Nathaniel, Cierra, Castiel, Freya, Grrl; RIP GABRIEL

We never expected to get another dragon, but our neighbours next door wanted to give away Cleo, as he was called. We'd babysat him before, he's such a sweetheart. We nicknamed him Velcro because when he snuggles he never wants to go back to his viv, he hangs on as if he's made out of velcro.

So here he is. Today was his first day with us. He ate 13 supers and ate some squash, not bad for the first day he was here. He's only in a 30 gallon tank, which will be ok for now. He's 18" long but weighs only 200g. We figure he's probably 2 yrs old. Our neighbours rescued him last fall, they found him and a female (which they named Puff) on Craig's list. They were in a 30 gallon dirty tank, with sand and a huge log that took up 1/2 the space in the tank. Leo was at the bottom, he was sooooo skinny. He's gained weight, but never got the attention he deserved. I took some pics today, but will take more tomorrow. I think he remembers our place as didn't get stressed as I expected. No stress marks at all. When we let him run around the living room, he noticed our girls and immediate black beard, so his hormones are working!

He had a bath this morning, had a big poop, no smell, so not worried about parasites.

So here are a few pics, he's a yellow & dark gray, light gray colour.

Under the communal power sun in the living room:

Discovering there are girls in those tanks up above, he has a great black beard for such a skinny boy:

On the couch, he's got a pretty diamond pattern on his back:

Hope you enjoy
Deb and my six dragons :shock: :shock: :shock: :love5:

 

[sweetiepie9]

Hi Lori, yes he reminds me so much of Lonzo, even though I got Lonzo when he was 5 years old.

Hi Diane, I'm so glad both of them are doing so well & it was a great vet visit. She gave Puff some sort of shot that is supposed to stop her from creating eggs and she's to get this shot every 2 mo. Not supposed to have any side effects and I'm to let her know if she does create more eggs. We both think over 100 eggs at 7 years old is excessive and will eventually have an effect on her health.

Hi Gina, I think it is like birth control, as we don't want to spay her. So we'll see how it works, I'm to let her know and Puff goes in every 2 months for the shot. Not supposed to have any side effects, it was originally made for birds and is very successful, so I'm really hoping it works for Puff.

Hi Esther, so glad to hear that Angus is thriving, great job! It's always good when they start shedding alot and he's got muscles, too, that's great news

My back is doing well but I see my chiro every 2 weeks, as I don't want to be stuck in bed again. I used to see her every month, but as I've gotten older, I seem to put it out more easily, so this will help. I start seeing my physio in Jan, too, to make sure my posture is corrected, I can tell I'm off there.

So I got home at 10:30 this morning and Nathaniel had his big black beard on again. So I picked him up & noticed that Gabriel was on top of his blanket and was glaring big time at Nathaniel on my chest :lol: So the others might not care, but Gabriel is already annoyed big time, big goof :mrgreen: He'll get his bath & we'll see if he goes back to sleep. I'll see if he's hungry, too.

I called my mom while I had Nathaniel on my chest, while I was talking to her & then my s-i-l (they stayed at my folks last night), Nathaniel scrambled to the top of my head :lol:






I was asking my s-i-l if I needed to go back to stay with the boys, but she said they'd be ok. I forgot to get their dog Choco up (he sleeps with Ryder) for his morning pee, so she was going to call & remind Ryder to let him out in the back yard.

So I'd better go, have to get baths done, luckily had breakfast already. Then I'm going to my friend Jess's and her daughter Jordyn (she's 3 1/2 yrs old) for the late afternoon. Wow, I can't believe how close Xmas is already :mrgreen:

 

[Goonie]

Nathaniel looked quite comfortable and proud of himself for being on top of your head. Guess he wanted the best vantage point. :lol:

 

[Esther19]

That's pretty good, Deb; talk on the phone, balance a dragon on your head, and manage to take a picture of it all! 8)

 

[beardie parents]

Your Story of Nathaniel and Gabriel's being annoyed because he wasn't on you while 'that new guy was' made me laugh. It reminds me of Squirt one morning. I had been holding her for more than an hour, maybe more than two. Anyway, I'd put her in her tank to get warm and bask and Rosie had just gotten up and I picked her up and Squirt was frowning at me because I was holding Rosie and she was in her tank. I informed Squirt that she had her snuggles with me all by herself for 2 hours and Rosie had just gotten up and hadn't had any snuggles at all yet. :lol: I told my boss that story awhile back and she said "it's just like having kids." :lol: This still makes me laugh.

 

[sweetiepie9]

And it is just like having kids, Lori, just toddlers :lol:

Hi Gina, yep, he definitely got to the highest vantage point. I think that's when he realized there were more dragons than just him and they were all BIGGER than him, too. He's had a black beard pretty constantly since Friday and he bobbed and black bearded Didi and Gabriel, quite a day for the little guy :lol:

Hi Esther, he makes me laugh constantly, every time I look at him that black beard is there :mrgreen: Guess he's finding his inner man :laughhard: My life has just gotten much more intersting And I"m a multi-tasker from long ago, so that wasn't difficult :lol:

 

[Goonie]

Guess he's finding his inner man :laughhard:

That's really funny!

