# Thinking of Getting a Bearded Dragon



## kyle217 (Dec 17, 2008)

Hi Guys,

We've decided, after much research, to get some lizard pets. Specificially the Bearded Dragon as I've read these make great first reptile pets. I would just like to pick all your brains on a couple of things that I've struggled to find answers for.

1) Whilst searching for a Viv i've found that they come in a number of different shapes and sizes. My question here is which Viv would suit the BD best? I intend to get the biggest I can find (unless there are any drawbacks to this? Does this make it harder for them to find cricks for instance?) I'm just not sure If I should go for a tall Viv or a long Viv? I've read that BD's like to climb and perch, from this I assume the tall is the way to go? I have plenty of space at home so either way is possible, I just want to make sure they have the best habitat possible.

2) What temperatures does the tank have to be heated to around the clock? Does anybody have any recomendations for kit? 

3) I've read that their diet whilst young should consist roughly of 80% Insects & 20% Veg and this reverses to 20% Insects & 80% Veg as they become older? Does this sound about right? If so, in what quantities do they require their food and at what age intervals should I be increasing the quantities (If I need to at all?)? What Veg/Insects should I use prodominantly and what should be given as a treat? 

4) What is the best substance to line the tank? I've read that shelf liner & slate tend to be the most commonly used.

5) I would like to house 2 female BD's together eventually. Should I just get the one first or are they better coming from the same breeder and being of a similar age? Should they be keep seperate to begin with? 

I'm sure I have more questions and I will post them here as they come to me. 

Thanks in advance 

P.S. I have a breeder in mind but if anybody knows of any trusted breeders around my area (South East England - Cambridgshire) I'd love to check them out before I make a decision.


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## 15060 (Feb 17, 2008)

u have pm!


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## zebedeepink (Jul 25, 2007)

The ideal size for housing 1 beardie is 4ft x 2ft x 2ft, the 4ft being the length. Although some beardies do like to climb, you do not need a tall viv - 2ft tall is fine. If you are getting a baby beardie, you may need to partition the viv off for the first few months. Basking temp needs to be around 105-110 with a cool side of around 80. I use ceramic tiles in my viv, which are great because they are so easy to clean, the live food can't hide and they are hygenic. Beardies are solitary animals and I would not recommend housing more than 1 beardie per viv. Although 2 females MAY be ok, you might still have dominance issues, fighting etc and it is extremely difficult to sex young beardies so you are not guaranteed to have 2 females. If you end up with 1 male and 1 female, the male will harass and oversex the female and you will end of with major issues and possible the death of the female if she is mated too young and ends up egg bound. 

Stick to 1 beardie per viv - that is my advice


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## zebedeepink (Jul 25, 2007)

Sorry I missed the food part. Your ratios are spot on. For a beardie under 2, this equates to around 50 insects per day which can be crickets, locusts, roaches. Once they are about 2 years old, cut the insects down to 40-50 per week. Crickets are the cheapest option but they are disgusting. I have been using mainly locusts for over a year. They are very nutritious and my beardie loves them. In fact, once I started using these, she refused to eat crickets. Waxworms can be used as a treat, a few a week. Mealworms are rubbish and are fatty and difficult to digest. Adult beardies can eat morio worms.

Good veg to use is spring greens, rocket, watercress, mustard and turnip greens, dandelion leaves. Check out www.beautifuldragons.com for a comprehensive list.

Any more questions, feel free to ask


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## kyle217 (Dec 17, 2008)

Thanks for your replies.

So from what I understand, my beardie up to the age of 2 years will require between 40-50 criks/locust per day? I'm assuming this is done spiradically? What is the maximum number of criks/locust you would put in at 1 time and how long of a time period should I leave inbetween? Is there any restrictions with when to give them the Veg? Or should that just go in at the start of the day? How many criks/locusts do you get in a box, roughly? Do they live long enough for me to get a weeks supply in at a time? I'm planning to keep these in my garage, will they need to have a heat source of their own through the winter months? What are the best Gut-Loading products to use? 

