Light or no light?

[izzyizabee]

Will not having a light for your bearded dragon for a week or two hurt them in any way? But I do have a heating rock and a heating pad but his cage is still pretty cold. Will it be okay until I can get a light?

 

[diamc]

Are you talking about not using a heat light? If so, that would be VERY dangerous as your beardie needs to be kept at a certain temperature during the day. You can actually use a standard household light bulb for the basking bulb. Without heat, your beardie will not be able to digest properly which can cause him to become very sick or even die. Are you using a thermometer to check the temps? I hope so. Can you fill us in on the type of thermometer you're using?

Heat rocks and heat pads are not good things to use because beardies sense heat from the 3rd eye on top of their heads so if the rock or pad get too hot, he could get burned very badly when he notices it is too hot.

Also, what brand & type of UVB do you have?

 

[ShannyBeard]

Heating rocks and heating pads are dangerous for bearded dragons. It is urgent that you remove both of those items from his tank immediately. Heat pads and rocks have been known to cause severe burns to the undersides/bellies of bearded dragons and other basking lizards. They are basking lizards who require heat from above, through lights, and not from below. They do not sense heat through their bellies and will not be able to tell if the heat rock/pad has become too hot, resulting in debilitating and painful burns.

Since they are basking lizards, they need heat from above in the form of a light. These lights do not just give off heat, though. They are also responsible for the synthesis of vitamin D3 in the skin. The vitamin D goes through a few chemical changes in the skin and the organs, and eventually goes into the bloodstream, supplying the rest of the body and allowing the body to properly use calcium in the organs, such as the liver and the heart. Proper heat is required for this chemical change to occur.

There is a complex relationship between the UVB lighting, calcium and vitamin D3 that all rely on your dragon receiving proper heat in the form of basking lights.

If you would like to know if your own bearded dragon set up is optimal, please post a picture of his viv, and a description of the kind/brand and types of UVB lights and basking lights that you use, thermometer kind that you currently have, and the temperatures directly under his basking light, and the temp of the cool side of the tank. We can advise you and help you out.

 

[Claudiusx]

You don't have a 2$ household bulb laying around your house that you can use for a light?

For a heat bulb you don't need a fancy reptile bulb, you just need a bulb that gets your temperatures right. Many of us use household incandescent or the like.
But for UVB you will need a special reptile bulb, such as the arcadia 12% or the reptisun 10.0

-Brandon

 

[ShannyBeard]

You don't have a 2$ household bulb laying around your house that you can use for a light?

For a heat bulb you don't need a fancy reptile bulb, you just need a bulb that gets your temperatures right. Many of us use household incandescent or the like.

-Brandon

If using a household bulb, it needs to be a bright white bulb, and not a filtered bulb. Many household bulbs have a Neodymium coating inside which filters out yellow light. This coating is for humans, because we do not like to have a yellow hue to our homes. Reptiles see light differently and when you use a bulb that filters out the yellow, it causes them to see blue. That change in color in their environment affects their behavior. So get a bulb that does not filter out the yellow.

 

[MODragons]

What about night time heat, what can you use to keep a viv warm at night time ? (my basement drops below 65)

 

[ShannyBeard]

A ceramic heat emitter. Our house stays at 75, and I use a 60 watt to get my recovering beardie up to about 85 degrees. He is in a 20 gallon long tank. You'll need to choose the wattage based on your tank size and the temperature of the room he is in.

I buy my supplies from this place: http://www.beardeddragons.co/beardeddragon/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=162

 

[MODragons]

Thanks, I just discovered what CHE means...Ceramic Heat Emitter

 

[ShannyBeard]

Thanks, I just discovered what CHE means...Ceramic Heat Emitter

HAHA yeah, you should have seen me work out what UTH was when I got a gecko. :?