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Emma18

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I just got a baby breaded dragon a couple days ago still learning what to do but I noticed today when I came home from work that she was still in the same spot that I left her in and and she hadn’t eaten any of the crickets my boyfriend put in the tank for her and when I went to pick her up I noticed theses spots on her stomach should I be worried someone please help
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AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Hi there, I know you're excited about your new baby, it's usually a happy time but also comes with a lot of anxiety if something seems off. Can you post pics of the entire set up, showing the placement of the lights as well. And list the exact type/brand of lights that you have.

The baby should be more active so something is up , not related to it's short time that you've had it. Is he from a pet store ? The spots on the belly may be small poo stains but may also be the start of a fungal infection. Get a small tube of antifungal cream like Monistat or Lotrimin to dab on there daily, after a few days see if that wipes off.

As for crickets, what size are they ? A baby beardie needs very small one, no longer than the space between his eyes. Also don't leave loose cricks in the tank, they will stress the beardie + if they hide in the tank they'll come out at night to bite on the beardie sometimes.

Offer the baby a drink by dripping water on his snout, he may be dehydrated.
 

Emma18

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For her tank I have two dome fixtures with the zoo med blue daylight and red nightlight in them she’s in a 5 gallon tank (for now because she is so small and by herself) a terrarium thermometer (great choice) *not sure if this one is the right kind of thermometer. She also has a shallow water dish and log in the tank all the time with paper towel as substrate. I’ve been dusting her crickets in calcium powder every morning and offering her squash and turnip greens (she only ate those when I hand feed them to her) and her cricket are being gut loaded with the same veggies that I’ve been giving her. She doesn’t seem to like the crickets much. She ate the first day and night and the next two days didn’t eat anything. She started eating again after I let her soak in warm water and now she’s not eating again. She likes being held and will lay on me as long as she can. When she seems like she’s had enough of me holding her I’ll put her back and won’t bother her again until it’s time to feed her. She doesn’t flinch or anything when I try to pick her up but if she runs I leave her alone. I’m not really sure what I’m doing wrong any advice will help thank you
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
The 5 gallon is much too small, it's impossible to get a heat gradient that they need. One side should be at 105 degrees but you also need the other end to be much cooler, 75-80. The basking bulb should be a clear white , not blue and no red light at night. It would disrupt their sleep, beardies need darkness to sleep. For a white basking light you can just go the Walmart or Lowe;s for a halogen bulb.

You also need a uvb bulb, she will get very sick very quickly without uvb.
 

Emma18

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Original Poster
Thank you I kinda figured I still needed more things the red light stays on all day and at night before it’s time to go to sleep and the blue light gets turned on first thing in the morning and turned off after the sun goes down they’re both off about an hour after she eats. I will go to Walmart or Lowe’s first thing in the morning. The tank is only for now I have to get a bigger tank next week. Is it necessary to get a che if I get the uvb bulb?
 

Emma18

Member
Original Poster
Is there any other kind of advice you can give me. I’m trying to make sure I’m doing as much as I can right
 

Emma18

Member
Original Poster
This is the tank
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the light
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the name of the lights
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the calcium powder I’m using
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one of the ladies at the pet store recommended this
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for the crickets instead of water
And this is jean
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AHBD

BD.org Sicko
I know you want the best for her, it's sad that the pet stores sell the colored bulbs that no breeder would use or recommend but the stores make lots of money from. You can use that fixture to put the halogen bulb in + get rid of the blue bulb. Remember though, you need a uvb bulb for herno dragon can thrive without one like I mentioned in my other post.

The cricket quencher has a lot of chemicals in it, another unnecessary and potentially dangerous product. To hydrate + feed your crickets just use scraps of veggies like carrot and various greens on a small plastic dish or lid from a jar.
 

Emma18

Member
Original Poster
The halogen bulb is the one she needs to bask in? And the uvb can be the long tube? Is there a specific type of bulbs I should get? I don’t want to get the wrong things again. It’s okay to put her in a placating bin until I can get a bigger tank and is there a specific kind of thermometer I should be using.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
Yes, the bin set up like I showed in the pics. I raised beardies for years in that type of set up. The best uvb bulbs are the Reptisun 10.0 t5 and the Arcadia D3 12%. The Arcadia seems to be the top of the line and produces uvb for over a year whereas the others have uvb levels that drop more quickly even though the bulb still produces light.

