Introduction w/ Some Questions From Newbie Owner

Hi, everyone!

I'm new to this site and just got my male beardie Lewie two weeks ago.


He's very friendly and my whole family adores him, but I have a few questions.

1. He's not very active right now. He mostly sits in his hide or under his branch all day long, and I have to physically move him to his basking spot-- even then he only stays-put for about five minutes and then it's right back to his hide. But when I feed him live insects he perks right-up, and when I let him out to handle him he loves to explore. But when I put him back in his enclosure he goes right back to hiding. Is he just still getting used to his new home, or is this something to be concerned about?

2. He doesn't eat his greens unless I make him a superworm-burrito (superworm wrapped in mustard greens), which is really time-consuming and just overall frustrating. I'm worried he'll starve himself, since I only feed him maybe 6 live worms a day, or every other day. What should I do?

3. Question about poop: He won't poop in his enclosure. I have to take him outside during the afternoon when it's the most hot and then he'll go. His pee is a solid white, which I know is normal, but it's a little yellow on the ends. Also, his poop is a little on the runny-side-- not entirely diarrhea, though. It's also slightly green. Is this normal?

4. I've given him two baths since I got him, and I fill his water bowl with bottled water every single day, but he doesn't drink. How can I get him to drink water, and how often should he be drinking?

Welcome to the forum! Lewie is a happy looking dragon. Look at that bright orange beard!

It's good that he's active and curious when he's out and about. As far as hiding goes, he could be bored in his enclosure or something could be off. What are the surface temps in his basking area and over on the cool end of the tank? What do you have in place for UVB lighting and how far is it from his basking site? If you could post some photos of his setup it would be helpful as well.

He looks like an adult. Do you have an idea of how old he is? Adults don't need to eat a whole lot and he may be holding out for the superworms. Try offering a nice varied salad every day and see if he goes for it after a while. I've had good luck with different kinds of squash cut into worm shapes as well as chopped green beans and chopped bell pepper mixed into salads with collard greens, turnip greens, dandelion greens, bok choy greens, or mustard greens. I just rotate what I offer based on what is fresh at the store/market each week. Keep track of his weight (in g) and that will help you see how it's trending. If his weight is stable, he's probably fine. I'd limit superworms to an occasional treat. I offer dubia roaches as a staple bug once a week or so and I mix in treats of silk worms and hornworms and black soldier fly larvae (and flies!) at random times to round out my adult dragon's diet. This is only after he eats veges regularly though.

It's good that he poops outside of his tank. This is common and you can take advantage by putting him in an area that is easy to clean up at around the same time each day. They respond well to routine and building a routine that makes it easier to clean and keeps him away from his poop is good for both of you. It sounds like he may be a little dehydrated and the runny poop may be upset stomach. I'd give it a few weeks and get him settled into a routine and his new home. If the runny poops continue I'd have a sample checked by a vet for parasites. Give him time to settle first though. These things often clear up on their own after a while with a good diet and lighting.

He may not want to drink. You don't really need to give him baths if he isn't soiled or stinky. If he seems to enjoy the water though, it's fine. Not all of them do but some love it. Not worth the stress if he doesn't. You can try dripping some water on his nose and see if he'll lick it up. If not, that's fine. Some people also have success flicking water in a dish to create some movement. This doesn't work in every case though. As long as he's getting fresh veges every day and occasional bugs that have been fed fresh veges that should give him most of the hydration he needs.

Here are the pics of his tank. I'm getting a reptile carpet this week so I'm using cupboard mats as a place-holder until I can get the bedding.

His over-all tank setup:


The right-side of his tank with his hide and bowls:


The left-side of his tank as his basking spot and climbing branch:


I keep this purple heat lamp near his hide for cold nights and winters:


Here's his ceremic heat lamp and UVB light:


And here's the man himself! (I had to physically get him to bask for the photo )


I don't have any thermometers in his enclosure right now, so I don't know the temps, but that's definitely something I'm getting in a few weeks. All I know is that at night my house reaches about 21-23 degrees C (71-74 F). The person I got him from said he was a little more than a year old and was raised by him from a hatchling.

Hi and welcome! Beautiful dragon you have! It looks like CooperDragon answered most of your questions for you. Just a note about your setup, the screen tops tend to filter out the UVB. Most UVB lights are mounted on the inside of the cage, about 10"-12" above the basking spot/bottom of cage.

Temperature plays an enormous part in the overall health of a bearded dragon, so I personally would not wait a few weeks before getting a thermometer. A digital infrared thermometer (which is 10X more accurate than an adhesive in-tank thermometer) can be purchased on Amazon for under $20. Heck, even Lowes and Home Depot carry them.

Looking forward to seeing Lewie's adventures!

ulintze29":3hxcgglw said:

Hi and welcome! Beautiful dragon you have! It looks like CooperDragon answered most of your questions for you. Just a note about your setup, the screen tops tend to filter out the UVB. Most UVB lights are mounted on the inside of the cage, about 10"-12" above the basking spot/bottom of cage.

Temperature plays an enormous part in the overall health of a bearded dragon, so I personally would not wait a few weeks before getting a thermometer. A digital infrared thermometer (which is 10X more accurate than an adhesive in-tank thermometer) can be purchased on Amazon for under $20. Heck, even Lowes and Home Depot carry them.

Looking forward to seeing Lewie's adventures!

Click to expand...

Thanks for letting me know! How would I go about mounting it? I might just have buy a new one...

I've never used the Exo Terra terrariums for beardies, so I don't have experience with that first hand. The only thing I can think of maybe purchasing the hood/light assembly that Exo Terra sells. I believe that replaces the screen mesh top, but I'm not entirely sure. Maybe someone else can chime in to help.

I have the 18'' tall version of that tank. The top has clips that slide around so you can take the mesh top right off. If you don't have any other animals in the house you can leave the top off (I do) and suspend the basking light from an adjustable lamp stand and just install some kind of cross brace for the UVB fixture to sit on.

Thanks to the both of you! I'll get on that ASAP, and get him thermometers as well.

If you have other pets (like me), this is how I have my UVB set up under the lid:


Super cheap and simple! Also, I bought my digital infrared thermometer for $10 on Amazon. Make sure you hold it 2" away from the surface yore taking the temps of. Alternatively, ZooMed sells a probe thermometer that's also $10 at most PetCos and PetSmarts. Walmart will have regular probe thermometers for cheaper as well, probably.

He's a beautiful boy!