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Thinking about getting a bearded dragon

Rioko

Rioko

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I have always wanted a bearded dragon. I made a big step by getting a gecko and i love it now i want more four legged reptiles. So i have a few questions i want to ask before i get a bearded dragon. 1) What kind of substrate should i use? 2) What kind of housing should i supply? 3) Would the housing be anything like what i have for my gecko? 4) What sort of vitamin supplements should i use?

I may have more questions but those are what are on the top of my head.
 
I use presifted play sand from Home Depot or Lowes. Many people will tell you not to get sand because they will ingest it and probably die. I have raised 5 dragons now and have never had a problem. Sand is also very easy to cleanup after them, just grab it with a paper towel and your done. I use melamine board for my beardies with sliding glass doors in the front. Melamine cleans easily and if made properly you can stack up to 4 high and save alot of space with multiple animals. Rep-cal makes a bearded dragon food which is also a vitamin I believe. Some people use this as their only food source which I dont agree with. I use it about once a week on top of thier salad and more heavily if there is a time between cricket shipments. I researched for about a month before I bought my first beardie and would advise anyone to do the same. The best advice I could give you is to not listen to anyone in a pet store, they usually have no idea what their talking about and will say the wierdest things. They told me that if I fed them mealworms to crush their head first or the worms would eat through my beardies stomach. lol I hoped that helped and good luck
 
Would it be ok for my to use a 10gal aquarium for my beardie? I have one that just needs cleaning up. I did have people tell me not to use sand with my leo gecko. I saw photos of leo's that died from impaction from sand so i did swap it out, but beardies are used to sand right? Arint they desart dwellers? I buy about 2 dozen crickets a week for my leo and my tarantula, so i should continue to gutload the crickets for the beardie right? And lighting what kind of lighting will i need?
 
A 10 gallon would be OK for a baby, but an adult needs something along the lines of a 40 gallon breeder tank at a minimum.
 
Nah, but provide a water bowl with water deep enough so the dragon can be submerged up to it's shoulders.

I also use a 100w UBV bulb and a peice of slate.Slate is awesome in my opinion.Cheap-and heats great.If your using a 10 gal, you might need to put the light about 6-8 inches above the top edge of the tank.I know mines too hot when it rests on the top of the tank.I use papertowles now too but sand is alright.They eat LOTS of crix once theyre settled in.Be prepared.
Peace out.
 
Be sure to research everything you can think of before getting a dragon. You can run a search here on the topics and turn up previous threads related to the topic you are researching. Every breeder seems to have a diffrent opinion about certain things but ultimately you will have to find what works best for you and your beardies.

I personally like and use sifted playsand.

As far as housing goes, a baby bearded dragon will be fine in a 10 gallon tank. However, they grow very fast and you will need to upgrade the size of your enclosure accordingly. Leading to many upgrades and extra expense. I would start with a 10 gallon and then go straight to an enclosure suitable for a full grown dragon.

Gut loaded crickets are a perfect food for a dragon. They can also eat mealworms, superworms, wax worms and the occasional pinky mouse. They also require fruits, veggies, and greens.

Those are just my answers on the questions you asked. If after running searches on the topics you need answered to, you still have questions. Most any breeder will be happy to answer them for you. All you have to do is ask!!! :)
 
thanx. At this time i am just reseaching beardies before i get one. I dont want my beardie to be a spur of the moment thing like my leo was......................but i am still glad i got my leo
 
I use ceramic tile in my dragons cage, it has texture to it, so they aren't going to slip around. You just have to wipe up their poo and your done. I am one of those guys against sand, it isn't their natural habitat. They live on rocky grounds and hard compacted clay so i would think tile would be "natural" since they live on hard ground. Be prepared to feed your new dragon A LOT! Growing babies can consume 40 to 100+ crickets a day. I use reptilefood.com and order mine by the thousand. 10 gallon tanks aren't that great for a baby because you can't establish a good heat gradient (warm to cool side) A 20Long tank would do for a baby, or just go to Wal-Mart and buy a big rubbermaid tub until you get a 40 gallon breeder tank. Avoid feeding mealies, and pinkies, mealworms are nutritionally unbalanced and have a hard chitin chell which can cause a blockage in their intestines. Pinkies are very fatty, and their bones can also cause intestinal blockage (impaction). Superworms can be fed as treats when they are 12+ inches long, but feed sparingly as they can become addicting. Your basking spot should be around 105-110 degrees measured with a digital thermometer, and the cool side around 75-80 degrees. a UVB light (flourescent tube) should run the length of the entire cage and be around 6" from the dragon. I use repti-sun 10.0s, currently the best flourescent tube on the market for UVB output. For a good caresheet visit http://www.diamond-gems.com/caresheets.htm and for a good fruit/vegetable list go to www.beautifuldragons.com Veggies should be offered daily, but babies can be picky and not eat veggies very well. As adults, their diet should consist of 80% veggies. Babies diet should consist of 80% live food. Any more questions feel free to ask!
 