It's really great that you're ready to get the things she needs to give her the best shot at a healthy life. :)
 

Emma18

Member
Original Poster
Just to make sure I have this correct. I can get a big clear tote from like Walmart and I can still use the paper towels as the substrate. I need to get a uvb light and should that go across the whole tote or just one side? The uvb I can get from petsmart or is there a better place to get one? The halogen bulb is used for the basking light? Should that go on the same side as the uvb light? Are there any other kinds of lights I need to get? The thermometers I need where can I get a good one? Is the five gallon tank I have good for cricket keeping? Is there anything that I should use to put in top of the tote and can I keep the lights directly on top of the top? Sorry about all the questions I’m just trying to make sure I do the best I can
 

VenusAndSaturn

Sub-Adult Member
Yes you can get a clear plastic tote from walmart and then use paper towels as substrate still, though i dont see any harm in using just the plastic as a bottom other than the possibility of it being a bit too slippery.

Most petstores dont sell the reptisun T5 10.0 tube lights and instead sell t8's, or at least in my experience thats what happens. So its probably best if you get online, probably amazon, and buy a bulb and fixture on there which would be tons cheaper as well.

Same with the thermometer you can get it on amazon as well, make sure its digital with a probe.
You could keep the 5 gallon as a cricket keeper most likely however if keeping a large amount of crickets you may need something larger or they can start to die off quickly and smell in a small confined area which is why i usually use a 90 quart tub for mine.

And yes the halogen bulb would be used for basking. The uvb would go on the same side or at least have most of it on the side where the basking spot is so when the beardie basks it gets uvb as well. You could probably use a tank lid of a 20 gallon or so depending on your tote or make one of your own using mesh to go fully over the top.

(of course as a temp home not a forever enclosure)
 

EllenD

Gray-bearded Member
I'm sorry you got horrible advice, they sold you everything wrong, and didn't tell you to buy the most important thing that a Bearded Dragon needs to just survive, a long UVB tube.

Please get rid of both the blue and the red bulbs, Bearded Dragons see in full color, and the colored bulbs can not only hurt their eyes, but you're trying to replicate natural sunlight over the Hot Side of the tank, and you do this by putting a bright-white Basking Bulb (which is just a regular, Halogen bulb that is bright-white in color) right alongside a long, strong UVB tube in a matching length tube fixture.

You need at least a 20-gallon LONG tank in order to establish a the temperature gradient that they need. You must have a distinct Hot Side that has an Ambient (air) Temp between 88-93 degrees and that contains within it his Basking Spot/Platform, which must have a Surface Temperature between 105-110 degrees....Then the opposite Cool Side of the tank must have an Ambient (air) Temperature between 75-80 degrees. These are all the maximum temps for these 3 temperature zones. This is why a 5 gallon tank is not nearly adequate. At 6 months old he'll need a minimum of a 40 Gallon Breeder Tank (not a regular 40 gallon aquarium tank, the Breeder tanks are longer, wider, and not as tall as the regular aquarium tanks). I'd just buy a 40 Gallon Breeder Tank now instead of buying a 20 Gallon LONG tank and then having to upgrade again at 6 months old.

You need either a $10 Digital Probe Thermometer (you cannot measure the Basking Spot Surface Temperature with any type of stick-on thermometer, which are totally inaccurate and usually off by between 10-20 degrees anyway) or an infrared temperature gun. No stick-on thermometers.

The most important light is the long UVB tube with a matching fixture for it. But you also need to get it set up correctly according to which strength you buy. There are 2, the much weaker T8 strength and then the much more appropriate T5 strength. You usually have to order the T5 UVB tubes and the fixtures for them, which is better anyway because you'll save up to $100 on both the T5 UVB tube and the fixture if you order them on Amazon.com.

Here are the differences between a weaker T8 UVb tube and a much stronger T5 UVB tube:

#1) The T8 UVB tubes must be replaced once every 6 months, while the T5 UVB tubes must be replaced once every 12 months. These are the ages at which the UVb tubes stop emitting any UVb light at all.

#2) The T8 UVB tube absolutely must be mounted inside the tank and underneath any type of mesh lid, as mesh lids block 40% of the UVB light emitted by the UVB tube, and T8 tubes are far too weak to be able to emit adequate UVb light to your dragon on the other side of a mesh lid. You have to poke holes in the mesh lid and strap the entire tube fixture to the underside of the mesh lid if you choose a T8 strength UVB tube. The T5 tubes can sit on top of the mesh lid.

#3) The T8 UVB tubes must be within at least 6" of your Dragon's Basking Spot/Platform, while the T5 UVb tubes must be within at least 11" of the Basking spot/platform.

You can order a 22" Reptisun 10.0 T5HO UVB Tube (NEVER ORDER A 5.0, ONLY A 10.0!!!) on Amazon.com for $24, and then a 24" T5-rated Tube Fixture with a Metal Reflector inside it (very, very crucial) for about $28 as a package deal, shipped. This would cost you around $100 or more in a pet shop, if you could even find a 10% T5 UVB tube in a pet shop, most all tubes they sell are T8 strength and horrible brands.

