Getting my first bearded dragon soon

[Grant]

Hi, I just joined here!

I will be getting my first bearded dragon on July 10 at the Atlanta Repticon. I will most likely be getting my dragon from Georgia Bearded Dragons. I have heard nothing but good things about them but has anyone here had experience with them?

What age bearded dragon would you recommend me starting out with as my first? I was thinking around four-months old. I don't want one too young, but I don't want to start off with an adult either. Are four-month olds fairly hardy? I keep other reptiles but have not kept bearded dragons yet. Also, I will be housing the dragon in a twenty gallon long until December (I will be upgrading him to a forty gallon). But if necessary I can keep him temporarily in a fifty gallon that I am going to be housing a colony of White's tree frogs in at the end of January that I have sitting around.

I don't keep any of my other reptiles (excluding my frogs) on loose substrates. I am definitely going to house him as a juvenile on newspaper or paper towel. I do like the appearance of sand, and Reptilite sand seems like a pretty good choice. Has anyone ever had any impaction (or other) issues with Reptilite, or any sand for that matter with adults? If it will be a danger to him, I won't even consider it.

Now for heating and lighting. I'm debating between two options for heat/light for the dragon - quality is the main factor, but cost and energy consumption are considerations too. I already have seventy-five watt basking bulbs with clamp lamps, but I would need ultraviolet lighting too. I have a fixture, but I need a bulb. Are the Zoo Med ReptiSun 10.0's a good choice? The UV is only produced for six months though, right? My other thought is a Sun Force MVB. I would need to buy a new lamp for this, mine are too small (wattage and physical size). What wattage (70, 100, or 160) would I need for a twenty gallon long and a forty gallon breeder? In the summer, my room hovers around 80 in the day, and 70-ish at night. In the winter, my room ocassionally drops below seventy. (My mom doesn't like to use the heat or A/C much...) Also, I believe the UV in the MVBs lasts more like a year, correct?

Also, what foods, amounts, and frequencies do you suggest for feeding (young and adult)? I looked at the Beautiful Dragons chart, is that a good reference?

Sorry about the long post and all the questions, if anyone could answer any or all of these that would be great! Thanks!

 

[ajkry2]

What age bearded dragon would you recommend me starting out with as my first? I was thinking around four-months old. I don't want one too young, but I don't want to start off with an adult either. Are four-month olds fairly hardy?i started with a four month old, and it was perfect. she grew and grew, but i didn't have to deal with the hatchling-ness, and she started eating veg right away. i think 4 months old is ideal I keep other reptiles but have not kept bearded dragons yet. Also, I will be housing the dragon in a twenty gallon long until December (I will be upgrading him to a forty gallon). But if necessary I can keep him temporarily in a fifty gallon that I am going to be housing a colony of White's tree frogs in at the end of January that I have sitting around.20 gal will be fine until your pooper grows a bit, 40 is ideal.

I don't keep any of my other reptiles (excluding my frogs) on loose substrates. I am definitely going to house him as a juvenile on newspaper or paper towel. I do like the appearance of sand, and Reptilite sand seems like a pretty good choice. Has anyone ever had any impaction (or other) issues with Reptilite, or any sand for that matter with adults? If it will be a danger to him, I won't even consider it.theres a few good substrates people suggest. heres a copy paste i post alot:
Particle substrate (sand, bark, etc) is not recommended for 2 reasons
-- it harbors bacteria, and has an impaction risk. The recommended
alternatives are: Paper towels, repticarpet, shelf liner, or tile.
I people like textured slate tile as its easy to clean (dishwasher/sink) and keeps
your BD's nails trimmed, I used to use paper towels (always replacing them due
to poopoo).

Now for heating and lighting. I'm debating between two options for heat/light for the dragon - quality is the main factor, but cost and energy consumption are considerations too. I already have seventy-five watt basking bulbs with clamp lamps, but I would need ultraviolet lighting too. I have a fixture, but I need a bulb. Are the Zoo Med ReptiSun 10.0's a good choice? that's the best choice for US tube bulbs The UV is only produced for six months though, right? reccomended is changing them every 6 months, i had to change mine at 4 months because my BD's appitite decreased and she was pretty lethargic My other thought is a Sun Force MVB. alot of MVB's are iffy as far as quality goes. check out viewtopic.php?f=34&t=114817 for a detailed description of pros and cons to different kinds of lightings I would need to buy a new lamp for this, mine are too small (wattage and physical size). What wattage (70, 100, or 160) would I need for a twenty gallon long and a forty gallon breeder? In the summer, my room hovers around 80 in the day, and 70-ish at night. In the winter, my room ocassionally drops below seventy. (My mom doesn't like to use the heat or A/C much...) Also, I believe the UV in the MVBs lasts more like a year, correct?from what i hear mvbs last a year. i've only had mine for a month, so im not 100% sure...

