Please help my new baby dragon

[Livey]

Mealworms should not be fed due to there hard shells that makes them difficult to digest.
Crickets are a good option (or roaches? there always a great staple (or locusts if your in the UK))
You should be feeding them as much as they can eat in 10 mins , babies usually eat alot so anything from 30-70 a day

 

[Meatyjj3991]

Ok thanks...so I was also wondering how I should go about handling him cause I don't want him to be too stressed out?

 

[Livey]

YOu could try putting a t-shirt you have worn in so he gets used to your smell,
Try and handle him every day so he gets used to too,
hand feeding treats is also a plus..
If its cold were you live though, dont let him roam about for too long
x

 

[Meatyjj3991]

Ok I will try that today, but I have been concerned that I have a under the tank heater that makes it 70 degrees on one side but he stays on the other side and sleeps at 60 degrees ...what should I do? I was thinking picking him up and moving him befor he goes to sleep, what should I do?

 

[jeritta]

get rid of the under tank heater. Beardies can't feel heat from underneath and will get too hot on it and get burned. If your tank is getting too cold at night you can get ceramic heat emitter and use to keep the tank warm.

 

[Meatyjj3991]

So for now is 60 degress to cold for him for now?

 

[Livey]

for night yes it is a bit cold 65 at the least, as jeritta said a CHE would help..
x

 

[tundradragons]

ok my turn, no to a under tank heat the above poster is correct beardies do not sense heat from below, you can use it but attatch it to the side of the viv not the bottom or get a CHE for night time, temps around 100-105 basking, your cool side temp is fine, you should really invest in a bigger tank, a 10 gallon he will outgrow in the next month or so if he's not already to big. you can get by with a 20 long till they are about 6 months old, or jsut buy a 40 breeder and partition it in half until he's older. the feeding they recomend is good I do twice a day myself and leave a pile of veggies for them durring the day to snack on, this has significantly reduced nips in my babies. I like to keep my night temp at between 65 and 72 for adults, a little warmer for babies. this forum has a couple great care sheets, you should really take a look at them, they will probably answer a few questions you have also!

enjoy your new pet,

Charles
Tundra Dragons

P.S. buy an infared temp sensor. it's a must for accurate temp readings!

 

[Meatyjj3991]

You mean just on the side of my tank put the under the tank heater?

 

[tundradragons]

yes, i put a UTH on the back wall of my baby ICU viv to warm the entire viv up slightly. center it on the wall.

 

[Toyguy]

OK, first off meal worms are not good for babies in particular. They have a lot of chitin and are hard to digest. Crickets, phoenix worms and small dubia roaches are best. As a good dusting schedule, do 5 days, once a day, with calcium and on the other 2 days, use Herptavite which is a multivitamin mix.

If you are in the US, check out Lowes or Walmart for an Accurite wired probe indoor/outdoor thermometer. They are only $12 and can measure both sides of the tank as well as humidity at once. You really need one of those as it's impossible to get the temperature right without it. The other folks are right - those normal round stick-on thermometers are junk.

As long as he doesn't sleep on the heater that's ok, but can you be sure he never goes there at night? If he does, and you are reading 70 degrees air temperature on the heater side, it's probably 90 or more on the surface. he can easily get burnt. Personally, I would never use a heat pad or rock. I have a ceramic heat element which does the same job and is completely safe.

 

[Meatyjj3991]

Were can I buy one at?

 

[Meatyjj3991]

And for a basking bulb should I use tight beam sun glo 75 watts or 50watts?

 

[BadCon]

Meat, there are too many variables. You need to get a digital thermal probe that you can place on the basking spot. They sell them for less then $10 at most pet stores. This will allow you to choose the perfect wattage for your tank. You're shooting for a basking spot no higher then 110 degrees F for a young dragon. Remember, I'm talking about the basking spot temps...not the ambient air temps. Stick on thermometers are useless for determining basking temps.

A 50w or even a 75w seems excessive for a 10 gallon. What are you using for UVB?

 

[Meatyjj3991]

What watt should I use???, and I'm using repti glo 5.0 until my reptisun 10.o comes in the mail.