My First Beardie

Hello Amber!

Great I will send you a PM with directions. It is somewhat lengthy. Let me know if you have any questions, too. It is not hard, just takes a bit of time.
How is little Toby doing, still eating tons?

Tracie

Toby, is being a bit weird tonight. I haven't figured out it I should chalk it up to the fact a storm is coming, or if he had too much action before bed time.

I cleaned out his cage today, and added a new rock...a HUGE rock, so he can actually bask on it. He got too big for his other ones and kept knocking them down. My brother in law owns a landscaping company and let me take one of his big rocks to use for Toby.

His crickets ended up stomping one another, so I got to get more yet again. I've been using wax worms in his veggies here and there to make up for it. I've also been using those freeze dried crickets for half of his cricket intake in hopes that it'll make what I have last longer. I plan on stopping by a friends house tomorrow and buttering him up for one of his old long tanks so I can put the new shipment of crickets into it so they have room to roam around.

I'll read that PM sometime tomorrow, had a very busy week this week. I feel bad about the lack of attention Toby's been getting with all of us being sick and working so much. I plan on making it up to him very soon. When I go shopping for his new light, I'm getting him a toy. I'm thinking a little bear he can snuggle up to...:P No, I know I need to keep an eye on what I allow in his cage so he doesn't eat it. But I will find something for him.

I do need to clip his nails, I'm a bit afraid to do it, I don't want to hurt him, but at the same time, his little claws are leaving scratches up and down my arms when I do hold him.

Hello Amber,
Sorry for the delay in getting back with you. We moved & they took forever to get our cable back up!
How is Toby doing? So, a huge storm made him go crazy huh? The low pressure seems to affect them quite a bit. Some more than others.
So he has a new huge basking rock huh? Great he outgrew his other rock now. That is helpful your brother in law owns a landscaping business! LOL
Well, they love nice soft fleece blankets to snuggle in. As long as the toy doesn't have any stuffing that can come out, anything would be fine. Did you get to spend some extra time with him?
The crickets were probably way too crowded. Do you have paper egg carton crates in there for them to climb on? That adds vertical space for them.
I hope all is well. I am back online now, too.
Let me know if you have any questions on the cricket breeding.
Does he eat the freeze dried crickets at all?

Talk to you soon.

Tracie

Yes he eats the freeze dried crickets, but he still prefers them to be live. Yeah they were too crowded. But I got a long tank that I can put some into as well. My mother in law and I are going to start breeding the crickets in her basement.

A warm fleece blanket..hmm, I can make him one of those... No luck on the costume. He won't sit still long enough for me to size it up and I accidentally cut it wrong, so it's scrapped. I think I'll just take him out in a blanket.

I am going to try and cut his claws tomorrow. Wish me luck. I refuse to cut them short, just a teeny bit so I don't get so clawed up.

I did get to spend some more time with him, but he's still mad at me. He was jumping away from me wanting to hide.

Hello Amber!

How are you doing? How is little Toby doing?
Wow I am very surprised that he will eat the freeze dried crickets! I am sure he does prefer the live though. Great you are going to start breeding them soon. Make sure they have a decent amount of room, too. Then, they will be happy crickets!!
Oh poor baby. He wanted more attention. He was most likely pouting. Just use fingernail clippers & gently clip the nails, it is very easy.
He wont sit still enough for you to make the costume? Oh well. I guess a warm & soft fleece blankie will just have to work. You are going to take him trick or treating right? Get him some treats! LOL

Tracie

I bought a pair of cat clippers. A guy at the pet store said he uses them on his bearded dragon and they work just fine. I was going to get the ones made specifically for lizards, but they didn't carry them. He lucked out, I didn't clip his nails yesterday, it will have to wait until tomorrow or Saturday.