 

[diamc]

So cute sitting proudly on your head like that. :mrgreen: You can tell he felt like the king of the mountain and since he was SO high, it made him feel superior so he showed off his jet black beard. Sounds like you are having LOTS of fun with him & his antics. Wonder what it's gonna be like in your household in the spring! :lol: :shock: :roll: Holy cow!

 

[sweetiepie9]

I can tell you, I'll be glad if Puff's birth control works. With 4 crazy male dragons she'll need it :lol:

So Nathaniel has some very stinky poops and I'm smelling ammonia, so I'm going to call the vet tomorrow am to see if I can drop off a sample on Saturday. I'm meeting a friend downtown (which is an hour away) at 1p, made that arrangement months ago, so can't cancel so won't have time to take him in, but have Panacur at home, just need the dose. I know he has parasites, he has an appt on Jan 6 but I don't want to wait that long. At least his poops look good and so does his urate, but the smell. I'm worried about the ammonia smell, too, Titan had the same thing. My vet put him on Baytril & he was over 500g and still had a hard time, didn't eat for the whole 10 days. Will see what I can do by Sat am.

 

[sweetiepie9]

So I called the vet this am (had to stay home, fibro got me again this am). She approved the Panacur treatment for Nathaniel and we started this am 0.13 ml for 3 days a week, for 4 weeks. So I'll still take a sample (if I can get one b4 his appt) on Jan 6 when I take him in. I'm hoping the sample will show that he's improved.

His black beard continues and now he's bobbing himself to death :laughhard: I could hear him whacking his snout on the front glass because Gabriel was on the ramp. It was hilarious and Gabriel just ignored him. Nathaniel is doing so well, even with the Panacur he's eating about 50 or so crickets a day, plus he has phoneix worms in his dish & I'm going to get some dubia out for him, too. He also loves small supers, I've been finding some & giving them to him. His poop is great, urates bright white, just that smell :mrgreen: I could also hear him jumping around from one side of his tank to the other, so he's getting LOTS of exercise. That black beard is ever present

I just got a call from my brother, he picked up new headlights for me, cost $65 tax included. I just love Richard, he's a wonderful man and having his as my car mentor gives me peace of mind.

He also has Emily, his eldest daughter, living with him now (her mom was bullying her) and they're both delighted. Having a great time together. Carly, his younger daughter, still comes over on the weekends, but Emily's life has improved 100%. The great thing is that he no longer pays child support as they each have one child to take care of. This all went through a counsellor at the family courts, it's in effect for 2 mo, then it's looked at again to make it permanent. We're all crossing our fingers that this does become permanent as this is what Emily wants. She has no more drama in her life and she's just blossomed. Great to see!

So Gabriel and Puff are continuing with the flirting, I can't help having either of them out, they need exercise, so I"m hoping the "birth control" works with her. Only time will tell.

And I just checked the output of the Arcadia lights and they are wonderful! Great output. 3.5-5.0 on every light using the 6.5 solar metre. I'm so glad I switched. The lights put out heat but not an excessive amount like the power sun did, so they don't get overheated at all, and will bask for alot longer. Thanks Diane for telling me about the Arcadia MVB, they will be my lights forever now that I'm all set up. We'll see what the output is in a year, I'm hoping they'll be like yours and last for a long time. I'm so pleased with them Just sent an email to Todd to let him know, too.

 

[diamc]

Sorry to hear that your fibromyalgia kicked in again. Hope you're doing better now.

That's good that Nathaniel was started on the Panacur, that should help him out. He sure is an eater regardless. :lol: He must make you tired just watching all of his activity. :mrgreen:

Hope the birth control works for Puff and she doesn't become gravid again. So hard for them to recover especially at her age.

That's awesome that you are still getting such great readings with your Arcadia MVB's. I will never get another brand either. And, they all seem very happy with them. Just think of the money we're saving. Laura came with the Arcadia strip hood that hold the T5 and also a bright daylight strip, she really likes it. I may switch her to an MVB once it declines if it ever does. The strip lights produce a good reading for a long time too. I'm glad you're pleased and that they all are too. You'll have to let me know what Todd has to say. :wink: He's such an awesome guy and REALLY cares.

 

[sweetiepie9]

I'll let you know Diane, I"m just so glad I took your advice and got these wonderful lights!

 

[diamc]

And, the Solar Meter too, right? :wink:

 

[sweetiepie9]

That solar metre has paid for itself many times over since I bought it. It's because of that that I realized the power suns weren't doing a good job and decided on the Arcadia. So thanks again for that, too. It works so well and it will always be part of my dragons lives. Anything that helps keep them healthy is wonderful to me

 

[diamc]

You've got that right Deb, have to do our best for our babies.

 

[sweetiepie9]

I just heard back from Todd, he's going in for hip replacement surgery on Jan 11. He'd had it done & there was a defect on the material used so he has to have it re-done. He's had to fight to have it re-done, too, had to hire a lawyer, he's not had a good time over the last couple of years.

So I clean out the gecko tanks, I always find a cricket or two, which was the case in Bunny's tank. But I found 12 crickets in Rocco's tank, guess he's starting a cricket farm :laughhard: So I'm leaving him alone with his crickets to eat as many as he can in the next few hours, as he always does this but never this many :mrgreen: I then take out the rest before replacing his furniture. What a gecko he is :roll: