Our new family member!

[DragonMSD]

Hello! We are new to this site, and new to Bearded Dragon ownership. We just adopted an adult male, estimated to be 3-4 years old, from a friend who is moving out of state. He appears to be healthy and happy in his new home. His previous family didn't have time to handle him, or care for him properly, so he is eating up all the attention our family is giving him. Glad to find this valuable resource, and look forward to learning more and more about our new friend.

http://imgur.com/lnKZKv0

 

[diamc]

Welcome :wave: to the forum. What a cutie he is, sure sounds fortunate to have found your family.

We are hear to help in any way we can so if you have any questions or concerns, ask away.

 

[DragonMSD]

Thanks! Right now, the only question I have is with the amount of veggies he is eating. We have carefully reviewed the lists of what to (and what not to) feed him. The previous owner said he wouldn't eat veggies unless you wiggled it and made it appear to move, and that he really only liked to eat live food. I know he needs a variety, and at his age, more veggies than live food. So far, he has eaten some super worms, gobbled them up happily, in fact, and a little bit of mustard greens that we have held out for him, but not much at all in the vegetable department. He hasn't touched the salad we made him and left in his enclosure. We are going to try sweet potato tomorrow. I'm guessing it will just take time to get his diet adjusted. I'm pretty sure he ate more crickets than anything in his previous home. He is otherwise very happy and healthy. We had him looked over before we brought him home, and no trouble was noted.

 

[diamc]

It can be hard to get them to eat their greens. Just offer a variety and change those around once in a while because what he won't eat one week, it could like the next week. My beardies just decided that they liked green peppers so I've been putting them on top of the greens. Also, cilantro or parsley give off an interesting aroma that entices them. Colors are interesting to them so you could even put a few shredded carrot pieces on top or melon, squash, etc. The choices are endless. The favorite greens here are turnip & mustard greens, escarole, endive and dandelion. Let us know how you make out.

He sure looked very content in the picture. Did you pick out a name yet?

 

[DragonMSD]

Thanks for the quick reply. That makes me feel better, and kind of was my plan to switch things around until we find some that he likes, and offer a variety.

Yes, he is very content. Such a sweet boy! He has only bearded and puffed up once since we got him home. 4 preteen kids running and yelling through the house seemed to spook him. As soon as we figured it out, they went outside to play, and he calmed down quickly.

As far as his name, not sure yet. My husband comes home from a work trip Tuesday evening, and we kind of wanted to share the naming process with him. But, we are leaning toward Darwin. The kids also like Falcor, from the Neverending Story. So we will see in a few days!

 

[diamc]

Sounds like you've got it all covered. They can spook in the beginning, but you figured it out and it helped.

Both Falcor and Darwin are good names.

 

[DragonMSD]

Well, we discovered today that pears are on the top of his preferred list. Still working on greens. He eats a few bites, but not much.

 

[diamc]

Hopefully the pears on top of the greens will entice him to eat them.

 

[zandi202]

He's a handsome boy. Can't wait to see more pictures of him.

Beardies are the best cuddlers in my opinion, makes me feel so loved.

Can't wait to hear the final name.

 

[DragonMSD]

How do you post pics from an iPhone? We snap a few everyday!

 

[zandi202]

It's a pain to do from the iPhone, but it is possible. If you download for free the imgur app for the iPhone you create a free account and download pictures to it. Then you click on the pictures and select the BBCode one and copy and paste the code under that title to the forum. A pain, but it can be done.

 

[DragonMSD]

Great! Thanks! Definitely on the to-do list for later.

 

[DragonMSD]

Yay! He ate a little bit of collard greens today! And...he pooped! Hadn't pooped since we got him home. I was about to post about what to do, but first, we gave him another bath, and...voila!