Beardie been kept in wrong conditions

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Today I bought my first bearded dragon and enclosure (preowned) it is a male and 2 1/2 years old. I have done extensive researched and realised his conditions are not good.

First of all the uvb lighting is a “repti-glo 5.0” which I believe is for rainforest animals not desert ,, and on top of that repti glow is sub-par and I should get a reptisun 10.0 or an Arcadia 12%. ((Would it be okay to use these without reflectors?))

Secondly , the best bulb is only 60 watts and the basking area reaches temperatures of only 28•C

Thirdly they said he eats a lot of ice berg lettuce ! Which you can’t feed beardies.

I plan on upgrading the heat lamp and uvb bulb but I’m worried irreversible damage has been done to my Beardie , he seems fine but the previous owners said he is very lazy (could be down to inadequate heating and light?) thanks for help
 

Abriana8

Member
Hey there.
Last month I also got my first beardie.
He is almost 2, and his conditions also weren't the best. His basking spot was barely 80 degrees and UVB bulb had a plastic cover AND the screen between the actual light and the lizard. I ended up getting a reptisun 10.0 AND an MVB for heat + UVB. (some people argue that MVBS are useless) but my dragon spent all his time basking at first once I got the temps up properly so I wanted him to have heat + UVB all in one. I think you should get proper lighting for him/her with the proper temperature gradient and slowly adjust the diet & if you don't notice a positive difference, see a vet about possible MBD. my beardie was only eating apples and iceberg lettuce and it took me three weeks to get him to eat other veggies and greens but he came around. Hes way more energetic now than he was before. This is also the time of year a lot of beardies brumate so yours could be semi-brumating which could contribute to laziness but poor diet + bad lighting is a recipe for an inactive dragon. Also, I would suggest a reflector if you get the reptisun 10.0. Congrats on getting a beardie! They're awesome :) Good luck!
 

Lukemcc859

Member
Original Poster
Abriana8":2c17yp3i said:
Hey there.
Last month I also got my first beardie.
He is almost 2, and his conditions also weren't the best. His basking spot was barely 80 degrees and UVB bulb had a plastic cover AND the screen between the actual light and the lizard. I ended up getting a reptisun 10.0 AND an MVB for heat + UVB. (some people argue that MVBS are useless) but my dragon spent all his time basking at first once I got the temps up properly so I wanted him to have heat + UVB all in one. I think you should get proper lighting for him/her with the proper temperature gradient and slowly adjust the diet & if you don't notice a positive difference, see a vet about possible MBD. my beardie was only eating apples and iceberg lettuce and it took me three weeks to get him to eat other veggies and greens but he came around. Hes way more energetic now than he was before. This is also the time of year a lot of beardies brumate so yours could be semi-brumating which could contribute to laziness but poor diet + bad lighting is a recipe for an inactive dragon. Also, I would suggest a reflector if you get the reptisun 10.0. Congrats on getting a beardie! They're awesome :) Good luck!



Thanks , that puts my mind at rest :) At the minute I swapped the uvb for a reptisun 10.0 , byt ny basking bulb is an exo terra 100w infrared. Is this okay? I don’t have it on at night just the day so the red isn’t too noticeable but it gives off nice heat.
 

Abriana8

Member
I don't personally have experience with infared lights. I think most people would agree that a standard lightbulb gives off just as much heat and is cheaper though!
 

VenusAndSaturn

Sub-Adult Member
Definitely get a regular bright white basking bulb, the red coloring it has will make everything look quite distorted for your beardie and may end up hurting its eyes eventually.

Beardies can see in color so just imagine trying to live in a room with colored lighting rather than the soft regular lights that are more natural and easier on their and our eyes.

I dont know about you but I can't stand any red lights on during the night or day, even with my eyes closed and same goes for my beardies. When I first got them I had one of those horribly branded "infrared" bulbs and me and my beardies didn't get one bit of sleep for that night until I turned it off once I realized how bad they are for my health and their health.

Also should be noted the colored bulbs are not true infrared bulbs, yes they produce heat but they also produce light and if we can see that light that means it's not a true infrared bulb. We ourselves can not see infrared.
 