I'm picking up my 4x2x2 Viv set up soon and should have my beardie by the 3rd Jan so I just want to make sure I know as much as I possibly can to keep the little dude healthy lol.


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## alnessman (Mar 8, 2008)

try this

http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/lizard-care/92926-bearded-dragons.html


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## zebedeepink (Jul 25, 2007)

A baby should be fed 2-3 times a day. Some peopl will feed as much as they will take in 5-10 minutes and some feed a set amount. Crickets are much cheaper than locusts and you will get around 150-200 in 1 tub or you can bulk buy and get say 500 at a time. With the locusts, you will only get aroun 30 in a tub. The veg needs to be available at all times so I would put it in in the morning. It will last longer if you spray it with water. You may notice that your beardie will not show much interest in veg for the first few months, mine didn't start eating it till she was about 6 months old and even now at 20 months, she doesn't eat as much of it as she should. You may get lucky and get a beardie who will eat it from the start. Gutload your insects with the same veg you give your beardie. The crix and locusts will last for quite some time. When I used crix, they would last at least 3-4 weeks. I only get enough locusts to last me a week and I rarely get any dying before they are fed off. You can but specially prepared gutload which you can put in with the veg for the crix/locusts.

A couple more tips - If you haven't already got your UVB, go for the Reptisun 10.0 tube (this will need replacing every 6 months or so). This is really the only decent tube on the market. You need a bright bulb for a heating source - just get a normal household spot/floodlight bulb. No nightime heat required unless household temps drop below 65. Digital thermometers are a must - the stick on analogue ones are very inaccurate and correct temps are vital to the health and wellbeing of your beardie.

Dust 1 meal per day, 5 days a week with calcium and 2 days a week with Nutrobal.

Sorry if you already know all this, I just feel it is important to get your set up right as so many people jump in to buying beardies without doing their research and their beardies suffer because of it 

:welcome:


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## kyle217 (Dec 17, 2008)

Thanks for the replies, much appreciated.

I have ordered a full set up from one of the board members (loobylou) thats being built to order for me to collect in a couple of weeks. I think I have a good understanding now and I intend to do nothing but research for the next 2 weeks so I know exactly what i'm doing.

My set up includes 4x2x2 viv, uv bulb and starer, dimming day and night facility thermostat, ceramic bulb holder and cabling fitted, ceramic bulb, wood, and bowl. 

Other than decor can anybody think of anything else I may need to get before I take collection of the beardie?

As for the food, I think i'm going to go with Locusts as a staple. Out of curiosty, how do you go about moving the locusts from their tank to the beardies tank... i'm not squeemish so I don't mind how I do it... but on the off chance the mrs has to tend to our BD i'm sure she'd appreciate me having some kind of system in place to stop her from actually having to touch them. 

Any recomendations on where to order the Locusts from? I'm hoping to be able to do it online and buy a weeks supply at a time. Also any recomendations on where to buy the veg from? Should I aim to always feed them fresh veg or can this be bought in say a months supply and frozen?


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

Personally i wouldn't go for locusts are a staple diet to start with. With the amount they eat as babies you'll find yourself very skint! locusts are a lot more expensive than crickets for a lot less quantity.

Feeding, its better to get a deep tub, empty the live food into there and stick some toilet roll tubes in. When it comes to feeding, take tube or 2 out, empty the contents into a sandwich bag, add vitamins / calcium, shake the bag and empty into the viv.

you can buy the veg from your local supermarket / grocers.


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## kyle217 (Dec 17, 2008)

Paying the extra money isn't really a concern. Especially as they benefit me also with the difference in noise & smell when compared to crickets. Saying that, my main concern is whatever is best for the BD. Is there a vast nutritional value between locusts & crickets?

Any suggestions for online shops where I can buy live food / gut loading / vit dust / viv decor???


