New i have 1 beardie and id like to intruduce myself

[Beardie_raiser44]

hi i just got a new beardie(charlie)about three days ago i dont know much about beardies right now i have him in a 20gallon aquarium wiht play sand two logs a hidy hut(he doesnt use it except to sleep)the overhead bulb UVB thingy(dont worry i checked it has what it needs)and a heat lamp for basking ive fed him about 15 crickets(3 got away lol)and i plan on building a better cage with my dad.right now im new and looking up info and im getting worring mainly about impaction so far i hear play sand and calci sand can cause it also meals too big well as stated before i use calci sand and i also fed him a large cricket(a little samller than the distance between his eyes)and he hasnt had his daily bowel movement im worried i messed up already anyone wanna put my mind at ease and give me some info or advice?o i almost forgot he also has a water bowel which he sits in bout 3 times a day for 15 minutes he then drinks the dew from his head(cute!!)

 

[xjosephine64X]

How old is he? I have my adult on play sand, but he does not eat on the sand. You could try giving him a warm bath and rubbing his tummy. That will help him go poo. There is differing opinions on whether to have a water bowl in the viv or not. I do not I either syringe water mine and give them baths so they can drink there. Welcome and ask as many questions as you want. Better to ask then not and be sorry...

 

[Beardie_raiser44]

mines not an adult but i dont see him eating the sand i dont put him in the bowel he does it himself i feed him about 4-5 crickets a day(my mom will only buy me 10 so far cause the pet stores said no mroe than 10 a week)but i substitute the missing crickets with lots of veggies(broccoli carrots collard greens etc.)im trying to convince her for more crickets though.

 

[xjosephine64X]

depending on the age, your guy should be eating a lot more then that. I have just started feeding mine once a day and they are almost 1 yr. Until they were 6 mos I feed three times a day live food as much as they will eat in 15 min (crix). Then twice a day same 15 min. Pet store are notorious for giving bad info that kills beardies!!! Please have your mom go on here and let here read the care sheets so she will understand what your new pet needs to grow healthy and strong. If you need you can PM me or I can email your mother. But try to what ever it takes to get your guy the protein he needs. This is a crucial stage for your young fellow.

 

[Beardie_raiser44]

yes yes ok either way the pet store sels crixs 20 for 50 cents so its not that expensive its just the only walkable pet store is closed today so ill go pick up about 40 tommorow cause i really want my beardie to live ill feed him the rest of the ten right now and give him more tommorow.

 

[xjosephine64X]

You can purchase them on line also if your mom will let you. You can get 500 for a good price. Use a sterilite container you can get at walmart and put holes in the top and feed them the same veggies you do your beardie. When they get older (over six mos or 16") you can get super worms (not king meal worms) at the pet store too and they are easier to take care of and have less die off. I get 100 for 5.00 (.05 each) at my local reptile store. Look in the phone book for a snake or reptile store. they will have better crix and more of a variety of protein opption.
Where in Florida do you live??? I am in gaineville...

 

[Beardie_raiser44]

i live in edgeville.you know a site that will ship crickets?i have a small critter keeper that i put my crixs in.yeah i guess ill start on super worms when my bearded gets bigger but right now my moms yelling at everyone so its dangerous to go near her -_-.if worse comes to worse ill spend my weight set money on crickets and such at the moment me and my dad are getting ready to build a bigger tank for charlie(my beardie)

 

[xjosephine64X]

hehe yeah watch out for the yelling moms! I have three boys and I am a yelling mom at times. Of course my two beardies are mine not anyone else the the family. I am the only one that loves reptiles here. Yes if you can get some crix for Charlie. Do you know how old he is? Can you measure him? That can help us determain the age if the pet store lied (as usual). I got my first one from a breeder and the second from my reptile store here in g-ville. Great place!!! try this site for your crix
http://www.armstrongcrickets.com/
they are good but you have to buy at least 500 at a time and you need a pretty good sized keeper about a 24x12 so they are not over crowded. Also if you want just buy 100 at a time because that is about what a baby or juvie should eat a week. Get mediums if your guy is about 10" and smalls if 6". try looking in your phone book for a reptile store (not pet smart or pet co) they should have reasonable prices (like .05 each).

 

[Beardie_raiser44]

i dunno exactly how big he is id have to say longer than 7 inches but smaller than an adult maybe 9 inches?my mom finnallly loosened up and agreed on letting me buy bout 20 crickets a day.

 

[xjosephine64X]

Good deal!!! that is great for your Charlie!!! I am sure your mom does not want him to be sick and not grow to his potential!!! Keep up the good work!! Do you have a UVB light??? If you got info from the pet store just want to make sure, is very important. But if you have to save then the fact that you are in Floida you can take him outside for real sun for an hr a day till you do. UVB lights that are good are repti-sun 5.0 or 10.0 or repti0-glow 8.0. flouresent not compact...

 

[Beardie_raiser44]

yeah i have the UVB lighting stuff i looked up everthing about beardies about 3 days ahead of time and i had most of what i needed today my friend came by and said hes beardie was fat but its hind legs werent working i told him everthing i know and he said he didnt have the UVB i told him if he couldnt get one to bring his beardie outside for about an hour a day and to put calci powder on the crickets he feeds him(i hope it recovers from the MBD )his dragons normal colored but mines gold looking

 

[xjosephine64X]

oh is really sounds like MBD I hope he gets him better, tell him the more sun the better and get a good UVB like a mega ray. they will help the little one get better.