Really busy but I want a beardie!! SUGGESTIONS???

[NovaBeardie]

Hi, I am new to this community and I really want a beardie! The only problem is I am not sure I have time for one. I take dance 4 days a week every week! On top of that, I have college classes that are on Fridays and Tuesdays from 2 to 5. I really want a beardie but I am not sure how much care they need. I have researched tons about them, and know they need live crickets and veggies only certain ones! I just do not know if I will have time for one. Does anyone know how much time they really need and how much of my free time it would take up? Anyone's suggestions or feedback would be very much appreciated thank you! REMEMBER I HAVE A PRETTY BUSY SCHEDULE ATM. If I were to get one it would be this summer so i have plenty of time to learn the ropes and spend time with my beardie.

 

[lizardmom25]

It takes me about 20 min in the morning and about 30-45 min in the evening to do the bare minimum of what needs to be done. I just feed in the morning, and feed and clean the enclosure in the evening. Ideally, outside of that, you should have some time each day to spend bonding with a new baby, and letting an older guy out.

 

[NovaBeardie]

It takes me about 20 min in the morning and about 30-45 min in the evening to do the bare minimum of what needs to be done. I just feed in the morning, and feed and clean the enclosure in the evening. Ideally, outside of that, you should have some time each day to spend bonding with a new baby, and letting an older guy out.

Thanks for the feedback! With all of my time that would be spent dancing and working on school do you think I would have time to take care of one. You said you feed and clean in the evening but I dance everyday to 4-8:30 so is that too late to care for one?

 

[lizardmom25]

My daughter has a similar dance schedule, and I don't know that she would have time between school, dance, and homework. You would have to decide that for yourself.

 

[NovaBeardie]

Thanks. SOOO just getting this correct... It would be okay if I feed him/her later than 8? I just want to make sure I'm' keeping my dragon healthy.

 

[VenusAndSaturn]

The time you spend caring for one depends on the age most of the time, with a baby who needs to eat 3x a day for insects, get water dripped on its nose once a day or sprayed, handled often to get used to you, it may be a bit hard.

About each feeding for a single beardie takes about 20 minutes for me to do.
With one reptile it would take me maybe 5 minutes to get done with salad in the morning.
However I have about 5 reptiles that require bowls of food so it takes an hour for me each day because of the different foods they eat.

Just a little feeding amount according to ages.
All life stages eat 10-20 bugs a feeding.
1-4 months 3x a day.
4-12 months 2x a day.
12-20 months once a day.
20+ months twice a week at the least, every other day at the most.

With an older beardie it would be easier for you as they don't need as much time put into their feeding.

The lights need to stay on 14 hours a day at the very least, when you feed make sure its 2 hours before lights off.

Also beardies live for about 15-20 years so you have to be ready for a long commitment.

Beardies that are in the 1-4 month range generally eat 30-60 bugs a day, so depending on where you get your bugs if you have a younger beardie that can be very expensive. The starting UVB light setup can be anywhere from 40-100 dollars depending on tank size, fixture size, light type, and brand.
And then that light has to be replaced every 6-12 months.

Enclosure size for baby less than 6 months - 20 gallon.
Enclosure size for 6-12 months - 40 or 50 gallon.
Enclosure size for 12+ months or right when you get it - 75 gallons (48"x18"x20") or 120 gallons (4x2x2.)
They need a lot of space as well and 75 gallons is pretty much the minimum tank size for them.

 

[NovaBeardie]

Thanks for your feedback it really helped!! I may just have to wait until I quit dance competitions before I get one which may be another year unfortunately. Boo Hiss!