Scared dragon

[dragonscales]

Hello, whenever I reach out towards my dragon she goes into defensive mode. Either she stands her ground and hisses or flees in fear. See video below. I get the most reactions when feeding her. I feed her crickets from a plastic bag and as soon as she sees the baggie with the crickets she rushes towards it in a feeding frenzy. I also feed her different types of worms by hand which is the only time she isn’t fearful. What should I do to make her more comfortable to the point where I can handle her. Thanks much

 

[HoomanSlave]

Lay your hands in the cage with some of her favorite worms/fruits/veggies on them, and wait for her to come eat from your hands. Repeat this every day, and she'll get used to your hands being there and associate them with positive things.

 

[dragonscales]

Lay your hands in the cage with some of her favorite worms/fruits/veggies on them, and wait for her to come eat from your hands. Repeat this every day, and she'll get used to your hands being there and associate them with positive things.

Hey HoomanSlave, thanks for the advise. I just fed my dragon some Phoenix worms by hand, palms up, and she instantly climbed into my hand to feed.thanks.

 

[Julee1971]

Hello, whenever I reach out towards my dragon she goes into defensive mode. Either she stands her ground and hisses or flees in fear. See video below. I get the most reactions when feeding her. I feed her crickets from a plastic bag and as soon as she sees the baggie with the crickets she rushes towards it in a feeding frenzy. I also feed her different types of worms by hand which is the only time she isn’t fearful. What should I do to make her more comfortable to the point where I can handle her. Thanks much

Hello, whenever I reach out towards my dragon she goes into defensive mode. Either she stands her ground and hisses or flees in fear. See video below. I get the most reactions when feeding her. I feed her crickets from a plastic bag and as soon as she sees the baggie with the crickets she rushes towards it in a feeding frenzy. I also feed her different types of worms by hand which is the only time she isn’t fearful. What should I do to make her more comfortable to the point where I can handle her. Thanks much

First of all and foremost babies at that age u should never ever feed meal worms or Phoenix worms etc; they are horrible for their tummy and it impacts them. Only dubia roaches and crickets and u should feed till she stops eating. Should be feeding 3-4 times a day at the same times everyday. U need to dust the crickets once per day every other day with REPCAlL calcium powder amd herptivite and feed out of a big ziplock bag 20-25 crickets at a time also a fresh plate of veggies and greens twice per day; start doing it now or as she gets older she will never ever eat them. Fresh plate twice a day of 2-4 of the following; the best and only recommended ones are: mustard greens, collard greens, endives, yellow squash, butternut squash and snap peas; cut them up very small the size of anything u feed should never be bigger than the space between her two eyes. Place this on the cold side of the tank not the hot or they get wilted. Also remove the sand or coconut substrate they ingest it and won’t poop daily. Order a reptile matt from ZenHabitats for $34 or use white terry cloth towels also it’s way to loud in the house they can’t stand loud noise or violence yelling action movies etc. U gotta tone it down or watch happy things. I don’t see a basking platform or the bulbs. U need a Zoomed CLEAR basking bulb; never ever use a colored or coiled bulb it burns and damages their eyes. And u need the Reptisun 10.0 T5 for UVB to absorb vitamin D & to breakdown the calcium otheriwse he will get MBone Disease, will be unable to eat or walk & eventually be on his death bed. At about 5mnths or so upgrade to a 40 gallon tank or a 120 gallon as an adult. Buy one where the doors open in the front. Beardies hate to be approached from above and u can clean the poop instantly & easily and feed easily. Of poop is not cleaned up instantly; he will lick/ingest it & get it all over and get a bacteria called Coccidia. So be careful to constantly keep it clean. U can introduce the veggies & greens buy dicing it up and placing on your hand and he will eat from yoru hand to get him used to you then place the plate in his enclosure slowly he will learn to love you.

 

[dragonscales]

First of all and foremost babies at that age u should never ever feed meal worms or Phoenix worms etc; they are horrible for their tummy and it impacts them. Only dubia roaches and crickets and u should feed till she stops eating. Should be feeding 3-4 times a day at the same times everyday. U need to dust the crickets once per day every other day with REPCAlL calcium powder amd herptivite and feed out of a big ziplock bag 20-25 crickets at a time also a fresh plate of veggies and greens twice per day; start doing it now or as she gets older she will never ever eat them. Fresh plate twice a day of 2-4 of the following; the best and only recommended ones are: mustard greens, collard greens, endives, yellow squash, butternut squash and snap peas; cut them up very small the size of anything u feed should never be bigger than the space between her two eyes. Place this on the cold side of the tank not the hot or they get wilted. Also remove the sand or coconut substrate they ingest it and won’t poop daily. Order a reptile matt from ZenHabitats for $34 or use white terry cloth towels also it’s way to loud in the house they can’t stand loud noise or violence yelling action movies etc. U gotta tone it down or watch happy things. I don’t see a basking platform or the bulbs. U need a Zoomed CLEAR basking bulb; never ever use a colored or coiled bulb it burns and damages their eyes. And u need the Reptisun 10.0 T5 for UVB to absorb vitamin D & to breakdown the calcium otheriwse he will get MBone Disease, will be unable to eat or walk & eventually be on his death bed. At about 5mnths or so upgrade to a 40 gallon tank or a 120 gallon as an adult. Buy one where the doors open in the front. Beardies hate to be approached from above and u can clean the poop instantly & easily and feed easily. Of poop is not cleaned up instantly; he will lick/ingest it & get it all over and get a bacteria called Coccidia. So be careful to constantly keep it clean. U can introduce the veggies & greens buy dicing it up and placing on your hand and he will eat from yoru hand to get him used to you then place the plate in his enclosure slowly he will learn to love you.

