Newb

[FJM]

Hi !

I just got my first baby bearded dragon last week, and yes, i'm already in love with him/her! I took some time before i bought him to do some research as to what i'd need. My tanks fairly large but i realize at some point I'll have to upgrade it as it's not wide enough for an adult (14in). So, luckily enough, a good friend of my brothers is the head of the reptile dept for all Pets Unlimited's in Canada. I took him out for a drive one Sunday to the LPS and he showed me what my options were as far as reptiles go and what they needed and he kept steering me toward a beardie. I'm lucky to have him around to ask questions, but I don't want to rely on one person for all of my questions/info. I may not have all of my specifics right as to what i'm housing him in, i went in and my friend loaded me up with all of my necessities. So i may get my UVB & UVA's mixed up.

Going by a list of questions posted in another thread:
He's about 8weeks old (I've asked for his birth/hatch date but don't have it yet)
I've had him less than a week (since March 5)
Enclosure: 48Lx14Wx18H
Substrate: Newpaper, for now
Lights: (here's where i get confused) I have a 100W & heat lamp for nighttime (cooler side), 150W for basking, 3x 26w UVB (or UVA...i'll find out for sure...they're coil if that helps, i do know it's the one they need on all day) The cooler end is always around 80deg, and the basking area is from 90-105 deg.
I've been feeding him brocolli and crickets. I've tried veggies other than brocolli but he hasn't touched anything else. Crickets 2-4 a day (i've read that they should have more than this???) I haven't gotten into a routine with feeding yet, so mostly he eats when i get home from work and i'll try & get him to eat later too.
Crickets are new to me...is gutloading a good thing or not? I threw them a piece of brocolli when i brought them home...didn't want them to starve.
I do use a supplement but can't remember what it's called. (sorry, not trying to be simple, just alot of detail for a new reptile owner)
Yes, he has regular bowel movements.
I haven't bathed him yet. I tried to find out online how you'd do this. I found the specifics (water temp/height) but do you let them sit in it for a few minutes and let them splash around or do you actually wash them somehow?????
I haven't been misting but i dip his brocolli in water before i give it to him and will try & get him to lick water off my finger. He does have a water dish in his tank but to him it's really just part of the obstacle course.
I haven't had him to a vet yet.

How long does it normally take a dragon to get used to it's owner? I know it's been less than a week for me but he seems to want to take off (under the couch, etc) when he gets on the floor. Should i handle him more?

I guess i haven't actually introduced myself. My name's Florrie (30-ish :wink: ) and I live in Sackville, Nova Scotia. Mom of one cat and 8 African Dwarf Frogs (5adults, 3babies), and a new Beardie
(yet to be named)

 

[zebedeepink]

Hi and welcome

Your beardie should be eating way more than 2-4 per day. As babies, they should be eating anywhere between 30 and 100+ per day. You should offer live food 2-3 times per day, as much as he will eat in 10 minutes. It sounds like you have the compact type UVB bulbs and I'm sorry to say that these are no good as they have been causing a lot of eye problems in beardies. you need either a ReptiSUN 10.0 tube or a ReptiGLO 8.0 tube. You need to turn all lights off at night as beardies need a photoperiod. I have my lights on from 8.00am till 7.30pm. If your temps don't drop below 65, you don't need any night time heat. Check out this website for alternative veg http://www.beautifuldragons.com. For bathing, I use a washing up bowl and put about 3 inches of nice warm water in it and just put George in for about 10 minutes and splash water on his back and just gently rub his feet if he happens to have ran through his poop :roll: Definitely gutload your crickets - I don't use crix I use locusts but I put in collard greens etc for them. Most beardies will not drink from a water bowl and they actually raise humidity. I just regularly spray George's veg and give him baths a couple of times a week and he's fine

 

[TariStar]

Don't forget the calcium with Vit. D3 (Rep-Cal brand is popular) and a multivitamin (Rep-Cal also makes the most popular)

 

[J&APayson]

Welcome, welcome, welcome so excited for you. You are off to a great start and have come to the right place for info.

 

[dragondebs]

congrats on the baby!! elliott loves his baths and swims around quite a bit. i use a (new) cat litter tray and put a washcloth in the bottom for traction. the tray is nice because i can move it around. when it's sunny i put it in the sun. only fill up the water to their shoulders. sometimes elliott falls asleep during his bath and his head goes under if i'm not careful. make sure the water is warm but not hot. like you would for a human baby. sometimes i add water it tends to cool off fast. elliott drinks out of the bath. i don't think a water dish is necassary. and you have to be careful they don't fall asleep in it. you'll notice bizarre sleeping positions :lol: be careful of misting because you don't want to raise the humidity to much in tank.
as for lights the compact/coil are bad. but 90 may be to cold for the basking side. i think around 100-105 is a little better and they have to have at least 95* to digest.
if hes' eating only 2-4 a day (or at each meal?) that is not enough. since i've got him elliott was sick with pinworms really badly and would only eat a few a day too. when you can try and get a fecal. mine came from the petstore (petco) with more than my vet had seen in a bd so young. gutloading is a great idea. healthier better fed crix make healthier better fed babies. i buy some crix food at the petstore. it's not to expensive. i just throw in potato too for moisture
i haven't let him run free around the house yet. he's still so small and there are to many places to loose him. but i hold him a lot and i bought him one of those blue plastic kiddie pools. i put a blanket in there and toys for him to climb on. he loves it and i can move it anywhere. he can't get out and i can even put his basking light/cave in there. it also keeps him away from our other beasties who constantly looks at him like food that we feed.

they can be stressful and expensive and a mistery but he is one of the best babies i've ever had. he is a people person. this is a great site for help but it's nice you have family in the business. have fun!!