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We’ve been considering adding a reptile pet to our family to a little while now. We considered an iguana but concluded they arent the best for our family. I’ve been doing research on bearded dragons and was wondering how many of you might have one as a pet and could offer advice or let me know of some common problems with them. What I like about them is not only how they look but that they are docile and dont have to be fed mice…ew…I can deal with crickets or mealworms but mice is a little too far for me…Thoughts? Pics are always cool too! Show’em if you’ve got’m! 8)
I don’t have reptiles myself but http://www.baskingspot.com is a good site for info – it has links to lots of other sites about husbandry, etc.
Beardies make good pets if you have the time and fundage for their initial set up. Get them from a good breeder if possible (avoid pet stores if you can!!) who will sit down and talk to you and help you decide what herp is right for you. Lots of research is your friend! 🙂
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My art: featherdust.comI’ve heard you can get a beardie through the mail overnight…it worries me for them though…This is the site I’m considering buying from. http://www.sundialreptile.com/Bearded%20Dragons%20Currently%20Available-.htm
I’ve been doing alot of research and I think one of these guys will be a good addition to our family. Thanks for the info site! I’ve been doing alot of reading and always welcome more!
The trickiest thing about keeping reptiles of any type is getting their diet and environment right. They have to have the correct calcium and phosphorus balance, and the correct foods. They absolutely must have good lighting; the way to achieve the right light varies from species to species, so what’s good for a jungle snake isn’t right for a desert lizard. The humidity has to be right. Temperature has to be right. They have to have plenty of room. And–believe it or not–they need to have an environment that “feels safe” to them. This means something that’s as close to their native environment as possible, but that also has lots of places that they can hide. It’s even important that they have both warm hiding spots and cool ones, so that they can be comfortable and not choose to either bake or chill just because they want to hide. A reptile that can’t hide and feel safe will not prosper.
Baby reptiles do have a high mortality rate in the wild. Keeping a baby is tricky, but the benefit is that you get to watch them grow, and beardies in particular are adorable as babies. The younger the lizard, the less margin for error, though . . . so again, diet and environment have to be just right.
Like Nam said, doing lots of research first is the best thing. Get some books on beardies, especially ones that talk about how to set up an environment for them. A good book will have diagrams and lots of information. A lot of reptile fanciers spend much more on setting up the housing for their pet than they do on the animal itself. Also, find a vet that is experienced with reptiles first! Then, when you get the lizard, take it right in for a post-purchase exam. The vet should talk to you about housing, feeding, temperature, humidity, and all that good stuff. Deworming may be necessary (a lot of reptiles do have them, and they’re harmful) so they’ll probably want to check it for worms. And they should be able to answer any questions you might have.
Keeping reptiles is lots of fun, but there can be a lot of heartbreak too if the housing or food or whatever are wrong and the little guy gets sick. I’ve been there. If you can set up a really good environment and make sure that the beardie gets excellent food and is watched closely, then enjoy! 🙂 They are lovely lizards.
I have had an iguana, they are vegetarians. But! They require a good deal of care, work and time. Iguana’s are pretty demanding of time and they require training, especially as they grow quite large.
Mine gave me several battle scars during the year or so I had her, they have very sharp teeth and claws. She was given to me by someone who could no longer care for her. When I got her she was in sorry shape. The person I later gifted her to spoils her rotten, takes her for walks, has a set up in his yard so she can hang out outside, the works.
Monitor lizards get big too, and are meat eaters…definately not a choice for you if you don’t want to deal with live food like mice.
I think the more sedate and smaller Bearded Dragon is a good choice. They are quite sweet, relatively non agressive and portable. I’ve met several folks at Renfaire who have them with them on leashes, and they seemed quite happy to just decorate their people. LOL!
Not sure about buying one shipped overnight…what if they get too hot/cold or delayed? Scary…kinda like getting orchids sent in the mail, you always wait at the other end crossing your fingers.
Anyway, good luck with your new family member, hope you get a good one!
Kyrin
You might want to look into a rescue. One of the people I work with just adopted one – the owners were moving and were going to euthanize it. 😯 Unfortunately alot of people aren’t smart like you and do the research before they get one or they do an “impulse” buy. Then they find out how much work it is or it costs more money then they have. If you check out the classified ads/adoptables on http://www.petfinder.com for your state you might find one that needs a home – or pet stores will sometimes have one abandoned or turned in. Just a thought….
