getting a new beardie when it warms up

[beardeddragonlover2]

I am hoping to get another male. Can I use charlies old 50-55 gallon tank for a baby? I miss my charlie

 

[JenFid]

Yes you can. You can partition the tank to make it a bit smaller. Some babies get a bit overwhelmed if they start off in such a big tank.

Sorry to hear about your Charlie

 

[beardeddragonlover2]

OK. I am going to have to get a smaller water dish

 

[Sauzo]

You probably wont need to partition off any of the cage. Harley lived in a 4ft cage when she was 6 weeks old and loved it. She would tear from one side to the other and jump all over. The problem with big cages and small dragons is them catching food. As long as you make sure he/she is catching the food, you should be fine. But if for some reason, your baby does get overwhelmed, you can just use a piece of cardboard cut to fit and shrink the cage down.

 

[beardeddragonlover2]

OK.we still have the bearded dragon bites from charlie don't know how long that will last

 

[Sauzo]

Oh and water dishes aren't really needed. Most dragons wont drink from standing water so all the water dish will do is breed bacteria and raise the humidity in the cage. Most dragons get their water from the veggies, juicy bugs and bathes.

 

[beardeddragonlover2]

Is there an experation date for the Bearded dragon bites?

 

[Sauzo]

No idea since I've never used them. I just feed Harley stuff like dandelion greens, mustard greens, collard greens, mango as a treat, dubia roaches, butterworms, phoenix worms and will probably be trying her on some silkworms and hornworms here pretty soon.

 

[beardeddragonlover2]

Ah. Thank container doesn't say. I really would like to know what caused charlie to die

 

[DixieLonestar20x]

How old are the bites again??

You should DEFINITELY partition the tank....a 50 gallon is WAY WAY too big for a baby and this could easy lead to ALOT of stress. Partition it and slowly make it bigger over time. I recommend putting something over the partition as well (3 sides is best but if you don't want to, ATLEAST do the partition) as this will make your new baby much more comfortable.

You probably won't HAVE to worry about a water dish, but if it doesn't screw up your humidity it doesn't hurt to leave it in there. Mine doesn't raise my humidity much so I leave it in there.

 

[Sauzo]

I would definitely cover the sides and back of the cage. I used paper towels and it worked well. Again, I guess it depends on the baby but I first started off with a partition on Harleys cage which is 4ft long and then left it like that for 2 days, then just opened it up full cause she was wandering all over. When I opened it, she had a hayday. She loved it and would wander all over and then come back to her basking bricks when she wanted to warm up and then off and running around again once she was "charged up". Only thing is if you feed crickets, it can be a pain since they hop all over. I fed Harley little dubias and phoenix worms so the big cage wasn't an issue as far as her finding food.

And the water dish isn't so much about raising the humidity especially in such an open cage, its more about the fact that water dishes are breeding grounds for bacteria and especially so if your dragon poops in it and you don't catch the whole day cause of work/school. Plus like I said, I've never really heard of a dragon drinking from a standing water dish. Harley drank 1 time from her bath water and that was the day after I got her. Then a few times she would drink from an eyedropper but again that was when she was 6-8 weeks old. After that she never drank water. She got all her liquids from bugs and veggies.

But again as for portioning, you will just have to play it by ear. If anything, you could start with a partition(I used cardboard cut to fit and then a little packing tape on the top of each side to keep it in place) and if your dragon seems content and happy, open it up and see how they react. Me personally, I never really believed anything was too big since after all they live in an area much bigger than a 55 gallon tank. The only problem is them finding food but a babies cage should be minimalist to begin with. Paper towel floor, a simple basking spot, no hides since you want a social dragon, not an antisocial dragon, a hammock and a log or 2 for them to jump and climb on. Once they get 8+ months, then you can go all out and deck them in something like an AP or Showcase or some other fancy cage with all the logs, rocks, plants and fancy stuff. That's just my opinion and so far it's worked great for Harley. She is an almost 9 month old fat lap lizard who ive had since she was 6 weeks old :lol: Anyways good luck and if you are questioning the beardie bites, I say throw em out. Better safe than sorry and especially for a few dollar jar vs the price of a vet visit.

 

[beardeddragonlover2]

K thanks. Just great first my lizard dies and my bird just died. ;(