Hockeyman0920 said:
I use ceramic tile in my dragons cage, it has texture to it, so they aren't going to slip around. You just have to wipe up their poo and your done. I am one of those guys against sand, it isn't their natural habitat. They live on rocky grounds and hard compacted clay so i would think tile would be "natural" since they live on hard ground. Be prepared to feed your new dragon A LOT! Growing babies can consume 40 to 100+ crickets a day. I use reptilefood.com and order mine by the thousand. 10 gallon tanks aren't that great for a baby because you can't establish a good heat gradient (warm to cool side) A 20Long tank would do for a baby, or just go to Wal-Mart and buy a big rubbermaid tub until you get a 40 gallon breeder tank. Avoid feeding mealies, and pinkies, mealworms are nutritionally unbalanced and have a hard chitin chell which can cause a blockage in their intestines. Pinkies are very fatty, and their bones can also cause intestinal blockage (impaction). Superworms can be fed as treats when they are 12+ inches long, but feed sparingly as they can become addicting. Your basking spot should be around 105-110 degrees measured with a digital thermometer, and the cool side around 75-80 degrees. a UVB light (flourescent tube) should run the length of the entire cage and be around 6" from the dragon. I use repti-sun 10.0s, currently the best flourescent tube on the market for UVB output. For a good caresheet visit http://www.diamond-gems.com/caresheets.htm and for a good fruit/vegetable list go to www.beautifuldragons.com Veggies should be offered daily, but babies can be picky and not eat veggies very well. As adults, their diet should consist of 80% veggies. Babies diet should consist of 80% live food. Any more questions feel free to ask!
Click to expand...


While it's best to avoid mealies at a young age, I personally see no problem with feeding them once they have reached a nice size. (12" or more).

Pinkie's are an occasional treat mainly fed to gravid females in breeding season. I have not experienced or even heard from any other breeder of a pinkie causing impaction in an adult dragon. Although not impossible I feel it's highly unlikely.

While a 20 gallon tank would be just as good as a 10. I don't feel it's necessary to have for a single baby dragon. They outgrow them so quickly it's really not an issue as they are in them for such a short time.

JMO....
 
Superworms and Waxworms do the exact same thing as pinkies, they fatten the dragon up. So whats the point of feeding pinkies in which you risk impaction and a high parasite load?
 
I feed mine mealies from 6 weeks on up. They love them. I do go 1 size smaller then the crickets though. Alot of people say that the mealies are not good for them but Ive never had a problem with them and some people dont gutload there mealies either and if you dont do that then they probably arnt the nutritional. I keep mine in the refridgerator like everyone else but I also take them out 2 times a week and let them chow down for a few hours. I just dont see a dragon seeing a meal worm in its natural enviroment and saying to itself "I better not eat that, its to fatty." If your not going to let them enjoy any of there food then maybe you should like at your own diet as well. This is not directed toward anyone just a statement aimed at all the nutritional talk, I think we go overboard sometimes.
 
We just had our babies that we hatched and we have our two adults...
My opinion on this...
Get the size enclosure you want for your adult. Financially that is the cheapest. We have our two in a 99 gallon. Most say a 40-50 gallon minimum per adult. A 10 gallon would be really hard to get one side cool enough... They need UVB and about 95-105 degrees on the hot side... no hot rocks and no night heat needed unless your house gets really cold.
There are so many opinions on substrates and safe foods. Ultimately, I'd say stick to gutloaded crickets and silk worms for babies. After 12" Maybe try mealies or superworms. RARELY wax worms are good too. Also, some people feed roaches. Salad is also daily needed. NO lettuce, even romaine. Mustard, collard, dandelion greens. Along with squash, zuchinni, bell pepper, green beans, grapes, kiwi, mangoe, papaya, black/raps/straw/blue berries are all great foods. Kale, bok choy, RARELY peeled chopped banana, RARELY spinach... carrot, citrus, tomatoe aren't recommended... Rep-cal calcium and multivitamin suppliments are great.
And substrates, the safest are newspaper or paper towel. It's not as pretty but you can feel safe using it...
Just my opinion based on what we do...
 
I meant to say:

Kale, bok choy, RARELY peeled chopped banana, RARELY spinach are occassionals/rare treats... carrot, citrus, tomatoe aren't recommended...
 
Hockeyman0920 said:
This is exactly why wild beardies live 2-3 years while in captivity they can live 7-10 years.
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Im sure that eating the wrong kind of worms causes this big gap too. Not the fact that they are the prey of bigger animals in the wild not excluding cars which from what Ive read bearded dragons are often seen dead in the streets in Australia.Thats like saying that gangters live longer in jail then on the streets because they eat a better well balanced meal.
 
Hockeyman0920 said:
Superworms and Waxworms do the exact same thing as pinkies, they fatten the dragon up. So whats the point of feeding pinkies in which you risk impaction and a high parasite load?
Click to expand...

Can you show me a case of where a pinkie caused impaction in a bearded dragon? I am aware of no such case or circumstance....... I would however be interested in reading up on it if you do indeed know of a case where that happen.

As far as parasites go. If you feed pinkies from a healthy source the risk of parasites being ingested is quite low. Now, I for one don't catch and breed wild mice to feed my dragons. If I did, that would be when I would start worrying about parasites. Feeding an adult dragon pinkies shortly before breeding, during and after, is in my opinion not an unhealthy or dangerous thing to do.
 
pogonadragon said:
NO lettuce, even romaine.
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Romaine is a perfectly fine choice in lettuces. It is high in Vitamin A and oxalate's and also serves as a way to up H2O intake in your dragons. Unlike fruits and some other vegetables witch contain high amounts of sugar. Also, it is remotely cheap and easy to find year round. I know in my area some of the other lettuce varieties are not always available.
 
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