behavior and heat

[verena]

Hi, I am a brand new owner of a beardie dragon (just got it on saturday) I posted first in the introduction section, but as I was reading the posts here, I have some concerns about my beardie's behavior (her name is Lola, but I still don't know the gender...)
Anyway, I noticed that tonight Lola plastered herself against the glass corner on the opposite side of the basking area..I got worried and read some of the posts here so I placed the probe of the thermometer right on top of the branch that is about 6 inches from a 75W reptiglo basking bulb and I panicked because the temperature reached 125F and it was still climbing! I have a stick on thermometer on the cooler side of the tank that reads 84F right now..I turned off the basking light immediately and gave Lola a bath in warm water for about 3-4 minutes. It's the first bath i give her..Right now she seems to be calm, sitting on top of the half log placed in the basking area, the temperature is 94 and going down...What should I do? am i reading the temperature correctly by placing the probe right on top of the branch? Please help!

 

[danny662boy]

the sleeping is normal.. my guy does that all the time.. sometimes it looks like hes standing up( very weird) but thats not a problem... how big is your tank.. the temp is high

 

[verena]

I have a ten gallon reptile tank that I bought at petsmart because they said that a baby beardie needs to be in a small enclosure for a while..I also own a 20 gallon tank but I thought it might be too big for her...

 

[danny662boy]

ya 10 gallon tank.. and that wattage bulb is gonna make too much heat. you can use a small tank.. but u gotta go with a small watt light! petsmart told you that u gotta use a 10 gallon at first.. thats dumb! it just makes it easier for the little guy to catch his food.. i got my beardie in october, he was born in august so he was tiny! i got a 40 gallon breeder tank right off the bat, and he was fine with it.. if u wanna keep the small tank.. just use a small watt bulb!

you can return the tank.. and get the big tank right off the bat... or just try different bulbs.. you can return the bulbs at petsmart/petco if they're to hot or the "wrong" bulb, just keep your receipt..

i have a 40 gallon breeder tank and a 100 watt basking bulb about 6inches away from my branch and its like 108-112 degrees

 

[verena]

Thanks for all the information
I think that I will return the tank to petsmart and use my 20 gallon one to save some money for now..I am also going to try to get a 50W basking bulb and see what happens..
Can you tell me if I am measuring the temperature correctly? I placed the probe on the part of the branch that is nearest to the bulb..Is that how you do it?
Also, at petsmart they sold me a zilla combo dome with the basking light..should i keep the dome or return it? Thanks sooooo much for your help...it can be so frustrating to get all kinds of conflicting info..

 

[danny662boy]

definately try different bulbs out... try the 50 if thats still less... go for the 60 watt basking bulb until you get the right temps.. im not sure with what you have but that sounds about right, i ordered a temp. gun off ebay for 25 bucks and asked questions for that on this site to see if what i was doing was right... and with mine i had to shoot the spot like 4 inches away.. but with urs if you lay it on ur spot, you'll get an accurate read! and your dome bulb thing... u should get a 7.5" clamp lamp, and stick your bulb in there (for basking spot and heat) and then a hood for your flourescent uvb tube...

http://www.petmountain.com is cheap and good.. i ordered my hood from there


i have my clamp lamp in back of my hood.. just an idea to keep in mind!

 

[peera]

No, the 10 gallon is too small. Actually, the 20 gallon is too small too. God I hate pet stores! Move her into the 20 gallon ASAP. She is going to outgrow that within 6 months too. You need to get a minimum 40 gal breeder tank for her (36"x18"), and the optimal floor space by the time she's fully grown is 8 sq ft. There's no reason you can't put a dragon into a full sized cage immediatly, as 75% of their growing is done in the first 6 months of their lives, and slowly upgrading your tank is nothing but a waste of your money.

RETURN THE ZILLA BULB. They can be EXTREMELLY dangerous to your dragons health. I'd say 65% of the health issues we see around here are caused by these horrible things. You can get a ReptiSun 10.0 TUBE for $20 off of petmountain.com (The discount code this month is LOVE) and a hood for it at any Walmart or Home Depot for much cheaper than they offer on the site. For the record, "basking bulbs" are another rip off pet stores fiost off on you. I have 75W household bulbs on 2 of mine that give perfect basking temps.

Yes, You're supposed to be taking the basking temp at the closest point your dragon can get to the light. With a probe you have to let it sit for 45 minutes to make sure you're getting an accurate reading though.

