Am I doing everything right?

[Toria88]

Hello! :wave:

I just got my baby leatherback the day after Thanksgiving. I've been researching beardies for about a year, and now I finally have my own. He. Is. Adorable! I just want to check, double check, and triple check that I'm doing everything correctly! Not my first herp, but he is my first beardie. However, I'm a bit paranoid/unsure if I'm doing everything correctly. :dontknow:

I currently have him in a 20 gallon tank, but I will be moving him into his bigger tank (which I already purchased) as soon as he outgrows the 20 gallon. (When will that be, exactly?!) I have paper towels for substrate and a large piece of driftwood. Half of the driftwood curves up and is resting on a flat rock, in order to create a basking area. I also have some fake leaves up by basking spot. He also had a water dish that is wide enough around that he can fit in it, but shallow enough so that he won't drown.

For food, I bought several different things. I was told to do 80% protein/live insect to 20% vegetation. Oh, and I have some "Rep-Cal: Juvenile Bearded Dragon Food"... Aka colorful pellets that my 5 1/2 month old kitten thinks are delicious. He steals them whenever I open the jar! (Can't really blame him, considering the ingredients lead me to believe that it is repackaged cat food lol) I've been trying to do all crickets for his live food, as I heard meal worms can cause impaction problems with baby beardies. I dump about 5 in at a time, twice a day. Is this enough? Too many, too little? More often or too often? Gaaah. As for his veggies, I have been trying three things: Mustard greens, cilantro, and red bell pepper. I cut them into tiny pieces, put a couple of colorful pellets in there, and spray it with some water. Viola! Salad. He seems to only really like the Cilantro though. He doesn't really touch the rest. Not sure why. Oh, and I also have a shallow dish of reptile calcium in there. I'm not sure if he needs it or not, but I thought I'd be better safe than sorry.

He gets reptile calcium, and I bought reptile vitamins. Do I use the vitamin supplement once a week or more often?

On to lighting... I have a 50 watt Zilla Day White Light Incandescent Spot Bulb for his basking/heating light. That's the same kind of basking light I use for my other herps. That, or Zoo-Med's version. (It all depends on what pet store I'm at when I buy the light lol) He seems to like sitting under that. For UVB, I have the 18 inch Desert 50 UVB T8 Fluorescent Bulb, also by Zilla. This keeps his tank with an air temperature of 83º–85º. (Basking spot being hotter, of course) I turn everything off at night, and his tank drops to about 73º-75º. Everything ok there? I was told by one herp owner to get a Mercury Vapor lamp that would emit UVA,heat, and UVB. I did a lot of poking around on the internet and read about ZooMed's PowerSun and Fluker's Sun Spot bulb. Great concept, but I just found SO many mixed reviews. :study: :study: A lot of them negative. Some saying that they barely emit any UVB at all, some saying that they are dangerous. Some saying they are the best thing in the world, and the only thing I should be using! It made me really uncertain. Come to think of it, I think I found a negative product review on every single UVB bulb I looked at! Sheesh. :roll: So hopefully you guys can set me straight and give me your opinions!

One last thing: BATHS! Is he too young for baths? If not, how often do I give them to him? :?:

Welllllll, sorry for asking so many questions! Thanks for reading the mini-novel I just wrote. :lol: I just want to make sure I'm doing everything right. I would post a picture, but I have no idea how. :-? Thanks again!!!! :love5:

 

[daner923]

Sounds like you're doing a great job! You're right about the mealworms - they can cause impaction. If you'd like some variety you can use phoenix worms/reptiworms, dubia roaches, and wax worms as a treat. You should be feeding your little guy as many crickets as he can eat in 10-15 minutes, 2 -3 times a day. You should dust with calcium at one feeding a day 5 days a week, and with vitamins one feeding a day the other 2 days. You don't NEED the bowl of water - many dragons won't drink, and it just raises the humidity in the tank. You can DEFINITELY give him baths every couple days - if he doesn't like it, just put your hand or a rock in there so he can get more comfortable. He should be in warm water (warm to your wrist) up to his elbows/shoulders for 10-15 minutes. This also helps with hydration, especially if he is not drinking from the dish in his tank. You can also drip water on his nose and mist him (misting should occur outside the tank to avoid humidity) every day to keep him hydrated. Finally, your light bulbs: you should replace the Zilla Desert bulb as soon as you can - they do not emit the correct amount of UVB, and some bulbs can cause eye issues. You should get either the Zoo-Med Reptisun 10.0 tube or the Arcadia 12% tube. Those are the only UVB lights recommended for bearded dragons by the multitude of knowledgable people on this site! Otherwise, it sounds like you've got everything under control!

Does your baby have a name? And you should definitely post pictures!

 

[mommisgurl]

Hello Hello! Welcome to the wonderful world of being a beardie slave :lol:

Let's help you out,shall we!
Your basking spot..How hot is it getting? What are you using to measure the temps? I'm pretty sure a 50w isn't enough to get the temps to 110F.Your best bet is going to be a digital thermometer,or a temp gun. I have and use both when I first get a little baby home.

As for his feeding..He needs to be eating twice a day, everything he can eat in 10 minutes. He should be eating alot more than 5 at a time,though he will go through different numbers everyday! My little baby (when he was little) could go through a couple hundred a day! Though that is a bit on the hefty side,he has slowed down quite a bit now. Yes,stick away from the mealies..aren't very healthy anyway! You can try dubia roaches as well as his crickets..they have alotttt of protein in them since they have a higher meat to shell ratio than crickets do! My guy likes dubia now instead of crickets,which is fine by me! He never got into the pellets..many don't really like them,but if yours does,there isn't any need to take them away! Though if he isn't to gung ho with them,you can spend your money on other things he'll eat!