Also, what foods, amounts, and frequencies do you suggest for feeding (young and adult)? feed as many live feeders (smaller than the space between the eyes) as s/he can eat in 10-15 mins. heres my experience with feeders:
crickets - pain in the xss (stink, quick escapers, but cheap)
mealworms - too much hard outer shell, not enough good meat (hard for poopers to digest resulting in possible impaction)
roaches - darn nice feeder (expensive on the onset, but easy to breed, relatively slow movers, good meat to shell ratio)
superworms - delicious for BD's over 16ish inches for digestive reasons
phoenixworm - they're healthy for BD's and have such a high calcium content no dusting necessary but quite expensive and small
butterworms - nice treat for BD's, very fatty kinda like a candy bar for your pooper
waxworms - don't like them. my pooper had the runs for days after i fed a few to her. and she wouldn't eat more than 3 or 4 so i
dont think she likes em anyway
I looked at the Beautiful Dragons chart, is that a good reference?the beautiful dragons chart is like a beardie food bible. print it and use it often.

 

[Grant]

Thanks for the advice and answers! The Sun Force bulbs are sold by Big Apple and there is actually a video that shows a test of the bulbs' UV output right on the page. So, seeing as that particular bulb is a good brand, I think I might just go with that. Also, in that thread you posted about heat/light for bearded dragons, you said MVBs shouldn't be used for tanks under forty gallons. Would a seventy watt be okay for a twenty gallon even though it's a MVB (most other MVBs are at least 100 watts but the Sun Force come in seventy watts)?

Also, if anyone has any more input or answers it would be appreciated.

 

[Valex]

Hey! and Welcome.

Firstly... About GBD, I have never purchased from them, but a friend has, he was told it had certain genetic traits( I don't remeber what), and payed out the butt, but when it came time to breed, he had him tested, and they had lied about his genetic make-up, and the dragon was worth a lot less than he would have been. (Now this isn't my first hand experience, it is only going of what he said)

Secondly... dont use any "reptile sand" IF you MUST(ugh. please don't. its stupid and not healthy, and harbor more bacteria than you can even imagine. Looks isn't worth my dragons health) use sand, use play sand(wash it, and sift through it with mesh first) I recomend tile. I have used sand, paper towels, and now tiles, and tile is by far the best substrate! the only problem with reptile carpet is that it has tiny loops and often times there little finger nails, get caught and they pull off toes.

Thirdly... Around here, the only really "accepted" mvb is the megaray, they have passed all comercial tests, and the "tests" of the owners around here. I'm actually going to switch my boys into a megaray from a repti sun come this october when their tubes start to run low on UVB.

Really with the MVB's its a tank to tank thing, It depends on the temp of your house, and if you can get the light far away enough. They hve to be 12-14 inches away from the basking spot, and it needs to stay around 100* which is very hard to regulate in such a small tank, especially when the cool side needs to be in the 80's. I would suggest just starting with a bigger tank, Or!!(my favorite option) build your own enclosure. It is more pricey but its a fun project, and my boys love theirs. =D

Other than that, I will see you at Repticon, and if you like I would love to help you pick out a gooden! =D don't hesitate to pm me if you need anything, or have any questions.

 

[Grant]

I'm not really too worried about the genetic makeup of this bearded dragon, I don't plan on ever breeding him. I'm just looking for an attractive, heatlhy bearded dragon which it seems they have. And although it certainly is not good that they misled and overcharged customers, it really won't affect me. As long as I like the appearance and it is healthy, I'll be happy.

Don't worry, I won't use sand! I'm going to be using paper towels, newspaper, or butcher paper when he's young. I'm thinking either non-adhesive shelf liner or reptile carpet (is it a big problem?).

I actually bought my lights today. I went into Petco and found a fixture, 10.0 UVB bulb, and full spectrum lighting plus a replacement UVB bulb on clearance. These regularly would have been over 100 dollars and I got it for three dollars! So I'm set as far as lighting or heating (I have tons of seventy-five watt spot lights and clamp lamps).

 

[Valex]

The only problem with reptile carpet, is it has tiny loops that they get their toes caught in, and it pulls them off when they try to run away.

Secondly, what type of UVB is it? Please please tell me it is a reptiSUN 10.0 NOT a reptiglo 10.0(they are known to cause eye problems, lethargy, and a plethra of other problems)

If I were you, at this point I wouldn't "commit" to a certain company, just walk around repticon until you see the one that steals your heart. The one that you catch eyes with, and its like "you are mine little beardie)

 

[Grant]

Well, I have a while to decide about the reptile carpet, I probably will end up going with the non-adhesive shelf liner.

Yes, it is a ReptiSun 10.0.

You're right, I'm just going to walk around the show and find a healthy one that I really like. Thanks!