Dusting and Feeding Questions for 4-5 month old Beardie

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kjbolanos

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My baby beardie Toasty unfortunatly died a few days ago by incurable causes.

Although we can never replace him, my husband and I want to buy another beardie. I found one at the reptile shop that's perhaps 5 months old, perhaps even less.

I just want to have a few questions answered please before I start being a lizard mom again. I would like to do everything right.

-For a 4-5 month year old beardie, How many times should i dust calcium and how many times should i dust vitamens?
-For an adult?
-Do i dust them on the first feeding of the day or both feeding times?
-I heard giving liquid calcium glutonate allows the beardie to absorb their calcium better. How do you give your beardie this supplement as opposed to dusting?
-On average, how many small dubias should a 4-5 month old eat in a day?
-How many large dubias should an adult in a day?
-How do I give water to a beardie to assure he is not dehydrated? (Besides a bath or nose dripping)
-What is a price friendly way to regularly check for parasites? (Besides going to the vet, visible parasites in poop or signs of parasite infestation. Im wondering if i can check up regularly)
-How can I prevent parasites via feeders? I heard dubias dont carry parasites as crickets do.
-Are mustard greens a good staple vegetable to offer my beardie everyday?

Thank you. I really want to do everything right for my new beardie and correcting these little dings in my knowledge would be extremely helpful.
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
I'm sorry to hear about Toasty. I know it's rough to lose a dragon, especially to a cause that can't be cured. I'll do my best to help you get everything just right for your new buddy.

Defer to the instructions on your supplements for frequency of dusting but in general I dust all bugs I offer. I usually just use plain calcium but once or twice a week I'll use multivitamin instead. If you want to simplify things just go with an all-in-one like Repashy Calcium Plus. Dust all bugs with that at every meal and you should be in good shape. Liquid calcium supplements are usually reserved for dragons who are sick and need a more intense dosage of calcium (MBD for example). It's much more important to invest in a good UVB light to provide adequate UVB for them to process the supplements you provide and synthesize D3. A good T5 tube at 12'' above the basking area should work very nicely for this.

For a dragon under a year old offer as many small dubias/crickets they want in a 10(ish) minute window once or twice per day. The actual number of bugs eaten will vary depending on their appetite and growth speed. Between about 12-18 months (they all vary a bit) they will slow down with their growth and you can move to once daily feedings, then every other day, then every third day by 18-24 months. Offer nice big salads every day. Veges will make up the majority (80% or so) of their diet as adults.

While it's a good idea to get an annual wellness exam along with a fecal check, you don't usually need to worry about parasites if you keep on top of cleaning/sanitizing the enclosure and don't allow food to come in contact with poop. If you order your bugs from a reputable online vendor this is usually not much of a concern. If the poop is well formed and not clear the room stinky it's probably fine.

Mustard greens are a good staple green to offer, as are collards and turnip greens. I like to reference this list for ideas when I put salads together http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html The more variety the better, so I'd switch it up a bit depending on what looks freshest at the store when you're shopping.
 

kjbolanos

Member
Original Poster
CooperDragon":10n9rw5o said:
I'm sorry to hear about Toasty. I know it's rough to lose a dragon, especially to a cause that can't be cured. I'll do my best to help you get everything just right for your new buddy.

Defer to the instructions on your supplements for frequency of dusting but in general I dust all bugs I offer. I usually just use plain calcium but once or twice a week I'll use multivitamin instead. If you want to simplify things just go with an all-in-one like Repashy Calcium Plus. Dust all bugs with that at every meal and you should be in good shape. Liquid calcium supplements are usually reserved for dragons who are sick and need a more intense dosage of calcium (MBD for example). It's much more important to invest in a good UVB light to provide adequate UVB for them to process the supplements you provide and synthesize D3. A good T5 tube at 12'' above the basking area should work very nicely for this.

For a dragon under a year old offer as many small dubias/crickets they want in a 10(ish) minute window once or twice per day. The actual number of bugs eaten will vary depending on their appetite and growth speed. Between about 12-18 months (they all vary a bit) they will slow down with their growth and you can move to once daily feedings, then every other day, then every third day by 18-24 months. Offer nice big salads every day. Veges will make up the majority (80% or so) of their diet as adults.

While it's a good idea to get an annual wellness exam along with a fecal check, you don't usually need to worry about parasites if you keep on top of cleaning/sanitizing the enclosure and don't allow food to come in contact with poop. If you order your bugs from a reputable online vendor this is usually not much of a concern. If the poop is well formed and not clear the room stinky it's probably fine.

Mustard greens are a good staple green to offer, as are collards and turnip greens. I like to reference this list for ideas when I put salads together http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html The more variety the better, so I'd switch it up a bit depending on what looks freshest at the store when you're shopping.

I read that for a young beardie, its reccomended to dust their feeders five times a week with calcium and twice a week with multivitamens. I used a Calcium+D3 powder. I heard that you can get an overdosage of D3.... I see some people use calcium with D3 and some don't. Although I'd like to be assured that the beardie is getting enough D3. Should I keep using the calcium with the D3 each feeding period?

Thank you for the clarification with the dubias. I allowed my previous beardie 10-15 minutes to eat all he wants. He was a very ravenous eater and i wondered if too much dubias might cause problems.

There is currently nothing inside the wooden, but I want to arrange it in a way that the Beardie can get enough UVB light and have a comfortable and accessable basking light. Although i have an idea, any suggestions would be much appreciated. The beardie im trying to get is perhaps a little more than 3/4 of a foot. I'm a bit worried whether or not he will get enough of his essential UVB since his light is quite high up. Its most definantly more than 12" from top to bottom. I ask this because the beardie i had before was ill right after i got him and he never learned to be active and climb branches. Thats why the branch is positioned in that way so its not permanent. Im thinking i might cut the branch for more flexible positions. Its upsetting to say so far i have not had a active beardie to climb it. Please ignore the red light. i dont have it anymore. I have a white light. Also this set up was temporary. I am currently arranging it differently
89385-1405387358.jpg
I am most likely going to flip the wood.

For my new beardie, I want to do everything right so he/she can have a very happy, healthy and loving life.
 

kjbolanos

Member
Original Poster
Also, how do you put your bearded dragons to sleep? Since mine was sick, i always helped him everyday to get in his sleeping cave. I take him out in the morning physically.

Should i just turn off the light and let him go whereever he wants? Will he go in his cave or a sleeping spot? Or should i guide him to his cave to train him?
 

kjbolanos

Member
Original Poster
89385-5606263368.jpg


Here's an updated image of the enclosure that I arranged. Sorry if the picture is angled, I took it with my laptop.
 

Skipper7

Juvie Member
Most older beardies will go to their hides themselves near bedtime or after the lights are off. Babies often sleep wherever they happen to be then the lights click off. Lol. They don't have to sleep in hides. Some do, some don't.

Make sure the branch has been sterilized if another baby used it. You'll have to see how he uses it. You can adjust it as you go to get him closer to the heat and UVB. Are you able to move the UVB fixture?


I'm not ignoring the red light because I'm difficult :lol:
 

kjbolanos

Member
Original Poster
Skipper7":aq3bn8ox said:
Most older beardies will go to their hides themselves near bedtime or after the lights are off. Babies often sleep wherever they happen to be then the lights click off. Lol. They don't have to sleep in hides. Some do, some don't.

Make sure the branch has been sterilized if another baby used it. You'll have to see how he uses it. You can adjust it as you go to get him closer to the heat and UVB. Are you able to move the UVB fixture?


I'm not ignoring the red light because I'm difficult :lol:

I sterilized everything.

And well, I think i can but its screwed on the top. A friend of mine suggested to unscrew the UVB and hang it.

But I've seen people just keep it there. they told me that the UVB will go all around the enclosure since the walls are white and that it was a perfect set up. :| Do I need to move it?
 
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