New Baby Beardies Colors

[slove829]

Hi all,

New here so bare with me if I miss anything (or if it ends up being a novel). I'm not new to reptiles, but am new to beardies. One week ago I bought 2 babies from a local breeder. Being as I have bred reptiles in the past (but never beardies) the 2 I chose were chosen not only for health, but for genetics and color as well, just in case in the future if I ever decide to breed them I would already have good genes. Anyway, so the two I bought were still pretty young at just barely going on 3 weeks old, 1 being a Citrus Hypo het Trans and the other a Hypo Trans. I saw the parents and both are a great bright orange color so I knew all babies would end up being beautiful anyway. But of course, I still chose the 2 that had the brightest coloration of them all, which at the time of purchase, they were both a stunning bright orange.

I understand stress can dull their colors a bit and relocation can take up to a couple weeks or so to calm them down a bit. The HT is actually shedding at the moment and has been since the day after purchase, so I haven't really been able to see those same colors since purchase day. The Hypo on the other hand... has since the day of buying turned more of a grayish/brown (normal) color and his/her orange has diminished quite tremendously. Is this normal? At first sight he was a stunning orange and now he's more normal colored. I'm sure I've got nothing to worry about and his orange will return, especially after a shed... I'm just wanting to hear from people about opinions I guess. Or maybe if there's a change needed in husbandry that may be causing any sort of additional stress. To add, he is not in shed anywhere but his tail ATM, so it can't be a loss of color from shedding.

Oh, and to add, no they are not being handled as of yet. I wanted to wait at least a week to destress them and let them get acclimated to their new environment. Being babies they are still pretty skittish... so on top of that I haven't been able to do much misting either. As the tank is pretty large with real rock structures, there are plenty of places for them to hide and the moment they get spooked they go hide, but it's getting better every day. (So that adds, no baths yet either.)

Husbandry:
90g
Reptisun 10.0 for UVB
ZooMed 75w basking light about 10" from basking area
Hot side 110-115, cool side is room temperature ranging from 70-75 at night and 80 in the day (the reason I say room temp is the tank is large at 4' wide, basking spot is far left, so the other side on the right gets none to little added heat, then there's the middle area which stays in between) --- I use a Zoomed digital probe
Tile for substrate
Real rock structures (yes, cleaned properly prior to adding to tank) and driftwood

Diet:
Appropriately sized crickets 2-3 times a day, and both eating very well -- no issues with feeding
(Crickets dusted with calcium every other day. No vitamins yet but planning on getting some Herptivite tonight and will start a twice weekly regimen.)
Have greens available but it doesn't look like they're eating much of it. (Cucumber, carrots, grapes, collared greens so far.)

I'm not sure if I'm missing anything but if I am, just ask. To add, yes they will go in separate tanks eventually. I have recently moved and this is the only tank I have set up and I got a great deal on 2 nice morphs and had to take it. I have tons of other tanks that I'll be setting up soon. Also as far as aggression towards each other there have been none. They actually keep to themselves, seeing as the tank is pretty large they have not come across any territorial issues.

Sorry no pics. I'm at work and they block photo sharing sites so I can't upload to photobucket and the forums will only link and not upload to their server... But basically he looks like a normal guy right about now as opposed to the really bright orange guy on day of purchase.

 

[KristineM]

Hi there! Welcome and congratulations! Can't wait to see pictures!!

A few suggestions I'd share...the misting isn't necessary anyway, same as water bowls. They will just raise humidity. They should however be handled long enough to get soaks daily since they are so young and you mentioned shedding. You can use a large bowl with a wash cloth underneath baby for grip. Water should be warm as if bathing an infant and only up to the shoulders. They absorb water through their vents.

How are you taking your temps? Basking spot, cool side, warm side? I'd suggest an Accurite digital thermometer with probe on the end ($12 at Walmart) or an infrared temp gun which you can find for the same price, maybe cheaper You'll want to check the humidity as well. If its too high it can cause upper respiratory problems/infections.

If you DO choose to mist them, make sue it is done outside of the viv.

Again, congrats! Post pics soon and keep us updated!!!

