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Superworms are best once they reach juvenile age range because of the chitin and potential impaction.
Crickets, Phoenix worms, Silkworms, superworms and roaches are the primary feeders most keepers use.
I've used crickets (Yuck...not worth it) and silkies for staples with hornworms/goliath worms as backups when he gets finicky. Waxworms and butterworms are best as treats, rarely fed. Think of them as chocolate bars for lizards. LoL.
When feeding them their greens, think 'soul food', the darker green the better for them. Collards, mustard and turnip greens are the primary ones I use with fruit no more than 3 times a week and banana -rarely- because the potassium binds to calcium in their system which is -badbadbad-. Mango, stawberries, pears, grapes and apples tend to be our lizards favorites.
Calicium should be given daily and vitamins a minimum of three times a week at Peach and Bisciuts age, cut back to three times a week for calcium and once a week for vitamins once they hit adult stage between 12 months and 18 months old.
Heat is essential to their growth as well, if their viv isnt hot enough, they cannot digest their food and therefore wont grow. Best temps are a range around 80-85 on the cool side of the viv and 105-110 (I prefer the midrange of that, 110 seems to be too hot for ours) for the basking spot. Brightly lit viv is also a must for best activity levels from your beardie and a UVB light so that they can utilize the calcium supplements you should be feeding them daily. A mercury vapor bulb makes a world of difference in a lizard (from my experience with ours) if you can afford it. It puts out higher levels of UVB and a better quality as well, but has minimum distance standards which if you cannot meet, stick with the florescent bulbs and be sure to replace them every 6 months to maximize UVB exposure. Reptisun 10's are considered to be the current best florescent bulbs for reptiles on the market.
As they get bigger, they need more space, minimum recommendations for a single beardie is 8 sq ft of space, which translates to 4' x 2' (Min height of viv is usually 18"-24"). We keep ours currently in a 4'x2'x3', the additional height because he seems to prefer climbing to running around. LoL .
Its usually best to keep them off of particle substrates until they are at least a year old and you are sure they arent lickers. If they arent, washed and sifted playsand is best. The sands sold at petstores tend to bind when wet and if a lizard ingests it, can cause a fatal impaction. Other substrates used are reptile carpet, tile, non-adhesive shelf liner and so on. I use the shelf liner because its easy to clean and I can have several on hand to swap out when he messes. Just toss in the washer with a 10% bleach solution and all done. LoL.
If this is too much info or I got to pushy, sorry! LoL. I remember all the mistakes I made when we first got our boy and tend to be a little overzealous when attempting to help someone with beardies.
If you have any more questions or want some sites dedicated to beardie care, send me an im and I'll be more than happy to send over those that I have.
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It is true that Pit Bulls grab and hold on. But what they most often grab and refuse to let go of is your heart, not your arm.
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