traceyb73":15kqhx1m said:First of all I want to say you have a beautiful beardie!!Stolzieren":15kqhx1m said:so my grandpa is utterly convinced that the pet shop lady knows everything. she said that just 80 degrees is fine for poncho and that she "NEEDS" sand so he bought digestable sand for her and everything and says the ceramic tile is WRONG!! he says I can do whatever I want though so I'm leaving the tiles because I never trust sand and besides it's so much easier to clean up her poop and make sure there's no bacteria left
he says he believes the pet shop lady over you all on the forums and I said "why would you believe her when the people on these forums have been raising these lizards for years?" and he still won't listen :roll: old people and their distrust of the internet lmao
he says because the other owner had her on sand that means it's fine and she should be on sand because she was on it in the wild blah blah blahI am so glad you are open minded enough not to believe everything the pet store employees tell you. I have been in your shoes. Infact when I got my Zoey I had everything wrong (except for her cage!). I wish I had kept count of how many times I'd gone back to a pet store to return things that were just flat out WRONG. Unfortunately they are not trained properly but do believe they know EVERYTHING there is to know, plus some. :roll: lol You are so right about the sand (as beardies lick to get familiar with their surroundings (as opposed to a dog who would sniff with their nose). I made the mistake of getting those red lights too....the pet store guy convinced me that my beardie "couldn't see the red light and it would not keep her awake. We proved that wrong in 2 seconds! I have to ask, beore I forget, what type of thermometer do you use? It wouldn't hurt to increase the basking spot temps to at least 102 for easier digestion.
Beardies do have access to sand in the wild, but their life span is also closer to 3 years as opposed to the life span of a dog in captivity. There is only one time that it is okay to purchase sand for your beardie and that is if you have a female about to lay eggs (but in that case it will be mixed with dirt and water also).
It was said before that the difference between listening to a pet store employee and those of us on this site is we have nothing to gain by selling you a $40+ basking bulb when you can get one for .50 cents. My beardie is my first also and if not for this site she would be in bad shape by now. I got mine young also she was 8 weeks old) and she will be 2 years old at the end of the month. This site has been a god's send!
I am glad you have joined us and you are doing your research! I want to thank you for listening to me ramble on. lol Like I said, I went through the same thing you are going through now and I feel your pain!
I want to congratulate you on your new beardie and feel free to ask any question, there are no stupid questions.
Welcome! :wave:
CooperDragon":1f1we0a9 said:The digital thermometer is good. Just leave the probe in place for 30 min or so to get an accurate reading. The advantage of the guns is speed rather than accuracy. If you have temps in the 70s at night, that is definitely warm enough without needing additional heat. You only need a CHE if you want additional daytime heat or if your nighttime temps go below 65 or so.
Tonja":2gpmnqa6 said:Just a word about a ceramic heat emitter most don't think to talk about because it can be so insignificant. When you get a new CHE, plug it in and let it be, you may notice a burning smell to it. This is normal so don't panic over it catching fire or anything. I put mine on a lamp stand and let them burn in over my kitchen sink where there is a window. The smell is not overpowering but could be to a beardie. So burn it in safely and remember they do smell at first. Mine did at least.
I'm one of those people who points out the error of a (pet store employee's) ways. lol I've gotten into so many "animated conversations" (the polite way of saying I don't stop until they agree or throw me out :lol: ).A year ago when I was buying my beardie a new UV light (I get them every 4-5 months), I had it in my hand, walking to the checkout counter when she this lady walked up to me and INSISTED I had the wrong one. Luckily I knew better and I told her she was wrong and WHY. Ever since she has literature on why the RIGHT one IS the right one.Taterbug":11s0s1f2 said:It's frustratingly common in so many pets that folks choose to believe/accept wrong information for whatever reason (and there are many). I'm going to have to agree who the poster above that as far as pet store go, money is the bottom line. The only thing that is "needed" is the petstore to sell you more junk. If your pet dies, well they sell new ones of those too. After all it's "just" and animal.
I'm glad to hear that you are free to choose your own husbandry though, so you can still make good choices. There is a lot of scientific literature to back up a lot of what is recommended here, and many keepers on the internet are pretty savvy about strong up to date on the latest. I wouldn't be surprised if many petshop employees learn everything they know from the back of the boxes.
I agree with everything you have said. My beardie was supposed to be my daughter's...she turned 18 and insisted she would take are of her. I knew nothing about reptiles and never even saw a beardie before, I had no idea what they were and how difficult the care is. They are very time consuming (to take care properly) and "her" beardie has become MY beardie. lol I have done tons of research also...you have to. My litttle one has had health issues also. I had to have her spayed in March as she started laying eggs not long after she turned a year old. She was producing approx. 30 eggs EVERY MONTH. It was just about $1,500 (which none of us have lying around) and we are still trying to get back on track financially because of it. But I would have done anything to get her feeling better again. The vet said she was shocked at how many eggs were in there and she sad it was never going to stop...she would lay every month until it killed her.felixandfideaux":ql1vny0b said:I agree with you on the internet vs. pet store lady. I like to get several similar answers before I go with changing a set up. I have a little library to refer to as well.
Beardies are a hard keep, and it is frustrating to go to a pet store with questions, and the staff are only prepared to answer the most basic questions that I could get by simply reading the back of a product's box.
I have very little trust for the pet store as I suspect they sold me a sick beardie in the first place. Or it is very possible I made her sick, using the set up they sold me, and ignorance.
My girl is still alive, but she is not a "sunfire" which is what they said she was. And I am not entirely sure she is a girl. Which they said she was. I don't really care though. She is sweet. This forum has been helpful for me to vent, and find opinions on problems.
The tile is a great option. I hate a dirty cage. I use reptile carpet.
I HAD to get mine spayed or she would have died. She started laying EVERY MONTH not long after she turned a year old and she never stopped...she would lay approx. 30 eggs each month too. When the vet called me to tell me how the surgery went she said that she never saw anything like it (and she does many of these) and that her body was never going to stop producing. This is very rare and it will kill them as it is like a woman carrying a child. The child takes what it needs if the mother has enough to share or not...he eggs require alot, especially calcium and it will eventually take it all from the beardie.felixandfideaux":g9lksgx4 said:Beardies can be spayed? That would be so awesome if it wasn't $1500. Mine hasn't started laying eggs, but I am not looking forward to her special time of the year...
Stolzieren":2qul7tur said:Tonja":2qul7tur said:Just a word about a ceramic heat emitter most don't think to talk about because it can be so insignificant. When you get a new CHE, plug it in and let it be, you may notice a burning smell to it. This is normal so don't panic over it catching fire or anything. I put mine on a lamp stand and let them burn in over my kitchen sink where there is a window. The smell is not overpowering but could be to a beardie. So burn it in safely and remember they do smell at first. Mine did at least.
ahh i do have a big phobia of fire so that's a bit frightening! but as long as it wont catch fire I think I can handle it
traceyb73":2c5lopfz said:she says she has a customer whose beardie is now PARALYZED FROM OVERFEEDING. She said, and I quote, "the fat pads on the beardie's back legs got so big (from overfeeding) that she lost the use of her back legs". Ok, for those of you who are reading this and are still learning, they don't have fat pads in their back legs (it's all muscle) and this is impossible. I have a beardie who turns 2 years old in a week or so and I feed her as much as she can eat in about a 10-15 min. period of time. Please don't believe the things they tell you. It's like they are trying to scare you into believing what they have to say!!
Thank you for listening to my rant. :roll: I am going to go over there myself next time and have a talk with this woman. I've just had it with all of this rumor starting, scare tactics. Ugh, I love people. lol
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