Do not buy the brands All Living Things (PetSmart's house-brand), Zilla, or Reptile One, they are all very, very weak T8 strength UVB tubes that are made in the same factory in China, and all 3 of these brands (along with many others) emit very harmful light rays that cause neurological damage, eye damage, and blindness. As AHBD already said, stick to the 2 brands he already mentioned: Reptisun 10. and Arcadia.

As for his basking bulb, it must be bright-white in color, and must be the correct wattage to get his Basking Spot Surface Temperature and the Hot Side Ambient (air) Temperature within the correct ranges I listed above. Most of us use regular Halogen Indoor Flood Bulbs, like the ones you buy at Lowes, Tractor Supply, or Home Depot. They are all bright-white in color and much cheaper than any basking bulbs you'll buy in a pet shop.

I can't instruct you on Basking bulb wattage because I don't know what size tank you're going to buy, but as a point of reference, most people that have a 40-gallon Breeder Tank use a 100 watt Halogen Indoor Flood Bulb over the Hot Side of the tank to achieve the 3 correct Temperature Ranges. Again, I'd just buy a 40-gallon Breeder tank now with a mesh lid, search Craigslist first, usually there are a tone of them on there with lids very cheap (completely disinfects any used tank and lid with very Hot Water and Bleach or Hibiclens).

*******Bearded Dragons come from the Australian Desert, which is Pitch-Black and very Cool at night. As such, in order for your dragon to sleep comfortably and soundly at night, it must be Pitch-Black with no lights on at all, and it also must be much cooler than his daytime temperatures. AS LONG AS HIS TANK IS AT LEAST 65 DEGREES AT NIGHT, WHICH IT PROBABLY IS, HE NEEDS ABSOLUTELY NO NIGHTTIME HEAT SOURCE AT ALL!!!! Your house would have to be around 60 degrees or colder in order for his tank to go below 65 degrees, so as a result most people need no nighttime heat source at all for their Dragons, I've never used one in 15 years and 4 dragons. If by chance you like to freeze yourself at night and you keep your house below 60 degrees, then you can buy a very low wattage CHE, like 10-20 watts, to use ONLY AT NIGHT. Remember, you are only trying to keep his nighttime temperature at 65 degrees, so any higher wattage CHE will cook him.

You should never have a CHE on during the daytime, you should have an adequate wattage bright-white colored Basking Bulb over the Hot Side of the tank that keeps the 3 temperature zones within the correct ranges. If your bright-white colored Basking Bulb does not get the temperature hot enough, then you need to go to a higher wattage bright-white colored Basking Bulb, as Bearded Dragons should get all of their light and heat during the day from a Bright white colored bulb that is above them...And just an FYI, UVB tubes do not emit much if any heat, it's negligible and will not effect the temps.

And those may be cricket bits, NEVER throw in more than 1-2 crickets into his tank at a time, they can overwhelm and stress him and he won't eat them. Feed him 1-2, wait for him to eat them, and then do another 1-2. Allow him to eat as many live insects as he wants to in a 10-15 minute period twice a day, once in the morning after both his Basking Bulb and his UVB tube have been on for at least an hour, and then again in the late afternoon to early evening, allowing both of the lights to stay on after he finishes eating for at least an hour. AND NEVER LEAVE ANY LIVE CRICKETS IN HIS TANK LOOSE EVER! They bite, cause infections, and even bite their eyeballs at night. AND AGAIN, LEAVE BOTH IS LIGHTS ON EVERY SINGLE DAY FOR AT LEAST 13-14 HOURS.

If you need a live staple insect that you can put in a bowl and leave, I suggest Phoenix Worms/BSFL/Nutrigrubs/Calciworms/Reptiworms (all the same thing). They are like large wax worms except they are one of the healthiest live insects you can feed a Bearded Dragon, low fat, high protein, and very high Calcium. I buy 1,000 size large (you can use size large BSFL for your baby because they are soft bodied) on http://www.dubiaroaches.com every month for $23 shipped. You usually cannot buy them in pet shops, Petco sells 25 smalls for $4.25, LOL...Up until your baby is about a year or so old, he'll be eating between 40-60 live insects every single day, so most people order their live insects in bulk online monthly. It's just not affordable from pet shops.
 

Emma18

Member
Original Poster
Thank you for the help I’ve been looking around and I ordered some of the nutrigrubs and Dubia roaches from the website and I’m getting the tote and mash screen along with the the halogen light tomorrow but I’m still not sure which uvb light to get are there any specific links that I could use to buy one
 
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