bearded dragon begginer HELP!

HI
I just buy a 3 week old bearded dragon he look great!
i have some question that i want to know.

do i need to use any substarde when they are babys? like news paper? or can i only have the plastic boxe with out any substare?
how much time a week should i give him vitamin?

i have some flat stones in his cage a peace of wood and a little water bowl and i spary a wall of the cage too

plz answer my question
i dont want to make anything wrong.

OH and how much crickets eat a 3 week old bd?

You really shouldve looked into it before buying the animal!!

Having said that you can use paper as a substrate but most reptile dealers or shops sell specific products for use as substrate.

As for feeding I would let him eat as much as he likes for now but dont just feed crickets, they need green food as well. Again most reptile shops should be able to supply you with a salad mix which will most likely have a vitamin substitute in it, although with the correct amount of UV light and the correct diet you shouldnt need vitamins.

Hope this helps.

the think is that i am from puerto rico and all reptiles are ileagl so there is no reptile shop.
the only substrate that i can get is

http://www.aaareptilesupply.com/merc...tegory_Code=E4

that work?

and his basking spot is at 95 right now is that too hot or he need more heat?

Sand or dried potting soil can be used as a substrate, as for the basking spot I usually keep mine somewhere between 50 and 60 degrees C. you`ll know if its too hot because he wont go there!
To make your own salad just get some lettuce, cabbage, carrot, broccoli, pumpkin and whatever other raw vegetables you may have and mix them together and finely chop them, you can add some vitamins but only about once or twice a month. They are also a desert species so dont keep the cage too wet, give it a light spray once in a while if its not drinking but stop once you see it drink. Too much moisture will cause problems.

right now i am using news paper because he is to litle and if he eat the soil or sand maybe can cause a problem.
and anothere question they eat salad when they are 3 week old?
and they drink alot?

alejandro,

Being in Puerto Rico, something's may be different for you there than us in the US or Australia.

Here we use Paper towels or newspaper for small babies as they are more prone to impactions from sand, dirt, bed a beast, calci-sand and other substrates that do not digest. Your doing fine with the newspaper. Later you can add an area of washed playsand (fine grain) but still try not to feed him on it.

Baby dragons will eat salad (recommended rich greens like collards, mustard, dandelion and very little romaine or lettuce as they contain almost no nutrient value) happily if it is introduced to them when younger and it is a great source of many vitamins and minerals which they do need. If he will only eat crickets, you can dust those with Calcium a few times a week and also some vitamins. Some are hard to get started eating greens and veggies( yellow squash, carrot, sweet potatoes, green beans, green peppers and peas grated up fine) if they never had them, but as they grow older it will be a major part of their daily diet and they taper off the crickets and supersworms (worms for older dragons, not recommended for babies).

Although some dragons do come from the desert type area, they are also from lake regions, rain corridor and grasslands. Many become very fond of water and swimming. From a study we did in cooperation with vets form herpvetconnection, we found the leading cause of death and illness in baby dragons was dehydration, followed by parasites and then impactions. So you are very smart to already be concerned about those things and looks like you have done some studying up on them.

Your baby is very young and in the US we encourage people not to sell them under 6 weeks of age, as they are very fragile when younger. So you will have to be extra careful in his care and feedings and handling

Temps 95-105F are ideal, just make sure the baby has an area that is cooler that he can move to so he can regulate his own temps and not dehydrate.

He will also need a UVB light source like natural sun a few hours a day, or a UVB bulb or at minimum calcium with D3 (I do not think this is the best for them, but better than nothing). Bearded dragons need calcium to grown healthy and strong and they absorb that from their food by using UVB in lights or the sun to create pre D3 in their skin. Without that, they baby will suffer and show signs of problems fairly quick.

Just avoid high oxalate foods like spinach, broccoli, cabbage and others as this tend to bind the absorption of calcium and that defeats the goal you want for him.

Let us know how he is doing and don't be afraid to ask anything, we all had to learn starting out and still are.

thx alot for the info.

one question how much crickets they acn eat when they are babys? and do they eat all the time I trow crickets in is cage?
and do they need to get warm in the morning to eat?

you can put crickets in the cage if you are careful and remove any he does not eat, or feed him in a separate container. Never leave crickets in with the dragon for long periods or overnight, they will nibble on a sleeping baby.

Since yours is so young, his cricket should be very small, around 2 weeks to 1/4 inch. The rule of thumb is never larger than the space between his eyes. They will eat any were from 10-30 at a time and young ones like yours like to eat that in 2-3 meals a day.

We add their salads when they wake up and then feed crickets around noon time and then early evening. The usually eat their salads early and yes a baby should be warmed up or go to basking right away after eating. If you work or are in school you may only be able to do the one feeding of crickets. We also add moist rep-cal pellet on top the salads, so if we are not able to feed them during the day, they are getting their protein from those.

hi think i have a problem he dint want to eat today and he just eat 2 crickets last day.
what it should be?

OH wait he eat 1 cricket now
he should be eating like how much crickets a day?