General Inquiry

[cedwa]

Hello All,
I just recently purchased (saved) my first bearded dragon from petsmart. He seemed ok in the store, but the helper did say he was shy. I ended up buying the Zoo-Med 40g dragon kit. I am looking at replacing teh compact reptisun 10 with the tube. I believe the cage is setup correctly based on everything I have researched. My beardie is only 6"~, and is pooping every single day. It reminds me of bird poop, where the big majority is brown/black solid, with a stripe of white down the side. I can only assume he is health? He seems to eat only while no one is home, so typically I place some crickets in the morning and then supplement some greens and fruits mixed with pellets. Every single day I come home he/she is perched on the log I have for the basking spot with his/her mouth open. I try to bath in a shallow dish and make sure the water is around 96*. My biggest concern is how I can get around this little guy/gal from going into its hiding spot every time we are come home and while we are home. Being the weekend I have only seen him twice, first was when I removed him from the tank, second being when we left for an errand to come back with him being at the basking spot.

Any ideas as to why it only wants to hide while we are home?

 

[ruben0311]

could be as simple as adjusting to new home... just give it more time and they'll come around. making sure you are visible as much as possible around the tank and letting him see you near him, maybe even sitting nearby and reading or watching tv will get him accustomed to your presence. take care with the crickets not being eaten though, they can nibble at him at night causing stress and possible infections. if you do leave them in during the day you will need to do a good search of them before lights out.

 

[cedwa]

Thank you, I typically take them out at night. I am finding them under the reptile carpet. I'll just keep doing what I have been doing and not worry.

 

[AHBD]

Hi there, can you post some pics of the little one + his set up ?. Remove the hide.....I've raised babies for 20 years and never had a hide and never had babies trying to hide. Some posters will say they need it, but it only encourages the shy behavior. It's like a shy kid going to school + being allowed to hide because he's nervous...it just prolongs their assimilating with others. You CAN put the hide back in at night so he can sleep, that's reasonable, but take it out during the day. Here's how I set my babies up when I was breeding them....they all were bold + ate well.
https://www.beardeddragon.org/media/29895/full

They love lots of climbing areas, but there needs to be lots of floor space, too. And some people may suggest putting a piece of your clothing in so the dragon gets used to your scent but that's not necessary because your scent is on everything in the tank . Your little guy should come around in a short time.

 

[cedwa]

Let me know what you think. My plan is to buy the tube UVB bulb, now that I read here that it is better than the compact Any other suggestions please let me know ASAP. I had a beardie ten years ago, but it didn't survive after a month. This is technically my 5yr olds (but you know how that goes), so I would hate to lose this one or any for that matter. There is someone down the street from me that has one that is 3-4yrs old, but they are rescued it that way, and wasn't much help on providing right care, versus what I read here. Ignore the black spots, please, I was trying to run some of those faux vines in the cage. Noticed it was just making a mess and possible hazard, so I removed them and still need to vacuum out the residual . My original plan was to try to find a small branch type structure, but this was the only thing I could find at the local pet store, non-box store.
https://www.beardeddragon.org/media/45954/full

https://www.beardeddragon.org/media/45950/full

 

[AHBD]

Your pics posted real tiny, you can enlarge them before you upload them here. I can see your little one looks nervous but he does look healthy . I would lay that tall log down, he's probably too timid to climb high and he'll be more likely to use it for basking while it's closer to the ground. You can go ahead + take the hide out. Just put it in at night if you like or leave it out altogether. Babies sleep ANYwhere. If you want 1-2 more basking sticks [ like the ones I have ] just collect them outside , pop them in the oven for 40 minutes and you have free cage furniture. Lay them across each other, nice low climbing + basking areas. Just one more is enough so you don't clutter the tank....makes ir easier to take care of the tank, loose insects, etc.

To get him to [ hopefully ] eat more readily you might get a few crix, put them in a jar with a pinch of calcium powder + shake them up until dizzy. Then drop them 1-2 at a time near him ....most babies go for the staggering , slow moving bugs.

 

[cedwa]

Yep, sorry. Learning curve on linking pics. Large pics should be linked now.

