Zen Habitats 4x2x4 or 4x2x2?

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StephE24

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Hi all. I currently have a little guy (about 3 months) but have been trying to figure out & plan what to do for an upgrade in a few months that will become his permanent home (Not DIY). I really like the look of Zen Habitats plus everything I’ve heard about them so far and I’m pretty set on one. My question though is: is the 4x2x4 too tall? I’m worried that our guy will hurt himself from falling..?
My thoughts on getting the taller one are that I could build a (Probably 1/2 the length of the tank) 2nd level at some point and allow him more climbing space + the additional floor space of the added level. I do intend on purchasing extra lighting if necessary if I took that route. I’ve just noticed that all the photos I see of the 2’ tall one everyone seems to have all of their decor and logs, etc. low to the ground. I know Beardies tend to get lazier as they get older but our guy Loves to climb right now so that worries me.
Any thoughts and feedback are appreciated.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
I have 2 4x2x2's and my little guy was 3 months old when I put him in it -- he has normal decor pieces I use from Petsmart and seems to enjoy them -- I guess I have never thought about the height of the tank and never wanted them both to go any higher -- I know when you start putting higher things in the tank then you run the risk of higher basking temps -- are they too close to the UVB etc etc -- I can post pics of the tanks if you havent seen them already -- they have been posted several times in different post --
Karrie
 

StephE24

Member
Original Poster
Thanks Karrie. I’m pretty sure I saw pics of both yours last night, but thanks. Also, thank you for your input On this :)

*edit: Sorry Karrie! I misspelled your name originally.
 

ComicBookMama

Sub-Adult Member
I'm far from being an expert on this sort of thing, but my first reaction was that the height of a 4x2x4 would make establishing a heating gradient, and having adequate UV access, really difficult. And yes, then there's the issue of a dragon falling from a height to consider. Remember that beardies aren't TRUE arboreal lizards; they're only SEMI-arboreal. They'll climb, but trees and bushes are not their primary habitat. If I wanted something bigger than a 4x2x2 (and I think that's plenty big, at least in my book) I might go with a 4x4x2 custom cage to give more floor space for running around and climbing low branches and pieces of decor.

But that's just MHO. :D
 

Taterbug

BD.org Addict
If your willing to invest in furnishings and equipment then 4x2x4 is fine. I have had pepper in one for several years now and aside from needing large branches for him, and needing alot more lights, he uses just about all of it. For reference I have 3 basking lamps, a T5 Arcadia 14% for UVB and 2 36" T5s for ambient light.

Being semi-arborial means they spend just as much time in shrubs or trees and on the ground. Given the correct furnishings (branches that have good coarse bark, enough routes up and down they don't need to jump or take risks) they are pretty adept climbers.
 

StephE24

Member
Original Poster
Thank you for your input taterbug! Do you have multiple levels in yours? Or just large branches for climbing?
 

Taterbug

BD.org Addict
KarrieRee":2nnq00hp said:
And no basking bulb?
Karrie

not sure if that was to me? I have 3, only 2 on at the moment since its hot in the house. They each have their own switch/dimmer.

StephE24":2nnq00hp said:
Thank you for your input taterbug! Do you have multiple levels in yours? Or just large branches for climbing?

I have levels that are setup b the branches. This photo is old, i try to change things up from time to time but is a good illustration of how the setup works. I currently have a lot og cork bark and its great from climing and lightweight. He spends most of his time either very high up or tucked up under something on the floor. I've caught him plenty of times perched way up on the top of the righthand side branches.

truecolor.jpg

thermal_gradient_may2015.jpg

https://sites.google.com/site/thelizardmadness/photogradient

you can do so much more with more space, i would'nt go back to a shorter enclosure unless i needed too for other reasons like space in the house.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
The tank looks great but I would be afraid of height and him falling if he were to get sick or falling and getting hurt-
Karrie
 

Taterbug

BD.org Addict
KarrieRee":1k1iwl5c said:
The tank looks great but I would be afraid of height and him falling if he were to get sick or falling and getting hurt-
Karrie
Pepper has fallen a few times, sometimes on purpose too, never suffered an injury for it though. Still, its an understandable concern. I try to keep the branches dence enough he won't plummet to the ground, and don't use a hard substrate either.
 

AHBD

BD.org Sicko
I would go with the shorter tank, any risk of falling is still a risk and then you'll need to spend a lot more money on the extra lights and figuring out how to mount them. Beardies get hurt falling often enough to be a concern, whether in or out of the tank. So a 4 X 2 X 2 is plenty of room. Especially would a tall tank be risky + dangerous if you had tile as substrate which so many people do, I'll never use it myself, prefer layers of newspaper with non adhesive shelf liner or a sand/soil mix.
 
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