I have a blue fleece blanket that is about 7-9 years old. It's got holes and burn marks all over it. I still use it though. I'm going to cut him a small portion of it so he can have something soft. I figure what's one more hole especially if it's going to him. haha

Yes, I am still taking him Trick-Or-Treating. I'm going to get him some treats this weekend so he can "carry" them around in his mini bag...it's got Tinker Bell on it...haha....it was a goodie bag from a b-day party Harmony went to. Figure it's a good size.

I spoon fed him last night. haha, it was too adorable. I made a mixture of the freeze dried crickets, commercial dragon food, shredded carrots, calcium dust, and squash baby food. He was LAPPING IT UP like a PUPPY! It was so cute I had to record it. I've NEVER seen him lap up his food. He'd always chow down with huge bites, but he was just licking away at this stuff. He eventually started chowing down, but it was TOO CUTE! Have you ever seen a dragon lap up their food?

He is so spoiled... My cousin laughed at me for spoon feeding him. But I had mixed his food on a paper plate, I didn't want him running through it and dragging it all over my couch, floor, or table.....lol....so, it worked.

Hello Amber!

That is ok that Toby is SO spoiled. Great he is going to get a soft fleece blankie, too, he will love that! Something soft he can lay on now.
It is adorable when they lap up food like that, isn't it? So he loved his food slurry. Did you get crickets ordered for him?
So he was a good boy & didn't drag food all over the place? Do you have a bib for him? LOL
I am so glad that he is doing so well now. He sounds really happy too. Your cousin is making fun of you also?
He is going to have fun going trick or treating with you. You are going to be getting alot of comments on him, too. A tinkerbell bag, oh geez! Poor boy! LOL What kind of treats did you get him?
Oh you are going to use cat clippers? Fingernail clippers work really well, too.
It is great you are enjoying him so much.

Tracie

Yes actually, I got my crickets paid for just this morning. The guy I buy them through on Ebay, he asked me for my number after I explained to him that I will have to send a check due to all the problems Paypal is giving me. So I gave it to him, he calls me and manually runs the credit card through. He even set it up so that I will get a shipment of crickets every 2 weeks. So it all worked out PERFECT! No more time between us running out of crickets and the arrival of the others.

I think Toby might be a Firefighter for Halloween. I have to go through Harmony's stuffed animals. There are some that are small, and have detachable clothing, just big enough for Toby to fit into. There are a few different ones to choose from, so yeah, I just have to look and check out the options.

Tinkerbell is all I have. I might sew him one up myself so he doesn't have to use it..haha...I haven't gotten his treats yet, I'm getting those tomorrow. But I'm thinking some apple slices from McDonalds will do nicely, some Dragon Bites, and some Baby Carrots!

Hello Amber!

So Toby might be a firefighter for Halloween? That will be cute.
I guess the little clothes are easier than you trying to make him a costume. I hope that works out. You have to get a picture of him in it too! LOL

Well, I am sure he wont mind having a Tinkerbell treat bag. Those sound good, baby carrots, apple slices & dragon bites. He will be a happy little boy.
What color is the bag?

That is nice that you got your crickets, so I am sure that Toby was very happy with that. So you will get an automatic cricket shipment for awhile. I hope that works out well for you, as he still has a ways to go with eating alot of crickets. I am glad he helped you out like that.

Tracie

I couldn't find the firefighter outfit. I think I put that stuffed toy in with all my stuffed toys into the storage shed. Good thing too though, been exposed head lice today. No need for me to have to go through ALL those toys and make sure they are cooked enough in the dryer. :P I'll find him something for him....I hope...if not, he'll just go wrapped up in the warm fleece blankie I cut for him.

His crickets should be arriving VERY SOON! Hubby has near a 16.5 gallon tote that he took to his moms. He's cutting holes into it and putting screens on it and then adding peat moss into it. So we can put them all inside there, and not have to worry about 1) them trampling eachother and 2) when they die, the gasses they release killing off all the others.

Well, I have to go finish cleaning what I can to prevent actually CATCHING this stuff *shudders*