# Advice For Newbie; My Bearded Dragon Set-up



## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

Hi all,

After wanting a pet reptile since I was 7, for my 24th birthday in June I was finally given one as a present. This is so far the set up I have for Chuck Norris, my 3 and a half month old Bearded Dragon. 

I hope these pics work as its the only way I can see of doing them.

http://i896.photobucket.com/albums/ac161/ironmonkeyofksw/SNC00068-1.jpg

http://i896.photobucket.com/albums/ac161/ironmonkeyofksw/SNC00075.jpg

http://i896.photobucket.com/albums/ac161/ironmonkeyofksw/SNC00076.jpg

http://i896.photobucket.com/albums/ac161/ironmonkeyofksw/SNC00077.jpg


 It's a 4x2x2ft viv that I heat using a diurnal 600w pulse stat and what I believe is a 250w ceramic heater (its about that, I threw out the box :whistling2. For u.v. and lighting I use a 10% Exo Terra UV 42 inch Tube powered by an Arcadia Starter Unit which is plugged in to a timer that is set to give approximately 14 hours of light coinciding with the natural day/night pattern of the stat. The sensor for the stat is mounted on the window sill behind the curtain so as not to be interfered with by any lights that are on in the room. Day time temps are set to 40-43 degrees Celsius at the hot end and approx 30 degrees Celsius at the cool end. At night I drop these down to about 25-30 degrees Celsius at the hot end and the cool end never gets below room temp (obviously).

Chuck is fed 2-3 times a day, depending on what he tolerates and how much he wants with locusts and crickets and he gets the odd wax worm treat if he is good (sounds like hes my child doesnt it :hmm. These are all dusted with Repton supplement prior to feeding. In his viv there is always varied fruit and veg (again lightly dusted with Repton), I try not to feed him the same veg stuff too many days in a row, and a small shallow bowl of water, which I have seen him drink out of and I know the humidity is not affected. These are both re filled with fresh each morning, and are kept at the cool end of the viv.

Now I know that the water dish and calci-sand substrate are a controversial issue, based on personal experience and opinion. But the bloke in the pet shop I bought Chuck from was recommended by other pet shops in the area and people I know who also kept reptiles. He also breeds and these were how he cared for his Beardies and he maintained he has had no problems at all with impaction. I have also watched Chuck feed and he is very accurate when lunging, and seeing as sand is found in their natural habitat I dont see the harm in having it in the viv.

Basically as I am new to keeping Beardies I'm asking for any advice and constructive criticisms about the set up I have for Chuck. I feel that with the research I have done that the set up is adequate. But, basically, I want it to be perfect for him. 

I eagerly await your input


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## JackieL (May 19, 2009)

Hello there. I am by far no expert but I can only advise you on my own experience and the knowledge that I have : victory:.

As you are aware there is much contraversy over sand and particle substrates. I personally would not choose to use any kind of particle substrate as it will be ingested at some point and bearded dragons simply cannot digest sand. In my opinion my dragon means too much to me to be taking the risk.

Babies need to be offered dusted live foods 2-3 times daily. As many as he/she will eat and if using crickets any uneaten crickets removed as they can nibble on your dragon.

Suitable vegetables need to be offered daily, there is a diet sheet here you can refer to. Good vegetables to offer are greens such as cress, spring greens, butternut squash, watercress, these all make a great staple vegetable, there are many others that can be offered but only as a treat, once, twice a week.

Live foods need to be no bigger than the distance between your dragons eyes.

As you know bearded dragons are desert dwellers, often associated with sand, wild dragons infact live in extremely dry conditions they live upon compacted almost clay like soil, not loose sand.

Our set up is a Reptisun 10.0 running the length of her viv. She has a raised basking area with a 60W normal bulb for basking light.

She is on a 12 hour on and 12 hour off cycle. 

We use no additional heat in the Summer months. In the Winter we intend on using a ceramic heat emitter for some additional heat. Providing your home goes no lower than 65* at night any extra heat is not needed.

Bearded dragons feel heat from above not below, so any kind of heated rocks etc; are not suitable.

Basking spot temperatures need to be anything from 105-115*, young dragons need the heat often at the top end.

We measure our ambient temperatures and basking spot temperatures.

We bath our dragon every other day, depending on if she is in shed. 

