newbie beardie questions

[Aunt J]

I've decided to get a couple of beardies, my first ones. I've been getting the tank ready, reading books, etc, and I think I'm about ready to get the dragons. I have a few questions I'm hoping someone can answer?

1. Recommended age? I think I'd like to raise one, but I'm nervous about getting one TOO young and fragile. Recommendations? I've seen pet stores selling 3 week olds and Internet sites that won't sell until they are at least 12 weeks old. I've seen sites selling "sexable juveniles." About how old is that?

2. Temperament? I'm looking for a pet, not a breeder, so temperament is most important to me. Does sex or morph or genetics make any difference in temperament, or is it all about handling? I'm particularly intersted in the German Giants, does anyone know anything about their temperament as compared to other beardies?

3. Keeping dragons in different tanks but the same room? I held an adult male at the pet store last week and he was fine until he saw the other tanks with dragons, and he tried to make a flying leap out of my arms into the glass of the tank, trying to get to another dragon. Both were males. The pet store told me that it was just that the dragon wanted to mate, and didnt' know the one behind glass was also male, and that his temperament was usually very docile ... does that sound right to people? I have two concerns about this -- the first is that the pet store guy is just trying to sell me a $300 dragon with a bad temperament, adn the second is, if the pet store guy is right, will I have trouble keeping two dragons in seperate tanks, in the same room? They wouldn't be able to see each other except when out of the tank, but I'd like to be able to take them out and handle them.

4. Lighting and feeding cycles? I've read that their day/night cycle should be 14 hours day/10 hours night. I've also read that you should feed young dragons at least 2x a day, possibly 3x a day, and that you can't start feeding until at least an hour into the day cycle and shouldn't feed later than 2 hours before the night cycle ... how do people with jobs do this?? I have timers for the lights, but I'm worried about the feeding. I don't want to get them if my schedule will hurt them, how do people work around?

5. Average price? I know this totally varies by age and morph, but can I get some advice on price? The local pet store sells normal babies at $100, normal adults at $250 and pastels/hypos at $450. I'm not looking for a breeder, I'm looking for a pet, is this about normal for a pet? I've seen Internet prices for much lower, but I have a friend who paid only $35 for 3young dragons at a reptile store which he gave as gifts to 3 different people, and all three grew up mean -- hissing and biting if anyone gets near them. My friend thougth it's because he bought "bargain" dragons. So I'm afraid of paying too much AND too little ... thoughts?

Thanks for any advice you can give!

 

[Stitch]

1. Since these will be your first BD I would say go with something that is at least 3 months old if not then try something older. As you have mentioned babies are more fragile then adults, so I would go with older.

2. I am not really a BD person but I do know that color morphs do not change behavior. Sex may change behavior but that should only be during breeding season. I would say go with a male. This way you will not have to deal with an egg laying female. Most lizards will lay eggs regardless of them being mated.

3. 99.9% of lizards are territorial and do not require a companion. If they are in the same room you must keep them in separate tanks and place a divider between them so they cannot see each other. This means you will not be able to take them out at the same time.

4. The reason for the time requirements fr feeding is so the BD can warm up to hunting temps and so that the food can be digested properly. I have a chameleon and his lights come on at 6AM. I get up at this time as well, well I take a shower get dressed and eat breakfast. I am a slow person in the morning so by the time I'm done all of that it's almost 7AM (more like 6:45). This will not harm anything. I suggest using a timer to control the lights, if you do that then you can make the lights come on a little earlier then normal. But I would say keep it reasonable like 30 minutes before the sun actually comes up. This way you aren't throwing his timing off by too much.

5. I don't know where you are located but I would try to look for a reptile expo/show near you. Prices are usually cheaper there. Not to mention I do not care for most pet stores. A lot of them have young kids working there that are just working for a pay check and don't actually know how to care for the animals. Look around for breeders that may be near you too. Price will not change it's behavior. How much you handle and he gains your trust will determine his personality. Handling all the time will only stress him, 5-10 minutes every other day should work just fine. Just remember the first 2 weeks or so he will be adjusting to his new home so try not to handle him at all in that time span.

My final piece of advice is start out with 1. Once you are accustomed to caring for one and you learn a little more about them, then get a second one if you still want to.

 

[NaughtyDawg]

Get one that is at least 7 - 10 inches. That would be at least 6 - 8 weeks old.

