# Hello, total newbie setting up viv for bearded dragons



## Fozz20 (Aug 6, 2011)

Hello, new to the forums. 

I have purchased a 48" Vivarium online and I think i have managed to pick up everything I need to set it all up. I am however a little lost on how to proceed as I have seen many different video's and web pages giving different advice on a bearded dragon set up.

I got some Exo Terra desert sand with the viv and have also purchased some wood chip just in case I need to leave the sand till the dragons are a bit older. I also hear carpet is good for younger dragons too so what is best to start out with?

Also, can anyone point me in the direction of a good guide for installing the heat lamp and basking lamp. Mainly what brackets to use and where to place them to avoid burning the dragon? My viv is Vivexotic VX48 Reptile Vivarium Tank 48" (Large) | Net Pet Shop. 

Thank you :notworthy:


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## fardilis (Mar 22, 2011)

hiya:welcome:
substrate for beardies is a matter of opinon,is it a baby or an adult u would be getting?


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## Caramelsnake (Jun 6, 2010)

Heya,
Young bearded dragons should not be kept on sand as this can lead to impaction in their gut and kill them. For youngsters I would advise paper towels as the best thing- no danger of impaction and easy to clean. If you want something that looks nicer then I'd say go for some tiles. Carpet is fine to keep them on but it is more difficult when it comes to cleaning! Personally I'd say wood chips are ok for adults but some people may disagree.


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## Fozz20 (Aug 6, 2011)

fardilis said:


> hiya:welcome:
> substrate for beardies is a matter of opinon,is it a baby or an adult u would be getting?


I would be looking to get two young dragons. They might be babies but I'm not sure what age they go on sale at generally.


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## Fozz20 (Aug 6, 2011)

Caramelsnake said:


> Heya,
> Young bearded dragons should not be kept on sand as this can lead to impaction in their gut and kill them. For youngsters I would advise paper towels as the best thing- no danger of impaction and easy to clean. If you want something that looks nicer then I'd say go for some tiles. Carpet is fine to keep them on but it is more difficult when it comes to cleaning! Personally I'd say wood chips are ok for adults but some people may disagree.


I see. I was thinking about laying the viv out with half sand and half wood chip if needed so I could feed them on one side away from the sand to avoid impaction. This was just a thought but i'm not sure if it's practical or if the dragons would even like having two substrates.


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## fardilis (Mar 22, 2011)

hiya
u can find virtully all ages 4 sale, if there juvies (<6months)then it would be best 2 use newspaper/kitchin roll as they have a habit of injesting substrate.
personally i would only keep 1 beardie in a tank as they can fight , babies r ok but once they get bigger 2 males can kill each other, although females are supposed 2 get along they can still fight and males have been known 2 mean 2 females.


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## Caramelsnake (Jun 6, 2010)

Fozz20 said:


> I see. I was thinking about laying the viv out with half sand and half wood chip if needed so I could feed them on one side away from the sand to avoid impaction. This was just a thought but i'm not sure if it's practical or if the dragons would even like having two substrates.


I think with that kind of set up there is a danger that live food could run from one end of the viv to the other and your beardie would eagerly chase after it into the sandy area. Even if you supervise every meal time I think there is still a good chance one will disappear and reappear several hours later in the sandy area. Live food is very tricky like that lol, so best not to risk it.


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## dickvansheepcake (Jul 8, 2009)

Fozz20 said:


> I would be looking to get two young dragons. They might be babies but I'm not sure what age they go on sale at generally.


If you do not have any/much previous experience of owning bearded dragons I would strongly only recommend getting one. They are naturally solitary and do not need want or always tolerate company you see. Although if you get the pairing right (same size/weight/age and right temperament) two females may live together without problems, there is still a chance they will not get on. Whilst a more experienced keeper who fully understands bearded dragon behaviour will probably pick up on the signs of bullying/dominance before any harm is done, a less experienced keeper probably will not. The first sign of trouble many inexperienced keepers see is coming home to find a blood bath and one or two seriously injured or dead beardies. Beardie fights are not pretty!

Also if they are babies when you buy them, unless you are getting them from a reliable and very experienced breeder you probably will not know what sex they are. This means if you end up with two males you will need to separate them by the time they are six months at most as when they start to sexually mature they may well become very territorial and fight.

If you have a male and female, again they will need to be separated by six months of age at most as the male will mature sexually long before the female is at a safe age/weight to breed. Females should be around 18 months old before breeding and the correct weight. Also males may pester females to mate constantly when they are housed together. This can be very stressful for the female and could have a detrimental effect on the females health. This will also be very stressful on the male as he will constantly be wanting to mate and so may not feed properly or bask or rest enough.

As for substrate, for babies tiles are the best option. They look nice, are easy to clean and have zero risk of impaction. When beardies get to around a year old I think they are ok to be put on sand (childrens play sand, NEVER calci sand) although tiles are still fine to be used. I had sand in my beardie vivs but found the sound of it in the door runners horrible and decided that tiles would be far more hygienic so switched to floor tiles from Homebase. Wood chip, in my opinion, should never be used.


Jenny


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## Fozz20 (Aug 6, 2011)

Thanks everyone for the continued advice, it is very helpful. :2thumb:

Hi Jenny, I've never seen that tiles can be used before but one thing that would concern me is if they got too hot, would it not burn the belly of a beardy especially in the basking area?
Also the reason I was thinking of getting two was mainly for company and the interaction they can have with each other. 