Funny you say that about the limb, he is not timid of clinging up there, after work every day hes up there with his mouth open just bathing away. I do have a fear of falling and getting hurt though, even though he runs down the back so I don't see him.
I'll take the hide out, and add back at night. I was actually able to find a local shop that sells Dubai, so I am picking some up Sunday, lets see how he likes them before I try a colony. But, $1.30 for a dozen, not sure I need to.

 

[cedwa]

One more question. Do I really need the UTH as well? Wuith just the basking lamp my tank was having issues staying at or above 90*. So I added the smaller 30-40gl UTH and now I can consitently reach 90+ temps on the basking side. Cooler side generally stays around 70-75, depending on time of day. I need to break down and by a good thermometer to get accurate readings.


Little FYI, since removing his last hiding spot. He seemed a little pissed of at me (those glaring eyes) lol. But, now is perched on top of the basking log.

 

[AHBD]

Well if he likes his taller log, that's fine. You might just add another stick down lower. And yes, feeder insects are expensive....you're best off to buy in bulk [ 500-1,000 ] from a cricket breeder. If you buy the 1/4" size you can get enough to last a few weeks or a month for about $25 shipped..

 

[cedwa]

Well if he likes his taller log, that's fine. You might just add another stick down lower. And yes, feeder insects are expensive....you're best off to buy in bulk [ 500-1,000 ] from a cricket breeder. If you buy the 1/4" size you can get enough to last a few weeks or a month for about $25 shipped..

Any suggestion on how to keep that many crickets alive so long?

 

[AHBD]

Yes, I kept crickets for over 20 years. Get a medium plastic storage tote, cut a large hole out of the top for airflow. Put cardboard egg crating [ usually accompanies the cricket shipment ] for them to crawl on. Put a flat plastic lid or very shallow bowl for their cricket chow or raw veggies like carrot, collard + other greens. Check every day that there's no mold growing, change veggies when they start looking nasty. Another plastic lid with a wet wadded paper towel for hydration, they'll get it from the veggies as well. Some people buy cricket quencher but I prefer natural food + plain water.

 

[AHBD]

So he's basking now that you took out the hide, that's great. He should become more comfortable soon enough. It's when they're little that you take the hide out, they learn in a very short time that they are safe and are kings of their castle. When they get older you can put in a hide, then they can afford to get lazy and go off their food for a bit . Babies need the uvb exposure to keep their appetite + growth at maximum level.

As for extra heat, it's usually better to have it from the lights above....maybe you can pick up a stronger basking bulb when you get a chance, the basking spot should be about 100-105.

 

[cedwa]

So he's basking now that you took out the hide, that's great. He should become more comfortable soon enough. It's when they're little that you take the hide out, they learn in a very short time that they are safe and are kings of their castle. When they get older you can put in a hide, then they can afford to get lazy and go off their food for a bit . Babies need the uvb exposure to keep their appetite + growth at maximum level.

As for extra heat, it's usually better to have it from the lights above....maybe you can pick up a stronger basking bulb when you get a chance, the basking spot should be about 100-105.

Thanks for the great information and help. I will look at getting a larger bulb and remove the UTH. Should I plan on buying a T5 HO hood to cover the entire tank or just the basking area? There is a slit to fit a cord through the top, tank cover came that way. Should I place it inside or will the HO be power enough to go through the screen top? I was looking at cheap under counter systems, but after purchasing the bulb too, it would be easier and about the same to buy the HO kit. I did stop by the pet store today and picked up two dozen dubai roaches, but he only ate 3 of them and then was more worried about us than the food. Hoping tomorrow morning he shows more interest in the food. Looking for a shallow small dish to possibly keep the roaches in, but allow him to climb in with them to eat. Maybe he would eat better if we weren't around, even though I don't want to enforce that behavior, I also work and can't spend all day with him. He has been spending a ton more time under the basking/UVB lights than usual. When removing the hide, he has no where else to go, so roaming around and basking is all he does.

 

[cedwa]

Interesting update. Tonight after placing the hide back in the tank and turning off the lights. And hour or so later I found him curled up in the corner sleeping. He's not even using his hide to sleep in. Yay!

 

[AHBD]

Silly guy, they do seem to sleep any old way.