New Beardie Mommy

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Hello all! I have had my baby bearded dragon, Drogon, for almost 4 months now, and am super excited to learn all I can from other dragon parents! I also have a TON of questions I hope can be answered. I'm looking forward to being a part of this forum so I can learn to better care for my sweet, scaly love :)
 

vrenee1018

Juvie Member
Welcome to the forum! Glad you came here for your questions and needs! First thing, what's your how old is your baby? :) Second, there are a couple of articles on the right side of the forum that are for newbies. Third, if you would kindly go over your setup (Tank size, basking light, uvb light, substrate, etc.) with us, we can definitely help you out and give advice on what we think to be best for your little guy/gal. Also, include what you're feeding him/her and if you're dusting with calcium and vitamins.

Hope to hear from ya soon! :blob8: :blob5:
 

advannoy13

Member
Original Poster
Well, I got Drogon from a pet store (I knooowww that's a huge no-no but he came running at me as I walked past, and I felt like I needed to get him outta there, so I did) November 20th, 2018. He was really tiny, he weighed about 15 grams and was a little under 7". He is now 88 grams and almost 12". He's had his 1st baby check up with the dragon dr. and was given a thumbs up except for some bugs in his belly which were treated for right away. He's currently in a 40 gal breeder tank while we wait for his new 4'x2'x2' home to arrive from Zen. I've got him on reptile-safe substrate with a 60w basking bulb, a t8 coil uvb (both zoo-med brand), as well as a CHE all on the hot side and a t5 uvb all living things brand on his cool side (I will be upgrading that very soon with a t10 zoo-med uvb, I just bought the wrong size). Cool side is about 75-80° hot side 99-102° and humidity is 30% and never goes above 50 (and 50 is rare). He eats around 20 crickets (dusted with calcium powder daily and a multivitamin twice a week) and 3 to 4 super worms with a couple dubia's every morning, and is given fresh greens daily- collard, mustard, kale, endive, turnip, and sometimes I'll put some carrots, apples, and turnips in as well but he isn't impressed... in fact I've only ever witnessed him actually eat his greens no more than 4 times since i've got him, but when I get home they're always scattered around so I assume he's eating some of them? He poops once or twice a day, and I handle him daily. Lights are on at 745am and off at 930pm but the CHE is always on because of our cold climate. He used to eat about the same amount of bugs in the evening but lately he's only been eating 1 or 2, if any at all, which has me a touch worried. He's always hungry in the mornings though. He gets a bath once or twice a week. He's my very 1st beardie so I question myself a LOT about if i'm doing right or wrong, sometimes he seems unhappy, but I don't know if that's just his personality? Anyways that's why I joined this forum, I need some insight from other beardie moms and dads about if what I'm doing is good or bad or if I could be doing more, or less? Any advice is much appreciated!!
 

advannoy13

Member
Original Poster
Correction... replacing the all living things t8 17w uvb with a zoo-med 15w reptisun 10.0 uvb t8, is that an upgrade? Now i'm not sure because the one I have now says "uvb 50" on it (it was given to me so I have no clue how old it is, that's why I wanted to replace it just in case)
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
97951-1410759176.jpg
Hi Welcome to the forum--- please dont get the coil UVB -- they are no good--- please invest in a Reptisun 10 T5, or the Arcadia D3 12% or 14% T5 tube, both of which are very good. You will need a T5 light fixture also. Since you are getting the same tank I have I will send you a pic of it- I put slated ceramic tile down w/ paper towels underneath to catch the liquid urate /watery stuff - its easier to clean w/ vinegar / water in a spray bottle --- and you will find the bamboo flooring is too slippery - you can also put non adhesive shelf liner down too - both can be bought at Home Depot Lowes etc.. he is too young to be eating super worms -- too hard on the digestion system-- how many times a day are you feeding him? He should eat 2 times per day his bugs -- that is his main diet at this point -- keep offering the greens like mustard collard turnip greens-- diet at this point is 80% bugs 20% vegies-- about a year or so that will change and bugs will become the 20 % -- please ask more questions -- Since you dont know how old the UVB it is best to upgrade to what I mentioned above
thanks
Karrie
97951-1918616193.jpg
 

advannoy13

Member
Original Poster
Thank you KarrieRee! Your tank is beautiful and we can't WAIT to get ours! I'm taking the coil bulb out right away and going tomorrow to get the correct size of what he really needs.

So at first, until about 3 weeks or so ago, Drogon was eating about 10 pinhead crickets, 2 or 3 dubia's, and a couple superworms in the morning, afternoons have always been hit and miss, sometimes he wanted to eat a couple bugs, sometimes none, occasionally sneaking some greens, then for dinner he'd eat about 10 pinheads, and a roach or 2...
Now he eats about the same for breakfast, might sneak a piece of green or 2 in the afternoon but won't eat any bugs, and for dinner he's still just not interested in eating at all. I came home today, all his greens still in the bowl (usually they're scattered everywhere so I know he's been into them), and about half the crickets I gave him for breakfast were in his hide. When I shoo-ed them all out, he didn't care at all, wouldn't even look at them. He's gaining weight as far as I can tell, he's shedding pretty regularly (in the process now, so maybe that has something to do with the loss of appetite?), and in the mornings he's super active, chasing all the bugs around... but in the evening he mostly just sits and backs. Like I said before, he's my very 1st beardie so I don't know if this is normal behavior or not, but for everything i've read about babies they're supposed to have a way bigger appetite than Drogo does...
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
So he's still a baby? Correct? Could be the UVB-- it effects their health-- if he's slowing down on his eating-- how about pooping? UVB effects their digestion as well
Karrie
 

advannoy13

Member
Original Poster
103691-9369164807.jpg

Hopefully you can see the pic of him in his tank... yes, I assume he's still a baby, he was teeny-tiny when I got him. He poops 1-2 times a day, the dark parts of his poo have been looking more dry lately I've noticed, and I have been trying to train him to drink from a syringe but he's super stubborn! he did take a nice, big drink from his bath on saturday though that was really comforting for me to see and I always make sure his crickets are gut loaded and hydrated when I feed him. He likes crickets the best he'll always choose those over the dubia's and I'll hold off on the super worms for a while until he's bigger, he doesn't seem to like them very much anyways and I'd be devastated if he got impacted... so changing the lighting will be top priority, then I guess we'll see what happens. He's so odd, sometimes he seems really happy and energetic, and other times he seems really depressed and sad, I just don't know how to read him at ALL... I do know when he wants to come out and play, and I think I know when he's looking for something to eat, but then he changes up on me and once again I'm confused lol I bet "he" is really a "she" lmao
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Is his eyes sunken in that usually is a sign of dehydration--- you said his poo is dry-- another sign of dehydration--- you could give him a bath every couple of days-- -- they will drink if they are thirsty-- you can also drop water on his nose to see if he will lick it off-- get the UVB changed out and you will see a difference in his behavior
Karrie
 

vrenee1018

Juvie Member
Hello there. It sounds like you have a good setup going. Sometimes shedding does affect their appetite and that could be what you're going through with him. You also said it's cold where you are, correct? That could be the case too. Even though you keep his tank nice and warm, they can still feel the ambient temperatures outside and he could be slowing down because of the cold. But I agree, a new UVB light is probably all the little guy needs and if you don't see improvement through that, then I'd be a bit more worried.
 
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