Luna the Beardie!

[clearlyjoyful]

So, last Friday, my bearded dragon of 8.5 (it would have been 9 in May) years passed away. I have now chosen my second bearded dragon who, by the breeder's best guess, is a female and her name is to be Luna! I get her on Saturday. I know it seems really soon compared to how short a time it has been since I lost Itchy, but I knew almost a week before he passed away that it was his last run so I've already been grieving for a while now. It's too hard to walk by the empty tank on Itchy's old stand and see nothing there, no one to say hi to, no one to feed... so I've decided I'm ready to embark on a new adventure.

I barely remember Itchy as a baby, since when he was a baby, I was 15 years old and my mom's boyfriend at the time did most of the caring for him. So I'm relearning everything, so if you have any tips, feel free to comment with them - they'll be much appreciated. I got a new tank for her too, since the other one was 10 years old and the screen was ripped from the cats jumping onto it for a decade. I have some of Itchy's old decor items in the tank though so he can carry forward his legacy.

Here is a picture of her enclosure so far. It is missing the UV bulb and fixture yet and like, half the tiles, since the previous tank had regular square corners, but this one has rounded corners, so we're currently filing them down and recutting some of them so they fit again. I want to find a nice background too. Otherwise, I think I'm pretty set to go! It's so exciting getting a new dragon, as sad as it is to say Itchy is gone. In honour of you, Itchy old buddy.

 

[CooperDragon]

I'm sorry to hear that Itchy didn't make it. It sounds like he had a happy life. I'm glad that you're ready to take care of another lucky dragon. It looks like the new tank will make a really nice home. I do have a few suggestions for the lighting. You may want to get an adjustable stand for the basking light so you can easily raise and lower it as seasons change so you maintain a good temperature. For UVB I suggest getting a T5 bulb and fixture rather than the older T8 style. A T5 will work really well for that tank size. You'll want to get one that covers at least 1/2 the tank and you can put it right on top. For a background, you can print out your own. Find a photo you like (fairly high res) and you can bring it to a print shop and have them print it out to the correct size. Here's a picture of my setup to help show what I'm talking about. It's a very similar tank. I look forward to hearing about Luna's adventures!

 

[AHBD]

Well, what a cute little sweetie you picked up, and I know that you are excited about your new baby. It was so hard to lose Itchy, and there will probably always be a bit of heartache, but there's always joy with a new pet. And you know that this is the place for any questions and problems. Welcome Luna !

 

[clearlyjoyful]

I'm sorry to hear that Itchy didn't make it. It sounds like he had a happy life. I'm glad that you're ready to take care of another lucky dragon. It looks like the new tank will make a really nice home. I do have a few suggestions for the lighting. You may want to get an adjustable stand for the basking light so you can easily raise and lower it as seasons change so you maintain a good temperature. For UVB I suggest getting a T5 bulb and fixture rather than the older T8 style. A T5 will work really well for that tank size. You'll want to get one that covers at least 1/2 the tank and you can put it right on top. For a background, you can print out your own. Find a photo you like (fairly high res) and you can bring it to a print shop and have them print it out to the correct size. Here's a picture of my setup to help show what I'm talking about. It's a very similar tank. I look forward to hearing about Luna's adventures!

Thanks for replying and thanks for the condolences! I actually have an adjustable stand... maybe it's difficult to see in the picture but the tall black bar on the far right is the stand! Currently it's set so it's just touching the mesh, but it's still in need of adjustment! That lamp stand is literally the best purchase I've made regarding beardies so far, lol! And yeah, that's exactly what I have on order... it's replacing what I currently have which is a T8 bulb in a regular fixture, and it's going to cover the whole tank length. Your set up is really cool... where do you get your driftwood from? I worry about the pet store driftwood being improperly treated or something so I hesitate to purchase it, haha. Thanks very much for the suggestions!

 

[clearlyjoyful]

Well, what a cute little sweetie you picked up, and I know that you are excited about your new baby. It was so hard to lose Itchy, and there will probably always be a bit of heartache, but there's always joy with a new pet. And you know that this is the place for any questions and problems. Welcome Luna !

Thanks AHBD, you're just so sweet lol. We plan to get a nice big 8x10 photo printed of Itchy that I took with my Canon Rebel and hang it above the tank. He'll always be the first, though!

 

[CooperDragon]

Ah OK, perfect. I see the stand now. It looked like the dome was sitting on the mesh. I agree, they are a great purchase (and not very expensive at that). The half log and the log that Dundee is sitting on in the photo came with him (he is a rescue). The driftwood piece in front is from a beach - it's his souvenir from my trip. I wouldn't worry too much about the driftwood in the stores being treated improperly. It's just overpriced. You may be able to find some better deals online. A lot of people just find appropriate logs and rocks in their yards or on hikes and that's OK too. You just have to rinse them off really well and bake the logs (not the rocks) to sanitize them. A baby won't need as much space, so smaller sticks from the yard should provide plenty of fun climbing area for a while.

 

[clearlyjoyful]

Ah OK, perfect. I see the stand now. It looked like the dome was sitting on the mesh. I agree, they are a great purchase (and not very expensive at that). The half log and the log that Dundee is sitting on in the photo came with him (he is a rescue). The driftwood piece in front is from a beach - it's his souvenir from my trip. I wouldn't worry too much about the driftwood in the stores being treated improperly. It's just overpriced. You may be able to find some better deals online. A lot of people just find appropriate logs and rocks in their yards or on hikes and that's OK too. You just have to rinse them off really well and bake the logs (not the rocks) to sanitize them. A baby won't need as much space, so smaller sticks from the yard should provide plenty of fun climbing area for a while.

Awesome, thanks! I love the way driftwood looks in their tanks, but have always been hesitant in store, and always thought it was a poor idea to bring them in from outside. It'll have to wait for a while though as I live in Canada and it's... pretty snowy here right now, finding sticks is awfully tricky this time of year lol

 

[Esther19]

Congratulations on adopting Luna! She's adorable! Please don't feel disloyal to Itchy. He would understand your pain, and your needing to fill the hole in your heart.

 

[clearlyjoyful]

Congratulations on adopting Luna! She's adorable! Please don't feel disloyal to Itchy. He would understand your pain, and your needing to fill the hole in your heart.

Thanks for that... My mom in particular is pretty critical of my decision to adopt a second right away, but then she didn't see him at the end the way I did. She only began to grieve when he actually died. Either way, it's an exciting new journey and is something different altogether!

 

[clearlyjoyful]

Here are a few pictures. I wasn't supposed to get her until March 1st, but the breeder was buying my old terrarium and needed it a few days early, so I got her last night. She's so sweet and tiny!

Here she is looking really angry right after she came inside. It was really cold outside, though, so I don't really blame her.

Dat tail though!

 

[Esther19]

That is one regal tail! My Cissy has a tail like that, but she's the only one of my five that does.
Congratulations! Luna is adorable!

 

[clearlyjoyful]

That is one regal tail! My Cissy has a tail like that, but she's the only one of my five that does.
Congratulations! Luna is adorable!

Her tail is perfect... I love it! She's shedding already!! I love her haha