Also can anyone maybe provide a guide for installing all the viv lamps correctly/safely?


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## G.R/Trooper (Feb 20, 2011)

Most of what people have already said i will agree with and you will do right to follow them. I personally would not use tiles as substrate. This is because Beardies have very weak underskin and very few nerves in the underbelly area. So ultimatly your beardy can get burnt before it even realises it. Secondly if the tiles are hot and the beardy is laying on them, the food they have eaten (locusts/crickets/melworms etc) would be cooked in the stomach, which can also lead to impaction symptoms.

I have always have mine on sand, but then i have always handfed mine and never had a problem with impaction. Newspaper is a good start for substrate as its easy to maintain enclosure cleanliness and also can't cause any impaction threats. 

Please dont get two. I know you think they may need company but they have ample room in the wild without another in sight. They do not enjoy interaction from other beardies and prefer to be kept lovingly on their own. You will be surprised as to how territorial beardies can be. Even two of my females dont get on so pairing can never be predicted. Your best bet is to get one for now, and once it's sexxed and you have a lot more experience think about getting another. As said earlier males & females have to be separated, males & males seperated, and even females may have to be sepearted.

Finally put your heatlamp on the ceiling with the power cable coming through one of the vents. Try to place it 1/3 of the way along the length, and in the middle of the depth. Rocks or logs are better objects to be placed under the lamp for baskign rather than slate. Slate gets very hot and can also be very sharp. As they get older you can choose to have woodchips or sand, i have tried both and found the sand amplifies the smell and make a lot of noise on the doors, and woodchips are easier to clean but harder to digest if your beardy was stupid enough to swallow some.

If you get a baby try not to handle it for the next 8-14 days. As tempting as it is you must not pick it up. This is its settling in period and a dodgy settle can lead to you having a ferocious little beardy for life. Try and aim for one that is at least 10 weeks old. Good luck with your beardy, let us know how it goes and show some pics. Any questions feel free to PM me. Remember the forum is here to help you, not humiliate you.


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## Spot (Jun 15, 2011)

> Also the reason I was thinking of getting two was mainly for company and the interaction they can have with each other.


In the wild they are solitary. They don't need or want the company of their own kind, it's just that sometimes they will _tolerate_ it. As *dickvansheepcake* says, judging that toleration is the tricky part - there's a reason that many of the beardies for sale are due to someone having bought 2 young ones together 'to be friends for each other' and then having to sell one on (often with toes missing or chunks out of the tail etc.).

Tiles will only burn your beardie if you've got too strong a spotlight without a dimming thermostat.

When you're installing the basking lamp, which you put towards one end of the viv, try different wattages to find the one that suits your vivarium - maintaining a proper ambient temperature gradient. There's no need to use ones branded by reptile equipt companies. Ordinary spotlights from B&Q or similar tend to be cheaper. You could start with say a 75 watt and see how that works. You want the cool end of the viv to be about 22 degrees C.

Then work out at what height beneath the lamp the temperature is about 30 degrees C. This will be the basking spot and you will have to provide a branch or platform of some sort at that height.

You connect the bulb to a dimming thermostat to guard against overheating.

Similarly, for the UVB bulb (10% or12%), the packaging should tell you at what distance the optimum UVB absorbtion is attained. Either mount the tube at that height from the floor of the viv, or install in at the top and again provide a way for your beardie to reach the appropriate height.

If you want, the lights can be attached to timers - but if your routine is pretty regular it isn't necessary. The lights should run for about 14 hours during summer and about 10 hours during winter.

They need the drop in temperature at night - so only worry about that if your house gets really cold at night in winter. In which case you could install aheat mat or similar.

Hope this is helpful :smile:


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## Fozz20 (Aug 6, 2011)

Ok, I'm going to take the advice given to stick to getting one beardy at first until I get some further experience with them. 

I popped out to Homebase to check out some tiles and was after slate ones. Unfortunatly they only had black ones which I don't want because they will absorb the heat and that's a no no. I did however see some natural stone tiles which i took a punt on (I can always take them back I guess) I've attached a picture of them (got 12 in the pack). I'll have to check daily for poop so it doesn't get into any of the holes.


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## dickvansheepcake (Jul 8, 2009)

You can also use the vinyl self adhesive floor tiles. Those are the ones I use, although many use natural stone/slate tiles successfully too.

You have made the best choice by sticking to getting one dragon. The most likely interaction you'll see between two beardies is negative, especially if you get two babies!


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## G.R/Trooper (Feb 20, 2011)

Make sure you wash them thoroughly. Over and over again.


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## Fozz20 (Aug 6, 2011)

G.R/Trooper said:


> Make sure you wash them thoroughly. Over and over again.


Do you mean when cleaning out the vivarium or before I first put them in?


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## Spot (Jun 15, 2011)

*Oops sorry!*

Please note I totally miscalculated Farenheit into Celsius. Ignore the temps I put in my post. :gasp:

For some reason I can't edit it.

It should be 70F-75F at the cool end, 100F-110F under the lamp for the basking spot.

Re your tiles - I expect the poster meant to scrub them thoroughly before putting them in, because they are real stone.


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## G.R/Trooper (Feb 20, 2011)

Fozz20 said:


> Do you mean when cleaning out the vivarium or before I first put them in?


Before they go in for the first time =D


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