Hi, all. It truly pains me to admit this, but I've been recently looking into rehoming my beardie.
I have anxiety and depression, and a little over a year ago, I looked into caring for a pet who might help with my mental health. I came across beardies and thought they were perfect, and I know for some people, they are the perfect emotional support pets. I did my research on husbandry for half a year, made sure everything was set up correctly, and bought my gorgeous yellow and orange hypo trans male beardie who was 6 months old at the time.
He came with some problems -- he was previously in a home where he was attacked by a larger beardie and subsequently suffered from some wounds. Luckily, they've all healed up by now, though he was still rather underweight and had intestinal parasites. I did everything in my power to raise him up to be healthy, and he's gained twice his original weight under my care and is now a healthy weight of ~485 g. I've also had him treated for his parasites, so he's doing quite well now. He's so sweet and friendly despite his past; he's truly an angel, and I'm so proud of how long a ways he's come.
However, during this time, I came to a heartbreaking realization that he might not be the pet for me. My anxiety has become overwhelming while caring for him, and while I understand that it's normal for new beardie owners to feel anxious, I've cared for him for over 5 months now, and I seem to be getting worse. I am also starting graduate school soon, and I know that I will only become more stressed from here on out, so I am worried that, combined with my mental illnesses, I won't be able to care for him as well as he deserves. I'm ashamed and disappointed in myself, but it's the truth, and I believe that he may have a better life with someone who will be more relaxed around him and will offer him better care than I can.
I'm so sorry, to him and all the loving and responsible beardie owners out there. I knew going into this that caring for a beardie is not easy, but I only thought that my mental health could be impacted positively rather than negatively, and I am truly, truly disappointed in myself. Please believe me -- if I ever take another bearded dragon into my care, it will be much farther down the line when I am fully confident I can care for one, and I will take my mental health concerns into account.
I am still deliberating on my decision, but I thought I'd put this out there, in case anyone might be looking to adopt a sweet, friendly sub-adult beardie. I live in Southern California, and if I do decide to rehome him, I am more than happy to allow him to be adopted with his entire setup, supplies, and feeders free of charge as long as he's going to a loving and experienced/knowledgeable home. That is my number one priority. If I ultimately decide to rehome him, I'll make a proper post in the 'For Free' section, but if anyone is interested, please feel free to reply to me or PM me, and I am happy to tell you anything and everything I know about him. If anyone has advice regarding how best to rehome (via what platforms, which rescues are the best/most reputable in California), please let me know as well. This is the hardest thing I've ever had to consider doing, and I want to make sure I'm doing the right thing for my beardie, because he deserves only the best.
Thank you so much for reading. Here are some photos of him and his setup:
I have anxiety and depression, and a little over a year ago, I looked into caring for a pet who might help with my mental health. I came across beardies and thought they were perfect, and I know for some people, they are the perfect emotional support pets. I did my research on husbandry for half a year, made sure everything was set up correctly, and bought my gorgeous yellow and orange hypo trans male beardie who was 6 months old at the time.
He came with some problems -- he was previously in a home where he was attacked by a larger beardie and subsequently suffered from some wounds. Luckily, they've all healed up by now, though he was still rather underweight and had intestinal parasites. I did everything in my power to raise him up to be healthy, and he's gained twice his original weight under my care and is now a healthy weight of ~485 g. I've also had him treated for his parasites, so he's doing quite well now. He's so sweet and friendly despite his past; he's truly an angel, and I'm so proud of how long a ways he's come.
However, during this time, I came to a heartbreaking realization that he might not be the pet for me. My anxiety has become overwhelming while caring for him, and while I understand that it's normal for new beardie owners to feel anxious, I've cared for him for over 5 months now, and I seem to be getting worse. I am also starting graduate school soon, and I know that I will only become more stressed from here on out, so I am worried that, combined with my mental illnesses, I won't be able to care for him as well as he deserves. I'm ashamed and disappointed in myself, but it's the truth, and I believe that he may have a better life with someone who will be more relaxed around him and will offer him better care than I can.
I'm so sorry, to him and all the loving and responsible beardie owners out there. I knew going into this that caring for a beardie is not easy, but I only thought that my mental health could be impacted positively rather than negatively, and I am truly, truly disappointed in myself. Please believe me -- if I ever take another bearded dragon into my care, it will be much farther down the line when I am fully confident I can care for one, and I will take my mental health concerns into account.
I am still deliberating on my decision, but I thought I'd put this out there, in case anyone might be looking to adopt a sweet, friendly sub-adult beardie. I live in Southern California, and if I do decide to rehome him, I am more than happy to allow him to be adopted with his entire setup, supplies, and feeders free of charge as long as he's going to a loving and experienced/knowledgeable home. That is my number one priority. If I ultimately decide to rehome him, I'll make a proper post in the 'For Free' section, but if anyone is interested, please feel free to reply to me or PM me, and I am happy to tell you anything and everything I know about him. If anyone has advice regarding how best to rehome (via what platforms, which rescues are the best/most reputable in California), please let me know as well. This is the hardest thing I've ever had to consider doing, and I want to make sure I'm doing the right thing for my beardie, because he deserves only the best.
Thank you so much for reading. Here are some photos of him and his setup: