# Hewbie Here Help with beardie Please



## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Hi all , Well I’m new to the forum and new to reptile keeping so go easy please , I have just purchased my first Bearded Dragon and after advice from several pet shops I ended up with a 4 foot wooden viv with sand as substrate and one red heat bulb on a thermostat set at 85 recommended by the reptile shop I purchased it from , A 3.5 foot uv light. After 2 days I noticed that the dragon was hardly moving so I visited another well known centre in Cannock and they told me the viv was to cold and I needed a 12 hour spot/Basking bulb which I have fitted and the temp has risen to 105 deg , Right I have been on several sites , Been to several shops and all give different advice (Who is right and who is wrong) I really do need some sound advice, I want to put large wood chips in instead of sand as the sand is filling the runners and going all over the place when he or she comes out, I have been told yes its o.k. by some and no do not use by others , HELP!! . I would like to add a couple of photos of my set up for you guys to look over and maybe give advice but I don’t think I can yet?. If you’re wondering what the S is on the dragons back it is what the pet shop written on his back with marker pen to reserve it for me while I built and set up the vivarium. Thanks a bunch for reading this and thank you for any help and advice as I have looked at several sites and this is the one I have joined as you seem to be very helpful and pleasant.

Once again many thanks
Steve


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## Jim239 (Jan 19, 2009)

Hi there, welcome to the forum :welcome:

How old is your beardie? I personally do not recommend or use any form of loose substrate, especially for young beardies as they can ingest the substrate when hunting their crickets and become impacted.
In terms of your temps, everyone has their own opinion on the matter, i find that my beardie likes the temps at around 110 on her basking site.
Make sure you are measuring the temps accurately though, i use digital thermometers and a infared temp gun to make sure its spot on.
If you want to upload images you need to host them on a site first, like photobucket, i am sure there is a sticky somewhere telling you how to do it.
Also use the search function on the site to find some care sheets some of the members care sheets on here are really good.


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Many thanks for your reply , I think he is about 5 months old and yes I can find lots of care sheets but they all seem to differ but it looks to me as personal preferences with a lot , I will try and upload a few pics here and see how it goes
Once again many thanks


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## windymiller (Sep 16, 2010)

:welcome: TO THE FORUM.

I too had to go through all the loose substrate or not debate and in the end went for a compromise.:whistling2: I have a 48" viv, 36" of the floor is covered with a sandstone effect cushion flooring then I have a piece of 2 x 1 (50mm x 25mm) fixed to the floor, sealed so the sand doesn't dribble out. So, I have an area approx 12" x 21" with about 1.5 inch of reptile sand in it with a few stones and a wood log hide.

Our Beardie is about 4.5 months old and so far pooping every day but we are keeping a close eye on her for any signs of impaction. I do see her touching things with her tongue but usually only the first time of seeing the item, haven't seen her doing it in the viv for a while but when she's out and about in the room she will...

We take her out from the side without the sand but when she digs it can still get in the runners which makes an aweful noise when sliding the glass.:gasp:

windy


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Hi windy and thank you for your comments , Can you tell me what is sandstone effect cushion flooring and where i may view it as this sounds like somthing i may be interested in , Is your dragon roughly the same size as mine as i was told that mine is about 5 months old , I know it may be hard to tell by the photo . Your help is very appreciated my friend

Many thanks


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## windymiller (Sep 16, 2010)

Falcon-uk said:


> Hi windy and thank you for your comments , Can you tell me what is sandstone effect cushion flooring and where i may view it as this sounds like somthing i may be interested in , Is your dragon roughly the same size as mine as i was told that mine is about 5 months old , I know it may be hard to tell by the photo . Your help is very appreciated my friend
> 
> Many thanks


Going by the photo I would say our beardie is about the same size, maybe just a bit smaller so 5 months sounds about right.

I picked up the cushion flooring from Floors2go or something like that but any carpet/laminate flooring shop will have something similar. I paid £12 for enough to make 4 floors so when/if it starts to look a bit shabby I can just swap it for a new piece.

Here's a photo taken a few weeks back when I fitted the flooring, beardie has grown sinse then.


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## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

lol windy you make me laugh.. I am not a big fan of loose substrate for small beardies up to about sub adult age.. Mainly because I have seen first hand what impaction does to an animal and it really isn't pleasant. 

It is hard when you have pet shops saying yeah its fine to do this that and the other and are quite keen to sell you stuff you really dont need. The only thing I would say is take the loose substrate out it is not worth the risk at the end of the day.

Liz


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Aunty_Lizard said:


> lol windy you make me laugh.. I am not a big fan of loose substrate for small beardies up to about sub adult age.. Mainly because I have seen first hand what impaction does to an animal and it really isn't pleasant.
> 
> It is hard when you have pet shops saying yeah its fine to do this that and the other and are quite keen to sell you stuff you really dont need. The only thing I would say is take the loose substrate out it is not worth the risk at the end of the day.
> 
> Liz


Hi Liz , Do you mean remove the sand completely and use just the flooring of the viv and to what age will this be best till.

Many thanks


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## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

Yeah remove the sand completely, I would use either kitchen roll, news paper, lino or tiles for the base. You can put sand back in if you like when the little one is a sub adult so 9/10 months onwards. If you decide to use sand again go for a childs play sand rather than a calci or repti sand from rep shops.

Liz


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## loulou87 (Sep 10, 2010)

Falcon-uk said:


> Hi all , Well I’m new to the forum and new to reptile keeping so go easy please , I have just purchased my first Bearded Dragon and after advice from several pet shops I ended up with a 4 foot wooden viv with sand as substrate and one red heat bulb on a thermostat set at 85 recommended by the reptile shop I purchased it from , A 3.5 foot uv light. After 2 days I noticed that the dragon was hardly moving so I visited another well known centre in Cannock and they told me the viv was to cold and I needed a 12 hour spot/Basking bulb which I have fitted and the temp has risen to 105 deg , Right I have been on several sites , Been to several shops and all give different advice (Who is right and who is wrong) I really do need some sound advice, I want to put large wood chips in instead of sand as the sand is filling the runners and going all over the place when he or she comes out, I have been told yes its o.k. by some and no do not use by others , HELP!! . I would like to add a couple of photos of my set up for you guys to look over and maybe give advice but I don’t think I can yet?. If you’re wondering what the S is on the dragons back it is what the pet shop written on his back with marker pen to reserve it for me while I built and set up the vivarium. Thanks a bunch for reading this and thank you for any help and advice as I have looked at several sites and this is the one I have joined as you seem to be very helpful and pleasant.
> 
> Once again many thanks
> Steve


hi im from cannock, which shop did you go to? 
1. take out the loose substrate use kitchen towels, tiles, slate lino maybe?- deffo not san d or woodchips- both can be fatal
2. red light is no good- get a white spotlight and use it in the day- at night turn everything off- i do 14 hours on 10 off. 
3. dont panic- it gets easier the longer you have them! youll be fine but priority should be to get the sand out. 

if you need any more advice let me know


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Hi and thanks for all the help , I’m not here to start slagging any shops off and i really do not want to upset anyone , The shop I purchased this from is in rugeley and i must say they are really nice people and they only deal in reptiles so I’m sure they know what they are doing , this is probably as much my fault not asking all the right questions , I do have a white spot light over his basking area know and it is reaching 105 deg in the warm end and 85 deg in the cool end , The red light only comes on at night when the main uv light (Strip) goes off and the white spot goes off , The red light keeps it at 80 Deg in the warm end at night , I have quite a cold house so if i turn everything off i would be very scared that he would be to cold. Also today i have noticed that he has only eaten 3 crickets and has slept most of the day under cover away from the bulb , This is worse than having a baby , I found it easier bringing up 2 lads lol
Thanks Again For Your Help


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## Ophexis (Feb 19, 2010)

Unless your house drops below 60*F at night, the beardie does not need the heat at night. It should ideally not have any light at all when it goes to sleep as lights disturb them - even red ones. They need a temperature drop at night, so 80*F isn't necessary
If your house drops below 60*F at night then you may attach a thermostatted heat mat to the side of the vivarium to keep temps at around 60-65*F.

