What to look out for in old Bearded Dragons

domondios

Member
Hi All,

This is my first official post.

About 2 weeks ago I offered to take care, and to keep, a 10yr old Male Bearded Dragon. He is approximately 12inch in length and due to his previous owner he was not on a stable diet and was more than happy to move in with us.

I was told that due to his age he was very lazy as he would literally need to be hand fed everything. When we moved him into our place I decided to look up what I should do as far as feeding him goes. The previous owner only fed him pellets with some greens and then once in a while she would feed him WaxWorms to fatten up a bit.

When I introduced him to Crickets he went absolutely mad for them and is now fed twice a day with 6-8 crickets along with greens. He is old, so getting him to drink water and eat the greens is a challenge, but we have succeeded so far and he looks so happy.

I want to know what his physical appearance means and what to watch out for, health- wise. I've never had a reptile pet before, so knowing what to look for is key for me.

Can anyone answer the following:

01. When would his colour mean he is happy, warm and fed compared to if he was hungry or cold?

02. He won't drink water directly from his bowl, so I hand-drink him, but I'd like to know how I could get him to do it on his own? I have the same issue with his greens.

03. Some times his colour is really dark, where some days he may be a shade lighter and then goes very light, especially after a bath. What should I watch out for during these stages and what action should be taken?

I will be building a new big terrarium over December for him, approximately double the current size, so that I can put a nice tree stump and branch, hollowed out rock and maybe a hammock too. I'll also be fitting digital thermometers on either side of his terrarium. He is really cute. When the sun is out he will beg to leave his terrarium so he can walk across the lounge to the sunny spot. I leave him to do what he wants for most of the day, and when he has had enough sun, or rain is coming, he makes his way back to his terrarium and basks under his light.

Thanks ahead to anyone who can give me a basic 101 on Bearded Dragons.
 

konlinr

New member
Hey

Regarding your dragon - his an adult so basically adults should be fed live food 3 times a week only dusted with calcium which includes D3 - you can feed greens everyday - at the moment you are feeding him too much

With regards to the water - most beardies are fussy when it comes to drinking water so what you can do is give him a bath twice a week in the sink in warm water and also put droplets of water on the tip of his nose and he will drink it. - his really old so as the saying go's you can't teach and old dog new tricks :D

With regards to the color beardies to go dark when they are unhappy about something or when they are basking so don't worry about it unless he is like that the whole day

Please make sure you change his uvb bulb every 6 months - I use the EXO TERRA 10.0 uvb T8 20W tube - do note use the screw type uvb bulbs

Also do not use sand - use newspaper

I hope this helps - if you need any more advise feel free to ask me
 

domondios

Member
Original Poster
Hi,

Thanks for the input. He is in very good shape for an old beardie, in-fact he runs all over the garden during the day and our garden is perfect for him as we won't lose him.

I get told so many different things by everyone. My vet recons that I should place enough crickets into his pen until he turns away from them. I feel that isn't necessary. He is down to two meals of live crickets, 7 at a time, twice a day and he loves his greens and his tummy works daily.

I got him to drink water from a bowl once but now I spray him with water and his greens and he is getting what he needs. I use Outback sand which is fully digestible so no need for newspaper, plus I sometimes release calcium covered crickets on the lawn and he hunts every one of them successfully.

I learn more and more each day and he is really a sweet thing...actually nuzzles his head in your neck when he is close enough,

I want to know what it means when his colour is very light. His basking colour is dark, but sometimes he is almost as green as our fresh light green grass. Is it a heat related reaction?

Thanks for your time and advice. Much appreciated.
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
domondios":qqcueh6p said:
01. When would his colour mean he is happy, warm and fed compared to if he was hungry or cold?

As long as he isn't dark and doesn't have stress marks on his belly or a black beard, this usually means he is content.

domondios":qqcueh6p said:
02. He won't drink water directly from his bowl, so I hand-drink him, but I'd like to know how I could get him to do it on his own? I have the same issue with his greens.

Most dragons won't drink from standing water on their own. What you can do to keep him hydrated is let him soak in a bath for 15-20 minutes maybe 3 or so times a week. They can absorb water through their vents, so this works well.

domondios":qqcueh6p said:
03. Some times his colour is really dark, where some days he may be a shade lighter and then goes very light, especially after a bath. What should I watch out for during these stages and what action should be taken?
Nothing really. Just take note if the darkness is lasting a couple days as this would be a sign of distress or discomfort. We all have our bad moments, dragons included. :mrgreen:

You can continue to feed him live crickets each day, but don't let him get ahead of himself. 10 crickets or so a day is plenty. He should mainly be eating healthy salads each day.

-Brandon
 

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