Bruce

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I just got bruce about a week ago and then I discovered this forum. I am a first time bearded dragon owner! My friend has one and he convinced me to get one. It was very overwhelming at first, but I think I have almost everything figured out by now. He is harder than I thought he would be to take care of but it is SOOOOOOOOO worth it. Bruce is so cute!!!! He is about 11 inches long and loves spending time with people. He isn't as skittish as other people's dragons when they first get them. His setup is a 20 gallon long-style tank with a mesh top. On top it has a basking lamp, and uvb tube (with the clear plastic cover removed). Inside he has a rock thing that doubles as a basking spot and hiding place right under the heat lamp. He has a little double staircase thing and a food bowl with pellets and a water bowl. He seems very healthy and alert. He eats about 15 roaches in a 8 minute time frame and I do that twice a day. I also leave a salad (Collard greens, carrots, bell peppers) in his cage all day until about 7:00 I'm not worried about feeding him anymore than that a day because he has a pretty big belly for a juvenile. I turn on his lights at 7:30 a.m. and I turn them off between 8 and 8:30 p.m. I have an Exo-Terra large cricket keeper that I use to keep roaches. I just got a colony of 50 Adult females and 15 Adult males. I have thermometers to monitor his terrarium tempuratures and they seem fine. If I am missing anything, please let me know. Here’s a picture of him and his setup.

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CooperDragon

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He's looking good! The UVB light looks like the Zilla Slimline fixture. Did you remove the clear plastic that comes in front of the bulb? That's important to do. Is your infrared night light a ceramic heat emitter? Or does it give off visible red light too? If it gives off visible red light you'll want to remove it as that may disturb his sleep. If it stays above 65 or so in the tank overnight you don't need night heat. Otherwise I'd use a low wattage ceramic heat emitter or a MegaRay heat projector.
 

Flapjack6260

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CooperDragon":3n28on9f said:
The UVB light looks like the Zilla Slimline fixture. Did you remove the clear plastic that comes in front of the bulb? That's important to do. Is your infrared night light a ceramic heat emitter? Or does it give off visible red light too? If it gives off visible red light you'll want to remove it as that may disturb his sleep. If it stays above 65 or so in the tank overnight you don't need night heat. Otherwise I'd use a low wattage ceramic heat emitter or a MegaRay heat projector.
Oh crap! I forgot to remove the plastic I think! I'll check when I get home. The light gives off a little visible purple light, but he usually likes to sleep inside his pyramid, so I don't think it bothers him.
 

CooperDragon

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I would remove that and get it as close to the pyramid as possible for best results. If the temps don't require the purple light I'd keep it off (overnight cooldown is natural for them) but if the temps get too cold I'd replace it when you can.
 

Flapjack6260

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I got home and the clear plastic is still on. I just removed it. Is it safe to use it like this? Also, I have thermometers coming tomorrow so I'll check his cage temps with and without the night light.
 

CooperDragon

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Yes you need to use it like that. The plastic is a water guard for aquarium use. It blocks 100% of the UVB coming from your bulb rendering the fixture useless as a UVB light if it's left on. That should sit 6-8'' above the basking area for best results.
 

Flapjack6260

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Ok, thanks for informing me of that! I am so glad I was able to get that plastic off. I got the thermometers today, and the temps are good for a Juvenile dragon.I am getting a roach breeding colony tomorrow. He's all good!
 

dezismom

Juvie Member
Hi, and welcome to the wonderful world of beardies! They are work, but as you say, so totally worth it! I had never had a beardie before my boy Dezi, but three years later, I cannot imagine being without him. He is my best friend, and the best companion ever. I had never believeds that a lizard would have so much affectionate behavior. Dezi is smart, and has his preferences, (he loves footbal on TV, he loves male tenor opera singing, and blueberries) and he communicates amazingly well, using his body language, facial expressions, and even smiles....be prepared to be the happy servant of Bruce! :)

Dezi says, hi Bruce!
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Flapjack6260

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Thank you! I am excited to see Bruce grow up! I just got a roach colony of 50 females and 15 males today, so I'm all done buying stuff :D (or at least until he gets to big for his tank)
 

dezismom

Juvie Member
You are quite welcome!:) Watching them grow into adulthood is so fun and fascinating...and they just keep getting better with age! My boy, DeziLu is over three years, and I love him more every day. He was my first Beardie, my first encounter with reptiles as pets, and what a surprise to discover that beardies are so sweet, intelligent, affectionate...I could go on and on. How is Bruce settling in and adjusting to his new home? Have you two bonded, getting to know each other well? I found that Dezi has great communication, once I got to know his language. His facial expressions, body language, color, even his eye blinks all combine to form a language and he "talks" to me all day. How unexpected! These creatures are simply amazing. More photos of Bruce, please! ??

Dezi demonstrates proper beardie head rubs...and his expression says it all.
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Flapjack6260

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Original Poster
Bruce seems to like me! He likes it when I listen to Audiobooks for some reason. I changed his pyramid because he didn’t really like it that much. He hates being held though, he gets stress marks all over when I take him out. I only take him out when it’s necessary (cleaning, feeding, etc), but every other day I take him out for 15-20 minutes to hang out with him. I’ve only been doing this for like 5 days. Any advice on handling him? My main concern is how to get him out of his tank. His tank opens from above and I’ve heard to approach them from A horizontal direction. How should I pick him up with this setup? Anyways, here are some more pictures.

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He is growing SO fast too. That orange thing in the picture is a 6 inch ruler!
 

dezismom

Juvie Member
Looking good, Bruce!
They seem to grow and change right before our eyes, at this stage. And they do like certain things...Dezi likes deep voices. Their hearing range can pick up sounds that are too low for human ears to register. I sing or hum to Dezi, (oh, yeah, I sing to my dragon! ha, ha!) and when I go as low as I can, he actually makes a soft vibration in his throat, like a kitty purring. I cannot hear it, but can feel it in his throat and in his chest bones. I think he is singing back! He has such a sweet smile, and snuggles down with his face resting on my collar bone, to feel the vibrations. If I stop, he looks up at me,then kicks me with a back leg, like starting a motor cycle. It is adorable.

My new girl, Penny, is growing like a weed, too. She was a rescue...malnourished, skinny, and terrified, she was biting and baring her teeth at everyone. She was so black from distress, I could not tell what color or markings she had. :( They thought she was untameable and "vicious" and would never be tamed...so they sold her to me for one penny! What a great deal!) With some patience and love, she has begun to trust me, snuggling into my hand. She is getting nice and hefty, with beautiful markings. She even lets me kiss her little head. I think she would have died, if left in those conditions.

Bruce is off to a great start! It is such a satisfying feeling to watch these amazing dragons growing up to become happy, healthy adults. they become more mellow with age. Dezi goes everywhere I go, greets strangers calmly, and people love him. Even people who are at first intimidated by his size and spikes are quickly won over by his gentle, sweet nature. It sounds like Bruce will be as gentle and laid back as Dezi. Constant handling and attention as babies will make them become extremely tame as adults.

Here is Penny: does she look vicious and untameable, to you? :):)
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Flapjack6260

Member
Original Poster
Thank you for the advice! I will try to learn his body language and hold him more. Everybody on this forum is so nice and helpful! Let’s just say that Bruce wouldn’t be doing too well if it weren’t for all of the help I have gotten from this forum! I am so excited to see Bruce grow up and will definently use this forum again for any questions/concerns that I have with Bruce. :D
 
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