My first reptile ever!

[fishwithoutabik]

I just got this little guy today, I am so in love with him!!! I did also have to join beardeddragon.org so I can start absorbing all the necessary info beyond the basics. He doesn't eve have a name yet, but I must say, I lurv his little personality!

 

[clearlysaid]

He's gorgeous! I guess I didn't realize they could come in other colors than, like, tan. haha... Will the orange markings stay w/ him for life?

I love beardies. I can't have any reptiles per my lease, though.

 

[Beardo]

Nice Beardie.....you're going to want to make some adjustments to his set-up though in my opinion.

1. Get rid of the sand. Small Beardies especially are susceptible to impaction from loose substrates.

2. You'll definitely need to supply some sort of UVB lighting to ensure he/she gets the proper calcium metabolism and avoid the ever-present danger of metabolic bone disease.

 

[fishwithoutabik]

Yeah he's red orange I think. I was going to buy a common colored one (I dunno what its called) from a breeder here. Lucked out when I was looking for housing and found a boy who bought this guy from the same breeder 2 mos ago and payed more for a colorful one. apparently he wasn't quite prepared for the level of commitment so he was looking to rehome the little guy, and I got very lucky in the deal Er... my sons got lucky (ok, so I used their birthday as an excuse to get a new critter) Personally I didn't know there were different looking ones either lol

 

[fishwithoutabik]

Nice Beardie.....you're going to want to make some adjustments to his set-up though in my opinion.

1. Get rid of the sand. Small Beardies especially are susceptible to impaction from loose substrates.

2. You'll definitely need to supply some sort of UVB lighting to ensure he/she gets the proper calcium metabolism and avoid the ever-present danger of metabolic bone disease.

There is UV lighting inside the house, it's just not visible in that picture.
The sand came inside it, but I can take it out tomorrow if it's a bad thing to have. I did notice some other enclosures had tiles at the bottom. Do you have a suggestion other than that for the bottom?

 

[scolex]

Congrats and welcome to a new addiction! That is a very nice dragon you got! :clap:

 

[Beardo]

I would just use newspaper or paper towels as a substrate....its safe, cheap and easy to clean.

As far as the lighting situation goes, unless you have the most powerful flourescent lights in existance, they aren't going to reach from your ceiling to the lizard inside its cage. Even the most powerful reptile lights only have a maximum reach of 16" at most.

At the very least, make sure you supplment 2x a week with calcium/vitamin powder on its food.

 

[ScorpionFanatic]

I've had mine for 3 years on the crushed walnut and had no problems, but newspaper is also great, he started on that. mind you mine is bigger but very pretty.

 

[Choobaine]

very nice! that's a fire blood eh?

I have a coralxfire. still trying to get rid of the darned thing

I wont bother going into care details, as beardeddragon.org will tell you EVERYTHING and more, heh
it's a nice colour dragon, he's probably only gonna look better with time, they tend to get more and more vivid after a while, he'll look best just after a shed. that's the fun of dragons

 

[fishwithoutabik]

I would just use newspaper or paper towels as a substrate....its safe, cheap and easy to clean.

As far as the lighting situation goes, unless you have the most powerful flourescent lights in existance, they aren't going to reach from your ceiling to the lizard inside its cage. Even the most powerful reptile lights only have a maximum reach of 16" at most.

At the very least, make sure you supplment 2x a week with calcium/vitamin powder on its food.

Sorry, I meant in his house, lol. It is mounted to the top of the back wall, it's just not visible in the picture.

 

[mattnsariah]

I think your little beardie is a cutie! Do you know if it's a boy or a girl yet? I have 2 dragons and they are wonderful!! My little dragons when i got them where the size of my pinky. Both of them showed signs of stress every time i put them on paper towls or newspapers! My dragons and not all but mine liked the sand more so than anything. They did not have any problems on it.......i made sure the sand was calcium mortified sand, and made sure i give them plunty of calcium on their gutloaded crickets! They are older now and have had no health issues and growing quite well..........

I wish you luck in your (or your sons) dragon experience. Dragons come in all types and colors! i have on that changes depending on the heat of his body....when in the sun or higher heat he turns brown, black, and has orange stripes down the body and head......when colder he gets more greyish color!

 

[Mushroom Spore]

i made sure the sand was calcium mortified sand

What's this? :?

 

[clearlysaid]

I'm guessing that is supposed to be "fortified." :}

 

[Mushroom Spore]

I'm guessing that is supposed to be "fortified." :}

Oh, dur. I'm slow today.

mattnsariah, using calcisand isn't something to be proud of, or to "make sure" you do. You CAN use it, I guess, but it's killed more than a few reptiles. The calcium just means they want to eat it even more, and it's not digestible or whatever the packaging tends to claim.

 

[~Abyss~]

I love my Bd's I joined Bd.org too a while back. Mine looks just like yours with the marking but red rather than yellow. Got him at a little smaller than what your looks like.

 

[Beardo]

I think your little beardie is a cutie! Do you know if it's a boy or a girl yet? I have 2 dragons and they are wonderful!! My little dragons when i got them where the size of my pinky. Both of them showed signs of stress every time i put them on paper towls or newspapers! My dragons and not all but mine liked the sand more so than anything. They did not have any problems on it.......i made sure the sand was calcium mortified sand, and made sure i give them plunty of calcium on their gutloaded crickets! They are older now and have had no health issues and growing quite well..........

I wish you luck in your (or your sons) dragon experience. Dragons come in all types and colors! i have on that changes depending on the heat of his body....when in the sun or higher heat he turns brown, black, and has orange stripes down the body and head......when colder he gets more greyish color! View attachment 71087

No offense, but NObody who posts a picture of an animal in the condition the above Dragon is in should be giving out care advice.

The above dragon is showing a couple of signifigant signs of MBD (sunken spine, uneven jawbones)....just because your animal isn't dead doesn't mean it is thriving.

Calcium sand is garbage. It is more harmful than regular playsand because it is NOT digestible and the granules are larger and more jagged.

Your Beardie is in need of TLC. Stop giving advice that may put other animals in jeopardy and get yours the care it needs. The internet is a massive resource and there is no excuse for ignorance these days, espeically with something as commonly kept as a Bearded Dragon.

 

[mattnsariah]

Oh, dur. I'm slow today.

mattnsariah, using calcisand isn't something to be proud of, or to "make sure" you do. You CAN use it, I guess, but it's killed more than a few reptiles. The calcium just means they want to eat it even more, and it's not digestible or whatever the packaging tends to claim.

I am not here to tell you different. I just said i love the calcium sand...and yes i meant fortified not mortified!! lol And no..............my BD does not eat the sand! Nor does he try to! nor any of the 10 dragons that i have had in my care! I love my pinkelton! The sand is more of a natural substrate for them than the use of paper towls. Every breeder and expo and pet stores that i have seen and known use this also. My opinion that is all!

 

[Mushroom Spore]

The sand is more of a natural substrate for them than the use of paper towls.

I'm not sure it's natural - as far as I know, they don't live on sand in the wild. Wikipedia says "semi-arid to and arid woodlands and rocky desert regions." And not all deserts are actually sand, despite popular perception...only maybe 20% of Earth's deserts are like that.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert#Desert_features

(Also "every pet store I've seen uses this" isn't a good argument, pet stores are kinda infamous for bad care and complete ignorance and killing the very animals they're trying to sell. Just for future reference. )

/nitpick

 

[Beardo]

HAHHAHAHAHAHAHA.......pet store......HAHAHAHAHAHA.

Sorry. LMAO