Rescued a bearded dragon and need a little help

Status
Not open for further replies.
Hello, I’ve very recently rescued a 2 year old female bearded dragon, she’s my first dragon but I could not leave her
I’ve researched A LOT about them and have a manual, but there’s just a few things I need a little help with,

She came with aspen in her viv and I was told to take it out and change it as it was not good for her and could cause blockages,
So I’ve changed it to reptile sand and have now read mixed things about the sand and how it can cause all sorts of problems and mites is this true?
I’ve read about other people using tiles and hard surfaces like slate and carpet/wooden flooring would this be better than the sand?
Also, since I have replaced the aspen with sand, she is continuously digging and still trying to dig when she reaches the bottom of the viv! does anyone know why she would be doing this? Is it because she’s new to sand? Or is she trying to find a place to lay eggs? The previous owners I rescued her from didn’t say anything about her ever laying eggs before so this may be a new thing too.

She feeds on locusts and I have been putting plant based food out too with the calcium but she doesn’t seem to be touching it at all- should I be worried about this? as she needs the calcium!

She has a broken toe which looks awful and crooked but the previous owners left her with this toe for far too long and it’s now beyond repairing. Shes allowing me feel it and doesn’t seem like it’s hurting her or irritating her (I suppose she’s probably used to it now) and it isn’t stopping her from climbing or stopping her doing anything at all, she also has a nail missing on her rear foot- will this come back?
Sorry for all the questions, I’m just trying to be the best I can as she’s had it pretty hard
thank you all, and I’d love to hear back from you!

I have tried to attach a picture but it’s posted it somewhere else on this site:/ I’m unsure how this site works or how to post the picture
 

JumpinJellyfish

Juvie Member
Hi - you'll get mixed answers here about the sand as well, but I try to stay out of that one. If you do choose a harder surface, be sure to provide some softer places as well. The digging does sound like female/egg-laying behavior, but I've only had males, so the only advice I have about the digging is to look in this forum for posts about how to set up a dig box. :0)
It sounds like the healed broken toe is not bothering her, and the missing other toenail may be a wait and see if it grows back. For the calcium, it may be enough to dust the bugs and leave the salad clean. :0)
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Does she appear to be in good health? The activity level sounds encouraging. She could be digging because she is gravid or it could just be curiosity or desire to burrow. Generally I advise using a solid surface for substrate because they are easier to clean and sanitize. Since she seems to enjoy digging, I would build a separate dig box for her so she can lay eggs there if needed. That usually consists of a mixture of damp play sand and organic topsoil to the consistency that a tunnel can hold its structure.

In the enclosure, putting down small fleece blankets or a pile of fleece scraps may be helpful. That will allow her to burrow while providing an easy to clean (or throw away) medium.

Once you have uploaded photos using the image uploader https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ you can post them to your thread using the XIMG button when you reply.
 

ShinAndDragon

Member
Original Poster
JumpinJellyfish":2wbr52eb said:
Hi - you'll get mixed answers here about the sand as well, but I try to stay out of that one. If you do choose a harder surface, be sure to provide some softer places as well. The digging does sound like female/egg-laying behavior, but I've only had males, so the only advice I have about the digging is to look in this forum for posts about how to set up a dig box. :0)
It sounds like the healed broken toe is not bothering her, and the missing other toenail may be a wait and see if it grows back. For the calcium, it may be enough to dust the bugs and leave the salad clean. :0)
Thank you so much for your reply, I have now changed the sand and ordered some reptile carpet, so that can be washed and sanitised. I feel a lot more at ease that her toe doesn’t seem to bother her, she lets me near it and even to touch it, the nail situation is a bit different, I hope it grows back as she likes to climb and her nails definitely aid that to happen, so for her I hope it does grow back. I never thought of dusting the bugs as they’re alive! But I will be sure to try that! Thank you
 

ShinAndDragon

Member
Original Poster
CooperDragon":1dxk3s5l said:
Does she appear to be in good health? The activity level sounds encouraging. She could be digging because she is gravid or it could just be curiosity or desire to burrow. Generally I advise using a solid surface for substrate because they are easier to clean and sanitize. Since she seems to enjoy digging, I would build a separate dig box for her so she can lay eggs there if needed. That usually consists of a mixture of damp play sand and organic topsoil to the consistency that a tunnel can hold its structure.

In the enclosure, putting down small fleece blankets or a pile of fleece scraps may be helpful. That will allow her to burrow while providing an easy to clean (or throw away) medium.

Once you have uploaded photos using the image uploader https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ you can post them to your thread using the XIMG button when you reply.
Thank you for your reply,
She does seem to be in good health. I’m yet to weigh her and keep an eye on that as I have no information on what she was weighing before I rescued her. I’ve had her 2 days now.
I’ve ordered her some reptile carpet so I can wash and sanitise that which will be good!
For the digging box, is there a specific one that I should buy or would I have to make her one? If so how big would I have to make it and how deep should it be?
The fleece sounds good for burrowing! As the digging could be a mixture of things but if I have a box as well as fleece It would let me know why she was digging! Haha!
Thank you
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
The finger looks like it is healed over so if it doesn't appear to be causing pain or trouble moving around it may be fine going forward.

As far as the dig box goes, you usually build one out of a rubbermaid bin. It should be big enough for her to dig in and move around a bit. You just fill it and mix the sand and soil and get a little tunnel started and then give her time to dig around in it. It can get messy from what I've seen so best to keep it set up on newspapers and offer a bath afterwards.
 

ShinAndDragon

Member
Original Poster
CooperDragon":fwxetgea said:
The finger looks like it is healed over so if it doesn't appear to be causing pain or trouble moving around it may be fine going forward.

As far as the dig box goes, you usually build one out of a rubbermaid bin. It should be big enough for her to dig in and move around a bit. You just fill it and mix the sand and soil and get a little tunnel started and then give her time to dig around in it. It can get messy from what I've seen so best to keep it set up on newspapers and offer a bath afterwards.
That’s amazing to hear, I was scared it would be dangerous for her, but as it’s healed over itself and not causing any pain that’s great to hear.
And as for the digging box, would I use the reptile sand or the children’s play sand I’ve heard about- or does it not matter?
A bath would definitely be on the cards after a dig! Haha
Thank you so much
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
You can use this LAYBOX
potting soil that doesn't have any type of
chemicals or fertilizers in it, mixed with sand, etc. Be sure it is at least 10-12 inches deep & that
the mix is damp enough to where it will hold up to her making a burrow but not sopping wet to
have standing water.
Karrie
 

ShinAndDragon

Member
Original Poster
KarrieRee":3ua4b3ku said:
You can use this LAYBOX
potting soil that doesn't have any type of
chemicals or fertilizers in it, mixed with sand, etc. Be sure it is at least 10-12 inches deep & that
the mix is damp enough to where it will hold up to her making a burrow but not sopping wet to
have standing water.
Karrie
Oh amazing. I’m going to Clandon water park and reptile centre on Saturday so I’ll be sure to have a look there, thank you so much for helping, I’ve seen many videos about how damp to have it so hopefully I should be okay! But I just wasn’t sure on how deep so you’ve helped me a lot
 

ShinAndDragon

Member
Original Poster
CooperDragon":2cnrhdxc said:
I would go with play sand over reptile/calcium sand for the dig box.
Yeah I have read lots about the play sand but I still thought I would ask on here as id get a definite answer, thank you for helping
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Members online

Latest resources

Latest profile posts

I miss you so much, Amaris 💔
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

Forum statistics

Threads
155,898
Messages
1,255,677
Members
75,965
Latest member
williamyoung
Top Bottom