As for feeding, when did you get him? It could be he is still settling in and the relocation stress will eventually settle, and he will eat again. It normally takes a few days to a couple of weeks.

Do you have hides? Some keepers take these away completely so the beardie is getting some UV, as hiding away from it can be detrimental to their health - unfortunately, beardies are not the brightest of creatures


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

o.k. , This is all I need , So I’ve been informed that the beardie Named Spike lol needs all this heat when it looks like this may be untrue, O.K my house does drop cold at night as I can not have much central heating on due to my sons chest condition its about 55 now and it’s not that cold outside, so I have purchased a red light with a stat connected to it and I should have purchased a heat mat. I have purchased a large piece for the viv so spike has got somewhere to hide if he needs to (Bad Again) Also the feeding , Right I have had him since Wednesday and he fed well on Wednesday evening and went downhill yesterday until I fitted the spot light and he then had a bowl of meal worm and enjoyed them , this morning only 3 crickets and did not bother with the rest , I have offered him more meal worm with no joy , Will not touch his salad , Also I have been told by the shop do not give him any type of lettuce especially ice burg but others have told me I can , More advice I have been given is that I must feed in the morning , This will prove difficult as I leave for work at 4.00am , I struggle to see the kettle that time in the morning , let alone a box of crickets, I arrive home at 3.00pm " Is this not Sufficient " I really wonder if this is for me , But I do really enjoy this lizard and it would be sad if he had to go.
I really did think nothing could be this hard but I’m glad to find a forum to help me on my way.
O.k. Folks sorry for wafting on but the last thing I want to do is cause any harm to the little fella due to my ignorance and I hope you all understand
Once again THANK YOU !


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Just to add a little extra this morning , I have put 4 crickets in today and he is not interested in them at all, If any one can help me know i will be very gratefull

Thank You


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## janeann10uk (May 27, 2009)

Try not to feed him too many mealworms as they arent too good for young beardies and once they get a taste for them, they can refuse other food ( bit like kids wanting pudding instead of veg !) Iceberg lettuce is not good for beardies - try lambs lettuce or cress? Also, have you tried locusts instead of crickets ? And yes, it is worse than having kids !!!:lol2:
As for feeding in the morning, my beardies get fed at different times each day - usually between 1pm and 3 pm so if you can only feed at 3, thats fine ! They dont HAVE to be fed of a morning !


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

o,k Many thanks for your reply , Right that has eased me a little but i,m off shopping in a bit , Do i need to replace the red light i use at night with some other heater that does not light the tank up like a ceramic or heat mat as my house temp does go below 55 , Also i am feeding him on large crickets do i need to get smaller ones , I know Questions , Questions but i hope i,m not bheing a pain As I only want the best for him / Her. I have not replaved the sand yet should i do that as well today , If i get slate tiles how do you fix them in. I,m sorry for all the questions but i do not want to loose him.

Many thanks to all


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## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

I would hold off from buying any kind of night heat for the moment. We are kind of in that transition phase of putting our heating on or not so I really do doubt that house temps will fall below 55. 

Liz


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## janeann10uk (May 27, 2009)

try him with small locusts and see how he goes.


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## Helfen (Jun 12, 2010)

Hey welcome to the forums :welcome:

I'm not a beardie keeper but to me your thermostat heat sensor looks a bit high up and your thermometer as well. Cause they will be reading what the heat is further up in your viv and not very close to your beardie as he is further away from the heat source.


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

o.k. Many Thanks for your help , I have been and purchased another Vivarium thermostat and a Ceramic heat emitter 100W and replaced the red bulb with it and set it to 70 C , Hopefully this will kick in at night and keep it to approx 60 - 70 with no light in there, Also the white spot was not on a stat and the temp under the bulb was 142 c So i have put a stat on that and hopefully keep the day temp around 90 C . I have got rid of the large piece of bark so he can not go under it and be away from the uv rays and replaced it with a nice piece of slate for him to bask on.
Hopefully this will sort the problems out that i may have and tomorrow i,ll try some medium locusts. (Is Medium The Size I Need ?)



Once again thanks for all the help


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Sorry I Meant Small Locusts lol :lol2: Also what height do you recommend for the sensor and thermometer from the bottom of the viv ??

Thanks Again


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## janeann10uk (May 27, 2009)

small should be ok You will be able to judge yourself when you buy them


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## Helfen (Jun 12, 2010)

I use heat mats for my geckos and the sensor needs to be on the ground to get the correct reading for them but if you could get it as close to the dragons height as possible and closer to the heat source rather than the middle of the viv hope this helps : victory:


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Thanks Helfen for the advice , I have dropped the thermometer know as i can monitor the temp low down and its settled at 90 and at night it goes down to 65-70 with the aid of a ceramic heater and no red bulb . He seemed to sleep a lot better last night as it was totally dark in there and this morning he has got up a lot better than yesterday and has eaten 10 medium crickets. I do not want to move the probes down as there will be more holes in the wood so i,m hoping that monitoring the temp lower down will do the same job , I,m off to get a digital thermometer today so i can be more precise , but he is a lot more alert today and very perky, I have added a couple of photos to show you the set up as it is today. I must say again many thanks to all for your help and it is getting a little easier.


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## loulou87 (Sep 10, 2010)

Falcon-uk said:


> o.k. Many Thanks for your help , I have been and purchased another Vivarium thermostat and a Ceramic heat emitter 100W and replaced the red bulb with it and set it to 70 C , Hopefully this will kick in at night and keep it to approx 60 - 70 with no light in there, Also the white spot was not on a stat and the temp under the bulb was 142 c So i have put a stat on that and hopefully keep the day temp around 90 C . I have got rid of the large piece of bark so he can not go under it and be away from the uv rays and replaced it with a nice piece of slate for him to bask on.
> Hopefully this will sort the problems out that i may have and tomorrow i,ll try some medium locusts. (Is Medium The Size I Need ?)
> 
> 
> ...


For night time temps you need the viv to be at 60F not 70F, they need a decent drop in temp so they can define between day and night. In the morning they will be a bit slow and grumpy but they soon warm up. 

with regard to 142F in your viv im glad youve got that sorted, your temp under basking should be 100-105 and then the cool end should be 75-80. 

So you need to up your day time basking area and reduce nighttime temp. I have a thermometer in the cool end and then one under the basking spot to get it accurate. You should keep the stat probes in the cool end and try it at say, 80. leave for 30 mins and if wrong adjust- this is why you should set your viv up before you get your beardie. 

With regard to food, your beardies seems to be settling, although he ate on the first night mine did the same. Especially at that age I believe its about tough love, provide salad and locusts/crix and he will eat when he is hungry, if he was a baby it would be different but id say leacve him to settle- my vet actually said that if they dont eat for 3 weeks then he would maybe be a little worried so dont panic  The size of the food depends on the size of the beardie, the food has to be smaller than the space between the eyes to be on the safe side and avoid impaction. 

As for the sand- this should be your priority along with Temps because if he eats it you will have major problems. For now put him on kitchen roll and then go out and buy something that looks nicer. I use drawer liner off ebay, some use lino, slate, or tiles. you can lay them out however you like although if you feed in the viv then you might want to avoid cracks for crix, locusts tend to climb rather than hide so shouldnt be too much of a problem.


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## windymiller (Sep 16, 2010)

*Sand impaction - photo*

Loulou' right, stay off of the sand...Impaction isn't a pretty sight


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

O.K Thanks for all the great info , I have dropped the temp on the night heater and hopefully it will be down to around 60 , I have also been to floors to go and purchased some wood chip effect lino ( It Looks Great) Just one question can i use carpet glue to fix this down in the viv as i,m sure it will curl on the corners .