Any other questions please ask! If i can help you further I will.

Regards,




Jackie.


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## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

thanks and dont worry, as i said, ive done some research. but experience is what i lack. 

i was also wondering, but forgot to put in the essay i wrote, is the furniture/decoration i have in there adiquate. Could i do with some more climbing areas, or is there anything i would be better having that dont have in there, etc.

ive managed to keep everything hide proof for the bugs. they are food after all, i want chuck to do a bit of hunting, but i found out they were all hiding in the skull where he couldnt get to them so i soon sorted that problem out by plugging all the holes in the skull.

cheers again


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## dodger26 (Jul 13, 2009)

Hi Ironmonkey

I have also got my 1st 2 Beardie's, and thought I would let you know what my set up is.

My viv is only small (3ft x 18" x 18" ), I got this from a friend who was upgrading, got my beardie's from a guy on this forum, only wanted 1 ended up with 2 LOL, got a 24" reptisun 10.0 uv light. The heat lamp is an ordinary 40w light bulb, this keeps the warm end at 35-45 the cool end is 25-35, at night it stays at room temp about 16-20.

Up until last week I kept them on Kitchen Towel now they are on play sand, I done this for two reasons 1, It is easier to keep clean, and 2, The crix have less places to hide. So far they have had no probs and they seem to enjoy it. Other items in the viv are one piece of volcanic rock (under the heat source) and 4 pieces of slate, veg bowl and water bowl, and plastic foliage.

There food consists of medium size crix/locusts, and daily fresh veg. The biggest prob is what live food to give. I started on crix went on to locusts they proved to be quite expensive so went back to the crix, now they are on a mix of the two. They are eating about 8 crix and 2 locusts a day each.

Both are thriving well, they are the same age as yours, both shedding skin and coming out in great colours.

Like you I read all the info I could find and done all the homework before getting the beardie's, but the best thing I found is experience, you learn by your mistakes and you learn from your dragons. Hope this has helped


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## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

too true dodger26. too true. but id rather learn from other peoples mistakes 

and im glad im not the only one using sand. my BD eats about that many per sitting!! ill have to get him jogging laps of the viv to burn off the extra calories 

any constructive input is greatly apreciated, thanks


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## dodger26 (Jul 13, 2009)

Got me thinking now, they were eating about a carton every other day so cut them down, maybe cut them down to much :lol2:


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## James Prala (Apr 4, 2009)

It is brilliant to hear other newbies are stressing about their dragons. I got my first at 8wks old in May and my second a month later. Similar age. At 2 and 3 months they were eating about 8 size 4 crickets a day each! They grew very fast but now at five months they have slowed down big style. During that time though they have changed vivs into a bigger one, moved from Yorkshire to Cumbria, changed from paper towel to sand (i agree much easier to keep clean) and also gone up to size 5 crickets (obviously more filling than fours!). 

I have been trying everything to get them to eat more. I have moved them from sand to shredded aspen on the advice of a local reptile shop owner. I seem to try something new every day and it feels like I'm clutching at straws. Today for example, one has eaten four size 5 crickets and no salad and the other has eaten bog all. I have noticed that they feel cooler when I pick them up than they did in the smaller viv. Do yours feel like body temperature when you take them out in the middle of the day because mine used to but they don't anymore. I've messed about with the chosen basking sites and stat settings to try and get their temperature perfect but they won't bask in the right flaming place. The intended basking site is 38 degrees exactly but they are rarely there. I find myself placing them in basking position and hoping they stay there. I'm always nudging crickets to make them move towards the dragons, so they will hunt. For example today, one ate four size five crickets and the other ate 1 three quarter inch locust. No salad was consumed by the little darlings. Is it me or is reptile keeping the easiest way to make someone neurotic??!!!

By the way ironmonkey, could you explain how you got photos up. My page says I can't post attachments which is what I assume a photo would be classed as??!!

I look forward to hearing your views.

James.


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## dodger26 (Jul 13, 2009)

Thought I would put a couple of pics on of my viv and beardie's to show the set up


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## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

I dont use sand for my babies and young juvies.. I use sand for my sub adults and adults.. Meaning from about 6 months old upwards. 

