Newbie with questions

[desertt5]

Just bought my daughter a 1 1/2 yr old BD for her birthday. It was an impulse buy for the previous owner when it was a baby. Found out they were only dusting the crickets 1 time a month, no greens at all, bath 1 time a month...would mist him once a day...cage stunk and was dirty. Cage is nice and clean, has already eatten some greens, has had some dusted crickets, bath and a new heat lamp as theirs broke a week ago and he was very cold.

...so after much reading the repti glo 10.0 is returning to the store, have already ordered a new repti-sun one along with a new probe thermometer. I have researched and looked at the site for the greens to feed him...but think it might be a her. My biggest question at this time is...do I need to use something for heat at night if the temp is staying 65 or above??? At this time we are turning off all lights at night. I have a heat glo 75w infared, says it doesn't disrupt normal activity and great for night time viewing...well watch him sleep??? so we turn it off. I also have a Sun -glo 40w daylight bulb. He is very active, and much happier this evening since getting a clean cage with a heat lamp.

Thanks for your time.

 

[Embee]

Hello,

Congratulations on your newly adopted beardie. Sounds like this dragon is most happy in his new (and MUCH improved) home.

In answer to your question, NO nighttime heat source is needed if temps do not go below 64-65 at night. In regard to the infra-reds, they are not recommended for beardies as they CAN see the light and it CAN disrupt sleep patterns. Sadly, boxes will say a lot of things. *sigh* Beardies prefer darkness at night. If at sometime in the future (say in the colder months), you should need nighttime heat, a ceramic heat emitter (SHE) is best, as it offers heat, but no light.

I notice you're using a 40w basking bulb, which seems a rather low wattage for basking. What is the size of your tank, and what kind of basking temps are you getting with the bulb? Also, what are you using to gauge the temps?

Lastly, being that he was not receiving proper care/calcium supplementation, I imagine your beardie is running small for age. What is his size (tip of tail to tip of nose) if you don't mind me asking?

Thanks,
Em

 

[desertt5]

My daughters room is the warmest in the summer and coldest in the winter, we will need the ceramic heater emitter in the winter. We have raised, white's tree frogs and I raise Cichlids...i never believe the boxes!!!!

He actually came with 2 tanks...both a little small...BUT 1 is 30 x 12 x12...longer than the other that he came in and couldn't move in...so we chose to use the longer one...that is why I only have a 40 w at this time on it...today i am going to walmart to get the probe thermometer and check the temp...but he responsed great yesterday as he hadn't had top heat for a least a week..i am thinking longer. Plans are in the works for a suitable enclosure (my frogs were spoiled with a huge enclosure...the BD will likwise be spoiled)

He is 16 inches long...the only thing we really notice is that his feet especially the front ones like to turn under...but when he walks/runs they do not do this. We are dusting crickets daily at this time with both feedings.

And the HE is a SHE it looks like.

All input is greatly appreciated

Sue

 

[ronni1221]

Hello Sue! Welcome to BD.org! I always encourage newcomers to keep coming to this site. The folks on here are SUPER helpful and know so much about dragons. They helped me save my Brutus. Take a look at the Care Sheets located through a link at the top, and the DIY section has great ideas for enclosures! Congrats on the new beardie!

 

[Embee]

Hi Sue,

Thanks for the added information.

My daughters room is the warmest in the summer and coldest in the winter, we will need the ceramic heater emitter in the winter.

My son's old room is the same (he is the official "parent" of our beardie :wink: ). In the warmer months, you may need to gauge temps very closely as a warm room will certainly effect how the heat lamps performs. We found with the onset of spring, that the enclosure became quite "touchy" on warmer days, and we'd have to adjust the heat lamp up to keep temps safe. Indeed, a CHE can be a real help with the cooler weather months.

We have raised, white's tree frogs and I raise Cichlids...i never believe the boxes!!!!

Ah, so you understand this all too well. It's a recent lesson for myself, and was quite a hard one to accept (at least, initially) I must say.

He actually came with 2 tanks...both a little small...BUT 1 is 30 x 12 x12...longer than the other that he came in and couldn't move in...so we chose to use the longer one...that is why I only have a 40 w at this time on it...today i am going to walmart to get the probe thermometer and check the temp...but he responsed great yesterday as he hadn't had top heat for a least a week..i am thinking longer. Plans are in the works for a suitable enclosure (my frogs were spoiled with a huge enclosure...the BD will likwise be spoiled)

He is 16 inches long...the only thing we really notice is that his feet especially the front ones like to turn under...but when he walks/runs they do not do this. We are dusting crickets daily at this time with both feedings.

