Completely new to beardies! Need help!

[Calcal]

So, uh.. I just got a new beardie today. It's a baby. I can't even tell exactly how old it is and I can't really figure out what gender it is either, so I'm waiting to name it. It's very, very active but easily startled. I'm assuming it being this aware is good? I dunno.

I've always wanted a beardie. They just seem like such loving pets, and I've finally gotten my chance to get one! So I'm gonna try to best to take care of it. Thing is, I'm completely clueless, and that's.. kinda scary, honestly.. but everyone has to start off somewhere, right?

Anyways, I'm mostly worried about things like lighting. I only have a basking light (it's on one side) and a black light thingy for night time. I feel like I'm missing something.
I'm keeping it in a 29 gallon tank with paper towel flooring, a large stick it can climb onto and get closer to the basking light if needed, a dish filled with fresh carrots and a few live crickets crawling around. Right now it's night time and it has the night light set right where the basking light would be during the day. I also have a little hide-out for it to sleep in. I'm very scared of losing it or keeping it on poor condition. I love reptiles and I'd hate to unintentionally hurt a beardie! Any advice? Do I need another light? I'm planning to buy much more stuff tomorrow and tips would be great. The lights I have right now are a neodymium basking bulb and a nighttime incandescent heat bulb.. thing. I'm assuming I need a UVB light? If so, how long can the beardie be without it? I'm very motivated to get everything necessary. I just don't want to overdo anything. I did some research but I'd like advice from people's personal experience.

Do I need a basking rock? Or is the stick enough? And should I get a reptile carpet? And the carrots.. are those safe? I heard they are. I kinda just let the crickets wander around and I'm not even sure if that's right... so many questions.. and is the 29 gallon tank even ideal? Yeesh. Any help would be appreciated!

 

[AHBD]

Hi Calcal....congrats on your new baby, hopefully you'll get everything straight and have a happy, healthy beardie. There's lots of good info on the right side of the page, including proper lighting. You'll need a good uvb bulb, preferably a Reptisun 10.0 long tube. It comes in a t5 or t8...the t5 is stronger. You can get those and the fixture at a place like Dr. Foster + Smith along with other supplies. You should get the uvb bulb ASAP to prevent a calcium deficiency. For a hot basking bulb, you can actually get a halogen bulb from a home depot/Lowe's, Walmart. Get about a 75 watt for your tank size, a 100 watt if you had a bigger tank. You could also go with a reptile basking bulb but not a colored or neodymium coated bulb. Carrots are not really good, especially in chunks since babies can not chew them, plus they're not as nutritious as other foods. Baby food squash is good for babies, greens like turnip, mustard, collard, finely shredded. Crickets [ which should dusted with calcium powder with D3 ] shouldn't roam the tank, esp. at night and no light at night. Only if it gets below 65F, then you can get a CHE [ ceramic heat emitter ]

So there are a few things to get started, hopefully your little one will settle in soon.

 

[Calcal]

Hi Calcal....congrats on your new baby, hopefully you'll get everything straight and have a happy, healthy beardie. There's lots of good info on the right side of the page, including proper lighting. You'll need a good uvb bulb, preferably a Reptisun 10.0 long tube. It comes in a t5 or t8...the t5 is stronger. You can get those and the fixture at a place like Dr. Foster + Smith along with other supplies. You should get the uvb bulb ASAP to prevent a calcium deficiency. For a hot basking bulb, you can actually get a halogen bulb from a home depot/Lowe's, Walmart. Get about a 75 watt for your tank size, a 100 watt if you had a bigger tank. You could also go with a reptile basking bulb but not a colored or neodymium coated bulb. Carrots are not really good, especially in chunks since babies can not chew them, plus they're not as nutritious as other foods. Baby food squash is good for babies, greens like turnip, mustard, collard, finely shredded. Crickets [ which should dusted with calcium powder with D3 ] shouldn't roam the tank, esp. at night and no light at night. Only if it gets below 65F, then you can get a CHE [ ceramic heat emitter ]

So there are a few things to get started, hopefully your little one will settle in soon.

Thank you so much! Are there any preferable stores for supplies or recommended brands? And how often should I feed it? Can I feed it Phoenix worms? 'Cuz I heard they're super good. There's just a lot of conflicting info online and I'd hate to mess up..

Oh! And for now, while I get my hands on a UBV light, can I take it outside for a bit and let it get some sunlight? It's fairly hot here. I'm in the south.

 

[AHBD]

You're welcome. The brand and the store I mentioned in my first post. Here's a link from 2 different sites for the bulb, then you have to get the corresponding fixture.
http://pet-supplies.drsfostersmith.com/search?p=R&srid=S3-USWSD02&lbc=drsfostersmith&w=Reptisun%2010.0%20T5&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.drsfostersmith.com%2fproduct%2fprod_display.cfm%3fpcatid%3d25696&rk=1&uid=859766563&sid=2&ts=custom&champclick=1&rsc=Vj0sASKFwd-63iBZ&method=and&isort=score&cmpid=sc

http://www.beardeddragon.co/index.php?route=product/product&path=63&product_id=502

And yes, sunshine would be good but never take her out in a glass tank or container that hols heat, they will bake a dragon in the 90 degree heat. Take her out early in the a.m if possible and be sure she can't get overheated.

 

[Calcal]

You're welcome. The brand and the store I mentioned in my first post. Here's a link from 2 different sites for the bulb, then you have to get the corresponding fixture.
http://pet-supplies.drsfostersmith.com/search?p=R&srid=S3-USWSD02&lbc=drsfostersmith&w=Reptisun%2010.0%20T5&url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.drsfostersmith.com%2fproduct%2fprod_display.cfm%3fpcatid%3d25696&rk=1&uid=859766563&sid=2&ts=custom&champclick=1&rsc=Vj0sASKFwd-63iBZ&method=and&isort=score&cmpid=sc

http://www.beardeddragon.co/index.php?route=product/product&path=63&product_id=502

And yes, sunshine would be good but never take her out in a glass tank or container that hols heat, they will bake a dragon in the 90 degree heat. Take her out early in the a.m if possible and be sure she can't get overheated.

Alrighty-o!

At what age can I determine its gender..? I don't like calling it an it and having no name..

I'm thinking of a unisex name that matches its personality.
(It's a leatherback, by the way. Does that change anything for when it comes to lighting? And does it need special skin care?)
And speaking of lighting, I found that its basking spot wasn't warm enough. So I started using both the night light and the basking light at the same time while I look for a good bulb. It seems fairly happy with that and seemingly a bit more active since its been eating. I even put in two pantry moths which it started to chase around and jump at. (since I'm assuming they're okay with those. Other reptiles seem to like them.)