The environment

[Some87]

With the petco sale it's like $75 off what they would normally be. For the floresent light fixture go to Walmart and pick up the one they have there for like $10. It should be a 24" one. It mount it inside the tank just use some velcrow. Just make sure you put that on the same side as the basking light. Walmart also has a surge protector with a timer on it that's digital. It's also cheaper than the ones zoo meds makes.
http://www.walmart.com/msharbor/ip/25084471?adid=1500000000000012981640&veh=mweb

 

[sweetiepie9]

So here's a care sheet for the painted agama or painted dragon.

http://www.exotic-pets.co.uk/painted-dragon.html

And here's another one:
http://www.cyberlizard.plus.com/laudakia_stellio.htm

So there's a reason why he won't eat greens, it's because they're insectivores and really don't need greens. Seems from this they don't need calcium either, just vit/min.

And if you check out the picture, it is quite similar to yours. The 40 gallon is the best size so you got a good tank for it, now you can get the proper substrate, etc, that your agama needs.

I kept frowning at the picture, thinking I'd never seen a bearded dragon with those type of colours and now I know why. Here's a pic of my brightest and smallest dragon, Didi, you can see that the markings are quite different:


I took it for granted that you just had a small beardie, when what you really have is a large agama! Looks like they don't need calcium, either according to the care sheets.

 

[Some87]

Wow that's crazy I didn't even give it a 2nd look but now that you mentioned it it's not a bearded dragon.

 

[sweetiepie9]

But he is a beautiful painted agama & very friendly, from what I can see. So hope the care sheets help you give this little guy a good home in the new tank. Use playsand and not calci-sand when you're getting the tank together, it's healthier for them. And keep in touch, I've never known anyone who had a healthy painted agama!

 

[packerfannate]

Interesting. Is it common to try to pass an Agama off as a Bearded Dragon? The kid I got him from had no clue and had been raising him as a bearded dragon. I wouldn't have known any different had I not learned it from this board. I believe he bought a kit.

In any case he seems happy and healthy. He loves to be held and is very curious. I had no idea a reptile could have so much personality.

 

[AHBD]

I'm sure that the young man had no idea, they are sometimes mislabeled as beardies at reptile shoes and pet stores. This is especially true if they're called painted " dragons " rather than what they really are, painted agamas. I vended at a show about 15 years ago and another vendor had them marked as orange bearded dragons. I don't think they are that common in the pet trade, but a store should know the difference, especially since these are almost always wild caught and so somewhere in the transport to their final destination they get mislabeled.

I personally think they are great lizards, and yours appears to have been cared for very well.

 

[Taterbug]

What a cute lizard! Sorry to hear about the confusion, but I can't say I blame you, they are strikingly similar. I've never seen one before! Good luck with the little guy!