Many thanks to all


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## windymiller (Sep 16, 2010)

Falcon-uk said:


> O.K Thanks for all the great info , I have dropped the temp on the night heater and hopefully it will be down to around 60 , I have also been to floors to go and purchased some wood chip effect lino ( It Looks Great) Just one question can i use carpet glue to fix this down in the viv as i,m sure it will curl on the corners .
> 
> Many thanks to all


I didn't use any adhesive, corners are fine. Try it without and if it does curl use a bit of double sided sticky tape on the bits that are curling.

windy


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## loulou87 (Sep 10, 2010)

also ive just noticed your measuring the temp with the thermometer thats stuck inside the viv, correct? 
if so you will need to buy a digital one, you can get them off ebay for a couple pounds. the stick on ones can be out by up to 20F and you'd be much better off with a probe one. then you can stick the probes down and monitor the temp in different areas


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Thanks Again for the info , I have just purchased a digital therm and i plan to stick it down approx the same height as the dial one is that correct ? Very small probe on it , How would it be best to stick the probe down as not to interfere with the reading

Again And Again Thanks


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## loulou87 (Sep 10, 2010)

i just put mine on the basking spot pointing upwards, i stuck it into a hole in the wood i have, and one in the cool end on the floor. I didnt want to stick it to the walls because it would measure the temp of the wall rather than the air so i prop the cool one up buy using a little bit of velcro on the base of the probe. 

I hope that makes sense.


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

O.K I’m nearly there i will hopefully take a picture later so you veterans can have a look over it but i think I’m there. Just need to lower my night temp a bit as its still holding at around 68 and my temp under the spot bulb is holding at around 109 , Sand has gone and lino in and digital thermometer is in use. Can you guys tell me if it’s better to use the piece of bark you can see in the photo above or a large piece of slate rock as in pictures below, Is there any advantage in using either

Once again Many Thanks


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Here we go again more questions , Hopefully i should be able to give advice soon as i should be a expert :lol2: Can any one tell me why my dragon only goes to the toilet in his food dish , He has done it for 3 days in a row , Its if it is his toilet ??

Well if nothing else i suppose he has his own toilet :lol2:

Many thanks


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Hi all , Can anyone tell me if there is a easier way to feed him , I mean we are dropping about 8 crickets in and he gets to about 4 straight away but the others hide and we have to get them out as they say you cannot leave them in with him , Is it possible to put him in another large container with his food and then back in his viv or is this not a good idea, Any help appreciated , Thank You


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## loulou87 (Sep 10, 2010)

hey, 

pooing in food dish in sure i9s fine as long as you keep changing it, maybe he sits in it and the water relaxes him. I dont have a water dish because beardies dont drink standing water- you have to train them! bu8t if he is using it to help him poo then im sure its fine- unless of course you see him drinking it afterwards!!

with regards to rocks v wood, no preference, rocks hold heat and keep your beardie nice and toasty, also keep nails down, they would live on rock in the wild, as well as clay. As for wood, this is what i use, its cheap (ish) it keeps nails down and nmine prefer to use it. 

One thing i would suggest is that your highest point is under the basking point, your beardie will go to hthe highest point for heat- even if its in the cold end- they dont realise the sun isnt providing the heat. 

As for feeding crix maybe have somewhere seperate? use an old fish tank, drop crickets in and then your beardie, he will eat them up and you wont have to forage around looking for strays before he goes to bed. I however didnt do this, george didnt like being in a box- even with food. Instead i changed his food to locust- they tend to climb rather than hide and so dont have the same problem, also they dont try to get under your flooring, they dont smell or make noise, just personal preference i suppose. Another thing you could try is pulling off the jumping legs of crickets, they will be slower and he will be able to catch them, also you could put them in the fridge to slow them down. It might just be that he cant eat quick enough before they hide and so you could put a couple in at a time rather than 8. 

Hope i didnt miss anything


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Many Thanks oulou for your reply and i can try him in a box with the crics , Also did you mean to move that piece of wood i have to under the basking light , Will it not be to hot for him there as it is close to the bulb ?. Can i take his water out then if he will not drink it as it takes a fair bit of tank room up. Do they not need this water.
And yes you certainly did cover everything , I have got the basking temp down to 102 , I presume thats o.k

Once again thank you


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## loulou87 (Sep 10, 2010)

i think that it will be too hot but maybe try flipping the wood over so its a 'U' shape and then position it then hopefully it will work out.