If you have any questions, ask away. Lots of knowledge in this forum

 

[slove829]

Thanks Kristine Right now I have a ZooMed digital probe on the hot side only, but for the first couple of days was constantly testing the middle and cool side as well, and the temps have been fine. I live in California so our temps don't go very low, the lowest being 70, like ever lol (even in the winter months if temps drop I actually have some ceramic heaters I can pull out of the shed.)

As for baths, I was actually going to start more handling today. I was just really trying to get them to destress before handling as I've had lots of experience in the past with easily stressed lizards (Leopard Geckos) so I'm really overboard on my acclimation routine lol. So yes, tonight they will definitely start getting their soaks.

So would you happen to have any advice or opinion about the color issue? About how they were REALLY orange when I purchased them and now the Hypo is more normal? He did dull as soon as we got home, which I'd assumed was due to stress. Is it normal to last this long with no color returning? I love the little guy no matter what (named him/her Crush, due to its Orange lol) and I know he'll gain more and more color with each shed... But I'm just curious as to how there's a drastic difference from the day I bought him to the next week. Was filled with so much orange on day 1 and now just looks normal. I don't want to sound too concerned about his color since again, I love the little guy no matter what. But I"m just curious as to whether that brightness will return.

 

[KristineM]

I'm thinking you will even see a difference in color after a nice warm soak. You mentioned the shed which in 3.5 months my guy has shed every other week! They are beautiful right after shed (and always, of course) but as babies something is almost always going to go grey/white as they grow SO quickly. In time and after shedding you will see more color. I wouldn't worry there.

You seem like a very conscientious owner! I can see things working out beautifully for you Keep updating and let's get some pics! Dying to see these babies!

 

[slove829]

Great thanks Kristine And yes I'll try to get pics up as soon as I can get some good pics. I'll try to get some taken tonight. The lil guys are lazy and sometimes hide during the day and bask mostly at night before lights out. I wanted to provide them with a lot of safe caves and stuff to diminish stress so I structured the rocks to provide lots of little hideouts and guess what, those little boogers sure use em a lot lol. (Which adds to my troubles of trying to handle them as they're so skittish they run as soon as I lift the top and hide in the rocks... Which btw are hot glued together so I can't get em out lol) But thank goodness that's getting better and better, they're not running as much. So yay on that lol.

Oh and Im pretty sure this is normal but thought I'd ask. Beardies do get a little moody during shed right? The HT has been shedding since yesterday and since then he's been hiding a lot more. I wanted to take him out last night and soak him but he kept going in the rocks whenever I caught him out in view and tried to get him. And again, once they're in the rocks, it's nearly impossible to get em... Gotta wait for them to come out. The hassle of using real and heavy rocks. Darnit.

 

[KristineM]

Shedding can certainly cause moodiness as well as decrease in appetite. I'm assuming it's pretty darn itchy

It's actually suggested to NOT allow them places to hide so they are more likely to acclimate to their surroundings. Just a heads up, as they will hide if they can at this age. I wouldn't give them much of the option to tuck themselves away at all!

 

[slove829]

Aww poop. I thought I was doing a good thing by giving them hiding spots. I figured if they had nowhere to hide then they'd be more stressed. Apparently I was wrong. OK, I definitely will change their rockwork tonight then.

But question, will changing them in the middle of them getting comfortable cause any issues? I mean, they're just getting used to their new home, so if they see ANOTHER change, will this delay their getting used to it? I'd hate to prolong them getting comfortable by adding yet another change. They are getting better at not running away so I feel they're getting used to it. So ya... will a new scenic change cause additional stress? Or are they fully aware they're in the same place, and things just moved around? lol.

 

[KristineM]

You've had them am entire week correct? I don't think it's going to cause much harm. If I'm wrong about this, I'll be corrected Pretty sure they'll be ok. I'm not saying remove ALL hides but just not providing so many. They should be basking most of the day and getting under their UVB. A good way to do that is to not give them too many hiding places They DO still need a place on the cool side if they get too warm but if you have your temps correct it won't be an issue

 

[slove829]

Took a few pics last night. The beardie's color in question is probably obvious :lol: It's the one not in shed. When I got him he was so orange and this is what's he's been looking like since then and orange diminished. Anyway, that ones Crush and we still haven't gotten to naming the HT. As you can see why I have my concerns for the Hypo... is because the HT has kept his colors since i got them and he's still quite orange, even under all that shed you can see how brightly orange he is, look at that head lol. Can't wait to see his colors after shed. Anyway when I bought them the Hypo was actually more orange than the HT, which is why I'm wondering where all his color went lol.

