Wow. The quick color change was amazing. Looks like a different beardie. He obviously had already fallen in love with you over the time you were visiting him and was glad to go home with you. No stress signs there. And Gabby surely sent him some sort of "communication" that he'd found a pretty nice place to live. And speaking of Gabby, since beardies live in groups in the wild, just knowing she's there and she's happy and healthy (and some supervised play dates when it's warm enough to go outside) will also be great for his colors. LOL.
I can't help rescueing anything in need either. My husband swears if he wasn't here to keep me in check, I'd be this community's crazy animal lady! Big difference is everything at my place is spoiled rotten. Glad to see you do a hammock for sleeping. It's not natural for a beardie to sleep on the "ground." In the wild it would be dangerous. My beardie slept in a silk plant as a baby. I knew as he got bigger this wasn't going to keep working. And he didn't like the reptile hammock I had bought him. He only likes natural feeling things. His real rock, his treated branches, and his silk plants. So the creative crafty part of me went to work. I looked around at the pet store and bought a treated, bendable small branch like you'd buy for a small reptile. I also craft jewelry and had some jewel glue which is non toxic, non flammable, dries clear, and withstands dryer temps after 24 hours. I used some clothes pins (we keep them in the pantry to close snack bags) and started rolling my branch around itself in a flat circle sorta like a drink coaster. I used the pins to hold 3 or 4 rolls/rings in place and glued one side. After an hour or so, it would be dry enough (not cured) that I could carefully do a few more rings. I kept this up (half the night) till it was done. I let it cure the rest of the night. I also bought another plant like the one he was used to. I cut some pieces off of it and glued them to the outside in a way that he could lay on the bed and be covered by the leaves. My husband said I was wasting my time, but after I was satisfied it was cured, he mounted it to the end of a bigger basking branch (that we know will support his weight as he grows). The bed went in the back corner where the plant was hanging. I did my womanly/mother situating thing until I was satisfied it was attractive and functional. My husband had his doubts. That night when the lights went out, I held my breath. But Spot didn't disappoint his Mama. He went up the branch, centered his fat arse on his new bed, closed his eyes and slept there all night and every night since!
If you didn't want to read all this, I apologize. I just sense that you feel the same way about your beardies that I do about mine. Anything to make them feel normal and happy and healthy. Critters can't help but be instinctive. The more we can address their instincts, the more comfortable they are.
Anyway, this isn't a blog. I'm sorry. Your guy looks great and I'm glad you guys got him!
