This is Savanah's enclosure

[Magicone98]

This is Savanah's enclosure that we set up not long after we got her. This is a 40 gal. any tips or advice are welcome. She does spend most of her time at the top of her tree in the basking spot. that tree is her favorite place to be, spending about 80% of her time up there when shes not chasing a cricket or or taking flying leaps off of it into her water dish.

 

[Kalyn876]

Are you using a coil UVB? They are known to cause lethargy, lack of appetite and burns to the eye. Not all dragons are affected but I would keep a close eye on her. Also with the coils its hard to guage how far it hsould be placed from the beardie as they give out a wide array of UV wavelengths. I would switch to the reptiSUN 10.0 linear tube it is the only reccomended UVB in the US for beardies.

Looks great though!!

Kalyn

 

[anamlgrl]

Let me first start off by saying that I was completely clueless on the proper beardie care until I found this site. I now have 4 beardies and feel pretty confident that I have their care down to a science. These are my suggestions/questions:

1. What kind of uvb bulb are you using? The compact ones are known to cause eye problems. The best one to use is a fluorescent bulb (Reptisun 10.0 best places to buy them at are http://www.petmountain.com and beardeddragon.co).

2. To properly gauge your temps, a digital thermometer (can get at Lowes, Home Depot or online) will tell you the exact temp. Placing the probe on the basking spot and then leaving the other half on the cooler side. The dial ones can be up to 20 degrees off.

3. Beardies do not need a water bowl as they do not drink standing water. This can also cause to much humidity. They get their water from their greens, live feeders and baths a few times a week.

4. My last suggestion is more of a personal preference...using tile (non-glazed) as a substrate is usually easier to clean and helps file their nails down.

You have a great start though and I am sure your lil one is enjoying it. Welcome!

 

[Magicone98]

yes, i did not know about the bulbs until i came here to this site a few days ago, and plan on replacing them as soon as i get paid tomorrow. we do use a lazer type temp gun that reads the temp wherever the light shines at. Me and my wife were talking about using the ceramic tiles also, as it is easier to clean the poo off of tiles as opposed to the reptile carpet. but i am still learning as i go!

on a side note, as many people have said on this site, i have gone with petsmart advice which as i found out, is mostly wrong and i am currently trying to correct these things as i am informed of them. the light on the right side is a coil uvb. the one on the left is a day white light 50 watt. if i get the tube type bulb do i use the day white one at all? or is this bulb bad also?

 

[anamlgrl]

I use a regular household bulb for heat/light. You need to play with the wattage to get it right for your tank size (100 to 110 basking spot and 80 - 85 on cooler side). No need for any "special" bulbs with the exception of a good uvb (which needs to be replaced every 6 mths and the beardie needs to be able to get at least 8 in. close).

I wasted so much time and money listening to Pet Smart. I am so glad I have this forum because it has really helped & the support and members here are fantastic!

 

[Kalyn876]

Another thing I forgot to mention is when you do get the reptisun 10.0 you want to make sure your beardie can get within 6-8 inches of it with nothing in between (screen, plastic, glass etc).

EDIT**Well I guess I should read more thoroughly.. lol


Kalyn

 

[Magicone98]

i replaced the left side with a 100 watt normal light bulb, which gets the basking spot up around 100f and the right side i put a 60 watt normal for now until i get the uvb tomorrow which gets around 85f on the cooler side. i will add the uvb tomorrow and keep the other two up along with the uvb. the 100w seems a bit bright compared to the one that i used to have up there. but she already seems a bit more active since i swapped the bulbs out. its a good thing i do not even like the coils around my house, let alone in my pets cage. i have heard that the coil bulbs are even bad for humans, so the fact that i do not have the coils on the reptile make me feel that much better. i dont mean to change the subject but should she be eating mainly crickets for now? she seems to not be interested in veggies very much but will go after a cricket as soon as it hits the viv. how many should i be feeding her daily? i have ranged from 3-8 in one day before. she is obviously not near full size yet, and i want to make sure that she has the best care that she can have.

 

[anamlgrl]

At that age she should be eating 2x a day as many as she can in 10 mins. Even if she doesnt eat the veggies still offer them daily. Make sure to dust your live feeders every other feeding and sprinkle a little on the greens.I recommend mustard greens, yellow squash, bell pepper, carrots and maybe blueberries or grapes a few times a week. Also she should get reptivitamins 2x a week.

Crickets are so expensive and tend to be a pain so I switched to dubia. They do not smell, are easy to breed and they are way better for your dragon.

Once she is about a year old the live feedings can slow down to once a day, but offer veggies daily. I always give my beardies their veggies in the morning and no live feeders until 2 hrs before bed time. This way when they wake up hungry the veggies seem more appealing.