New Beardie Owner

[SkysoFly]

Hello. My name is Schuyler. My bearded dragon is 5 weeks of age and pretty small. I.named him/her Natsu. I keep Natsu in a ten gallon tank, which I know is extremely too small, but I already have plans to get a bigger tank. He really enjoys crickets and he eats mustard and turnip greens when offered. I want to say he's about 8 or nine inches. He has a 75 watt basking bulb and a UVB light. I don't really have a thermometer, because the one I had was a piece of crap. I think I'm maintaining the right temperatures because he's very active and aware and enjoys socializing and being handled. Not too fond of baths but it helped him shed immensely. I have a green reptile carpet substrate and feed him 8-12 crickets a day. He's very cute and I will post a picture soon. I am new and looking forward to raising a healthy bearded dragon.

 

[KatieKat]

Welcome to the site!
I recommend getting a thermometer ASAP. You should never guess your temps. You can get a long one with a probe at Petco for 5$ or one at Wal-Mart, a temp gun or infa-red thermometer will also be good choices. And you'll want to up the amount of crickets he eats in a day, babies need to eat all the appropriately sized crickets he can eat in a 10-15 minute period two or three times a day. Also, what UVB are you using?

Can't wait to see pictures of him!
-Katie

 

[SkysoFly]

I think it's called ReptiGlo Coil Bulb 10.0. That's all I know. And I will try to get a thermometer as soon as possible. Also, I've heard so many different things. So do I just drop the crickets in his tank and he'll just go to town? I'll buy some more crickets and give it a try. I've been giving him 4 three times a day. He seemed content with that, but I will definitely give it a try. That would probably explain why he is so small because he's not getting enough protein. *face palm*

 

[SkysoFly]

 

[KatieKat]

Well, yeah, you can just drop a handful in and see him eat and then see if he wants more. He is small, so he'll need lots of protein at this time. And, I'd dump the ReptiGlo. ReptiGlows have been known to cause eye problems. The Reptisum 10.0 long linear bulb is what you want!

 

[SkysoFly]

I'll try to get all of this ASAP. How much are light fixtures for that type of UVB bulb?

 

[KatieKat]

Not much, like 12$ at Wal-Mart. If he is in a 10 gallon, it might not fit. But it's super improtant he gets the right UV light.

 

[SkysoFly]

A ten gallon is exactly what he is in. He is definitely bigger than when I got him, so he is growing, but I will try to set up the light fixture for him to get the proper UV rays.

 

[KatieKat]

The Smallest ReptiSun you can get is 18''

 

[SkysoFly]

Does reptisun make coil bulbs or is that not recommended either?

 

[KatieKat]

Coils/Compact bulbs are useless.

 

[AtlasStrike]

Coils/Compact bulbs are useless.

It's not just that they are useless, they can also be dangerous. Inadequate UVB causes calcium deficiency, which is extremely dangerous and often fatal, but coil/compact UVB bulbs also emit radiation that has been known to cause eye and skin problems. The Zilla and Exo Terra bulbs, both tube and compact have been known to cause all of the above problems as well.

 

[SkysoFly]

One more thing. He seems to seem himself in the glass of his tank and lunge and claw at it. Sometimes he'll jump off it and fall off of his log. I suppose this is normal???? He just recently started doing it. It's pretty funny to watch.

 

[SkysoFly]

He'll also puff his throat at his reflection. Also normal?

 

[KatieKat]

Yeah,s she said, they are dangerous as well. He is what most call 'glass dancing' so yeah, that's normal! And the bearding is normal too.