I feel like a bad owner :S

[Brokenwings]

I have a beardie and he's about 4 years old. i made a big cage for him and it looks like he enjoys it. Half the cage is lighten up by a heat lamp and the other half is lighten up with 2 UVB florescent. They aren't as close to him as other cages seem to be though, its about 30 cm above his head. is that okay? also, his cage is in my room, and i never go in my room...so i tent to "forget him" sometimes, bath wise, feed wise...i feel as if i don't feed him as much as i'm supposed to, he could eat every day a lot of crickets, but he wont even move to eat his veggies i put on a plate. maybe i should try to move his cage in the living room so i get to see him more often? i give him a plate of veggies every morning, stays untouched, so i don't give him another one during the day...it just dries up and stays there until he sleeps....

he's the first thing i see in the morning because his lights light up the time time i wake up, and even though i don't see him often, knowing he's there means too much to describe. any tips would help i feel horrible. he seems in perfect health though

 

[mickeysmomma]

I think you should move him into a room where he will get some attention. Beardies are so sweet,and enjoy the love and attention from their owners. He really needs to be fed daily. Hopefully you can fit this into your morning schedule, and plan on feeding him at a certain time every day.

 

[Brokenwings]

I'm moving his butt in the living room, next to the big window so he can have sunlight
this way i'm going to notice him even more, its time for a change. i want him to live for a very long time ^^

I heard some people say that they only feed their beardies once a week or once every couple of days :S

 

[Nasubi77]

I'm moving his butt in the living room, next to the big window so he can have sunlight
this way i'm going to notice him even more, its time for a change. i want him to live for a very long time ^^

I heard some people say that they only feed their beardies once a week or once every couple of days :S

Be careful putting him next to a window. The sunlight coming through a window can quickly overheat a glass tank. And if you're hoping the window will provide UVB, it won't. Glass filters out about 99% of UVB.

And, you've never heard anyone on THIS board say they only feed their beardie once a week. Sounds like something a pet store might advise you to do. They need to eat every day. Since he's an adult, you can get by with feeding him bugs every few days or twice a week, but he needs a salad every day, even if he doesn't eat it every day.

So, you have 2 UVB lights? What brand/type are they? Do you measure your temps? What kind of thermometer? His lack of eating veggies may be due to one of these factors. Do you supplement him with calcium?

But yeah, if you tend to "forget" him, definitely move him to an area where he'll get more attention. And kudos to you. It takes a lot of courage to admit a wrong and strive to change a bad habit. We can help set you straight. If you have any questions at all, just ask!

 

[Luthor]

, but he wont even move to eat his veggies i put on a plate....i give him a plate of veggies every morning, stays untouched, so i don't give him another one during the day...it just dries up and stays there until he sleeps....

My Beardie doesn't move to her veggies...so I just pick her up and put her next to them when I put them in and she'll have a munch and at least knows they are there. I also keep them a bit fresher (if I am in the house at least) by keping them wet.

Glad to see you are moving him!

 

[Brokenwings]

Okay! so i got info, his 2 UV florescent lights are Repti Glo 8.0 (desert) and a Repti Glo 5.0 (tropical) one is high UV and another is very high UV (the desert one is higher)

for his basking spot lamp its a 100 watt bulb. http://www.allpet.co.uk/index.php?cat=Reptile_lighting

You can scroll down and see the products. I heard you must change them every 8 months or so because they fade away and they get useless? If so i think i should change them again. (I sprinkle some calcium for reptiles over his salads and crickets when feeding him) I also decided to keep him in my room because his cage fits perfectly in my closet. here's pics

Tell me if the lamps are not good and what you guys use, it would help a lot. Here's the cage i built. His lights are set to close at 10 pm and light up at 6am. Is 8 hours of sleep alright? As you can see there's also a log he goes under. He sometimes, most of the times, sleep under there during the day. should i take it off because he's not getting the UVB? He usually stays on the wood piece in the middle of both sections.

http://img338.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=dsc05204lc.jpg

 

[Nasubi77]

Okay! so i got info, his 2 UV florescent lights are Repti Glo 8.0 (desert) and a Repti Glo 5.0 (tropical) one is high UV and another is very high UV (the desert one is higher)

for his basking spot lamp its a 100 watt bulb. http://www.allpet.co.uk/index.php?cat=Reptile_lighting

You can scroll down and see the products. I heard you must change them every 8 months or so because they fade away and they get useless? If so i think i should change them again. (I sprinkle some calcium for reptiles over his salads and crickets when feeding him) I also decided to keep him in my room because his cage fits perfectly in my closet. here's pics

Tell me if the lamps are not good and what you guys use, it would help a lot. Here's the cage i built. His lights are set to close at 10 pm and light up at 6am. Is 8 hours of sleep alright? As you can see there's also a log he goes under. He sometimes, most of the times, sleep under there during the day. should i take it off because he's not getting the UVB? He usually stays on the wood piece in the middle of both sections.

http://img338.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=dsc05204lc.jpg

You have a nice looking viv! And it is almost perfect except for a couple things. If your UVB's are older than 8 months then they certainly need to be replaced (it is recommended every 6 months). The Reptiglo's have been known to have some problems, so find a Reptisun 10.0 instead. You only need one bulb, though. The Reptisun is cheaper at http://www.petmountain.com/ than anywhere. You can use just a regular fluorescent bulb to put in the other slot in your fixture.