Lukemcc859

Member
Original Poster
[
VenusAndSaturn":3phcf5bz said:
Definitely get a regular bright white basking bulb, the red coloring it has will make everything look quite distorted for your beardie and may end up hurting its eyes eventually.

Beardies can see in color so just imagine trying to live in a room with colored lighting rather than the soft regular lights that are more natural and easier on their and our eyes.

I dont know about you but I can't stand any red lights on during the night or day, even with my eyes closed and same goes for my beardies. When I first got them I had one of those horribly branded "infrared" bulbs and me and my beardies didn't get one bit of sleep for that night until I turned it off once I realized how bad they are for my health and their health.

Also should be noted the colored bulbs are not true infrared bulbs, yes they produce heat but they also produce light and if we can see that light that means it's not a true infrared bulb. We ourselves can not see infrared.



Thanks for the advice. This is my set up at the minute does it look good ot should I swap a few things around , I’m completely new to this . There is a reptile hammock hidden in the corner you can barely make out.

mGi6Xc
 

Lukemcc859

Member
Original Poster
97430-3483906794.jpg
VenusAndSaturn":2k5f4zv6 said:
The image didnt show up, you can upload one here,
https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/
And then once uploaded hit the XIMG tab when posting a reply to select it.

Thanks, got it now. He seems to always stay on the log instead of the arch structure which is the basking area. (I have seen him climb it before but that’s when it was in the cool area and I had the log on the basking spot.)
 

Abriana8

Member
Setup looks good to me. Once you have the proper lighting and temperature gradient just make sure there's multiple levels for your beardie to climb so he can get as close or as far as he prefers (which it looks like you already have) also, I'd suggest an infared temperature gun for accurate temp readings if you don't have one. I found one on Amazon for $17. Jotan (my guy) has been on the cool side of his tank under his UVB for the last few days, not basking as much. He's still active and eating though. Remember, your dragon knows what he needs, so as long as your setup is adequate he will be able to utilize it to benefit him best! :)
 

Abriana8

Member
96947-4649490984.jpg

This is Jotan's new setup. The only modification I'm gonna make is a rig to hang the UVB IN his enclosure instead on the screen (screen tops filter out UVB) The enclosure thread has some awesome setup ideas if you ever want inspiration and creative DIYs!
 

Lukemcc859

Member
Original Poster
Abriana8":3ffk25wp said:
96947-4649490984.jpg

This is Jotan's new setup. The only modification I'm gonna make is a rig to hang the UVB IN his enclosure instead on the screen (screen tops filter out UVB) The enclosure thread has some awesome setup ideas if you ever want inspiration and creative DIYs!

That’s a really nice set up, I love that little area he has , a hammoc maybe ? Looks good anyways and is that reptile carpet ?? I’m having an issue where my besrdie hasn’t eaten in two days (since I got him) should I put the salad in his Exo Terra dish or just set it on the news paper.
 

Abriana8

Member
Yes he has a hammock! & I do use reptile carpet. Newspaper is easier to clean, but reptile carpet is more durable. Pros and cons to both. My guy didn't eat the first few days I had him. Some prefer to eat off the floor as opposed to a food dish so you could try it. Eventually instinct will overcome stubbornness when it comes to eating & he'll come around. Could be stress of a new environment. You could also try putting a superworm in his salad to get him to pick up some greens! That worked for me!
 

VenusAndSaturn

Sub-Adult Member
Jotan (my guy) has been on the cool side of his tank under his UVB for the last few days, not basking as much.

It may be because he's not getting any UVB on the warm side at all unless you have a proper MVB like powersun or megaray in those fixtures?
 

Abriana8

Member
Funny enough, he just started basking again tonight. The MVB is less than a month old! I'm pretty certain he's close to shedding as well. Will post updates on separate forum.
 
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What is a quick way to warm up a cold beardie? His heating element went out overnight and now he's very cold.
Pearl Girl wrote on moorelori1966's profile.
i feel so sad reading your about me 😢
Clapton is acclimating okay I think. He's quick as lightning so I'm not sure how much I should bring him out of his house yet. He's not at all interested in his salad though. I wonder if I should change what I'm giving him. Least he's eating his crickets.

Things to do:
Buy calcium powder
Material to raise surface for basking spot
Scenery decals for back of tank
Taking my beardie for a walk

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