Beardies are very docile, I have had beardies for about 10yrs and never been bitten or nipped. They do have a personality of their own. I did have one male that was a little jumpy when hungry, but once fed he became very docile again.

Females can be kept in the same enclosure but not males. Males will fight and one will probably end up dead. If you are keeping 2 males they must be in separate enclosures and out of sight of each other.

Beardies need it to be hot. Young beardies need an area around 110-115 degrees as well as UVA and UVB lighting. The lights need to changed about every 6 mths as they loose their effectiveness.

I try to keep their lighting cycle about the same as it is outside. They get down to about 10hrs of light per day and go into brumation for up to 3 mths.

I usually feed them 1-2 hrs after the lights come on. These guys will eat a lot, usualy 50 to 100 feeding items a day (as adults) plus veggies. I always have fresh veggies available to eat as well as for hydration as these guys could trip over a water dish and not clue in. One male I have usualy swims in his dish every day.

Hope this helps.

 

[Aunt J]

Thank you very much!

If I have two, they will be in a seperate cages where they cannot see each other. My question is that, if I take them out seperately, will it agitate them if they can see the one that is still in the cage? That's what the guy at the pet store told me was the reason the one I was looking at was aggressive that day -- even though the other beardies were all behind glass, he wanted at them. And once he realized they were there, he got rather aggressive towards me, too. Not biting or anything, just hissing and puffing and trying to jump away, despite the five foot drop from my arms to the floor.

 

[Stitch]

Trust me I don't think the BD was being aggressive towards you, it was most likely towards the other BD's. But yes there is a chance that when you take one out they may become aggressive if they see each other. An easy fix for that is to get a piece of card board or what ever and place it infront of the tank when you are getting ready to take one out. This way the one in the tank will not be able to see what's going on outside the tank.

I have 8 geckos all in seperate tanks. I use dividers to keep them visually seperated. But when I have to take one out they all get to see him/her. No biggy since they are small.

 

[NaughtyDawg]

You can also put a curtain on the outside of the enclosure so they can't see the other males.

 

[LadyGecko]

I've decided to get a couple of beardies, my first ones. I've been getting the tank ready, reading books, etc, and I think I'm about ready to get the dragons. I have a few questions I'm hoping someone can answer?

1. Recommended age? I think I'd like to raise one, but I'm nervous about getting one TOO young and fragile. Recommendations? I've seen pet stores selling 3 week olds and Internet sites that won't sell until they are at least 12 weeks old. I've seen sites selling "sexable juveniles." About how old is that?

Most pet shops sell babies that are entirely too young/small IMO
I think that you would be more comfortable with a juvie that is 12 to 14 inches in length or at least 3 to 4 months of age

2. Temperament? I'm looking for a pet, not a breeder, so temperament is most important to me. Does sex or morph or genetics make any difference in temperament, or is it all about handling? I'm particularly untested in the German Giants, does anyone know anything about their temperament as compared to other beardies?

I have kept/raised and bred German Giants and i love them for their size
Their temperament's are usually laid back but not really any more so than any other line of beardie that has become accustomed to being handled

3. Keeping dragons in different tanks but the same room? I held an adult male at the pet store last week and he was fine until he saw the other tanks with dragons, and he tried to make a flying leap out of my arms into the glass of the tank, trying to get to another dragon. Both were males. The pet store told me that it was just that the dragon wanted to mate, and didn't' know the one behind glass was also male, and that his temperament was usually very docile ... does that sound right to people? I have two concerns about this -- the first is that the pet store guy is just trying to sell me a $300 dragon with a bad temperament, and the second is, if the pet store guy is right, will I have trouble keeping two dragons in separate tanks, in the same room? They wouldn't be able to see each other except when out of the tank, but I'd like to be able to take them out and handle them.

I have kept 10 tanks of dragons all in the same room and i have not had any major problems with aggression when I took them out of the tank
The males grew up in sight of each other and would often head bob-back and froth at each other but i have never experienced that type of behavior that you described in 10 plus years of keeping them

4. Lighting and feeding cycles? I've read that their day/night cycle should be 14 hours day/10 hours night. I've also read that you should feed young dragons at least 2x a day, possibly 3x a day, and that you can't start feeding until at least an hour into the day cycle and shouldn't feed later than 2 hours before the night cycle ... how do people with jobs do this?? I have timers for the lights, but I'm worried about the feeding. I don't want to get them if my schedule will hurt them, how do people work around?