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

I have just given him 5 locusts and he went mental to get these , I have never seen him move as quick , How often can i give him these and will it stop him eating crix as i put a couple of crix in after and he was not interested at all , I,m sure he would of eaten more locusts though, Many Thanks


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## egg80 (Nov 25, 2009)

hi and welcome to the forum, just read your thread im glad your getting things sorted i tend to keep my beardies on sandy coloured tiles £9 from b and q as they are easily cleaned. my basking area is at 105 and cool end at 85 and they thrive at these temps but temps are now lowered alot and uv time is reduced as are going into brumation as for feeding i tend to use a variation change each time i feed crix silents or blacks, locusts and dubia roaches and a varied daily salad mix as for water in the tank its not needed but beardies do like to sit in it if they are in shed ect as helps loosen the skin but i tend to bath them if in shed and mist them daily anyother time i hope this helps you 
paul 
feel free to pm me if you require any more help


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## CSJ10 (Jun 7, 2010)

:welcome: I feed my beardy live food every three days and with fresh salad every morning. I feed her crix with calcium supplement in a 50l tub and she eats them all. 

Beardies obtain their water from their salad and from being misted. I mist mine every three days. If you put hot water in your spray bottle it is only tepid as it comes out. 

What uvb tube do you have? Did you know that 12% tubes should be 10-12 inches away from the dragon, and 10% tubes 8-10inches away? (Something I was recently corrected on)

There is a lot of different opinions about what is best and I think ideally you should go with the majority to start with and as you come to know your lizard better you may feel one thing or another is more suited to them. It does seem like a lot to take in but once you've got it, you've got it and you can relax and really start enjoying your dragon. : victory:


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Thank you csj10 thanks for the advice and yes it is a lot to first take in and I nearly give it all up last week. I really wished I had joined this forum before I purchased my beardie as i would of not made so many mistakes like having the beardie at the same time as the viv , I should of left it a week to get it all right and then had him, The shop told me just set his UV light up and fit the red spot bulb on a dimmer , They do not need temp drops at night , Permanent red light will not bother him , Sand is ok to use , 80 deg is the ideal heat , So as you can see i have virtually changed everything with all the advice from here , 
Just one thing my friend when you say you feed yours live every three days is that o.k. to do with beardies or is mine to young ??

Many Thanks


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Also watching my beardie have locusts was something special , As beardies seem to love these more than crix and how expensive they are would I be better trying to breed or do you think i am totally jumping in the deep end , (Run Before I Can Walk) I have had a look at a couple of sites selling in bulk but would I still need to set up a tank, heat and food if I purchased say 200 Locusts.

Many Many Thanks


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## CSJ10 (Jun 7, 2010)

Whilst this young, I would personally feed every other day, if he/she will take them.

Really terrible advice from the pet shop but most people would expect them to be the experts and take what they say as absolutely correct. 

On the positive side, if you hadn't done things in this manner, you may not have learnt so much. 

I had a brief attempt at breeding crickets and locusts but gave it up as a bad job lol but with all the advice available on here, there's no reason you shouldn't give it a go. I have found that breeding meal worms on the other hand is really easy. If you go with buying online, in my experience Livefoodsdirect has good prices and service. You could also try looking on here as there are members who sell live food too.


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Many Thanks for the advice , If i go down the buying in bulk do you know if i need a special tank setup to keep this many and if feeding every other day when do i know when its time to feed every day. 
The problem with mealworms i believe is that you cannot give these every feed to them is that right , Obviously i want to give him what he really likes and that seems locusts but i will need to spend more on his food than my own LOL.

Once again many thanks


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## CSJ10 (Jun 7, 2010)

I personally prefer to do their salad/veg in the morning and usually feed live in the afternoon sometime whenever I've got a spare couple of minutes.

With keeping the locusts, it will depend on how many you buy at each time. Also it is beneficial to 'gutload' them - feeding them basically. There are recipes for gutload on here if you search but you can also buy it. (I purchase mine one ebay). You can just use bran but everyone has their own preference and ideas about what is best. 

