I always do them less in the winter, then more in the spring and summer and early fall. In the winter they go on at 5:30a, then off at 15:00, in the spring and summer I move the time up in the morning to 6:30a and then they lights go off at 17:30p. I've never put the lights on for 12-14 hours. When she's sleeping in the late afternoon, you can turn the lights off. They sleep more in the winter, so I don't see the point of leaving the light on and using up the UVB when they're not awake to absorb it. I also figure 10 hours are more than enough for adults, but that's just me. The babies seem to need longer with their lights as they're growing. Once they're over 2 years old, I reduce the amount of UVB because they're not growing anymore. But that's just me. I've been doing this for 9 years and have learned how their cycles work. Plus in the summer it gets very hot over here in my small apartment, so having the lights go off at 17:30p, cools them off. they can stay up longer, it's very light here in the summer, but the lights off is better for them so they don't get too hot.
Males are like that. They show dominance by the
black bearding, bobbing and stomping, plus I have a female, so they're always showing off to her, trying to get her attention. It's all part of their makeup. I love the way they show themselves off, though, it's so funny to watch. One day I'll make a video up of Nathaniel and Castiel doing their showing off when Cierra is out. It's a good show LOL. I live in a small space and have 4 males, so this is how they show off. They even bob at me once in awhile, guess to let me know who's boss :lol: I think they think of me as a bit white lizard who doesn't want to eat them. It's hard to know how they perceive us.
If you get a male, be prepared for this kind of display often. They only have two things on their minds, dominance and mating. They tend to slow down in the fall, but once they've gotten past winter slow down, they will always display like this when they're young. My Leo doesn't display much anymore, he's 8 years old now. He just looks at them like they're nuts, but he used to display like Nathaniel for a few years when I first got him. He slowed down a couple of years ago but can still show off a bit
black beard when he wants to. He's brumating right now, a few days at a time, then
bath, poop and food. I won't let him sleep for long periods of time because he was so sick not that long ago and my vet and I agreed that 3 days is the most he'll sleep before he's up for at least a day. Then he can sleep again. He'll do this cycle for a couple of months, then he'll be up.
I had to rest a good part of the afternoon and had a nap in the evening, which is why I'm up so late for my time, almost 2a now. But it's going to be like this as I recover. My left leg is already feeling firmer, but it still has a long way to go before it's normal again. But I'm glad to have that boot off me and be wearing my new shoes that my sister gave me for my birthday last week. I have to use a crutch to help me, as I can only walk on my own at home, even then I have a crutch waiting in case I need it.
So I'll talk to you soon!