New Beardie Mom here...

I'm not new to reptiles had a Water Dragon and Nile Monitor as a kid. Had three Iggy's as a young adult. I've been wanting a beardie for 10 years now. I found this cute fella on Craigslist and felt really bad for him, I just had to get him. The guy was asking $50 for him and all his stuff. He's 11mo old and his name is Cosmo. The tank is WAY to small, 20L, the lights are all wrong 15w Exo Terra Sun Glo daytime heat lamp and a 30 x 6 x 15cm Exo Terra hood with a regular ole 13w swirly bulb. The substrate is Reptilite Calcium Substrate, I'd like the to change it to newspaper. He's got twigs in the tank that he can't climb on because he's to big for them. 3 dishes...why 3? He was feeding him Fluker's freeze dried crick's and Fluker's Adult Buffet Blend (he's not an adult...smh!), as well as Rep-Cal w/D3. No mention of him getting fresh ANYTHING... He's in shed and I'd love to give him a soak but he's still freaked out about the car ride and not knowing me yet. How long should I wait to try and handle him? AND he replace the sand but didn't clean the tank, it's just nasty and it stinks. I'm gonna try giving him some Organic Spring Blend salad, maybe hand feeding him some goodies will ease the tension a little. I can't afford buy him a new tank until next month (fixed income)...any suggestions on better lighting? Maybe something that will fit my hood for now?

TIA,
Just

Welcome to the forum! I'm glad to see he's found his way to a good home with you. He looks pretty good based on those photos so I think he will thrive under your care. If the tank is smelly I'd definitely get rid of all the sand, vacuum it out and then give everything a good cleaning. I usually use a vinegar/water mixture to clean everything up then disinfect with either a steam cleaner or spray in some F10 which works really well. Then you can start adding in some new furniture/branches/etc as you go. There are a lot of options on that front so it's more of a preference thing. I'd stick with a solid substrate that is easy to clean. Newspaper or butcher paper is fine for now. I'd try non adhesive shelf liner which is cheap and easy to clean or replace. Or some ceramic or slate tile which is heavier/harder but also easy to clean. For the UVB I'd invest in a good 24'' T5 fixture and bulb. For now I would definitely upgrade your 13w coil bulb which isn't providing adequate UVB at all. The 26w UVB200 might fit that fixture. It holds a single screw in type bulb? The 26w UVB200 is probably your best bet with that format.

CooperDragon":15aqfm32 said:

Welcome to the forum! I'm glad to see he's found his way to a good home with you. He looks pretty good based on those photos so I think he will thrive under your care. If the tank is smelly I'd definitely get rid of all the sand, vacuum it out and then give everything a good cleaning. I usually use a vinegar/water mixture to clean everything up then disinfect with either a steam cleaner or spray in some F10 which works really well. Then you can start adding in some new furniture/branches/etc as you go. There are a lot of options on that front so it's more of a preference thing. I'd stick with a solid substrate that is easy to clean. Newspaper or butcher paper is fine for now. I'd try non adhesive shelf liner which is cheap and easy to clean or replace. Or some ceramic or slate tile which is heavier/harder but also easy to clean. For the UVB I'd invest in a good 24'' T5 fixture and bulb. For now I would definitely upgrade your 13w coil bulb which isn't providing adequate UVB at all. The 26w UVB200 might fit that fixture. It holds a single screw in type bulb? The 26w UVB200 is probably your best bet with that format.

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Thank you for the reply, I'm so blessed to have him. You mentioned at this point about changing out the hood bulb (which I will do ASAP) but no mention of the 15w Exo that's in the dome...is that one ok for now? My apt is a consistent 78 and I currently have both fixtures above his basking area. To my utter amazement at 6:30am I tried hand feeding him some Spring Mix salad and he let me. And he has let me hand feed him three times so far He's been glass surfing and he has stress marks, I'm assuming from his inadequate housing situation at present What I need to know is, should I wait a few days to try and handle him? I really want to clean the cage, put newspaper down, add a hammock and give him a nice soothing soak (he's shedding).

What are your thoughts?
TIA
Just

The current bulb isn't really doing anything except providing some ambient light so it can be off/removed. As far as handling goes it's really up to him. Since he's OK with hand feeding does he respond well if you try to pick him up (slowly from in front of him and support his hands and legs). If he doesn't get too upset about that it's probably fine to handle him. Especially if you need to get into his tank to clean it. He may enjoy a safe space to roam around and explore outside of the tank too. Kind of trial and error at this point to find what he likes/tolerates etc.