Hello. My dragon, Kylo, is about 10 inches from head to tail. When I first got her she was 6 inches in length.Not sure how that translates to age. At what point should I feed her Phoenix worms? I‘m seeing two different opinions on what age to feed her worms. What about silk worms? Where I live my landlord won’t allow me to keep roaches. I usually feed her 20 crickets twice a day with Miner-all d-3. And four silkworms a day. Plus 3 giant meal worms once a day. In addition I feed her Timberline reptile cactus. She poops usually 1-2x per day. She’s not at risk of ingesting poop as I monitor her constantly. I actually have the proper uvb and basking bulbs. And a hammock underneath the basking bulb which is where she spends most of her day. Here’s a pic of my terrarium below if needed.thanks much

 

[Impawsible_Squad]

Never feed mealworms to a dragon that small! Pheonix worms or dubia or discoid roaches are the best choices that usually can be easily fed to all ages of dragons.

 

[Sadie]

What substrate do you have her on? Please NO more meal worms they will impact her and if your giving the giant ones please STOP -- the phoenix worms are good to feed for babies they are also called BSFL and are calcium enriched so do not dust them -- they make good salad toppers -- they are also a staple feeder -- so you can feed as many as you want -- silk worms are also a great staple feeder --- you can get them on line if you need websites please ask and I will post some for you

 

[HoomanSlave]

First of all and foremost babies at that age u should never ever feed meal worms or Phoenix worms etc; they are horrible for their tummy and it impacts them. Only dubia roaches and crickets and u should feed till she stops eating. Should be feeding 3-4 times a day at the same times everyday. U need to dust the crickets once per day every other day with REPCAlL calcium powder amd herptivite and feed out of a big ziplock bag 20-25 crickets at a time also a fresh plate of veggies and greens twice per day; start doing it now or as she gets older she will never ever eat them. Fresh plate twice a day of 2-4 of the following; the best and only recommended ones are: mustard greens, collard greens, endives, yellow squash, butternut squash and snap peas; cut them up very small the size of anything u feed should never be bigger than the space between her two eyes. Place this on the cold side of the tank not the hot or they get wilted. Also remove the sand or coconut substrate they ingest it and won’t poop daily. Order a reptile matt from ZenHabitats for $34 or use white terry cloth towels also it’s way to loud in the house they can’t stand loud noise or violence yelling action movies etc. U gotta tone it down or watch happy things. I don’t see a basking platform or the bulbs. U need a Zoomed CLEAR basking bulb; never ever use a colored or coiled bulb it burns and damages their eyes. And u need the Reptisun 10.0 T5 for UVB to absorb vitamin D & to breakdown the calcium otheriwse he will get MBone Disease, will be unable to eat or walk & eventually be on his death bed. At about 5mnths or so upgrade to a 40 gallon tank or a 120 gallon as an adult. Buy one where the doors open in the front. Beardies hate to be approached from above and u can clean the poop instantly & easily and feed easily. Of poop is not cleaned up instantly; he will lick/ingest it & get it all over and get a bacteria called Coccidia. So be careful to constantly keep it clean. U can introduce the veggies & greens buy dicing it up and placing on your hand and he will eat from yoru hand to get him used to you then place the plate in his enclosure slowly he will learn to love you.

Phoenix worms are an ideal feeder, the only issues are that they're small and expensive. They make wonderful additions to diets since they're so high in calcium. Pretty much any feeder worm is fine in moderation and adds variety. Even one or two very small mealworms one or twice a month can be a good treat for an adult, though superworms or waxworms make a better choice.

 

[dragonscales]

What substrate do you have her on? Please NO more meal worms they will impact her and if your giving the giant ones please STOP -- the phoenix worms are good to feed for babies they are also called BSFL and are calcium enriched so do not dust them -- they make good salad toppers -- they are also a staple feeder -- so you can feed as many as you want -- silk worms are also a great staple feeder --- you can get them on line if you need websites please ask and I will post some for you

Concerning substrate a member on the forums guided me to build a bio tank. It’s one part Coco fiber, one part sand and 8 quarts of sphagnum moss. Just making sure: is it okay to feed my dragon Phoenix worms? And any opinions on This site. Thanks.

