Phoenix and Titan

Hello everyone! I know that it has been a loooong time that I have been around here. A lot has gone on in my life in the past year or so. I have bought a beautiful house in Arkansas, got out of the Air Force and finally got my husband back from Korea. I have also since rescued a severly abused Australian Shepherd who is a joy to my life and just when I thought things were going my way, my precious Abby cat was diagnosed with diabetes about 3 months ago. It has been a struggle, but I am doing all I can for her. As for the dragons, they are fine. Finally awake from brumation and hormonal as ever. I am using an iPad now and I have not the slightest clue how to post pictures. If anyone has any suggestions for me, I'm happy to hear them. I've missed my beardie family and I'm glad to be back and I look forward to reaquainting myself with old friends and meeting new ones!

 

[NeosMom]

Wow! He looks so big! I would love to have somewhere like that to show off my babies. The neighbors would faint. :twisted:

 

[sweetiepie9]

Me, too, Rubio's my largest beardie & he would love to have a place like that to suntan in. I have a 1 bedroom apartment but at least have a balcony & once it warms up & I've cleaned it up, they'll have a great space to bask in real sun for a change.

Your house is awesome, must be wonderful to have so much space!

And thanks for your kind words. I still miss my Sweetiepie girl, I had her for 5 1/2 years, but with 4 adult males & working f/t, I have enough to keep me busy. Plus my son lives close by, he's 28, I'm going over tomorrow to visit him, his girlfriend & their dog Bella, my grandpuppy, as I call her!
Deb

 

[NeosMom]

Wow Deb! All that in a one bedroom apartment! I don't know how you do it! I thought it was rough sharing 1000 sq ft with my husband, son, and two dragons. You are one impressive lady.

 

[sweetiepie9]

I have really wall to wall dragons. Three along one living room wall, on credenzas with 40 gallon breeders, that's Didi, Lonzo & Leo. Rubio is behind the couch in a 75 gallon. Rocco my golden gecko is beside my rocking chair. So they all fit in, luckily my 1 bedroom is 633 sq feet, still a squish but manageable. When Sweetie was alive (I lost her to pneumonia last December) her tank is on a credenza beside my dresser and is still there, not sure if I'll ever get rid of it. She was my favourite for 5 1/2 hrs. So that's how I fit everything in. Underneath Lonzo's tank are the superworms in their container & underneath the supers is a 20 gallon tank with the roaches (Rocco eats the babies). And then my fridge is full of dragon veggies!
Before my hubby passed away (last summer from cancer) we had a 2 bedroom, but it was sold & we had to move into a 1 bedroom in the next building. Luckily the living room & bedroom were the same size, so everthing fit in exactly the same way. The dining room & kitchen were 1/2 the size so am still moving stuff out. Still have lots of stuff to move out & have found a friend who wants anything extra for the hospital she works at. Which is great.
Deb

 

[NeosMom]

That's great that you have it set so perfectly. I'm always so sad to hear about Sweetie, but then I laugh so much when I hear about Rubio. :? But I understand. Can't imagine life without Fluffy and she has only been with me about 6 months.

 

[ChellyBeans]

Thanks so much! I've worked so hard to find myself in my dream home. After living in DC and realizing just how much I hate the city, I had to buy a house out in the woods. Lol. Well, sort of in the woods. There is a tree line behind me where it separates mine and someone else's property. Titan used to always be up for going outside, but he's just recently woken up from brumation and he is just starting to get back into his routine. We were out on our back deck where he can have more privacy. If I have time, I'd love to take him upstairs and let him hang out on the windowsill. I bet he would love that. He's such a great dragon. He doesn't scare easily and I don't have to worry about him taking off. Phoenix on the other hand is such a rascal. She's into everything and she's always going somewhere. Lol. She's lucky she's beautiful! Haha. I don't know how you do it with everyone in that apartment. I feel crowded with my crew sometimes. Maybe that's because they are always up mommy's behind. :lol:

Wow! He looks so big! I would love to have somewhere like that to show off my babies. The neighbors would faint. :twisted:

Thanks! He is a big boy! He's 21 1/2 inches and Phoenix is an even 16. No one can really see them, but if they did, I wouldn't mind. I have a snake tattooed on my arm and people expect me to have reptiles somewhere. Lol

 

[sweetiepie9]

I'm glad you found your dream house Michelle & isn't it nice to have privacy from the neighbours? I manage in a one bedroom because it's just me. I'm only 8 years away from retirement, so having a small space works well for me. The dragons have the whole living room & soon the balcony to run around in. I have toys scattered around, plus a great ramp (I'll put on a picture) that Roger built before he passed. The guys just love it, they run up & down it on time out. There's a power sun at the top on a lampstand, so they gets lots of UVB & warmth after running around. And there's a TV on top of the stereo stand that is right beside the ramp, so prime TV watching spot. Who knew they'd enjoy cartoons?