 

[KristineM]

They're so adorable!! I don't think you'll have any issues with color. I think the color will show more after each shed. Remember, they look their best when they're healthy So, just keep them well fed and hydrated and make sure all the temps are correct.

The colors will "pop" back up eventually

 

[erikahand83]

Awww... I just love the look of baby beardies, I am such a sucker for them. Good luck with the beardies.

 

[KristineM]

So...since I've done my best to answer your questions, do you mind if I ask a few of my own? Please don't be offended...just want to get it all straight

Are you using a strip fluorescent bulb rather than a coil/compact type? The Repti-Sun 10.0's aren't always the tube type. Also, what is the distance of the UVB?

Where exactly is the probe end placed when checking the basking area? It shouldn't be suspended in the air and should be directly on the basking SPOT for 45 minutes - 1 hour for most accurate reading. Also, don't let those babies sit on the probe they like to do that.

Are you dusting one live feeding a day with calcium 5x a week and one live feeding a day with vitamins 2x a week? On a schedule where it isn't overlapping They could stand to put on a bit of weight

These are helpful too: http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html

Also for lighting: viewtopic.php?f=34&t=148006

Hope that helps too!!!

 

[slove829]

Of course, no offense taken.

To make it easier, here's a pic. The UVB is temporarily too high ATM. Saturday I'll be going to buy a few supplies at Home Depot. I hadn't realized this tank was fairly tall for a beardie when I set it up, and on top of that, I thought I had 1 more 18" light fixture I was going to add in last weekend but only found 1, so that's also on my list to buy on Saturday. So yes, in a couple days, I will be mounting that light (plus another 18") and lowering it. Now that I think about it, can this be a major concern right now? After I got the beardies and realized 1 light wasn't enough AND it was too high, I searched online and read that I should be ok til this weekend, as I was tremendously busy last weekend to work on the tank. (It was already set up and ready for a beardie, I thought, so we bought the beardie and realized the light thing afterwards.)

The probe is sitting on top of that large rock platform on the left directly under the basking light. It's touching that rock, and the little rock on top of that large rock is just there to sit on top of the wire and hold it in place. (The probe is not touching that one, just the platform.)

ATM I'm only dusting with calcium, no vitamins yet. Was planning to buy it when I go get the other UVB light this weekend. So I'm dusting calcium only every other day, and with I'd say 2 out of their 3 feedings. I wasn't sure if 3 dusted feedings in one day was too much and I didn't want to overdose em. What do you recommend? Dust all 3?

As for their size, they've actually grown a lot this week that I've had them. They were still VERY tiny (but healthy as far as I can see) when I bought them, they were only 2 1/2 weeks. I bought them last Wednesday and in 8 days they've grown tremendously actually. So really they're actually just barely over 3 weeks old right now, which is probably why they seem small, because they are. lol. If I had to guesstimate they barely looked over 4 grams when purchased, now they're looking to be about at least 6 or so, which is almost double their weight. When I gave up my Leo breeding, I gave my scale away so this is by eye, but I'm pretty good at eyeing baby weight. Do they really look skinny? They're eating like pigs lol.

Thanks for the help and don't ever feel like anything you ask can offend me, as I'm trying to learn so I can take better care of our new little babies!

 

[KristineM]

Oh I understand!!! We got Batman when he was 2 weeks old! I'm just making sure the light is the Reptisun 10.0 TUBE for UVB.

I do dust 1 feeding a day 5x a week and a multivitamin 2x a week also only ONE live feeding a day. I wouldn't overload them on the calcium since the UVB is pretty far. Just do that one feeding a day 5x a week until you can get the multivitamin for the other 2x a week.

You're doing great

 

[zandi202]

Hi. Beautiful babies you have there!

Nit sure if it has been addressed, but my only recommendation is getting them separate cages> They only times beardies should ever be housed together is for them to do the deed then be immediately separated. At this age and the size of the cage, I wouldn't worry about it immediately, but as soon as you can, I would separate them. They are solitary animals and fight.