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## pegleg (Sep 16, 2008)

Hi,
I get just about everything from here..
www.livefoods.co.uk
Have a look.


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## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

Meko said:


> Personally i wouldn't go for locusts are a staple diet to start with. With the amount they eat as babies you'll find yourself very skint! locusts are a lot more expensive than crickets for a lot less quantity.
> 
> Feeding, its better to get a deep tub, empty the live food into there and stick some toilet roll tubes in. When it comes to feeding, take tube or 2 out, empty the contents into a sandwich bag, add vitamins / calcium, shake the bag and empty into the viv.
> 
> you can buy the veg from your local supermarket / grocers.



Agree with meko on the locust thing my babies eat small medium crickets 3 times a day and about 10 each at a time. 

Liz


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## Meko (Apr 29, 2007)

kyle217 said:


> Paying the extra money isn't really a concern. Especially as they benefit me also with the difference in noise & smell when compared to crickets. Saying that, my main concern is whatever is best for the BD. Is there a vast nutritional value between locusts & crickets?
> 
> Any suggestions for online shops where I can buy live food / gut loading / vit dust / viv decor???


 
might be an idea to feed both then. If you can;t get hold of locusts they might turn their nose up at crickets if they're use to locusts, if you alternate the 2 you're covering all angles.

for livefoods in bulk i've used livefoods.co.uk, they also do vit dust (neutrabol) and calcium (calypso). For viv decor... any plastic plants just stay away from ones with 'reptile' on the packaging as it adds a few quid to the price. If you've a Dunelm near you then they do them nice and cheap.


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## Reptilover (Jan 15, 2007)

kyle217 said:


> Thanks for the replies, much appreciated.
> 
> I have ordered a full set up from one of the board members (loobylou) thats being built to order for me to collect in a couple of weeks. I think I have a good understanding now and I intend to do nothing but research for the next 2 weeks so I know exactly what i'm doing.
> 
> ...


 
I would just like to add it may be wise to get a habbistat and heatmat form night times, it can get quite chilly at night and could cause damage to your lizard however some housholds are hotter enough at nightand dont need any addititional nighttime heat.


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## kyle217 (Dec 17, 2008)

what is the ideal night time temp? I can start to monitor that now to see if extra heat is required.


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## 15060 (Feb 17, 2008)

u wont require a heat mat if u purchase the dimming day and night thermostat.


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## alnessman (Mar 8, 2008)

kyle217 said:


> what is the ideal night time temp? I can start to monitor that now to see if extra heat is required.


temps can fall to 60f at night with no affect to your bd i have no extra heat at night, 100w spotlight for during the day


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## kyle217 (Dec 17, 2008)

the dimming day and night thermostat comes with the set up doesn't it? Sorted then....


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## Lottie Lou (Feb 2, 2008)

Like 'PegLeg' said Livefood UK Crickets Locusts Mealworms Reptile supplies mail order is a fantastic website, however i would get things like viv backgrounds etc from places like ebay.co.uk
Triple 8 Reptiles - Online Reptile Shop UK has some of the cheapest thermostats i have found. .

I hope this helps.

Lottie


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## hungovermatt (Jul 29, 2008)

mmmm.... Not sure about this 50 insects a day thing. What size are we talking about here? 

I feed my 1 year old bd approx 10 large locusts a day - is that not enough?


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## zebedeepink (Jul 25, 2007)

hungovermatt said:


> mmmm.... Not sure about this 50 insects a day thing. What size are we talking about here?
> 
> I feed my 1 year old bd approx 10 large locusts a day - is that not enough?


Yes that is fine. Obviously it depends on the size of the insects. George never ate 50 per day when she was younger - 35 ish crickets a day at the most. When she went on to locusts, it was about 10-15 per day. They are a lot bigger than crickets and are, I believe, meatier and they have no shell. All beardies are different obviously and some will eat more than others.


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