The top of the ramp is against the balcony window, so they can see outside, but just a bunch of trees. It's come in very handy and they all share. The pillow at the end has a pic of Sweetie eating raspberries & it's Lonzo's love pillow, he hauls it around the living room & jumps on it every once in awhile. It's so funny to watch. Lonzo's getting up there, he'll be 9 yrs old in a week. The rest are younger, Leo's 5, Didi's 6 and Rubio is only 3 yrs old. Rubio's the only one I had since he was a baby. He's a bit bigger than Titan, 22" long and 782g, and he's yellow while Titan is that wonderful grey/snow colour. I adopted Lonzo when he was 5, Leo was a present from a neighbour that had rescued him & the female he shared a tank wish (craigslist, of course) and Didi is a foster beardie, but his mom has settled in Japan permanently, so I get keep my little orange beardie. He's only 17" long & 394g & still tries to fight with Rubio every chance he can get! His mom visits at Christmas when she can get to Canada.

I think if I had other animals it would be more difficult, having a dog or cat in this small space with 4 dragons would not be a good mix.

I really enjoyed the pic of Titan all stretched out on the sill, he sure is a looong beardie. Phoenix has great patterns on her back, she's little like Didi.

Enjoy your new home!
Deb

 

[sweetiepie9]

Sir Rubio is the one at the top of the ramp in that picture.

 

[ChellyBeans]

That is such a cool ramp! I just have a cat tower that just so happens to be level with the windowsill and seeing how Phoenix is a little climber, she enjoys it. Sometimes she climbs up and down it for fun. Lol. Titan doesn't go anywhere except to find his mommy for cuddles. I can appreciate it because I can just forget about cuddling with Phoenix. She's just too energetic for that kind of stuff. Lol.

You have such a beautiful group of Beardies! I bet they are a joy to live with. They are something else. It's just so funny learning everyone's personality.

 

[sweetiepie9]

Thanks Michelle, they're all so different, just like Phoenix and Titan. They all love the ramp, that's the one thing they have in common. So Phoenix likes to climb up & down the cat tower, good for her. She must be the high-energy beardie & Titan the lower-energy one. The same here, Didi, the smallest, is the high energy beardie, he'll climb & hide anywhere. Rubio is the lower-energy guy, he'll run around but not as much. Leo & Lonzo are somewhere in the middle. They're all alot of fun, just like your crew.
Deb

 

[ChellyBeans]

Mine are just polar opposites! At least I have the best of both worlds. Haha

 

[ChellyBeans]

Here are some more pictures of my little monsters hanging out on the windowsill. I took Titan outside earlier and decided that it was a bad idea. There were too many bugs out there that he shouldn't be eating as well as some caterpillars he was eyeing. They've been on the windowsill for about an hour and a half and both of them got mad at me when they thought I was going to take them away. Lol

Titan

My poor Titan lost so much weight. Before brumation, he was such a chunk. I've been feeding him 4 times a day not including salads (which he gets every morning) trying to put some more weight on him. We're making improvement, but anyone that has been in this situation knows these things take time. I hate that I'm such an impatient person. Lol

Phoenix

Enjoy!

 

[NeosMom]

They are just so cute! I love that you post so many pictures. And I sympathize on the weight thing. I wish my babies were a little pudgier. I started feeding them some superworms in the hopes of fattening them up a little. At only 6 worms a day they were both spoiled rotten in a single week and turning their noses up at crickets. So, now they are getting tough love and eating less because of it. Ugh. I just can't win.

On a bright note, Fluffy ate 16 big crickets tonight. And all I had to do was sit and hand feed them to her! Lucky me.

 

[ChellyBeans]

Mine haven't been interested in crickets since they were babies. Now they eat roaches, supers, silks and horns. Phoenix more than Titan, but we're getting there.

 

[NeosMom]

I am so jealous. I have mentioned it so many times that people on these boards are probably sick of seeing it in my posts. But food selection here stinks. Crickets and supers. If I want hornworms or silks, I need to order online and with shipping and everything it is just more expensive than is practical for me. And roaches are just a nightmare in Florida. We can't have dubias and I just don't have it in me to get into breeding bugs that have totally grossed me out since childhood. It's been a struggle to keep variety for them and I was so excited when they both reached 16" and I could add supers to their diet. Little did I know that they would instantly turn into spoiled little demons.

I'm breeding crickets & supers now and hoping to delve into other types of worms this summer. Make it worth my while.

Ohhhhhh... and we are seriously considering getting my son a dragon for his birthday in April. That would be three in the house and at that point it may become a little more practical to place some large insect orders online.