Out of town

[Mdeienroth]

I'm heading out of town for a couple of days and have an 8 month old beardie that we are leaving home. What is the best way to feed him to ensure that he stays well fed and hydrated while away. He usually gets crickets and salad every day.

 

[Sue E.]

Is there someone who could come in and feed him while you are gone? Alternatively, some exotic stores or exotic vets offer boarding while on vacation.

 

[ChileanTaco]

What I do and did in this case, and the first time was also at 8 months old:
- Put in more insects, and put some veggies into the insect bowl as well. (The insects - I use either mealworms or dubias - survive well until the dragon eats them. My dragon is also not prone to overeating. Often, when I returned, there were still some insects left)
- Using live plants for veggie food. (My dragon is used to that; normally he gets salads plus eats from his live plants. Otherwise, as it would be introducing something new, the dragon might not eat it.)

On the long term, I suggest introducing your dragon to also eat from live plants such as herbs or golliwog.
Boarding can be an option if really nothing else is possible, but I rather avoid whenever possible as it imposes extra stress and the chances are high that the dragon then not eats because of the change in environment.

 

[GALAXY_dr4g0n111]

when I left town for a couple of days, I fed him a good meal and left some veggies and insects in his bowl. but when I was gone for a week, I went to a reptile store that offers boarding.

 

[Mdeienroth]

Thank you all for the replies. My family will be with me so no one to stop by. But I'll look at getting him set up with a reptile bowl for the weekend and give him a lot of greens. Thank you.

 

[Sue E.]

Thank you all for the replies. My family will be with me so no one to stop by. But I'll look at getting him set up with a reptile bowl for the weekend and give him a lot of greens. Thank you.

Make sure your lights are on a timer also if they arent already (Im sure you know that lol). If he will eat dubias, they are a better option than crickets, as dubias cant escape the smooth sided bowl, live long and dont stink, and wont bite your beardie. Crickets left in the tank overnight can bite your dragon while he is sleeping. They also have a tendency to crawl under the substrate and hide there and die. You can also try silkworms or black soldier fly larva (bsfl/phoenix worms/calciworms) for much safer options.

 

[Rocky2022]

I wouldn't trust boarding. He can't go with you? I take my beardies EVERYWHERE, stores, hospitals, funerals.... they hide easily in your clothes.

No one has kicked me out yet.

Now that i have two of them, I put them in my cat backpack and play it safe. No one can take care of them like I do.


Sorry, this probably didn't help any lol

 

[Mdeienroth]

I wouldn't trust boarding. He can't go with you? I take my beardies EVERYWHERE, stores, hospitals, funerals.... they hide easily in your clothes.

No one has kicked me out yet.

Now that i have two of them, I put them in my cat backpack and play it safe. No one can take care of them like I do.


Sorry, this probably didn't help any l

I wouldn't trust boarding. He can't go with you? I take my beardies EVERYWHERE, stores, hospitals, funerals.... they hide easily in your clothes.

No one has kicked me out yet.

Now that i have two of them, I put them in my cat backpack and play it safe. No one can take care of them like I do.


Sorry, this probably didn't help any lol

Lol. We are going camping and the weather is supposed to be like 50's. I don't think he would like it much

 

[ChileanTaco]

Make sure your lights are on a timer also if they arent already (Im sure you know that lol). If he will eat dubias, they are a better option than crickets, as dubias cant escape the smooth sided bowl, live long and dont stink, and wont bite your beardie. Crickets left in the tank overnight can bite your dragon while he is sleeping. They also have a tendency to crawl under the substrate and hide there and die. You can also try silkworms or black soldier fly larva (bsfl/phoenix worms/calciworms) for much safer options.

Can agree on that - I'm not feeding my dragon crickets for many reasons.
I use mealworms, superworms and dubias (also as I can't get anything else) and those easily survive for days with a thick slice of carrot in the bowl. I know they survive so long as more than often, I came back and Taco hadn't eaten all of them, and the insects were still alive and active. With some orange insect poop in the bowl from the carrots

 

[Rocky2022]

Lol. We are going camping and the weather is supposed to be like 50's. I don't think he would like it much

If cancel the trip, seriously but I understand why. He won't like it much. Smart move. Enjoy your trip