He needs to get within 6-8" of the UVB bulb, so try to build a basking spot up closer to the lights, or mount the fixture on the wall lower down in the viv.

The other thing that stands out is I see a dial thermometer stuck on the wall. These things can be very inaccurate and don't measure in the right place. Find a temp gun or a digital thermometer with a probe. The probe should go directly on the hottest part of his basking spot for a temp of 100-110. The cool side of his tank should be around 80. You can get an indoor/outdoor digi therm made by Acurite at Wal Mart for $12 and it works perfect.

He looks very healthy, so I think you are doing a good job with him. You can dust his food 3x a week instead of every feeding. I would dust the crix rather than the salad since he doesn't eat much salad.

 

[Brokenwings]

Thanks ^^ that helps a lot. and yeah! ReptiSun is popular around here, i think what ill do is lift his whole cage up (add wood to lift him close to the lights) as he's about a little less than 20 cm from the UV ones, the heating lamp is okay though it seems? 100 watts? not 150 or...?

Ill go buy one right now too (the bulb)!

this right? http://www.petmountain.com/product/reptile-fluorescent-bulbs/11442-504983/zoo-med-reptisun-10-0-uvb-bulb.html

 

[Nasubi77]

Thanks ^^ that helps a lot. and yeah! ReptiSun is popular around here, i think what ill do is lift his whole cage up (add wood to lift him close to the lights) as he's about a little less than 20 cm from the UV ones, the heating lamp is okay though it seems? 100 watts? not 150 or...?

Ill go buy one right now too (the bulb)!

this right? http://www.petmountain.com/product/reptile-fluorescent-bulbs/11442-504983/zoo-med-reptisun-10-0-uvb-bulb.html

If you are in the UK, the Arcadia 12% is actually the best bulb you can get.

As for your basking bulb, it just depends on what give you the right temps. That's why you need a digi therm to see exactly what they are. It all depends on how big your viv is, what the ambient temps in your house are, etc. If that's a 4x2x2, a 100w should be sufficient, but we can't make guess work out of it, we need to know for sure. :wink:

 

[Brokenwings]

It is 4'x2'x2...
that's creepy. hahaha

that thermometer in the heating section does say its 110 but whenever i poke my head right under it doesn't feel like that T_T lol
Ill buy one at walmart tonight!

 

[Luthor]

Okay! so i got info, his 2 UV florescent lights are Repti Glo 8.0 (desert) and a Repti Glo 5.0 (tropical) one is high UV and another is very high UV (the desert one is higher)

for his basking spot lamp its a 100 watt bulb. http://www.allpet.co.uk/index.php?cat=Reptile_lighting

You can scroll down and see the products. I heard you must change them every 8 months or so because they fade away and they get useless? If so i think i should change them again. (I sprinkle some calcium for reptiles over his salads and crickets when feeding him) I also decided to keep him in my room because his cage fits perfectly in my closet. here's pics

Tell me if the lamps are not good and what you guys use, it would help a lot. Here's the cage i built. His lights are set to close at 10 pm and light up at 6am. Is 8 hours of sleep alright? As you can see there's also a log he goes under. He sometimes, most of the times, sleep under there during the day. should i take it off because he's not getting the UVB? He usually stays on the wood piece in the middle of both sections.

http://img338.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=dsc05204lc.jpg

When you said reptiglo and mentioned 2 lights, I assumed you meant coils / compacts, but they are tubes. I had coils and I was warned away from reptiglo by the nice peeps on here as they apparently can cause eye problems. Dewi has had eye problems (in one eye) that was initially caused by sand (now gone) but has taken ages to heal even with antibiotics. I switched to Arcadia D3 tube a few days ago and it looks like it is getting significantly better (she is now starting to open the eye even when there is nothing to look at). I am sure someone on here can give you better advice than me on lighting. (I still have a few questions myself). However, I dont think the reptiglo are very well thought of. I am only guessing but I think that may even be too much - which might explain the hiding. (unless he's nervy?)

Your viv looks very nice by the way


EDIT: There were about 3 more replies whilst this one was sat waiting to be "submitted" (I went outside to introduce Dewi to our neighbour..who I have found out is terrified of lizards! So sorry if it is repetition.

 

[Nasubi77]

It is 4'x2'x2...
that's creepy. hahaha

that thermometer in the heating section does say its 110 but whenever i poke my head right under it doesn't feel like that T_T lol
Ill buy one at walmart tonight!

4x2x2 is the most common size for home built vivs, so it was an educated guess.

If the one on the wall says 110, then the actual basking spot is probably much hotter than that, which is not good. You might need to take it down to a 75w. You can use a regular household bulb, so grab a pack of 75 and 60's (just in case) while you're at Wally World getting your therm.

 

[Brokenwings]

Yeah but don't think those meters work well.....the other meter is a humidity one (mostly used for water type reptiles or something?) and it says its at 60%

don't really understand, they came in a pack of 2...but ill wait to get a real thermometer to see.

Or maybe that's why if i take him out for a long period of time, he'll heat himself up for 5 minutes then go back to the cooling area. he always goes there. hm...

 

[Nasubi77]

Yeah, just wait and see when you get a real thermometer. It will be interesting to see how they match up.