ArDragonTamer
Bearded Dragon Egg
- Messages
- 11
Hello everyone! I am a new dragon owner. I adopted a 17 month old male bearded dragon from a colleague (we work in animal medicine – I only work with mammals so dragons are new to me!). He came with everything. Here’s my set up breakdown:
4x2x2 Zen Habitat Enclosure
UVA / Basking Bulb – Not sure of wattage. I have a combo UVA/UVB 100 watt basking bulb on the way, though.
UVB Tube Light – T10 I believe? Located from basking spot to the center of the enclosure.
He currently has two hides – one of the warm side and one on the cool. He also has a climbing rock in the middle.
He is currently substrate-less as that is what his previous owner did. I have non-adhesive shelf liners on the way to line his tank and will set them up this weekend. As I’m new, I don’t feel comfortable using loose substrate.
The basking spot is on the left side of his tank and it stays between 91-95 degrees. The cool side stays 71 degrees. The warm side humidity stays at 19% and the cool at 30%.
I’m on the fourth day of ownership. He is obviously stressed, indicated by his stress lines. I know this is normal for a new environment. I’ve set his tank up exactly as his old owner had it in the hopes that would help some. My biggest worry is of course eating/drinking/general health. I’ve seen him eat one worm so far and pick at his salad (I give him a mix of turnip greens, bok choy, mustard greens, squash, and bell peppers each morning – top dressed with vitamin and calcium powder) and have been offering crickets but he’s not interested. I have dubias on the way. He’s so far had one normal in appearance bowel movement.
This morning he was asleep on the cool side and when I went home to check on him, he was still there. Of course he may have gone back and forth that day, I can’t say for sure. I went to check his skin and it seemed slightly wrinkled on his back so now I’m concerned about possible dehydration. I dripped some water onto his mouth/face area and he has a water bowl available.
My questions:
Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated.
4x2x2 Zen Habitat Enclosure
UVA / Basking Bulb – Not sure of wattage. I have a combo UVA/UVB 100 watt basking bulb on the way, though.
UVB Tube Light – T10 I believe? Located from basking spot to the center of the enclosure.
He currently has two hides – one of the warm side and one on the cool. He also has a climbing rock in the middle.
He is currently substrate-less as that is what his previous owner did. I have non-adhesive shelf liners on the way to line his tank and will set them up this weekend. As I’m new, I don’t feel comfortable using loose substrate.
The basking spot is on the left side of his tank and it stays between 91-95 degrees. The cool side stays 71 degrees. The warm side humidity stays at 19% and the cool at 30%.
I’m on the fourth day of ownership. He is obviously stressed, indicated by his stress lines. I know this is normal for a new environment. I’ve set his tank up exactly as his old owner had it in the hopes that would help some. My biggest worry is of course eating/drinking/general health. I’ve seen him eat one worm so far and pick at his salad (I give him a mix of turnip greens, bok choy, mustard greens, squash, and bell peppers each morning – top dressed with vitamin and calcium powder) and have been offering crickets but he’s not interested. I have dubias on the way. He’s so far had one normal in appearance bowel movement.
This morning he was asleep on the cool side and when I went home to check on him, he was still there. Of course he may have gone back and forth that day, I can’t say for sure. I went to check his skin and it seemed slightly wrinkled on his back so now I’m concerned about possible dehydration. I dripped some water onto his mouth/face area and he has a water bowl available.
My questions:
- I have four cats. They’re largely uninterested in him, but I do sometimes catch them watching him from outside his enclosure. Is it advisable to cover the front see-through part of his tank with a sheet while I’m not home? I know it’s something I do at work to reduce stress on animals, but wasn’t sure if that would affect his temp/humidity levels.
- How concerned should I be that he isn’t interested in eating bugs at this time? When I do introduce the roaches do I just let them go in his enclosure and let him hunt or do I put him in a smaller space so it is easier for him?
- Are the temperatures on each side ok? I’ve read so much about the temps necessary, and many suggest that 90 on the warm side is totally fine and normal, but others say you want at least 95 – 100.
- How long should I leave him be before I interact more closely with him? Currently I don’t pick him up or allow my children to pick him up. We will reach in once a day and stroke him and offer bugs, but that’s it. I know eventually I will need to thoroughly clean his tank and will have to move him for various other reasons.
Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated.