Me and smokey

[Ambz748]

Hello! My name is Amber, and I'm a college student from Michigan. I'm a first time bearded dragon mommy and I luv it! I just got my first home of my own, and Smokey (my dragon) is great companionship. He's great to have around, and great with kids. Bearded dragons really are good pets. I just wanted to say Hi to everyone and introduce myself and Smokey.

How old is your dragon? about 5 months
How long have you had your dragon? almost 4 months
How long is your dragon? 8 inches
What is the sex of your dragon? 90% sure its a male
What size enclosure do you have your dragon in? 20 Gallon reptile tank,
we're getting a larger one later this week
What type substrate do you have your dragon on? Calcium sand
Do you use UVB lights? yes
If so, what kind and how old? Not sure on the type, they're about 4 mo.
old, i heard that they should be replaced every 6 mo. or so???
How close can your dragon get to the UVB? about 6 inches
What are the basking temps? 95-105
What is the cool side temp? 75-85
What do you take the temps with? ANALOG
Do you use a heat rock or heat pad? no
What do you feed your dragon? Please be specific. Crickets! Smokey
Loves to be on the hunt. He supprisingly eats and likes his dry food,
and occasionally he'll eat some greens for me. His favorite is romane
lettuce and carrots.
How often do you feed? twice a day
Do you gutload your feeders? Not sure exactly what is gutloading?
Do you use vitamin or calcium supplements? What brand(s)? yes, Dragon
Dust
Is your dragon having regular bowel movements? yes
Do you bath your dragon? How often? once a week
Do you mist your dragon or offer water other then in the bath? he has a dish of water and I am getting mister
Does your dragon share an enclosure with another dragon? no
Have you gotten a vet check and fecal done? No, the lady at the pet store told me a vet checks all thier animals.

 

[~Kayne's Mum~]

Hi Amber and welcome to the site! I read your Q's & A's and it sounds like you're doing great with your beardie. The only thing I saw that you might want to change is that calci sand isn't good at all. It could cause impaction and death to your beardie if he licks or eats it accidently. If you must use sand, play sand is the best to use. Not to mention a lot cheaper. Other good substrates to use would be shelf liner or slate or ceramic tiles. You can find all of this at a Lowe's or Home Depot for rather cheap. They are also really easy to clean. Another thing is, you might want to remove the water dish from your beardie's enclosure. Beardie's don't require much humidity in their environments and this may raise your humidity levels, which you don't want. So daily misting, baths, and heavily misting their veggies is plenty. Other than that, it sounds like you're doing great! And I'm sure you'll learn a lot here. I know I have.

 

[sidhe]

:wave: Welcome :wave: from a fellow Michigander! I actually bought my beardie from a breeder that lives out in K-zoo. He was at a reptile show out my way (S.E. Mich). There is loads of information here and, I'm sure you'll be a great new beardie Mom.