Have the lights go on a hour before you get up and feed them before you go to work
Feed again when you return home from work and you can also leave a dish of meal worms on top of some greens/veggies in with them during the day while you are gone

5. Average price? I know this totally varies by age and morph, but can I get some advice on price? The local pet store sells normal babies at $100, normal adults at $250 and pastels/hypos at $450. I'm not looking for a breeder, I'm looking for a pet, is this about normal for a pet? I've seen Internet prices for much lower, but I have a friend who paid only $35 for Young dragons at a reptile store which he gave as gifts to 3 different people, and all three grew up mean -- hissing and biting if anyone gets near them. My friend thought it's because he bought "bargain" dragons. So I'm afraid of paying too much AND too little ... thoughts?

The last two normal colored babies that I bought at a show-I paid $20 each for
I also paid $150 shipped for a beautiful orange/red female and 85 plus shipping for a beautiful yellow orange male and both dragons were of considerable size
If the dragons that your friend bought were $200 each-they could have still had the same temperament

This is not typical beardie behavior regardless of what you pay for one
I do not handle my dragons very often because of arthritis issues with my hands and none of them are remotely aggressive toward me

Your best bet all the way around is to buy from a breeder-let him/her know that you are loking for pets (normal morphs of juvies will not be very expensive and way cheaper than the prices that the pet store is quoting you) either at a reptile show or have them shipped when the weather warms up
People that breed on a small scale will be more likely to handle their babies often and those babies will already be used to people and
beardies bought from a reputable breeder are generally in better health and a seasoned breeder will have a better idea of what sexes that you are buying than the average run of the mill pet store

Good Luck with finding your 2 new pets


Sandy

 

[Aunt J]

Thank you all very much!! On your advice I found a six month old and a 10 month old. Both from breeders close enough I can pick them up in person. (Hopefully next week!)

 

[LadyGecko]

Congrats !!
Have fun with your new babies



Sandy

 

[Stitch]

I'm sure you are already doing this, but remember to set the cage up first to get the proper temps. Then go get your BD's. :main_thumbsup:

 

[Aunt J]

Thanks, yes, I've told them I can't get the dragons until the tanks are set up. My MVBs are on back order, so I'm just waiting.

 

[Melody]

I have a male Sandfire which has his own tank. When the two girls (a Lemon-drop and a Sandfire/Lemon cross) were younger (and of different sizes), they each had their own tank. When they got to the same size, I put them together -- and they get along great. They pile on top of each other under the basking light! They never ever fight and seem to enjoy each other's company.

 

[Stitch]

They pile on top of each other under the basking light!

That can be a sign of dominance. As long as they both maintain their weight then there is no issue. But if one starts losing weight they would need to be seperated.

 

[trizzypballr]

I housed 3 females together in a nice large enclosure, they would all hang out together like that, lol they would even stack 3 high, never saw them fight, and then 1 day i see that 2 of thier tails had been bitten BADLY, they both lost nice chunks of tail, i woulnt house beardies together anymore

 

[Aunt J]

picked them up today! so excited! one 9-month male, and a 3 1/2 month old likely female. am trying very hard to leave them alone and let them adjust, but I keep peeking at them. they are lovely!

 

[Stitch]

Watching them is fine just don't try to hold them, yet.

 

[NaughtyDawg]

Watching them is fine just don't try to hold them, yet.

Why not?

 

[Stitch]

When you first buy and animal it gets stressed being in a new environmet. This can lead to them not eating and weakening of the immune system, which can lead to illness or death (worst case scenario). Some animals do fine with a new home but most of the time that's not the case.

It's advisable to give them about 1-2 weeks to get acclimated. After that period if the animal is eating and pooping fine, then you can start to handle them. Also during the first couple of weeks you should try to get a fecal sample to the vet to make sure there are no worms or parasites. Then do another fecal about 1 month later (after the 1st test), even if the first one was negative. It can take a few weeks for parasite/worms to show up.

 

[LadyGecko]

I would like to add that I think it also depends upon whether the animal was used to being handled on a regular basis by it's previous owners
If they are eating fine and seem not be stressed and actually seem to beg for attention (some beardies do) I would go ahead and pick them up and hold them and watch how they respond
Not being paid attention to in it's new home (if he/she is at the glass looking for you when you come into the room or near the tank) could also be stressful

I would just use common sense

Sandy