Meh, Beardies are some of the easiest Reptiles to take care of next to snakes….Really all you have to do is keep them clean, feed them appropriately, and keep the tempurature up.
If you get a baby, they need to be fed EVERY DAY, only about 10 small crickets a day. Small = 1-3mm
Temp needs to be kept between 95 and 110 degrees, keeping a basking lamp in one corner so there is a “hot” side, and a “cool” side to the cage. As they get older, they don’t need to be kept as hot.
DO NOT USE HEAT ROCKS! The risk for burn is too great, but you can have a heat pad under the tank on the same side as the basking/heat lamp.
Untill their heads are about as big as a quarter, I would not use sand it will get compacted in their stomachs. Paper towels are ideal, just lay a couple layers at the bottom. Easy clean up.Beardies and Leopard Geckos are some of the best tempered reptiles and make great pets.
Here are some good links for Beardie care, and the last is a link to pics.
http://www.biology.lsa.umich.edu/research/labs/ktosney/file/BDcare.html
Like Nirvana said, beardies and leopard geckos are the best! We have two bearded dragons at Windstone and they are wonderful, calm dragons. I just love them. They are both from an animal shelter.
I am baby sitting Vantid’s leopard gecko. They are so intelligent! They seem to get to know you, and respond to your presence. They are very interested in their surroundings, too . If you rearrange the cage or add a new object, they immediately come over to check it out.
I am also a big fan of turtles and tortoises. They are amazingly intelligent and interactive with people.
Iguanas vary in temperament. I’ve had really nice ones and some terrors. They are cool in their own way, too, but because they get really big, and have sharps, they usually manage to draw blood at some point in their careers!I think you’d like a bearded dragon if you got one. My cousin keeps reptiles and he says they are a breeze to care for as compared to some of his other lizards.
We had a beardie in my high school biology class, too. He went by the name of Willy Nelson (for the supposed “beard”) and had the patience of a saint. All those Freshmen picking him up and dropping him back into the tank day in and day out and he was always as calm and composed as you could wish. Though he would hiss at you if he really didn’t want picked up at the time 🙂
Man I miss that little guy… I took my Senior final exam in that class with Willy dozing on my shoulder.
Nirvana, I loved the first link! It’s linked to a site I’d been getting alot of my other info from! The pics of yours are really cool too, all of the links were really helpful, thanks a ton! I’m wanting to build our own “dragon habitat” as a homeschool project with my son, so it may be a while til we purchase our actual “dragon”. It’ll take a while to get it done right. I figure it will end up cheaper than flat out buying and we’ll end up getting even more education as we go…we’ll have to learn what kind of environmental conditions beardies prefer and make our habitat accordingly. Do beardies travel safely by mail? I’m considering perhaps getting two so they can socialize some together…perhaps breed..I don’t know if I wanna go there yet though…I do know that I’m not buying from our local petstore though…the poor beardies there look pitiful and arent being fed right at all. When I first started considering a bearded dragon I went to the pet store to see them and handle one and ask questions…he gave me alot of misinformation. I was told that they only needed mealworms and nothing else to eat, except a pinkmouse on occasion. 😕 Plus he had his baby beardies in crushed walnut bedding, which I’ve read is a big no-no…I’ll look and see if there’s a rescue program here locally that might have bearded dragons. Oh, one thing I hadn’t found yet, what kind of lifespan do they have?
This says Life Span is 5 – 15 years depending on care.
http://www.wnyherp.org/care-sheets/lizards/bearded-dragon.phpIf you’re going to take some time to build a habitat, try googling “reptile shows’. If there is one coming up close to your area, try going, They are very interesting and you can see all sorts of reptiles.
purplecat wrote:I do know that I’m not buying from our local petstore though…the poor beardies there look pitiful and arent being fed right at all. When I first started considering a bearded dragon I went to the pet store to see them and handle one and ask questions…he gave me alot of misinformation. I was told that they only needed mealworms and nothing else to eat, except a pinkmouse on occasion. 😕 Plus he had his baby beardies in crushed walnut bedding, which I’ve read is a big no-no…I’ll look and see if there’s a rescue program here locally that might have bearded dragons. Oh, one thing I hadn’t found yet, what kind of lifespan do they have?
Sounds like the beardies at the pet store need to be rescued.
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