Might as well do the full panel so we can correct any other bad advice they probably gave you-
How old is your dragon?
How long have you had your dragon?
How long is your dragon?
What is the sex of your dragon?
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in?
What type substrate do you have on the bottom of your tank?
Do you use UVB lights?
If so, Is it a coil, compact, fluorescent tube, or Mercury Vapor bulb?
What is the brand name and number of your bulb? Wattage (if MVB)?
How old is your UVB bulb?
How close can your dragon get to the UVB?
Do you use a separate basking bulb? What kind and what is the wattage?
What are the basking temps?
What is the cool side temp?
Do you take the temps with a stick on thermometer, a digital thermometer with a wire and a probe end or a temp gun?
Where exactly are you taking your basking temps?
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad?
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific.
How often do you feed and what time do you feed (morning, afternoon, night)?
Do you gutload (feed) your crickets, worms, etc?
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? How many days a week do you use each of them?
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements (poops)?
Do you bath your dragon? How often?
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other than in the bath?
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon?
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done?

 

[danny662boy]

ehh the reptile basking bulbs i think are better than just an ordinary household bulb, thats my opinion, i used regular 60 watt, 75 watt, and 100 watt bulbs and didnt get good temps like i did with my reptile basking spot bulb.. the heat is more concentrated and makes a tighter beam... just my opinion

 

[verena]

HI again
You have all been so helpful! Now I am really concerned about the light and heat...right now she is perched on the wire of the probe sound asleep (she is too cute) and all lights are off. What should I do tomorrow? I have to go to work in the morning and I won't be back until the afternoon..
Here is the full panel as much as I can tell:
I do not know how old she is, but she measures about 6 inches from head to tip of tail.
I purchased her on saturday, i do not know how to tell the gender...
She is currently in a ten gallon reptile tank.
I have a small clamp lamp with a 75w reptiglo bulb and the Zilla combo/dome.
the substrate is reptile carpet.
I have a digital zilla thermometer with probe in the basking area. After learning how to place the probe, the temperature climbed up to 125 degrees and i turned it off because i did not want to over heat her.
I have a stick on thermometer on the cool side of the tank that is now reading 80F. I also have an 81F reading in the warmer side. is that right?
I have fed her gutloaded small crickets that i bought at petsmart. Today she ate 6 crickets and i covered them with a calcium supplement that they sold me. I have placed fresh kale and carrots daily but she does not eat them. They also told me to feed her mealworms. I gave her one yesterday and after reading in this forum, I stopped giving her mealworms.
I do not have a heat pad or heating rock. I read it was not good for them.
I just gave her the first bath tonight because I panicked when I saw her plastering her body against the glass and thought she might be dehydrated.
I mist her about three times a day and she has a dish with water in the tank.
I have a stick on hydrometer placed on the middle of the back wall that reads 20%.
Is there any other information you need? What should I do for tomorrow?

 

[danny662boy]

ok for food.. u wanna give it as many crickets as it will eat in a 15 minute sitting.. might be 6... might be 26..
with dusting.. dust 1 feeding with calcium dust, and the other 2 feedings.. around noonish.. and 2 hours before the lights go off again with no dust... on the weekends use a vitamin dust.. no calcium... ( my way is monday through friday i use calcium in the morning and on saturday and sunday i use vitamin dust in the morning)

with the veggies.. kale is good... collard greens, mustard greens,.. ( dark leafy greens ) no romaine, and no iceberg! no nutrition, just water... hes a baby and wont really eat his veg...

the spritzing is good! 2 times a day is fine

definately return that bulb.. put him in the 20 gallon... try a different wattage.. u want 105-115.. hes a baby.. beardies like it hot.. anything more than 100 but less than 120! u'll be ok!

and with that dome, return that. get a reptisun 10.0uvb flouresecent tube.. its gonna be like 50 bucks at petco or petsmart depends on how long.. u could get like a 18 inch tube for like 35? then just get the fixture it goes in

 

[gigi]

I have a 160w solar glo bulb for basking. the temp is only 95. Is that ok? what should I do?

 

[danny662boy]

u should return the bulb.. i havent heard of that either.... u want it to be more than a 100 ... but less than 120.. in the middle is great.. babies like it hot.. and adults not as hot.. i use a 100 Watt zoo med basking bulb.. $10 bucks from petco/petsmart (cheaper online) and i use a 40 gallon breeder tank.. and my temp at my basking point is 115? around there

my beardie was 6" or 6.5" when i started with him in oct. and now hes about a foot.... so its working

 

[axxessdenied]

I used a 100W Zoo-Med Powersun UV bulb with my beardie since I got him. (Mid october, 6 weeks old, 6 inches long).

Started him off in a 10 gal tank and positioned the light far enough away to get the temperature of his basking spot to around 110F.
He is now almost 6 months old and has just recently crossed 14" in length and has been in a tall 55-gal since 3 months old. He's been munching on supers since he was around 12.5".