Hello! I'm getting quite concerned as my beardie continuously keeps jumping onto his uvb light (which is really hot) from his basking platform. I have no idea how long he's been doing this for. I'm not quite sure what to do. He's acting normally but I'm quite nervous he's burning himself as it now seems it's his mission in life to get onto the uvb light. Please help, what do I do?
P. S. Sorry if this post doesn't belong in the E. R. section. I wasn't quite sure which topic to put this post in.
Can you post a picture of your tank setup, so we can see just how he is jumping onto his
light? Is it a tube bulb?
It sounds like you are going to have to rearrange his lighting though, so he doesn't burn himself.
If it's a compact UVB globe …. it isn't really hot enough to burn the dragon , but you should discourage the dragon from leaping onto the globe, similar with T8 and T5HO tubes.
I have had dragons who were fascinated by their UVB compacts when they were in reflector domes and hung pendulum style from under the lid of their rearing tubs …. Puff used to amuse him self for ages when he got big enough to reach it by playing with it and patting it with his hands and nose and making it swing …. I remedied this by retiring the reflector domes and changing to Exo Terra Nano Hoods for the 25W UVB200 compacts in the 145L rearing tubs.
A T8 isn't going to be very effective at that distance. Their output drops off a lot beyond about 8'' or so. A T5 is better suited for that distance and you'd be able to keep it out of reach while still providing excellent UVB levels.
I agree, if you are going to stick with the T8, I highly recommend installing it directly overhead
using 3M Command hooks or zip ties to secure it to the screen safely.
As suggested, the T5 tube bulb would be a terrific upgrade for him. If the UVB tube bulb was
mounted directly overhead he would be getting a better UVB exposure. Plus, he wouldn't be
able to jump on it, either. Be sure to mount it right alongside of your basking light, too.
Ok, that sounds good. The T5 tubes are very good, by Reptisun. Is it also in a fixture too?
I'm glad you got it moved overhead for him so he can't jump on it anymore.