There is a section on livefooddirect with instructions on how to look after them. Clicky


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## egg80 (Nov 25, 2009)

stay away from the mealworms as they can cause impaction i know alot of ppl use them with no probs but there are also alot of ppl who have used them and had probs as the shell is hard for them to digest, as for breeding locusts is eal hard to get right and takes alot of time nad also end up real smelly crix are easier but also stink ,but if you looking at breeding livefood try dubia roaches easy to look after easily breed, no smell, they dont climb smooth surfaces all you need to do with them is give them somewhere dark to go fresh veg and water clean out bout once a month they have a higher meat to shell ratio than crix or locust and are more nutritional for your beardie they worth a try the only down side is that they are expensive to get your first colony but on the upside will pay for itself in no time hope this helps
paul


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## loulou87 (Sep 10, 2010)

you need to feed yoa day, feed him as much as he can eat in 15minutes, each time. Youll probably find that he will eat locusts and go off crix, but if he didnt like them anyway its best to keep him eating. Also are you dusting the fiood with calcium? and nutrobal at the weekends? Feeding every other day isnt enough, your baby is growing and needs the food to aid that. so every day twice a day, leave salad in the food bowl and change everyday- he probably wont touch it at first but he will eventually start to eat it as he becomes more curious. 
glad to see youa re taking comments on board, hows he settling now?


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## chuckie127 (Sep 5, 2009)

Falcon-uk said:


> Hi and thanks for all the help , I’m not here to start slagging any shops off and i really do not want to upset anyone , The shop I purchased this from is in rugeley and i must say they are really nice people and they only deal in reptiles so I’m sure they know what they are doing , this is probably as much my fault not asking all the right questions , I do have a white spot light over his basking area know and it is reaching 105 deg in the warm end and 85 deg in the cool end , The red light only comes on at night when the main uv light (Strip) goes off and the white spot goes off , The red light keeps it at 80 Deg in the warm end at night , I have quite a cold house so if i turn everything off i would be very scared that he would be to cold. Also today i have noticed that he has only eaten 3 crickets and has slept most of the day under cover away from the bulb , This is worse than having a baby , I found it easier bringing up 2 lads lol
> Thanks Again For Your Help


Lemme guess the shop was GR8 REPS! cannock rudgley


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## chunderingbadger (May 22, 2010)

Young beardies should realy be fed daily, they grow ALOT in the first year of their lives, as a result they need massive ammounts of calcium dust and as much protein as they will eat. decent UV exposure gives them vitamin D3 which they use to process the calcium (min 12 hrs daily) they wont eat much veg this young but offer it anyway, as varied as possible (not iceburg lettuice). they need water but prob wont see it in a bowl...drip it on their heads or put them in a warm bath and wobble the water about a bit. 
...avoid offering lots of mealworms or waxworms...ive never had them cauze impaction but they are very fatty...obese dragons get liver problems later on so best to think of them as treats.


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Wow a lot of comments and its great to see , without you all i think i would of lost him so first of all Many Many Thanks to you all. Right answer some questions 
Yes i did buy him from gr8 reps and to be fair they seem to sell only reptiles so i presumed this would be the best place to buy from
I am feeding every day now and today he has eaten 11 crix 2 locusts and about 20 mealworms (I will hold off the meal worms as suggested) but he had that in about 5 mins so i,m scared to give him any more as he is opening his mouth a lot and puffing his neck (Scrary)
He has settled in superb and is allways up the glass door to come out and we are getting him out in 10 minute cycles so he does not cool down to much.
I have come home from work today and all his skin is hanging off his body (Shedding) I want to pull it off but i presume i can not as it could damage fresh skin ??
I do not have any nutrobal but i am dusting his greens with calcium and the crix
Yes he is eating his salad some days and not others but i presume that is ok.
Yes i am changing his water every day and his salad.

Hope i have answered all questions
Once again many thanks for all your help , I would not have managed without you all and i probally would have got rid of him as i would not want to cause him any harm.


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## CSJ10 (Jun 7, 2010)

You should bathe your beardy regularly, I do it once a week. This helps keep them clean and hydrated and will also help with shedding. Water needs to be around 90 degrees F for a baby, 100 for an adult. I use an old tooth brush when I bathe mine and this too will help with shedding. 