 

[Sadie]

Concerning substrate a member on the forums guided me to build a bio tank. It’s one part Coco fiber, one part sand and 8 quarts of sphagnum moss. Just making sure: is it okay to feed my dragon Phoenix worms? And any opinions on This site. Thanks.

Yes it is good

 

[Julee1971]

Hey HoomanSlave, thanks for the advise. I just fed my dragon some Phoenix worms by hand, palms up, and she instantly climbed into my hand to feed.thanks

Hello. My dragon, Kylo, is about 10 inches from head to tail. When I first got her she was 6 inches in length.Not sure how that translates to age. At what point should I feed her Phoenix worms? I‘m seeing two different opinions on what age to feed her worms. What about silk worms? Where I live my landlord won’t allow me to keep roaches. I usually feed her 20 crickets twice a day with Miner-all d-3. And four silkworms a day. Plus 3 giant meal worms once a day. In addition I feed her Timberline reptile cactus. She poops usually 1-2x per day. She’s not at risk of ingesting poop as I monitor her constantly. I actually have the proper uvb and basking bulbs. And a hammock underneath the basking bulb which is where she spends most of her day. Here’s a pic of my terrarium below if needed.thanks much
View attachment 24165

Hello. My dragon, Kylo, is about 10 inches from head to tail. When I first got her she was 6 inches in length.Not sure how that translates to age. At what point should I feed her Phoenix worms? I‘m seeing two different opinions on what age to feed her worms. What about silk worms? Where I live my landlord won’t allow me to keep roaches. I usually feed her 20 crickets twice a day with Miner-all d-3. And four silkworms a day. Plus 3 giant meal worms once a day. In addition I feed her Timberline reptile cactus. She poops usually 1-2x per day. She’s not at risk of ingesting poop as I monitor her constantly. I actually have the proper uvb and basking bulbs. And a hammock underneath the basking bulb which is where she spends most of her day. Here’s a pic of my terrarium below if needed.thanks much
View attachment 24165

The best works are super & Hornworms but they are high in fat. Supers u can feed at about 1.5 yrs old; never sooner the exoskeleton is very harsh on their tummy. Hornworms as an adult also.Dubia roaches DONOT fly or jump they are small and come in a container so place them in a slippery dish and feed it to him u can add water too & crickets are the beat also that’s it. If he’s under 8mnths u should feed 3times/day & inder 3mnths old 4-5 times a day of the proteins. Also a plate of greens and veggies is a must; the best and everyday ones are: mustard greens, collard greens, endives, yellow squash, butternut squash & snap peas. Never ever do spinach it binds to calcium and carrots are high in vitamin A which is toxic & kale is high in Oxalates. Cut them up so the size is not bigger than the space between his eyes!! Do not do Cactus that’s not a Staple green or veggie!! And u can’t feed a dragon one veggie for life!!

 

[HoomanSlave]

Concerning substrate a member on the forums guided me to build a bio tank. It’s one part Coco fiber, one part sand and 8 quarts of sphagnum moss. Just making sure: is it okay to feed my dragon Phoenix worms? And any opinions on This site. Thanks.

Reptile.Guide is a pretty good site. Since their articles are from 2019 or later the information is up to date, and their information is accurate. I personally would fact check anything that seems odd, though.

 

[dragonscales]

The best works are super & Hornworms but they are high in fat. Supers u can feed at about 1.5 yrs old; never sooner the exoskeleton is very harsh on their tummy. Hornworms as an adult also.Dubia roaches DONOT fly or jump they are small and come in a container so place them in a slippery dish and feed it to him u can add water too & crickets are the beat also that’s it. If he’s under 8mnths u should feed 3times/day & inder 3mnths old 4-5 times a day of the proteins. Also a plate of greens and veggies is a must; the best and everyday ones are: mustard greens, collard greens, endives, yellow squash, butternut squash & snap peas. Never ever do spinach it binds to calcium and carrots are high in vitamin A which is toxic & kale is high in Oxalates. Cut them up so the size is not bigger than the space between his eyes!! Do not do Cactus that’s not a Staple green or veggie!! And u can’t feed a dragon one veggie for life!!

Is THIS cactus a good choice? I’ve been feeding them to my beardie and she wolfs them up. I also mix THIS with the cactus as well.thanks

 

[dragonscales]

Never feed mealworms to a dragon that small! Pheonix worms or dubia or discoid roaches are the best choices that usually can be easily fed to all ages of dragons.

Hello, at what size is it safe for a dragon to eat mealworms

 

[HoomanSlave]

It is safe to feed a juvenile or (preferably) adult bearded dragon mealworms. The mealworms should not be larger than the space between their eyes. However, most keepers avoid mealworms altogether because of the high chitin and fat content compared to the low protein and nutrition. Superworms, waxworms, silkworms, and hornworms make better lizard treats. Mealworms are a recipe for obesity, impaction, and other issues.