Getting a Baby Bearded Dragon!

[Austin S.]

I'm going to buy a UV light tomorrow. The UV will be on one side, and the heat lamp on the other, correct? Do I leave both on for around 12 hours? Or does the UV lamp stay on longer. How does this work? I tried finding this info guys, bare with me, it is just these little things that kill them quickly and there is not info. on the internet for such questions.

 

[SoulSmilen]

I'm going to buy a UV light tomorrow. The UV will be on one side, and the heat lamp on the other, correct? Do I leave both on for around 12 hours? Or does the UV lamp stay on longer. How does this work? I tried finding this info guys, bare with me, it is just these little things that kill them quickly and there is not info. on the internet for such questions.

What kind of UV light are you getting? That will help answer the question with more specifics. In general, you want the lights together so the dragons are basking right under both. If you have heat on one side with a compact fluorescent UV on the other, they will get no benefit from the UV light if they are under the heat - make sense?

If you don't get a UV/heat lamp in one, I would use an aquarium hood light with a tube bulb that spans the length of the tank right now; if they cool off away from the heat lamp, they'll still benefit from the UV.

 

[Tilted]

they look great and you have a nice set up make sure to get a UV lamp it is very important also get a source of heat for the night either one of those night bulbs or a ceramic heater bulb you screw into a fixture and they love fruits and vegetables and if i was you i would start building my new set up they will out grow that enclosure very quickly they have a huge appetite and will grow very quickly and when they get bigger buy your crickets buy the box it will save you a lot of money

 

[Austin S.]

I cannot remember the exact brand of the UV light, I'll let you know tomorrow.

Thanks for the info Tilted and Soul'. Heres another Q. Is it normal for them to scratch their heads on wood and lick stuff as if their tasting their surroundings?

 

[Austin S.]

I had to take a picture of this while I was training them to drink from their bowls. Ha!

 

[~Abyss~]

Ive kept 2 male beardies together for almost a year now. And one does seem more dominant than the other they are really good with sharing food. One seems a bit more picky but he's been like that since it was a hatchling. I might seperate them soon but I haven't experianced any problems concerning food or fights. Some occasional head bobbing from both of them. The "dominant" one was already huge for his size and he eats anything. While the other one has always been picky with food and actually only eats his greens when he sees the other eating it.

 

[mindlessvw]

do remember that what we interpret as "friendly behavior" is typically aggression. If they are "laying" with each other then one is dominating the other...also watch out for toes and tails which often dissappear with group settings...

 

[Austin S.]

At this size they will bicker with eachother?

 

[Choobaine]

there's a small chance they will bicker, but when hatchlings they tend to be ok, mostly.
it's when they reach sub adult you'll see their true colours toward each other.

sometimes it does work for some people, but like, they aren't gregarious in nature (allthough they are not the most territorial reptiles out there) so theres a lot of times when the submissive animal is losing out.

I find people in this country keep them together a lot because they see them together in stores as babies. I once warned someone (who is now on my list of people who should be banned from keeping animals for gross negligence, this however, is only an example of a more minor thing) and he decided to not just ignore it, but tell me I was wrong and well, I feel sorry for his animals to say the least.

but I am in no way denying sometimes it can work, female couples tend to be the best bet, but that's not like... a guarantee
it's really depending on the animals involved

check beardeddragon.org, it's got lots of all the information you need!

 

[mindlessvw]

the biting of toes and tails isn't even necessarily aggresive behaviour as it is accidents...the toes do look like crickets don't they...lol

 

[mattnsariah]

I am a proud owner of two bearded dragons, One I have over at my nephews so they don't fight! WE found out after a long time of them being together that they are both males. not good! but they loved eachother until i think they got balls or something. lol

anyhow.......i have them two since they were smaller than my pinky! I have always had them on calcium sand. i personally didn't see any problems with them on the sand. They still are on the sand. I make sure to give them their calcium powder on their crickets and and keep the cage clean at all times. If they have enough calcium in there diet and the sand is calcium mortified they will be fine! i thought the paper looked wrong and doesn't make for a pretty cage either! I have always got the dragons from really good breaders and they have thought the sand gives them more comfort and looks better. Keep there trap clean and your all good!

 

[invertoholic]

first off decent choice of lizard ok stay away from newsprint and news papers has anyone one here used any logic at all? if people that work at news print company's complain about ink on there hands then what makes you think its an ok idea for a reptile? i mean come one folks i wouldn't even use it in a birds cage mush less an animal thats gonna be rubbing against it off and on through out the day i would highly recommend astro turf if your beardies your young just pick at it on the edges to remove ANY and ALL loose material or run a bead of safe caulking along the edges if you don't have the time or patience second i have always feed mine as much as they want as young dragons never any problems also something that many people on the forums don't seem to think about "right along with news paper" is to HELP prevent impactions you can finely cut some strawberrys and mix in with their greens every 2 to 3 days never heard of anyone doing that that ever lost one to impaction much like in humans and birds soft tangy fruits stimulate the bowels thus reducing the risks of impactions in smaller dragons and other omnivorous lizards as far as 2 in the same tank? untill you can sex them it would be good to simply give them as many choice basking spots and let them deal with it just make sure they are both feeding the same or you WILL end up with a pig of a dragon and a runt so separate them at feeding time at least with the "crunchys" IE: crickets,meal worms and other insects follow that and you will have a happy well fed lizard will like you much better than 1 that has a lesser feeding amount i have heard from many people "don't let them eat what they want they will bust their guts over eating" like they can't regulate how much they eat come on folks these are desert lizards that have a chance in the wilds to eat as much as they can at a time with out busting a gut i mean come on they are not dogs people ! lol

 

[sylverbullit]

I feed mine superworms and fruit with some veggies. He gets fed about 4 worms every 2-3 days, that's about all he will eat. He seems to be happy. I've had him for about 7 years and he's doing great.

 

[Cjacques]

First things first. Sand causes impaction. No ifs ands or buts. It wont cause it 100% of the time but any percent is too much. I dont like to take chances with my reptiles. Calci-sand and play sand are all square when looked at under a microscope. As the reptile ingests food or what have you small bits of sand get ingested as well. Over time they build up. Its like playing tetris inside of you beloved pet. The Key word here is over time. Impaction is usually slow to rear its head and most pet owners do not have an autopsy done when the reptile "mysteriously" dies.
Secondly mist those babies down twice a day until they lick their lips. Baby bearded dragons often do not drink from standing water well.
Also I would not give them more then 2-3 crickets a day each. Overfeeding baby beardeds often leads to paralasyse (spelling?). Monitor their intake and outtake daily. And baby beardies do like their salad. Rarely do even hatchlings turn it down.
I would suggest Bed-a beast or some other co-co bedding at this point or a wood chip that is large enough to not be eaten.

Enjoy them!

 

[Austin S.]

Thank you for your input guys. Well I've had them a little over one week now. Both have grown about .25" already. They are being kept in a 30 gal. long with paper towels in the bottom, but not stacked so the crickets can hide. They are doing very well and eating a lot. The smaller one loves his/her salad, I've gotten to the point where I can hand feed pieces of it to him/her. I have yet to see the bigger one eat greens. He/she may be when the lights go out, but when were awake and even if I try tong/hand feeding him salad, he refuses. But he loves his crickets and mealworms. Maybe I just havent found his fav. green yet. Any suggestions? I spray them down one-two times a day as well.