They display for different reasons but I won't go into it here as there is plenty of info on the forums about it (and I'm cooking dinner lol)

Glad you stuck in there. They really are such fantastic pets :2thumb:


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Many Thanks
Do i just put enough water in the bowl to cover him and do i dry him when done and do i need a soft toothbrush and is there any where i can not rub , Sorry to be a pain but i want to get it right , Also do you just use warm water

many thanks Again


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## loulou87 (Sep 10, 2010)

Falcon-uk said:


> Wow a lot of comments and its great to see , without you all i think i would of lost him so first of all Many Many Thanks to you all. Right answer some questions
> Yes i did buy him from gr8 reps and to be fair they seem to sell only reptiles so i presumed this would be the best place to buy from
> I am feeding every day now and today he has eaten 11 crix 2 locusts and about 20 mealworms (I will hold off the meal worms as suggested) but he had that in about 5 mins so i,m scared to give him any more as he is opening his mouth a lot and puffing his neck (Scrary) just keep feeding him, to give you an idea mine as a baby would eat 2-3 boxes of locusts in one sitting, i think thats around 50-70, its becasue he is growing and so will need the energy to continue to do so. dont worry about overfeeding. he might be opening his mouth to say he wants more? or may be regulating his temp. puffing his neck? mine sometimes seems to stretch his beard- youll know if hes angry his beard will be black and he will open his mouth, if you google 'angry bearded dragon' you should get an image to show you what i mean
> He has settled in superb and is allways up the glass door to come out and we are getting him out in 10 minute cycles so he does not cool down to much.now here you dont want to give into his attention seeking too much! they are very clever- george used to glass dance, in turn id get him out to see he was ok- and therefore giving him exactly what he wanted! you should get him out everyday but he also has to realise he cant always have what he wants, else youll be getting his in/out all the time. the 10 mins rule is good, it will make him familiar with your hands and also he will know you are going to put him back and therefore he will be quite happy to be handled
> ...


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## Falcon-uk (Oct 29, 2010)

Many Thanks loulou for your kind words.
Just picking up on a couple of things yours did eat 60 -70 locusts a day , that scares me as in the cost , Mine tonight had 7 large crickets and the other 2 crickets in with him was climbing over him so i took them out fearing they will bite him , I then put a couple of extra large locusts in and he had them straight away and my lad then fed him some meal worms , So what you are saying is that this is not enough for him ?

The Calci I have got here is Calci Dust is that not the right one and i will pick some nutrobal up Saturday morning , Do i need to use that at the same time as the calci Dust or in place off on the weekend and use it the same as calci dust on his veg and live food.

He did completely shed yesterday and looks great today so i am pleased with that.
I will be picking up a bowl and children’s toothbrush and thermometer and syringe this weekend so i can bath him once a week and i will remove his water today.

Also i am intrigued to find out what garden center you are on about on the A5 , I presume we cannot advertise so if you could PM me the details and i will take a trip over there , I am in wolves not far away

Many Many Thanks for your help


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## loulou87 (Sep 10, 2010)

Falcon-uk said:


> Many Thanks loulou for your kind words.
> Just picking up on a couple of things yours did eat 60 -70 locusts a day , that scares me as in the cost , Mine tonight had 7 large crickets and the other 2 crickets in with him was climbing over him so i took them out fearing they will bite him , I then put a couple of extra large locusts in and he had them straight away and my lad then fed him some meal worms , So what you are saying is that this is not enough for him ? cost is alot! i think i spent at least £20 on livefood when we first had him and now its down to around a box a day at 9 months. You should lay off the mealworms they have a hard shell and beardies can t digest, they are better with crickets and locusts or maybe roaches- george loves roaches and if you are worried about cost you can start a colony and it costs hardly anything
> 
> The Calci I have got here is Calci Dust is that not the right one and i will pick some nutrobal up Saturday morning , Do i need to use that at the same time as the calci Dust or in place off on the weekend and use it the same as calci dust on his veg and live food.if you take a look at ingrediants and it says calcium carbonate thats the right stuff, its basically pure calcium. I would use nutrobal twice a week and calcium 5 times a week. i just do my nutrobal at the weekends cause its easy to remember. The reason you use pure calcium for the rest of the time is because otherwise your beardie could OD on the vits.
> ...


 
Answers in red, will pm now


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