Seems like you have everything you need. Just you dont need to use ceramics not with beardies. Beardies are desert animals so like the sun. With a ceramic you dont get light just heat and therefore the beardie will not connect to a heat sorce. Beardies also dont need heat at night unless your house temps fall below about 58F which not many houses actually do.

Liz


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## JackieL (May 19, 2009)

ironmonkey said:


> thanks and dont worry, as i said, ive done some research. but experience is what i lack.
> 
> i was also wondering, but forgot to put in the essay i wrote, is the furniture/decoration i have in there adiquate. Could i do with some more climbing areas, or is there anything i would be better having that dont have in there, etc.
> 
> ...


No worries, I couldn't view your pics, only the first one?

Yeah bugs will hide anywhere! Our dragons hunts, and it's fantastic to watch! We have a curvy log in ours and jungle vine that we have bent around her log, she loves the vine and gets in all kinds of positions on it. Its also at various levels so she can choose her distance from her basking spot. We have a fake plant in her viv that she pays no interest in, it was mainly for a bit of colour! and a fake cactus which she sits on :lol2:.

We put her live food in, she hunts and eats what she wants, she then gets up on her vine near the spotlight to digest them. You get to know by theyre body lannguage what they are about to do in the end!!

We feed her 2-3 times a day live foods, then before lights out we clean out her viv and any remaining crickets.

She is on paper towel substrate, I don't agree with sand, that's your choice however!

Depends really if you get a dragon that wants to hunt or is lazy! Our previous dragon was a lazy sod and would not hunt his live foods EVER, we had to hand feed him. Our female we have now will hunt so it just makes things easier, if you offer some food from a pair of tongs to her she nearly bites the tongs out of your hand :lol2:.


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## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

cheers for everyones responses,

as for viewing the other pics JackieL i dont know what happened, but if you cut and paste the ones you cant view in to your browser that should work.

james, i just looked at this post;

http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/newbie-advice/112135-how-post-pictures-using-photobucket.html

hope that works.

liz and mark, the first thing first is im gonna get hold of a dimmer stat and use a light emiting heater. ive heard so much about sustrates im still so damn confused. as i said, the bloke i got chuck from had had about 60 or so clutches all kept on sand with no instances of impaction, does the animals husbandry come in to play at all??


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## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

i know a couple of people who keep their BD on play sand or repti-sand and have had no problems. and i can see the points from boths sides of the arguement, at the moment im now changing the thermostat to a dimmer stat, and getting hold of a light emmiting heat source. thatll be sorted by tomorrow. thats the first bit.

im also going to do a few costal walks to see if i can find some interesting rocks for a better basking spot which i believe the best way to clean is bleach bath, well rinse and bake isnt it?? what temp do i bake a rock at??? and ive already put in another piece of grape vine root as an extra thing to climb on. more fun and more exercise for chuck!!

JackieL i think if you just cut and paste the photo name in to your browser they should work fine. chuck used to sleep on his catcus untill he got too big :lol2: 

james, i just looked at this post;

http://www.reptileforums.co.uk/newbi...otobucket.html

hope that works. but would like to know how to post real pictures too.

another thing i wanted to know was impaction risk linked to the animals husbandry? and are back grounds important or are they purely aesthetic??

i like your set up dodger26, and to be honest, i got a male so as to get rid of the temptation to buy two :lol2:


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## Squonk (Jul 13, 2009)

Just wanted to say loving the skull in your viv  Im getting my viv at the weekend for my first beardie and after i'd bought all the essentials i couldnt resist a skull i found made out of stone. Thats just my taste I guess. Hope you don't mind me asking but where did you get your branches for the viv? something Im having trouble finding. Also welcome to the forum


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## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

well i got yorick to keep chuck company when im at work. i woulld love one thats more realistic but i can only find places that do really realistic ones for medical institutions at about £200 a pop. (the best one had a machette wound. :devil

the branches are grapevine root. i got mine from the pet store i buy my food from and an aquatics (!!??!!) store in great yaremouth. but you can get them online. have a flick through Practical Reptile Keeping magazine for stores closer to you or online places you may want to try. hope thats helpfull for you and thanks for the welcome :2thumb:


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## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

ironmonkey said:


> *ive heard so much about sustrates im still so damn confused. as i said, the bloke i got chuck from had had about 60 or so clutches all kept on sand with no instances of impaction, does the animals husbandry come in to play at all??*




It's not down to husbandry I think its more a case of it does happen. That is why I dont recommend sand for little ones because of the way they lunge at their food. It is something I am not prepared to risk.

Liz


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## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

ok, well to be honest i dont fancy carpet or newspaper, so is there anywhere i can get decient tiles from?? im aiming for a naturalistic environment and obviously dont want the bottom of my viv to look like my bathroom wall. just so as i can at least have a look as to what is out there?


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## Squonk (Jul 13, 2009)

Thanks Iron  I've got this months magazine so will have a look thanks, If I have no luck I'm thinking about getting myself a branch and just peeling it and bleaching it like a few others on the forum. I got my skull on ebay, the other half is very much into skulls (must be lifelike, he hates cartoony skulls) so thought he'd love this as a part of our viv, he's got a very lifelike skull called vic (Yup he named his skull too) but its more of an ornament and a bit fragile for the viv. Here's a pic of the skull in question, he has not got a name yet and still needs cleaning up, and also a pic of vic hahah 











Vic.










Nameless skull for viv. Thought he had character with his buck teeth lol.


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## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

Go to B&Q or any diy store.. Slate tiles look quite nice.

Liz


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## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

Liz & Mark, of course. DIY stores. its so obvious come to think of it d'oh d'oh d'oh :blush:

Squonk, vic would have been ideal. i also chucked yorick in there saying that as my BD is named chuck norris he is an attack lizard and the skull are the only remains of a burgler. (my sense of humour is warped to put it kindly). but the un named one looks like dwayne dibley!! (the cats alter ego from red dwarf). :lol2:


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## Squonk (Jul 13, 2009)

Now you mention it!!! You're right, dwayne... wonder if i should call him that  I already have a vic so was gonna call him bob but Im starting to like dwayne better lol


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## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

i like to help where i can, but i can see where you were going with bob.


:lol2: :thumb: :lol2:


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## ex0tics (Jun 9, 2009)

Repti-sand is nothing but trouble mate people have had luck with all sorts of sands but at the end of the day I don't even like to risk impaction. Invest £5-20 on slate tile or £5 on some lino or keep buying bags of sand? and sand just harbours bacteria gives a nice place for feeders to hide and holds a smell if not cleaned constantly.

I use slate tile myself. Looks professional, keeps my BDs nails trim and is easy to clean.

your looking for 105-110F on highest basking spot. Stick in a 40W household bulb just for lighting if necessary or buy a light/heat bulb instead of a ceramic.

I cleaned my rocks with 10% bleach solution, wash thoroughly, let it air and then bake for best results.


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## kellymca2001 (Sep 8, 2008)

just thought i would say that i got self adhesive lino tiles from pound shop bought 2 packets but was way too much...just a thought looks lovely too you can get them all different colours i went for sandy/pine colour i posted pics in lizard pics if you wanna have a look


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## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

quick update boys and girls,

have now measured the actual temps and they come out on average as 31 celcius ambient at the cool end and about 43 celcuis at the basking spot with an ambient temp of around 37 celcius at the hot end the ambient temps were taken at the furthest points from the heat source at each end at ground level (if that makes sense). but it has taken all day to reach that temp. so i guess a more powerfull lamp is needed. as ive said its a 4x2x2 foot or about 120 gal viv

but this still fells a little cold, especially for a desert animal. the reptisun 10% uv arrived a minuite ago, but i bought one that was too long. 

:censor::cussing::2wallbang:

my original set up would have been ideal for a snake apparently. probably would have been cheeper to get one of those instead :lol2:


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## James Prala (Apr 4, 2009)

the expense is a nightmare ironmonkey but at least yours aren't off their food. If their feed intake hasn't picked up by the middle of the week I am so taking them to a reptile vet I've found demi-locally. I know they reduce their feed intake but some days they eat nothing. That can't be normal. 

Thanks by the way for the photobucket info.


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## ironmonkey (Aug 9, 2009)

oh no, thats not good at all. i know that they do sometimes have a reduced appetite when shedding, also i thought my BD was off his food, but i bought some smaller crix and he was chomping his way through them no probs. i guess he was just scared of the bigger bugs. i dont know if youve given that a go, or even tried hoppers??? 

hope all works out well for your BD fella


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