thinking about geting one

[myzeak]

not sure how many people actualy have one on this site but figured i would give it a try.

Well I was thinking about geting one of the Mali Uromastyx. I have read a few care sheats and they fore once mostly seid the same thing. I was just wondering if anyone had any tips to share with me. If I do get one it will be in a month or 2 so dont think i am rushing into this. also All the popular breaders seem "out of stock" on these, so anyother breeders out there besides Dear * farms (dont realy know what it is called right now but i did check it) ant the utopia one? any help would be nice

 

[myzeak]

anyone? I would prolly do better on general discution but this is just for Uromastyx

 

[jortiz9758]

I have Two uro's as well 4 dragons. They are really cool lizards. They require higher temps than the dragons..about 115f at the basking spot. They are also vegetarians, unlike dragons who are omnivorous. They also don't really like to be handled like dragons. I handle mine on a daily basis and they will chill for a bit , but then wiggle around so much that I have to put them back.

Deerfern would be my first choice for a good quality, healthy Uro.

 

[myzeak]

thanks for responding, well there care sheat recominds bird sead what are your thoughs on that. I just got a tank and thinking about puting slate tile down but if seed is beter i would reconsider (its just that seed is not solid so i dont think that could be good for an adult and i know it is not good for a baby) well the temp in the basking side right now is 120*-125*f if that is to much i have a dimmer i can use. what breed do you recomind for a beginer at them?.I am glad i dont have one yet but figure it would be a good pet due to my beardie not eating all the bag of salad before it goes bad

 

[jortiz9758]

I have mine on birdseed. It's pretty good substrate for Uros. They eat the bird seed which is actually pretty good for them. It also clings and dries up poop right away which makes for easy cleanup. I would not suggest tile for Uros. They are diggers and the seed gives them something to dig and move around.
Here a few pics of mine.

 

[myzeak]

cute little one, what breed is he?

 

[Starforce2]

Nice use of raingutter tube. I never thought of that (not that any I had I'd want to use due to paint chips). I might hafta try a piece for my dragon.

 

[jortiz9758]

They work great. I bought that thing for 2 bucks at Lowes. Smooth plastic inside and out and very easy to clean if pooped on.

 

[Twobeardieguy]

Nice!

 

[Vakon]

I have a bearded dragon and a mali uromastyx. From my experience they are delightful little guys. I got mine as a sub-adult and he has never acted aggressive toward me. He's very curious and seems fascinated by me; he sometimes casually climbs my arm while I'm cleaning things up in the cage.

A few bits of advice, some you may have heard; no sitting water since vapour is bad for their respiratory system. You'll want to keep it as dry as possible in there. They like a lot of open space but you don't really need the tank to be very high. The current tank I've got mine in is 36x18x16. They also like to hide and dig under rocks and such, but just make sure their digging won't result in the rocks crushing them. I've heard stories.

In terms of food, avoid insects. They're herbivores and though you can give them a cricket or two once in a while as a treat, it is generally not recommended. As a source of protein it is best to give them a dish with a mix of vegetable protein; I use a mix of red lentils, green lentils, and millet. There's more they can eat so you may want to research more. You can just leave that dish in there at all times and refill it/clean it when necessary.

Leafy greens are important not only for nutrition but also because they are their primary/only source of water. You can feed them romaine lettuce if you have to, they are a great sources of water, however it's not very nutritious. Greens I feed mine include dandelion, escarole and endive most often. I'm not 100% about collard greens, but I never feed them to him because he's never really eaten them. A good piece of a advice I found about uros is that their eating habits can be very different in regards to greens. I feed mine every other day and generally he is not a very big eater. Others I have heard really pig out, but eat fewer times during the week. This type of behaviour is natural and you'll have to get a feel for your lizard's habits.

A bit lengthy, but I hope this helped. Good luck with getting a uro

PS, sorry, I don't know any breeders other than deer ferns. I got mine at a chain store because they were mistreating him horribly and I couldn't take it any longer (he'd been there for at least 6 months...)

 

[myzeak]

Thanks for the info. I will remimber it if i decide to get one later on. this post of mine is extreamly old and i got a blue tongue skink because its care is alot alike to a bearded dragon with a few mods, They both eat the same foods so no more waste.