I think my lighting sucks.

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Mike37130

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So I've had my new beardy for about a week now. He has unfortunately been hiding a lot. at first I thought maybe it is relocation stress. Now I'm beginning to think that may be the lighting I have is a little too intense. Specifically the basking lamp. As for the UVB t8 light I do not think it is properly mounted in the right location or big enough. I've been told by my friends that I'm fretting too much and that may be true because I have a tendency to do that with my animals. I would like y'alls opinion on this setup and your opinion what changes I should make.
Okay here we go
current setup
Exo Terra AllGlass Terrarium - 36 x 18 x 18 Inches
Zoo Med ReptiSun T8 10.0 UVB Lamp, 18" Length
Zilla Slimline T8 Fluorescent Fixture (mounted under screen on the back of the terrarium.)
Zoo Med Repti Basking Spot Lamp 150w (placed on top of screen.)
Zoo med nocturnal heat lamp on thermostat set to 68 degrees Fahrenheit for nighttime heat.

Terrarium temperatures.
Cool side is 74 to 76 degrees Fahrenheit as measured by digital thermometer probe. 76 to 78 as measured with a temperature gun.

Basking side temperatures at 100f as measured with a digital thermometer probe. 105f as measured with temperature gun.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
What is the distance you have the T 8? It should be 8-10 inches from basking spot-- is he eating?
Karrie
 

Mike37130

Member
Original Poster
KarrieRee":18etlaph said:
What is the distance you have the T 8? It should be 8-10 inches from basking spot-- is he eating?
Karrie

No. I would say it is about 14 to 16 inches from the basking spot. I will fix that when I get home. But the problem is he's not going to his basking spot at all unless I place him there.

As for him eating he is eating very little. I have coaxed him him into eating a couple crickets but He will not touch the vegetables. I am working on that.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Ok so we need a pic of the tank and lighting -- get the UVB moved to 8-10 inches - the 14 inches is set to a T 5 -- try and get your basking temps up to 105-110 - babies like it warmer - if you can move your decor piece closer - for salads here are some pointers
First thing in the morning feed salad here is a website for nutrition www.http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html
Get a glass bowl ones that worms or insects cant get out of - add 1-3 small super worms or medium dont know how big your dragon is but you dont want the worm too big put on top of his salad - get some BSFL from here www.symtonbsf.com order large as they are small and dont dust them w/ calcium - they are calcium enriched - add as many as you want to the bowl as they are another great staple feeder - if you cant get super worms get some wax worms only use 1-3 of those - you want to lure him to the bowl to eat his vegies -- make sure you add the worms etc in front of him - let him see you do this - it will get his attention - after about an hr or so of getting him to eat from that bowl add your staple insects -- I recommend dubias they are a better healthier bug -- and easier to care for and use -- take a little of the vegies out but leave some in add your insects to the bowl that will get him back in the bowl to eat --- make sure your dusting your insects w/ calcium D3 5 x per week and vitamins 2 x per week --- except the BSFL -- you can order dubias from here www.dubiaroaches.com these people are good and fast and they have other worms like horn worms butter worms ---- www.abdragons.com -- www.mulberryfarms.com -- you can also order silk worms they are another good staple feeder and mulberry farms have them on sale now --- the horn worms are a hydrating worm and grow really fast --- so order small amounts -- butter worms are good but at this time dubia roaches are out - you can order small super worms from here www.https://reptilesupply.com/ they also have dubias and small superworms--
Even if you can get him to eat a few bites of salad that is good -- it will get him used to eating the salad and you wont have such a hard time later --- when the diet should switch to mainly vegies -- the nutrition website will tell you what to feed how often to feed and what NOT to feed -- get your lighting fixed and the basking temp up and post a pic of the tank - he should be eating something not nothing at all and him hiding and not being active is not good -- they go thru relocation stress but he still should be eating and basking
Karrie
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hi there,

Did you remove the plastic cover that blocks the bulb on the zilla fixture?

Once you get it down to around 8 inches, it will be better. How old is the bulb?

Get rid of the nocturnal bulb though. Dragons prefer darkness at night to sleep. If you need to add additional heat at night you will want to get a CHE instead.

Could you get us a picture of your tank and of your dragon?

-Brandon
 

Mike37130

Member
Original Poster
I plan on getting a picture to you as soon as I get home from work. I guess i deleted the one that's on my phone. Anyways that bulb is less than a week old. I do have a ceramic heater on order for night heating. The thing is he's just not using his basking spot and he's hiding. Believe it or not he was the last one they had at the pet store. I'm beginning to think that was because he was the fastest and most shy and was able to get away. He is awake. He watches me from his hiding spot attentively. At what point should I begin to make him move to his basking spot? Should I give him another week?
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Make sure the cover is off the bulb as Brandon suggested - you want that bulb exposed -- you only need nite time heating if your tank is falling below 65--- if not your good - if you want the tank warmer at nite that is up to you but 70's is good - they like cool and dark to sleep - once we see the tank we can better help - I am not getting why hes hiding -- as long as the basking temps are good 105-110 and you have the UVB it just needs to be placed properly I would think he would be out basking -- so something is off --- get the pics posted and we can go from there
Karrie
 

Mike37130

Member
Original Poster
We keep our thermostat set at 65 at night. That back room he's in can fall as low as the upper 50s. That's why I have night time heating. I thought that nocturnal light would be okay because I read on a few sites that those are okay. Now I'm seeing other sites saying they're not okay. Lol. I hate the internet...
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Dragons have an extra cone in their eye when compared to humans. This allows them to see much better and more of the spectrum than we can. If we can see the light, they most definitely can see the light and most likely in a much more vivid fashion.

Dragons are very reliant on light, and a red light overhead all night long is extremely unnatural and telling the dragon it's in a perpetual state of sunrise/sunset when the spectra is normally most red naturally.

They like darkness :)

-Brandon
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Ok 55 is pretty cool for a room for him and are you having a hard time getting temps up in the day time? The heat emitter will help get your temps up as well --
Karrie
 

Mike37130

Member
Original Poster
KarrieRee":3qt1hpey said:
Ok 55 is pretty cool for a room for him and are you having a hard time getting temps up in the day time? The heat emitter will help get your temps up as well --
Karrie
We warm the house up in the daytime. So temps are not the problem. The basking spot just needs to be raised up a few inches. It's nearly on the bottom of the enclosure. When I first set it up I was getting temperatures well above 115. I just read that juveniles should have a temperature between 95 and 105. I figured anything above 105 was too hot. Is this wrong?
 

Mike37130

Member
Original Poster
Ok well good news. we have done a 180. I followed yalls advice and rearranged his basking spot. I moved his favorite hiding spot to the basking area. Next thing i know he eat more then i ever seen him eat and he has been exploring a bit. He is basking a lot more and seems to like it. I guess all he needed was his therapy tree. I haven't moved his UVB light yet because i got to get some more 3M hanger. but i got the basking spot close to it for now.
83296136_10221622233614107_7902259711720816640_o.jpg

84129239_10221622233894114_5213074863996010496_o.jpg

83688577_10221622234414127_785199585977958400_o.jpg
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
Decor piece needs to be directly under the UVB approx 8-10 inches --
Karrie
 
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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.
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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

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