Is my bearded dragon happy with me?

[Fiasc0]

I was wondering is my bearded dragon happy with me? He eats normally, sometimes he can be a pig. He runs around quite a bit, sleeps at a usual schedule, goes to the toilet around the same time and gets in his bath/water on the daily basis. I usually take him out around 2-4 times a day for 10 minutes, then he crawls off me and tries to get in his enclosure. Sometimes he gets really agitated and when wants to go back in he runs really fast and starts scratching the glass. He sometimes glass surfs when he sees his reflection. He gets active during the day and runs around his enclosure climbing the drift wood, the temp is usually around 29˚C during the day, and drops to around 24˚C-26˚C during the night. He's only hissed at me 3 times, twice cause I started putting my hand near him when he was in the cornor, and he had only been in the enclosure for no more than 24 hours. And when I was picking him up from my desk he had hissed at my cause I came up from behind him instead of the front. From that I have learnt and since he stopped hissing, but I just want to know if he does like me, or if he is happy in general and if what I have setup is ok. Thanks.

 

[Rankins]

Your temps are too low...basking site should be about 40°C, cool end should be about 29°C.
How old is your dragon and how long have you had it? Sometimes they can get spooked and try to go into their territory (the aquarium) where they feel safe. Or they can be too cold and trying to get under the lights.
I had an iguana about 30 years ago use to get scared when she saw birds flying outside. She would run like a wild animal smashing into walls jumping everywhere. One time I was holding her when the birds flew by...I covered her head with my hand and she put her head in the crook of my arm and closed her eyes. Funny thing is s he never went wild again. Birds would fly by and she would run to me and buried her head under my arm. Part of me wants to think it was affection, the other part thinks I imprinted the behavior....but whatever it was it was pretty cool.

 

[Fiasc0]

My bearded dragon is only a year old, and I've only had him for about a week now.
Well, I live in australia and what I read is that it should be 28˚C-30˚C and he doesn't seem to be getting ill from that, I've asked experts about the temp and they usually say the temp I have it at. I mean, it is quite cold right now where I live so the temps are going to be low and when it reaches summer I hope it heats up more. The thermal light turns off when it reaches 29.5˚C and turns back on at 27.5˚C and I have an alarm set when it drops below 22.5˚C. I read that it should never drop below 16˚C during the night and not once has it yet, well last night something happened to the heat lamp so I had to get him out this morning to cuddle with him so he would be warm, he did hiss at me when I came from the front, he would back up and hiss I was eventually able to go behind him, well over the top and pick him up, he was ok with that. He did fall asleep on my for about 5 minutes then he wanted back in cause he saw a cricket. But he still hisses.

 

[diamc]

Welcome, we are glad you found our great forum.

I have to agree that the temps are too low. They actually need a minimum of 35 C (95 F) and up to 43 C (about 110 F) for a little baby. A beardie a yr old would probably be comfortable at a basking temp of 39 C (102 F) to 40 C (104.4 F). Without an appropriate temps, especially the basking temp, it won't allow for proper digestion which could cause food to rot in their bellies or cause a severe impaction.

Beardies can hide sicknesses and then be very ill very quickly, making it impossible or almost impossible to get them healthy again. So, even though "he doesn't seem to be getting ill from that", you've only had him about a wk so best not to take any chances. They rely on us for their proper setup conditions so we need to do what is recommended to help keep them healthy & happy.

Most of us here have had beardies for many yrs, I have had them for over 15 yrs and have always followed the heating guidelines to help them live as long as possible because they are such amazing creatures. We have researched continuously and have experienced a lot from caring for them. We are always happy to help in any way we can.

It's very possible that he is lethargic, sleeping and almost forced into a brumation state when you go to pick him up which startles him causing him to hiss as a defense mechanism.

Wanted to add that as the seasons change, usually we have to adjust the lighting, maybe even go up or down a bulb wattage to help keep the tanks at the correct temp. So if yours is too cold now, not a good idea to wait until the outside temps get warmer to hopefully increase it.

Please think about and consider raising his temps so you can have him for a very long time, making him a very happy beardie with you as it is so rewarding.

There are a lot of articles and caresheets on this forum that you may want to read, they are very informative.

 

[Rankins]

The problem with the term "expert" is anyone can claim that title. For what its worth I have 43 years reptile experience and am not pretentious enough to ever call myself an "expert". The true experts are the reptiles themselves, and I learn from them everyday. As soon as I hear anyone call themselves an expert, that's when I quit listening to them
However there are a lot of very smart people here and I respect everyone of them.