New bearded baby feeding help (huge newbie)

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Hello all! We recently adopted a baby boy bearded dragon, who we named Arvak. He is about 2-3 months of age and has had a strange eating pattern since we got him. He ate crickets the first night, but the second and third days would not touch them. He still has yet to even want to eat them again. So we picked up some small superworms, he LOVEs them, we fed him for about 10 minutes, so he ate about 4 worms in that time period. But that was yesterday, he ate one today but will not eat anything else. Granted i do understand he may still be stressed from moving, but it am just getting a bit worried due to him also i guess napping through the day. Again, he is my first beardie so not too too familiar with their personalities, so please be gentle for my arrogance.


Also not feeding related but I have been handeling him anywhere from half an hour to 45 minutes a couple times a day to get him used to human contact. Is this correct or is this too much/too little?


Thank you in advance
 

CooperDragon

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Welcome to the forum! I suggest reading through the newbies guides and intro to lighting on the right side for some general info about their care to get you started. I'll be happy to answer any specific questions you have.

Their appetites can fluctuate depending on a lot of factors including stress, environment, food options, or just mood. Just keep offering bugs a couple of times per day and let him take what he wants. I'd avoid the supers because they are relatively high and fat and they can be tough for a young dragon to digest. Crickets are good as a staple and I'd supplement those with a softer worm like black soldier fly larvae or silk worms.

Holding him is fine if he doesn't act defensive or skittish. He may enjoy some supervised time out of the tank to explore his new environment. They tend to be very curious. Just keep a close eye on him and if he acts scared or defensive etc put him back in his tank and give him some space. You'll get the hang of his body language after a while.

If you can provide details about your setup (size, lighting type, temperatures, etc) I'll be glad to go through and make sure everything is just right for your new buddy. You can upload photos here https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ and post them to your thread using the XIMG button.
 

Arvaksmomma

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thank you so much for the help!

We have seen a HUGE range, and i mean HUGE recomendations for temperatures. His basking side always seems to run super hot at around 110 f, the mid tank with his under tank pad sits at around 90, with the cool/water side staying at a solid 79.

are these good temp rage? we have found mixed answers everywhere.

He also has zero interest in crickets right now, we have tried a few different sizes too, zero interest at all. Im thinking we may have to make a small insect farm of a few different types to keep him interested.

I know fire ants are bad but what about the staple black ants?
what are other good insects that are reletively easy to farm and raise?
 

CooperDragon

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Yeah that range is just about right. Are you using a digital thermometer w/probe or a temp gun to get accurate readings? I usually suggest 100-110 basking site with a gradient down to about 75-80 on the cool side so you're right in the range I suggest. The key is to provide options so they can move around to bask and cool down as they wish. Same goes for UVB exposure. What do you have in place for UVB lighting?

Starting a bug colony is a good idea. I wouldn't offer wild ants but if you started an ant colony it would probably be fine. I haven't heard of anyone doing that yet but I'm sure they go after ants and such in the wild. Dubia roaches are really popular. There are other good roaches to offer as well such as horseshoe crab roaches, deaths head roaches, discoid roaches etc. You can also raise your own silk worms if you have the patience for it and have access to mulberry leaves. Otherwise, the roach colonies are pretty easy to take care of, especially once they get established. Here is some info about caring for a dubia roach colony. Care is similar for most of the roaches as far as I know. http://www.southtexasdragons.com/dubia-roaches.html
 

Arvaksmomma

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Original Poster
Both of his day time lights are hybrid UVB lights. We are still getting a feel for him, he's pretty new to the house, less than a week. When i put my hand under his front legs, his just kind of lets me pick him up then grips my hand with all four. I put him on my chest and he LOVES to cuddle around my neck. He doesn't ever really seem panicy, he falls asleep, or at least closes his eyes when i set him on me, and is always pretty calm. He isn't too exploration yet, he loves his basking log, he sits on top of it or sleeps under it. he hasn't really gone over to his water either. How often should he poo? he's had one since we got him, so just wondering how often
 

CooperDragon

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It sounds like he's settling in well. It's fun when they like to cuddle like that. By hybrid basking lights do you mean a mercury vapor bulb? If so, they should be set at a distance for appropriate UVB exposure and then the heat should be adjusted using a regular basking bulb or heat emitter as needed. Which brand and wattage do you have in place?
 

Arvaksmomma

Member
Original Poster
i believe a zoomed 120 watt for the heat lamp

a 100 watt zilla day light

and the night lamp is a 75 watt zoomed infrared lamp
 

Arvaksmomma

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Original Poster
ok so found a possible reason to him not really wanting to eat: This morning i noticed he appears to be shedding his skin. I've read that this drastically reduces activity and food intake, is that right?
 

JoshD

Member
Shedding can definitely be a cause of reduced appetite, they usually get pretty grumpy when they shed because its annoying for them. Its like us getting a super bad sunburn and having to peel it all off. Mine will still eat fine while shedding, but every beardie is different!
 

JoshD

Member
Also I always recommend getting rid of the night lamp. Any tiny amount of light at night can disturb their sleep. As long as your house doesnt go below 65 at night he will be totally fine. This could also be a reason for him not to want to move or eat. When they dont sleep they get extra grumpy and will refuse to do anything. I had the same problem with mine when I tried a night light. They actually need a cool temperature at night, so having the night heater wont do much at all. Hope this helps!
 

Arvaksmomma

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unfortunately not something we can get rid of, and the light" doesn't give off any light, its more for heat. We live in vermont and even with out heat set to 70, we've had close to below zero temperatures so the house sits around 62 degrees at night. we don't feel comfortable taking it away due to how cold it's been getting.
 

CooperDragon

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I think JoshD was recommending replacing it if it's one of the lights that puts out visible red overnight. It sounds like it's a true infrared ceramic heat emitter which is fine at night. If your temps are going down to 62, it's good to have it running. I have the same issue in winter here in Iowa and use a heat projector overnight as well. I like to keep my tank temps in the low 70s overnight. I have it on a dimming thermostat so it kicks in as needed.


Is your ZooMed a PowerSun? If so, I'd keep it within about 8-12'' from the basking site to provide adequate UVB. If you need additional heat at that distance, you can run your heat emitter next to it during the day to bump the temps as needed.
 
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