Am I doing everything right?

[underrwaterrx]

Hello, I just wanted to know if I am doing everything right with my bearded dragon. Sorry if it is long, I wanted to be specific

Name- Ike
Age- Unknown
Length- 11 inches
Weight- 50 grams

In the few weeks we have had him, he shed once and grew an inch

Enclosure
Length-3 ft
Width-1 1/2 ft
Height-1 1/2ft

-I have a homemade castle in there that I made with styrofoam covered in 3 layers of grout. I finished it with a paint that gave it texture and a rocky look. I waited 1 week after painting so there were no fumes.
-2 rocks (stacked up) that I got outside and washed with a scrub brush before putting them in.
-a log that I got in my backyard. I soaked it and scrubbed it. After, I put it in the oven for 15 minutes @ 300*.
-a food dish
-I used to have a water dish put he never went near it so I decided to take it out.
-Temperatures on the basking area hover around 100-105* and the cool side is around the mid 80s
-Temps are taken with a digital thermometer with a probe directly on basking spot
-UVB is a reptisun 10.0 that is brand new and mounted in the cage
-Substrate is reptile carpet

Food
-Salad made of dandelion greens, endives, and yellow squash is given in the morning and again whenever he finishes it
-Crickets are fed 2 times a day. Giving a total of 40 crickets
-Poops once (sometimes twice) a day. The smell is bad but not completely rancid

I also give him baths daily because it is the summer and I have a lot more spare time. When school starts it will probably be every other day

The reason I am posting this is because of stress marks. Sometimes Ike will look lazy and have stress marks. But, he has never denied a cricket and usually eats his salad. The stress marks concern me because when I hold him, bathe him or let him explore my room he has a belly white as snow. When I put him back in his tank and watch him he will still have no stress marks, but once I leave and come back he is really dark colored and has stress marks! Is there a problem with my enclosure? Does he just want attention?
If I missed anything, I will gladly post it.
I also think I should mention that he has fell a few times Sometimes he will misjudge a jump and ... yeah... It was never more that a few feet and I watched him after and he was acting the same..

Anyway, here are pictures..

his tank, taken this morning

the castle

another view

After eating

Stress marks...

 

[underrwaterrx]

Please someone answer, I really don't understand this. Outside tank - no stress marks, Inside tank - stress marks!

 

[ziggy23]

Everything sounds good.

Stress marks isn't really anything to stress over, unless it's really dark and constant. They could be trying to heat up, or it could be just a mild annoyance. Most of the time you will never know why.

 

[underrwaterrx]

Ok thanks so much I was worried that there was a problem with his enclosure that was stressing him out.

 

[Toyguy]

Love the viv, by the way. Great job! The castle looks very cool

 

[Philip30]

hi..
good day..
i think your doing is right..
just continue..
GOD BLESS..
Make Money Online

 

[underrwaterrx]

thanks a lot everyone i feel a lot more reassured now. Ike is sleeping peacefully on a pillow right now. So adorable

 

[hcozart]

I am glad you got an answer, Scarlett is the same age about and the exact same color, she does the exact same thing. I am starting to think they are just spoiled and would rather be with us than in the cage LOL. I was very worried as well. Even posted a topic in this section asking the same question

 

[Meginsanity]

Aww, your dragon is so cute! And I love the enclosure you made, it's awesome.

My bearded dragon does similar things. S/he's only 7.5'' and she tends to have stress marks when in the viv and lose them while she is outside or while she is eating, but she's too squirmy to stay out of her cage for very long. I have been worried, but reading similar experiences from other people have just led me to believe it's just what they do, could be anything. I am sure yours and mine will both grow out of it.

 

[ziggy23]

Yeah, I think it's something all hatchlings do a lot and eventually grow out of it. Mine are 5 and 6 months old now, I rarely see them anymore. Just the occasional circle here and there. It was quite common when they were younger. Nowadays their backs getting a little darker is what I see more often. Not a lot, like my orange dragon starts looking brownish. Occasionally a light grayish line on their beard.

I think it's just the age. Babies they're still trying to figure out the whole world, I can see it causing them to get stressed a little easier.

 

[mark83]

I noticed you had white paper on the outside of the cage. I did the same thing to minimize stress from seeing his reflection but I realized that when its on the outside he can still see his reflection really well so I put white poster board on the inside back and sides. It seemed to help. But I agree with whats been said when they are young it can be any little thing that causes stress marks.

 

[underrwaterrx]

I am planning on getting a background for him so the white paper is temporary.

I'm thinking he'll grow out of his stress marks sooner or later. After all, he is SUPER spoiled

I also got tile to replace the carpet and he seems to enjoy it a lot more. Not to mention it is easier to clean