new to site, had 2 beardies for 2 weeks now.

[boxo]

i recently brought home a friends bosc monitor on a "home trial" and i liked having her here, but no one else in the family did . they said she was evil and scary :roll: !! i gave the family a couple of weeks to get used to her, but they never gave her a chance. so she went back and in her place came 2 baby beardies which the whole family love. we think we have a male and a female, they were supposedly sexed, but i appreciate that when they are a little over 5 inches from nose to tail it cannot be taken as 100% true! :!:

they are called dave and stella, and seem to be doing fine. both active, eating and pooping well, although dave is growing faster than stella, quite a bit faster.

i have read alot of the old threads in different sections, and have already changed a couple of things with their care, but if i have any questions or concerns i will ask.

(glad my first post is here rather than in ER where so many people seem to have their first posts!!......... maybe the research before buying, and the home visit with the bosc was worthwhile afterall!!)

 

[Akeath]

Hi, welcome to the forum. Just a heads up, in case you haven't heard yet, that if you are keeping them in the same cage they should be moved out into separate ones around 4 months, or sooner if you see one obviously thriving more than the other.

 

[Catalyst]

they are called dave and stella, and seem to be doing fine. both active, eating and pooping well, although dave is growing faster than stella, quite a bit faster.

Do you have the two dragons housed together in the same tank? If so, then that's most likely the problem with your female. Housing dragons together is tricky and only sometimes works when you have two female dragons - any other combination is definately not recommended. Dragons develop an uncomfortable hierarchy and the lower dragon can suffer a great deal of stress which in turn affects their overall health and growth. Dragons are solitary animals who truly do best when housed alone.

Welcome to the site Good on you for taking the time to look up information for youself, there's a lot of people out there who can't be bothered. If you'd like, you can post some of the details of your husbandry here and we'll point out any other potential problems for you.

How old are your dragons?
How large are they?

What size tank are you keeping them in?
What substrate (ground covering) are you using?

What do you use to heat the tank?
Do you use a heating pad or heat rock?
What are the temperatures (basking spot and cool side) in the tank?
What do you use to measure the temps?

What UV light are you using (brand / name)?
How close can your dragons get to it?

What do you feed your dragons?
How often?
Do you gutload/feed your live bugs?
Do you use supplements?
If so, which ones and how often?

Are your dragons housed alone or together?
Have you had a vet visit or fecal test done?

 

[boxo]

i read things to that effect. its a shame as they get on so well. it was my plan to keep them together as i have a 6 foot viv, but i think its likely now that i will partition this to make 2 x 3 foot compartments. i am hoping a 3 foot isnt too small for 1 beardie, but if so i will have to rethink my plans. i have time on my side tho as they are only about 10 weeks old at the moment.

 

[boxo]

How old are your dragons? 10 weeks
How large are they? male?20cm female 16cm

What size tank are you keeping them in? 60cm x 30cm x 40cm
What substrate (ground covering) are you using? paper (they were on sand for a week but it was hard to clean properly and started to smell a bit so i took it out).

What do you use to heat the tank? 60w lamp day 50 infra red night
Do you use a heating pad or heat rock? no
What are the temperatures (basking spot and cool side) in the tank? 105 -basking 90 cool
What do you use to measure the temps? small therms but just ordered tn2 laser infra red gizmo

What UV light are you using (brand / name)? 18" 15w tube built into lid (not checked the brand) goin to fit a reflecter this week too after reading on this site)
How close can your dragons get to it? if they climb the fake plant (which they like to do) 15 cm otherwise 25 cm (which is why i am fitting the reflector)

What do you feed your dragons? mainly small crickets, with a dish of veggies (which they hardly ever touch!)
How often? twice a day, sometimes 3
Do you gutload/feed your live bugs? keep them watered &fed on veggies
Do you use supplements? yes
If so, which ones and how often? REPTON once a day on the crickets

Are your dragons housed alone or together? together for now
Have you had a vet visit or fecal test done? no... not yet. (is it a costly test? vets in the uk know how to charge!!!)

i also like to give them a soak daily. i have started to use their poop as a guide.( if the white part isnt soft i bathe twice and make sure they lick a few drops off their nose!)

the bigger one also had a slight damage right on the end of his tail when we got him, but this withered and fell off last week, and it looks fine now, he lost about a quater of an inch thats all.

 

[Catalyst]

What substrate (ground covering) are you using? paper (they were on sand for a week but it was hard to clean properly and started to smell a bit so i took it out).

That will work fine. Solid substrates are best for young dragons anyway since they tend to be clumsy hunters who end up with a mouthful of ground as often as they do a cricket :roll: Paper towels, nonadhesive shelf liner (without holes), reptile carpet, and textured ceramic or slate tiles all make great substrates. I personally use tiles and love them since they're so easy to keep clean, look great, and help to keep my dragon's nails trimmed down a bit.

What do you use to heat the tank? 60w lamp day 50 infra red night

Just a tip - you can use a regular light bulb or halogen flood light (my preference cause they kick out more heat per watt) for heat - they're cheaper and produce the heat and bright light that dragons thrive in.

I'd get rid of the infared light at night - contrary to what many pet shops will tell you, dragons can see the red light and it will disturb their sleep at night. You only need a heat source at night if the temps in the tank drop below the low 60s F. Otherwise the cooldown at night is natural and healthy for them.

Have you had a vet visit or fecal test done? no... not yet. (is it a costly test? vets in the uk know how to charge!!!)

Not sure what it would cost you over there... here in canada it's about $25 to have the test done. There's not really a big rush to do it, it's just good to make sure that your dragons dont' have any parasites or high bacteria levels since these will affect their overall growth and health.

 

[boxo]

i read they didnt see infra red, but they sleep pretty well with it on, .... i will have to turn it off one night a check the temp....see how low it goes. i will have my new tn2 tomoro so will be a good time to test that.

 

[Akeath]

If part of the male's tail has fallen off he should get that checked out with the vets. That could be very serious, even if it looks like it's healing now. Also, the cool side should be around 75 F.

 

[BlackMagic]

i read they didnt see infra red, but they sleep pretty well with it on, .... i will have to turn it off one night a check the temp....see how low it goes. i will have my new tn2 tomoro so will be a good time to test that.

They sell ceramic heat emitters which give off no light at all, just heat. I would try getting one of those if the temps drop too much.

 

[boxo]

i already have a ceramic heater in the 6 foot viv, which i will use when the beardies get bigger !!!

if i partition it to seperate them i will put the heater in the middle and heat both halfs off it if i have a big enough temp drop to the cool side.

i got my tn2 digital laser thermometer today. my hot side is 105 - 108 in the basking area, and the cool side is 90, although they can go in the hide which is a little cooler. i understand this cool end temp may be too high. i dont see how i can drop it without changing the bulb, but this will also cool the hot end aswell. they seem comfy enough, and not showing signs of stress, so i may well leave it set like this for now. its hard to set the hot end at 105 and the cool at 75 in a 2 foot viv !!! when they go in the bigger one i will be able to get it better for sure.

i fitted the reflector today aswell, and it throws more light down, so hopefully it will be increasing the uv too