New Juvenile Beardie

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MollyBuffa

New member
Hi everyone!!
This past saturday i finally purchased my new female juvenile beardie Ezme, ive researched for months, and have built her terrarium over the course of 3 months to make sure everything was perfect for her.
The first day/night home she did great, ate some super worms, and also 6 dubia roaches. Anytime i fed her she jumped on my hand and just wanted to be picked up and held, once i held her for a few minutes she would fall asleep and be very peaceful and safe. Id go to put her back and she would cling to me. After a few hours in there she made herself comfortable and basked until her light went out and then she curled up in the shirt i put in her terrarium and fell asleep.
The second day she wouldnt eat anything, greens, worms, dubia, nothing. It did have me worried but i know she is probably going through relocation stress i live in a cooler climate where we are transitioning to winter also so it makes it a big more stressful i believe. The second day she also just wanted to be picked up and held (which i guess is better than the alternative of not letting me) she would paw at the glass where i was sitting by her and just stare at me, id put my hand in and she would climb right up, i gave her the option to stay or not to. I dont handle her to much because i want her to be comfortable in her terrarium as well.
Its a 40 gallon, with the 100 watt megaray bulb, temps range from 90-95 in her basking spot and 70-75 in her cooler area.
My questions is does anyone have any pointers on getting her to eat, or making her more comfortable, or even signs to look for if she goes into brumation with living in a cooler climate.
So far she is doing great besides not eating, and has really taken a liking to me which was one of my biggest worries.
 

HylianHealeys

Juvie Member
Congrats on your new beardie!

She's too young to brumate, and it looks like her temps are too low — especially for a juvie. What she needs is 110-115 in her basking spot and 80 in the cool zone. You may need higher wattage bulbs to achieve this.
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
The 100w MegaRay should be at about 10-12'' above the basking area for best UVB exposure. If the temps still aren't high enough at that range then a secondary heat light may be needed to bump the basking surface temps up at least over 100.
 

MollyBuffa

New member
Original Poster
Thank you for the response guys!! Thankfully the past two days i get home from work and she goes absolutely crazy when i reach for her roaches, shes finally eating, and eating a lot to. She starts to play with her food to and got to the point on her own she will eat the roach right off the tongs or my hand. She has bonded with me so quick its crazy lol.
Will pet stores normally take back a bulb if its under a week for a higher wattage one?
And if i run a second heat bulb, what type should i get?
I am still learning, but i lucked out by having a very easy and adaptive dragon. :)

And i just grabbed the paperwork that came with her when i got her at the expo from the people that were breeding her. They said on here
"Ideally the hot side of the tank should be between 90-95 degrees and should be not be below 85, and should never exceed 100 degrees under any circumstance. this will result in failure to eat, digestive problems, lethargic behavior.. etc"
Are these people right, or not. I know beardie care can be controversial so im just trying to know what to believe lol
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
That's good to hear! I think the return on the bulb really depends on the individual store's return policy. Couldn't hurt to try returning it.

For a secondary bulb, I suggest a halogen flood light. That way it will produce some extra visible light along with heat. They are dimmable so you can attach it to a thermostat to kick in as needed, or run it on a manual dimmer so it provides just enough heat.

As far as temps go, I think the real key is to provide choices. They know what they want at any given time and are good about moving around to self regulate. It's important to go by surface temps rather than ambient temps (ambient temps are good to track but for light adjustment, I go by surface readings). I shoot for about 100-105 in the basking area with surfaces in the 90s around that and a gradient down to about 75-80 or so on the cool side (mine is at 103 and 77 at the moment). That seems to work pretty well. Individual dragons may have different preferences so you can tweak it as needed over time.
 
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