my first beardie <3 pics & question

[atristofkate]

this is my first beardie... i'm totally adoring him. today i got him some freeze dried meal worms and he liked them and he also ate a couple bites of some romaine lettuce. he gets super excited when he sees the crickets in their lil kritter keeper... i had to put something in between the line of vision to settle him down lol.

tonight i was holding him and he jumped out of my hand. it wasn't but 3 feet but he's so small and hit the floor. scared the crud outta me! i think he may be bored... prior to coming home with me he was housed with multiple beardies in a pet store. sometimes he's excited to see me... at the same time super nervous. how much should i be handling him at this age? i don't want him frightened. prior to tonight he usually just sits still... tonight he seemed like he wants to run around... problem is he's so little and my cluttered cramped quarters would too easily be a place for him to get hurt... what do you experienced beardie parents recommend for socializing & entertaining at this age and for the next few months while he gets a bit more sizable and a lil safer to hang out with?


Zumo de naranja aka "orange juice" lol just Zumo for short

 

[Gickel]

Oh my goodness, congrats on the first beardie!

And don't worry, it's perfectly normal for little beardies to be jumpy. They will be nervous around you, especially if they havn't been handled much before. Where I first got Charlie, it took nearly two months to get pretty comfortable with me, but every now and then he does jump. He jumped right off my bed once! As for handling, I recommend once or twice a day. Always interacting with your beardie helps you and him build a strong bond. c: As for entertainment, I just took Charlie into the bathroom and let him run around on the floor until he was tired, really works out his energy. Beardies love to explore! Don't worry about his jumpyness, he'll get more lazy as they get older. cx and more cuddly!

Congratulations once again!

-Kassie

Edit: Btw, mealworms can harm beardies, specially little ones. Their hard "outer shells" can easily cause impaction, so I wouldnt feed too many to him.

 

[atristofkate]

ty for the heads up on that. i also caught a small daddy long leg in my room n fed it to him. that was fun. my daughter was cheering that!!

 

[Gickel]

Aw, how cute!

-Kassie

 

[sweetiepie9]

Congrats on your cute little baby, yes they are nervous nellies, it's to be expected, but as the previous person said, handle him a few times a day. You can cup your other hand over him a bit & putting your hand in front of his nose will prevent him from jumping, too. I was going to suggest the bathroom, too, as a good place to run around, just make sure there's a towel in front of the bottom of the door, you'd be surprised how flat they can get if they want to get under something.

For worms, try phoenix worms instead of mealworms, they are very difficult for babies to digest & don't have alot of nutrition, they're mostly shell. Crickets well fed with protein food & apple or potato for moisture are the best things for him, but phoenix worms are really good for babies, they're small, soft (no hard shell) full of calcium and easy to digest. So check that out.

So welcome to our site, if you have any questions, don't hesitate. Beardies make great pets, I have 5 adult males so I'd have to say that :mrgreen:
Deb

 

[Cnochur]

Congrats on the beardie. Please allow me to give you some very important info, and forgive me if I sound nit-picky.
Here's the best guide as to what you should be feeding him. http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html

I'll second the mealworm thing- those can be dangerous for him at this age. Romaine doesn't have much nutritional value either. Stick with crickets and worms that don't have exoskeletons. For veggies, go with collard greens or kale or the like. But the link will tell you much more.

Also, feeding them house bugs can be dangerous, as they can be exposed to everything from random bacteria to pesticides.

I think in your one pic he's under a red light- a night light? Those can actually cause them great irritation, even if it seems like they're sleeping fine. If you're worried about his warmth, you can get a ceramic heat emitter or just give the man a little blanket.

Stick with this website- the info on bd.org could save his life (it's saved my dragon's life on numerous occasions).

 

[atristofkate]

yeah he was under a red light, it was on at the time for pic effect but i know that they are not nocturnal which means that they need darkness to have good sleep... just like me it came with the tank, but doesnt seem to have any good use as far as i'm concerned. thanks for the nutrition link... good info. i've been studying these lil creatures for years in anticipation of actually having one... but i'm pretty sure most what i've read about feeding pertains to adults. i'm likin havin such a lil guy.

 

[sweetiepie9]

They don't need that darned red light & I wish pet shops would stop telling people they're good for them. The only time you need lights at night is if the room your baby is in gets under 65F at night, then you'd want a small wattage ceramtic heat emitter that gives of heat without light. I also cover my beardies with fleece blankets, which contain their body heat from the day, so unless my room is really cold I don't bother with anything but the blankets. Glad you were given the link to that great nutrition chart, I've been using it since 2005 when I got my first beardie. Have fun with your little guy!