we just got 2 beardies

[kim and addam cobb]

we got our lil critters from our neighbor for $150 for both and their cage and every thing else. we are new to these animals and would like some advice

 

[btolsch1]

Hi!
I just got m beardie saturday and i'm super stoked about it.
So far my advice, though its not much, is just be patient with them....they're going to be exploring the cage and everything in it...so their appetites miht not exactly be spot on. I would definitely bath them at least once a week in lukewarm water for 5-10 minutes each. Thats all i have right now as i am still learning too.....Enjoy your beardies!!

 

[gulum]

How old are your dragons, what are their vivarium measurements? have you got the neccesities? Heat? UVA + UVB? Hot Side Temps.? Cool Side Temps.?

 

[btolsch1]

To add onto what Gulum said, here are some more questions to answer to receive some more advice.


How old is your dragon?
How long/large is it?
What size tank is he in?
What substrate (ground covering) are you using?
What do you use to heat the tank?
What are the temperatures (basking spot and cool side) in the tank?
What do you use to measure the temperatures?
Do you use a UV bulb?
If so, which kind (brand/name)and how old is it?
How close can your dragon get to the bulb?
What do you feed your dragon (please be specific)?
How often?
Do you use supplements?
If so, which ones and how often?
Do you bath or mist your dragon?
If so, how often?
Is your dragon housed alone or with another dragon?

 

[kim and addam cobb]

im not sure the age, how do u tell? i have them in a 55 gal. tank and im looking at buying a 250 tank friday. the male is about 10 inchs and the female is about 8 inchs, the substaight is sand i have a heat lamp for the basking spot and i have a uv light as well. is their anything else i forgot or need

 

[spartinwoman300]

congrats on your babies! my guess would be that they are about 4-6 months old. My only concern is that you use sand. Beardies are wonderful pets, but they have some health risks. Sand can (if not WILL) lead to impaction(this is where the sand turns into cement in their intestines, nothing can pass). I would remove is ASAP and put something like tile or natural slate in. If you decided to go with eather of these, make sure the surface is not glazed, this becomes to slick for the BD's and causes whip outs into the wall :shock:

 

[ziggy]

You can also use non-adhesive shelf liner, or repti-carpet for substrate.

If I understood correctly, are they in the same cage? I would reccomend separating them into different enclosures. Beardies are not social creatures and a male and female can constantly breed causing stress or death.

 

[emmini]

I have to agree with Ziggy - get them their own vivs. I was told I could keep two together quite happily, and although there were no obvious signs of dominance, one grew really well, basked all the time and generally did really well. The other one didn't grow, always hid and generally didn't do very well. EVERYONE on here, without exception told me to separate them which I did and now little one is starting to do really well. Even if they don't look like they are dominant/being dominated, it seems that almost 100% of the time, one will thrive and one will lag behind. I know there are a very few exceptions but this seems to be the general case, so give them the best start you can in the first place. Good luck!

 

[Catalyst]

im not sure the age, how do u tell? i have them in a 55 gal. tank and im looking at buying a 250 tank friday. the male is about 10 inchs and the female is about 8 inchs, the substaight is sand i have a heat lamp for the basking spot and i have a uv light as well. is their anything else i forgot or need

You'd be best off to separate your dragons. Keeping a male and female together will lead to mating - and like many males, boy dragons don't have an off switch and can harass and injure the female in the process, stressing her out and overall having a negative effect on her. Most good breeders keep their males and females separate, only putting them together long enough for the actual act to take place.

What type of UV light do you have? Some are great, and others are junk.

Sand is a controversial topic. Generally, it's safest to keep young dragons on something solid (paper towels, nonadhesive shelf liner, textured tiles) since they can't eat it. Sand poses a risk of impaction - i.e. when they ingest it (often accidentally while chasing their live food) it can build up in their digestive system and create a dangerous blockage.

Welcome to the site Feel free to ask any questions you have, we're always happy to help!