beginner tips?

[bearded dragon]

i took my nephews to the zoo last month and we passed by the reptile section of the place. then i saw the variety of lizards they had. my nephews, one is seven and the other is six, wanted me to get them one... which of course, i thought better not to do. but to be honest, i wanted one for my self... so i asked the keeper which one's are legal to own as pets... he named me few as well as suggested a type of lizard which is suitable for beginners.

but i really want to get a bearded dragon... i think it has something to do with how they raise their legs.... anyway, i've started researching on them. i don't want to own one without knowing how to raise one...

so i'm just wondering if you guys could give me some tips or reminders on owning a bearded dragon.... is it even okay for me to own one as a first time lizard owner?...


thanks...

[Lizze]

I could help you out am a expert on bearded dragons! I have a 5 month bearded dragon. frist how old is your bearded dragon? well you do need the right typ of cage if its to small and your bearded dragon is really big it wont grow/shed. if your bearded dragon is small and you have a huge cage it will die. it needs the right size. i think a 50 gallon tank would be good for big bearded dragons. also i would say 30-40 gallon tank would be good for mediem size bearded dragons. Do you feed your bearded dragon lettice? If you feed you bearded dragon lettice dont feed it ice berg lettice or any thig else that looks like lettice. you could only feed them romain lettice. if you feed your bearded dragon any of those things that look like lettice your bearded dragon will die. theres lots of food you can give. banana squash, snow peas,sweet patato,rassbarries, strawbarries,dandelion greens,etc. do not feed your bearded dragon spinach or broccole it can be harmful.

[fubar13]

hello, its good to see someone trying to find info BEFORE they buy the new pet. Kudos to you. I currently have two bearded dragons and they are a joy. Whenever I have questions I go to this forum http://bearded-dragons.com/boards/index.php ... There is tons of info and even breeders there that will help you. I didnt have to join the forum or ask any questions, I just looked at previous posts and learned everything I needed to know. Hope this helps

[Sherri]

I am also doing some research trying to decide on a Reptile Species. Personally I'm leaning towards a Ball Python or the Bearded Dragon.

On thing i have read is that their diet can be sort of expensive. They need to eat salade(lettuce) along with the the other requirements which can get expensive. Just make sure you can get these without it being a burden on you're wallet.

I should also reccomend visiting youtube.com. There area lot of videos on reptiles and how to take care and manage them.

Happy Bearding :)

[Sara]

Bearded Dragons are very easy to take care of, being an owner 3 adult bearded dragons and a 4th bearded dragon that is only about 8 months old, and she only has 3 legs. All bearded dragons really need is heat, food, water, and sunlight. You ould need to get at least a 20-30 gallon tank for one bearded dragon so they way they could run around the tank and be happy. Also bearded dragons like to climb on sticks and move up towards the heat lamp. It is also proven that bearded dragons live longer, are healther, and grow bigger when they have a branch to climb on. All lizards need sunlight... You can either get a UV light for you lizard which you would need to keep on all day, or you could put them outside on a warm sunny and let them sit in the sunlight. If you do this do not leave bearded dragonsin a glass tank because the glass could over heat the lizard and could kill it. I recomend that if you do this, is that you buy a rabbit cage, it doesnt have to be a fancy big one it could just be an old $5 you get from a gradge sale. I would always reccomend putting your lizard in real sunlight virses fake sunlight (UV light) Because 9 hours under a UV light is the same as only 30 min. is good old fasion sin light.

Bearded Dragons eat all typs of food, they can eat any raw fruit or vegitble, that is safe for a human to eat. And bearded dragons alwaysneed crickets every week, and the accional mealworms. Do not use fake food from the pet store.

Bearded dragons always need some form of heat.

[Raymond Swanland]

There is so much information I can give you I have no idea where to start. I'm sure you'll get most of what you need researching "care sheets" for bearded dragons. And I don't know what the person at the zoo told you but beardies and leopard geckos are the two favorite choices for new reptile owners. Good thing you decided to research. Lets see, I can tell you beardies need uvb and a heat lamp. Unless you buy an expensive bulb like mercury vapor bulbs since those give off heat and light the same time. There are other bulbs out there but my preference are Zillas desert series 50 tubes. I really like those for my beardie. Don't get compacts in any light, I wouldn't recommend it. Also, let me explain how they need the fluorescent lighting so that they can process calcium. This is so that they don't get a humans equivalent of osteoporosis. Apart from having the uv light, you also need to provide calcium and d3. Too much is bad so you can sprinkle calcium on its crickets and give d3 once every week.
Make sure that you don't cramp your beardie. Depending on the size, if he's small then a 50 gallon tank will do. If he's large a 75 gallon tank. What else? Oh don't change things around too often because this will stress your beardie. And read up on impaction (the bedding in the tank being eaten and getting stuck in beardies). Many people are for and against many types but honestly its up to know. I know people that have tried all kinds and nothing has happened to them.
Oh and the heating for a beardie should be around 100-120. Probably mid like 110 is good.
I'm sure theres more I could say but good luck researching!

[Phillip Wood]

I don't know what more to tell you. Lots has been said already. But I'm curious are those zilla 50s the new ones? Because I tried some for my beardies and uro and was pleasantly surprised they worked as great as others like the zooMed and MVBs.

This is one of the key important things in beardie keeping: UVB, substrate. They a cause the most health issues.

[Katrina]

Here's a good website, and there's a good Yahoo Group at http://www.biology.lsa.umich.edu/research/labs/ktosney/file/BDcare....
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/pogona/

I'd say a 55 gallon tank is the smallest you'd want for a full-grown dragon. They eat a lot of small crickets when younger, and gradually switch to more produce as they age. My basking spot was up to 100F, and the cool end got down to 75F. I kept a 100 watt Ceramic Heat Emitter on 24/7, and a regular 75 watt household light and a UVB light (Reptisun 5.0) on for 14 hours a day. My Foster lived to be 8 yrs, which is a bit on the short end of the life expectancy. I was basically making a small salad for her every day, since they get most of their water from foods, and giving insects 2-3 times a week when she was an adult. Lots of various dark leafy greens, grated sweet potato and winter squashes, green beans, summer squashes, and fruit, topped with Rep-Cal supplimental calcium with Vitamin D. Basically the same diet for iguanas as listed at www.anapsid.org, and add insects to that (iguanas can't have animal protein). You'll see a lot about avoid this and avoid that food, but so long as you have variety, and don't feed too much of one type of veggie, you should be good. Thinks like broccolli and califlower, spinach and cabbage, should be a rare addition to the diet, not a regular item, due to various calcium binders or the likelihood of causing gout if fed in large amounts.

There are dragons for adoption at www.petfinder.com

[jon s borden]

hay im john and a bearded dragon is the best bigginer out thear i have a 5 year old and i got him about 4 weeks after he hached so iv raisd him from a baby the bigest tip i give to all bearde owners is do not use sand thay will die i use co-co beding his hole life and he is great