I'm actually pleasantly surprised at his (er, her :wink: ) size. On the small size for an adult, but not overly so, especially considering the circumstances. The feet turned under is a very common sign of metobolic bone disorder (MBD) and given the conditions he was living in I would have been surprised if he didn't show at least some sign of MBD. That is why I asked about size btw, as stunted growth is VERY common under these conditions. Good that he is receiving a regular calcium supplement.

The 40w makes sense given the 12 inch distance. We used a 15 gallon that was 10 inches from top to bottom and used a 60w fairly well, but that was in the colder months, and even then, we had to watch it rather closely as the temps would creep up. I'll be interested to know what the digital with probe thermometer tells you. A tip: you will want to leave the probe on the basking surface, directly under the heat lamp for a full 45 minutes before reading temp.

If it helps, we were able to find a 40 breeder on Craigslist, after checking daily for about 2 weeks. I had to clean the thing within an inch of it's life mind you, but a good deal none the less. It has served our dearie well... at least so far. As she grows, we're hoping to upgrade to a 75 gallon.

And the HE is a SHE it looks like.

Ah, it happens. Us too. From "cute little dude" to "the precious princess" with just a lift of the tail. :mrgreen:

The best,
Em

 

[desertt5]

Well He is definately a SHE and has been renamed Kaida..She is doing great, had a great bath and soak yesterday before I cleaned my tub. I actually pulled the temp gauge off the side and stuck it under the light (Just to get an idea)...the one wal-mart we tried didn't have the probe one...so I will try the bigger one by my work...we left my daughters blinds cracked last night and this morning as the light came up in there Kaida woke up...so a nice slow wake-up instead of the jarring one with bright lights!!!!

Yeah I love craigslist...that is actually where I found Kaida...I am thinking about building an enclosure...we will see with our schedule.

Thanks for all the info....I other question that I didn't think I would need to worry about...how often are they supposed to poo??? She hasn't at all...but then I am not to sure when she last ate as the cage I got with crickets in it were all VERY dead and small...she has been eatting great though since we got her.

Thanks,
Sue

 

[Goonie]

[Moved from General to Enclosures]

 

[Embee]

Well He is definately a SHE and has been renamed Kaida..She is doing great, had a great bath and soak yesterday before I cleaned my tub. I actually pulled the temp gauge off the side and stuck it under the light (Just to get an idea)...the one wal-mart we tried didn't have the probe one...so I will try the bigger one by my work...we left my daughters blinds cracked last night and this morning as the light came up in there Kaida woke up...so a nice slow wake-up instead of the jarring one with bright lights!!!!

Ah, how nice that is. Indeed, I sometimes feel bad when I turn on the lights, WHOAH! :shock: Luckily, anymore she sleeps in her blanky, so she now tends to peep her head out gradually in the am.

Yeah I love craigslist...that is actually where I found Kaida...I am thinking about building an enclosure...we will see with our schedule.

Fantastic. You might want to check out the "viv pics only" thread here on "enclosures." Some great ideas on there. Also, the DIY forum has great info and tips!

Thanks for all the info....I other question that I didn't think I would need to worry about...how often are they supposed to poo??? She hasn't at all...but then I am not to sure when she last ate as the cage I got with crickets in it were all VERY dead and small...she has been eatting great though since we got her.

Could be a little relocation stress throwing off her schedule. Adults don't eat as many feeders as babes and so it's common for them to skip a day here and there. Have you bathed her yet? A nice 15-20 minute soak, in baby warm water, up to shoulders, might help "get things going." :mrgreen: A few baths a week will keep dragon well hydrated, and usually, "elimination happy." :wink:

 

[desertt5]

She got a nice 15-20 minute soak yesterday before I cleaned the tub...she did finally go today some white solid and a little runny. Maybe her soak yesterday helped with that.

She has cut back on her feeding...she went thru almost 36 crickets Saturday afternoon to Sunday around 5:30. I think she had not been feed for a few days prior to us getting her. So I am thinking hunger plus the stress of moving may be affecting her tummy.

Thanks for everyone's input, it has been most helpful. Thanks everyone.

Sue