right now as my next plant idea(they take forever to grow they are very hardy) if ur having a substrate other than sand you will need cleaner crew bugs, and by that point ur already 70% a bioactive tank , ill give u some homework look up “dave kaufman” on utube( he goes to Australia and shows u beardies natural habitat) take what he says with a grain of salt, no one is an expert on beardies , look up “biodude” he does a bioactive setup for a dragon, sorry if I didn’t get you any closer to getting an answer, ive gone through 4 major remodels with my girls tank and im still not happy with it,

 

[Bailey]

Yea bark chips are a huge no-no im surprised someone hasn’t taken me to task on my substrate(but my beardy has honestly never eaten it) and i make shure i bowl/tong feed ,t here really isn’t anything thats 100% safe if they eat any amount of substrate they’re gonna get a bad tummy ache, let me ask you, whats his settup now? Does he ever get outside time? If u want sand in ur tank make shure its rated as “play sand” I wouldn’t do a foam background, i had one my girl sctatched all the texture off it and it got really ugly fast , it was homemade too(im quite handy, i made it well). if u want durable id recommend the cork bark tiles, excavator clay is also very nice(but onece again all this depends on ur guys temperament, if u have no trust in him id make a substrate 60%sand 15%spagnummoss 15%coco fiber and the other 10% large rocks he cant swallow, are u trying to do a semi bio active? Cause its sounding like u want to go down that road ? In the wild bearded dragon will leave their hide of sand/rock/wood and go climb wood to bask, i tried simulating that with my setup i had plants but they all get destroyed, so dont buy anything you cant easily replace, im looking at palm trees right now as my next plant idea(they take forever to grow they are very hardy) if ur having a substrate other than sand you will need cleaner crew bugs, and by that point ur already 70% a bioactive tank , ill give u some homework look up “dave kaufman” on utube( he goes to Australia and shows u beardies natural habitat) take what he says with a grain of salt, no one is an expert on beardies , look up “biodude” he does a bioactive setup for a dragon, sorry if I didn’t get you any closer to getting an answer, ive gone through 4 major remodels with my girls tank and im still not happy with it,

My boy is about as spoiled as it gets when it comes to outside time haha. He comes out of his cage everyday and just goes crazy running around my floor and kitchen just exploring everything around him haha.

He currently has a non-adhesive shelf liner as a substrate. Since there is nothing 100% safe I am not going to chance it and probably just keep the same substrate in his new enclosure, or get a tan colored tile.

I've seen it if its the guy that goes to the place w the red sand. It just scares me in general i know its natural in the wild but they also don't live that long in the wild.

 

[Skybug]

I think some nice textured tile would look great, keep in mind if you build him tall things he can jump off, its not great on their joints (imagine jumping off your fence on to concrete) just something to ponder over , beardies are arboreal, but their bodies arnt ment for falls ,be shure to still include a rock or brick, you want as many different textures as u can get (so he can rub against)) , you can still have a beautiful tank without substrate , ld love to see your tank when its done

 

[Bailey]

I think some nice textured tile would look great, keep in mind if you build him tall things he can jump off, its not great on their joints (imagine jumping off your fence on to concrete) just something to ponder over , beardies are arboreal, but their bodies arnt ment for falls ,be shure to still include a rock or brick, you want as many different textures as u can get (so he can rub against)) , you can still have a beautiful tank without substrate , ld love to see your tank when its done

I'm so excited! We are getting him a Zen Habitat 120 gallon after 5 years of being in a 40 gallon I rescued him in November 2020 and he came w a 40 gallon and I know that is the minimum but I didn't have the money at the time to upgrade him so im gonna spoil him with all new decor and everything