Many of us will swear by this page..I don't have the exact link for the page,but we all use it! It's by beautifuldragons..I'm sure someone will post the link! But use that as a guideline. The mustard greens are great as a daily greens..cilantro is more 2-3x's a week,as well as bell peppers. As a general rule, babies won't really touch the greens,as they really only want their protein, so don't be too surprised if the little one doesn't tear through them. As for the calcium in the tank..you don't need it there. You dust the feeders with them..My leo will eat the calcium like that,but with beardies, they don't need it like that.

What calcium and vitamins are you using? The calcium should be with D3. Use dust with the calcium 5x a week,and then 2x a week with the vitamin.

On the UVB note..the coil bulb isn't good at all. I've heard that they can cause some serious eye problems. The best thing to use is an Arcadia 12% tube, or a ReptiSUN 10.0. Those are the only things I suggest. For a 20 gallon, I would get an 18'.
I've read alot on the Powersun's and whatnot..Though plenty of people use them without too many problems, I'm not really a big fan. You have to have a lamp stand to get the bulb away from the tank..They are very powerful bulbs, and can roast a little one! I'm sure plenty of other people will comment on that subject.

Baths are great! There really isn't an age limit as to when you can start! When I first got mine home, I started from day 1,and potty trained him to only go in the bath and not in his tank. I give him baths everyday. He's used to pooping in there everyday. Gotta love it!

 

[Toria88]

Thanks guys! The Zilla UVB fixture seems to be working great, but I am going to go to Petco first thing tomorrow and pick up a different bulb to put in it! I certainly don't want my little baby to get his eyes burnt! I'll also will have to pick up an infrared thermometer to check what the temp of his basking spot actually is. I was only starting with the 50watt because he is a baby and he is in a 20 gallon. I think I'll pick up a 75 watt instead! What wattage do you guys use for an adults basking spot? I suppose that varies with each person. :study: :study: Oh, and yes, he DOES have a name. Puff! :lol: Puff the Bearded Dragon. Haha. :love10:

Just gave him his first bath and to my surprise, :shock: he seemed to love it! He sat in there for several minutes until the water started getting cold. Then all of a sudden he looked up at me as if to say: "OK! I'm done!". I'm really, really glad I gave him a bath tonight. As it turns out, I think he really needed it. When I brought him home for the first time, I noticed that he was such a little skinny guy. Not only did he drink some water in while he was in the bath, he was looked so much better after! It was like I re-inflated him. It's actually a little concerning. Poor thing must have been dehydrated at the pet store. He looks brighter and more filled out now! I think I'll try another bath tomorrow as well.

I have the Fluker's vitamin drops, but I do not like them. At. All. Pretty sure none of my herps will eat anything with those drops on them, and I don't think I want to put them or myself through the stress of trying to put the drop right into their mouth! Can you recommend a better vitamin? Should I go with a spray or a powder? As for reptile calcium, I have Tetrafauna's ReptoCal Calcium w/ D3. I have used that kind on my herps for quite some time. I'm almost out though, so I'm open to suggestions if you anyone thinks there is a better brand.

I'll keep putting mustard greens out for Puff everyday, and we'll see if he comes around. Also, I am definitely going to order some Phoenix worms. Have any of you had luck with freeze-dried insects? I thought I might give those a try as well!

Thanks for helping me! Any input or advice is greatly appreciated, because I'm still learning! :book:

Finally, this is Puff! :mrgreen:

 

[mommisgurl]

What a cutie!! :love5:
Yes,I would switch that asap..Though you may not see any effects right now,they will become apparent when it's too late! 50w really don't give out alot of heat..I use a 50 for my crestie's tank,and that's just for my viewing pleasure,as I know it barely gives out any heat. I would go ahead and get the 75w. That should be good! I use a 100w for my beardie's 40gall,and that gets it right at 110F at his basking spot.
Woot woot! Thank goodness for baths! Good to know that he is nice and hydrated! I do that with some of the babies at my work when they look like they could use some extra water in their systems! Always does the job!
I personally use Rep Cal calcium w D3 and their multivitamin,both in powder form. Never got into the sprays..I like to make sure that they get every bit of calcium I can give them. I found that Rep Cal sticks a little better than most,but then again,that could be me!
Mustard greens are great! Just keep them available to him at all times,and who knows! He might come around quicker than you think!
None of my animals like freeze-dried products. If they aren't moving,their not getting eaten. Though I have heard plenty of people say that their animals chow down on them,mine just won't eat them! It may be worth a shot if your baby does eat them.

 

[Soulwind]

Just one a side note.

Beautiful Dragons sells pure, human-grade, calcium powder (without the D3 -- which a lot of people believe is [at best] worthless in supplement powder)
and a pro-biotic infused reptile vitamin mixture (which smells very organic )

I bought my supplements from them as they are also a dragon rescue organization and I'd rather give my money to them than to the pet store.

 

[daner923]

As far as the basking light, you should only up the wattage if you find that the basking spot isn't getting hot enough (~110F, plus or minus about 5F). My beardie, Max, lives in a 20 gallon tank, and the 50 watt bulb, clipped to the edge, gets me up to 110 quite handily, and if I move the rock a little closer, it sometimes even gets too hot. Make sure you are using a temp gun/digital thermometer with a probe to get the temperature on the surface of the basking spot.

Puff is really cute! You should definitely continue bathing him as often as you can (every 1-2 days) if he was dehydrated before that first bath. Little ones can get dehydrated very easily. Best of luck!

 

[Drache613]

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