Help for the New Reptile Owner

Hello,

I'm new here and I have to say I've found out I'm worrisome mother to a very young bearded dragon. I estimate that I got him at about 2 weeks old. I didn't realize this was a very young age to get a lizard but from what they said at the pet store I think she (or he) is about a month old now. I started out with what they told me she could eat and also what my sister (who has one about a year old, later found out he was about 3 months when she got him) recommended as well. A few days ago I find out I should definitely not be feeding the baby meal worms. I also found out she could be eating a massive amount of crickets per day. The pet store clearly had no clue how often to feed the poor mite because they were talking buying crickets once a week.

Up til now what I've been doing is, feeding him about 10 crickets (or, before a few days ago, 10 meal worms). If he seems to want more crickets we give him more. I also feed him greens, veg that can be found around the house (I have consulted a few lists on what is good for the little one) and repcal pellets soaked in water. I feel like a bad lizard mom because he isn't eating as many crickets and frankly if I had known the amount she was supposed to eat at this age I wouldn't have purchased a dragon this little. I try to mist her everyday, clean water, clean food bowl, reptile carpeting, light, rocks, log, etc.... I still feel like I'm not doing a very good job. Advice? How many repcal should he be eating? Should I up the crickets even though he doesn't seem to want more?

I want to do the best I can for this little one, even though I can't really afford 30-60 crickets a day. Advice? This little mite has grown on me in the last few weeks. Please help the new reptile mom.

How big are the crickets you're feeding? They should be no larger than the space between the dragon's eyes. Maybe you're feeding the dragon larger crickets and it's filling up faster?

A baby dragon can easily eat 50, 75, 100 appropriately sized crickets in one sitting. The way we always used to feed crickets was put in 10 or so, let the dragon eat those, put in 10 or so more, let the dragon eat...and so on. That way, the dragon won't stress out on having a ton of crickets in his room. Feeding time should last 10-15 minutes. After a while, it gets easier to figure out how many they'll eat.

If that doesn't work, you may well have a little one that prefers something besides crickets. You could always try roaches or another nutritional bug for the protein.

It sounds like you're doing a fantastic job with your little one already, though! Research is key (as you've already discovered) and knowing that what works with one dragon doesn't always work for another dragon.

Just out of curiosity, do you have a UVB bulb for the dragon? And what are the enclosure temps? That could be another possible reason...but in those cases, the baby wouldn't eat as much of everything, not just crickets.

The crickets we are feeding him are small, so about 1cm or 1/3 of an inch. I think he could probably eat more, but I can't actually afford 40 or more a day. I had no idea he was this young or that dragon's this young eat that much. I'm trying my best, but he gets about 10 or 20 a day. I bought him going by what my sister said her dragon eats, unfortunately her dragon was older when she got him. The pet store was also very unclear and mostly wrong about how to take care of him as well... In any case I have him now.

His lights have UVA and UVB... He loves his crickets or her crickets, not sure yet... I'm just looking for possibly cheaper and hoping that the repcal might be a good way to substitue for less crickets....

And that's why I shouldn't reply to any posts before I've had my coffee! I'm so sorry. I totally misunderstood.

First, buying crickets at any pet store is way more expensive than buying them in bulk. I don't know where exactly to buy from in Canada, but here, we can get them online in bulk (by the 1000), and pay much, much less. I know there are feeder bug companies in Canada, I just can't think of names right now. You may want to look into that, and possibly split the order with your sister, if possible.

You may also want to consider getting a small roach colony going. If they don't gross you out too bad, they breed quickly and dragons love them. Again, I don't know what availability is in Canada, but it would definitely be less expensive than pet store crickets.

I don't know the answer to the pellet question, as I've never tried a mainly pellet diet myself. I know there are people who have done it, I just don't know if they were successful or not.

If you want to buy in bulk I suggest going to www.lllreptile.com

LLL is the best place to get food for a great price

Edit: Im not sure if they ship to Canada.

Welcome to the world of beardies!!

I'm sorry to hear that you had a bad experiance with the pet store. I have also found that most pet stores don't know what they're talking about when it comes to reptiles.

As above posters have said, crickets are much cheaper in bulk. Yes, you do have to pay for shipping. As Saladragon has said, dubia roaches are great. A bit more expensive initially, but they breed easily, if kept properly, which isn't hard. I have been breeding dubia roaches for several months now and I love them! Yes, they are scary-looking (and can potentially infest your house Keep them contained!) but they don't smell and don't die. Very easy to keep and dragons love them.

About the pellets; they can be offered along with crickets, but should not replace any of the crickets in your beardies' diet. No matter what the companies claim, pre-made foods cannot replace live food. Also, you may find that your beardie might not eat pellets.

As for greens, be careful. Vitamin A is highly toxic to beardies, as are some other vitamins and minerals found in common greens and veggies.

Here is a wonderful website that lists the greens/veggies that are good for your beardie.
http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtrem...Nutrition.html

If you'd like to do some more reading about these guys (remember that the more you read, the healthier your beardie will be!), here are a few great caresheets.
http://www.beardeddragon.org/articles/caresheet/
http://www.anapsid.org/bearded.html
http://www.kingsnake.com/gladescs/bearded/

If you have any other questions, ask away!

Good luck!