New Beardie

Tegublackandgold · Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2006 3:35 am Post subject: New Beardie

I just bought a lil tiny beardie from a local shop i juss wanted to know any tips or anything on them i know very little other than the basics i have him or her in a 20 gallon tank rite now 110 bask temp and about 85 90 at night i fed him or her a salad and a few lil crix that the store threw in well anyway i juss want to know all about them and not from the books or sites but from other owners thx

tyler

Teiidae · Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2006 7:38 am Post subject:

You can drop the night temps a little lower - I turn off the heat at night and keep mine at room temp "70"s - Other than that, they are pretty basic and low maintenance to care for...
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Nero557 · Posted: Wed Jun 28, 2006 10:53 am Post subject:

Yup, Teiidae's right, lower your night temps to low to mid 70's. I feed mine a mix of collard greens, mustard greens, kale, escarole, endive, yellow squash, garbonzo beans, raspberries, strawberries, mango, apple, papaya, pears, peaches, blueberries, bearded pellets, and then occasionally romaine, red leaf, green leaf. Also, crickets, mealworms/superworms (depending on size) wax worms, silk worms, pheonix worms, roaches. That is just a little sample of what you can feed them, there is so much. Some people keep them on sand, I don't because of impaction problems, you can do newspaper, papertowels, aspen, cypress mulch, whatever. They like to be misted, but the enclosure should never be damp. Basking temp of yours is fine 110-115 or so. Cool side like 80-85. They are great pets, really docile, very cool to watch IMO. if you have any specific questions, feel free to ask. -Art-
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jb · Honored Member Joined: Sep 01, 2005 Posts: 201

just to add to the potential pitfalls.....feed lots of small crickets, not just a few huge ones. rule of thumb is the cricket should not be longer than the space between the dragon's eyes-millions of 1/4" are better than a few 1". avoid feeding a lot of mealworms b/c sometimes all the shell (chitin) can obstruct their bowels. superworms are great for adult dragons if you dust with Calcium. You know about the UVB lighting and Calcium/D3 supplementing, i'm sure. Feed a pile of grated up veggies every day-even if they don't eat it- they tend to "hold out" for bugs if that's all they eat as youngsters. That's been my observation. I have one 4 year old that eats everything you put in front of him, i have another that is very finnicky about wanting silkworms and superworms only. i have to gutload the supers with collards or not feed the dragon for a day to make him really hungry. Beardies are awesome pets. Very tolerant of handling and don't run away if you let go of them. I'm always surprised that they survive in nature w/ this behavior....they are probably totally different if wild ??

Adelia · Posted: Thu Jun 29, 2006 8:21 am Post subject:

I've been wondering about beardies because I don't really know anything about them/ haven't researched them at all. Why do so many people have them as pets? What do they do? What makes them good pets?
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jb · Honored Member Joined: Sep 01, 2005 Posts: 201

They are great "pet" lizards. First, they only get to 22" total length normally. They can be housed in 65 gallon tanks as adults vs giant custom wooden enclosures full of dirt(monitors and tegus). They don't bite, they don't run away from you, the really almost don't mind being handled. Mine will sit and sunbath while i do lawn work. They are omnivorous and mainly vegetarian as adults (should be, i won't get into it). Other than the desert lighting and heating, they are very easy to set up. Also, they do some odd intraspecies behaviors like arm waving, headbobbing, etc that is interesting to watch. They are pretty easy to breed. Not much bad about them except that if you don't meticulously clean their cages, they are prone to coccidia and pinworm infections.

Johelian · Retired Mod Joined: Nov 22, 2004 Posts: 848

I absolutely adore beardies; dont get me wrong, I love my tegu as well, but in comparison a beardie is sooo laid back and mellow. I agree with everything jb has said; they are relatively low maintenance, and easy to care for (so long as you take the time to learn the basics properly, like UVB etc) My beardie can be handled by anyone, shows no aggression whatsoever (although shes scared of the hoover) and is generally just a lovely little creature. In my experience, I would definitely say they are one of the best "pet" lizards you can get - more tolerant of handling than leos and easier to care for than some more specialist species.
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