[jetson1401]

So i mean you're gonna have to give me a shopping list of things i need. this guys viv is so bare! im gonna try and talk Kim into leaving him with me instead of his mother for the summer but for now i have him for a little over a week but i love him i bought crickets today. there's a heat rock in there but i heard those are bad for them.

 

[Toirtis]

Firstly, the sand must go, as well, the heat rock. Lots of branches, etc for climbing. I have no idea what sort of bulb is in there, but it should be an 'active-UV' type mercury-vapour bulb (this will provide correct light and heat). There should also be a water dish large enough for him to be able to settle most of his body in.

 

[Nibbler]

most bearded dragons wont drink water, or bath on there own so remember to mist him , as quoted above the sand and heat rock must go as the heat rock can and probably will burn his tummy, You can also offer diffrent types of bugs to your little friend doesnt just have to be,crickets Climbing things are amazing for them,You could get him a basking rock thou,if you havent already

 

[Jess]

Does he have any kind of UVB light?? It doesn't look like it. Take out the sand, throw away the heat rock, and ditch the red light too. Beardies can see color, and the best kind of light for them is a regular white one. Having lots of bright white light will help with their activity and appetite.
I don't use a water dish, it just raises humidity and 99% of beardies are too mental to figure out how to drink from it. Give him a bath a couple times a week, or squirt some water on his face like Nibbler suggested.


Order a ReptiSun 10.0 flourescent tube light from www.petmountain.com. They are by far the best UVB light right now. Some of the MVBs have been causing issues lately, so I would stick with the ReptiSun.


Here is an example of how the lighting should be set up:

Here are instructions that I made on a beardie site I'm a member of on how to set up all of the lights:
http://www.beardeddragon.org/bjive/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=148006
And here is another one one substrate:
http://www.beardeddragon.org/bjive/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=132151

 

[jetson1401]

hmmmm.okay got it. anything else?

 

[Jess]

Well I'm sure he would appreciate some climbing branches and stuff too, and most beardies LOVE hammocks. The UVB lighting is the most important though, so be sure to get that!


Do you have any calcium or vitamin supplements for him? Or a thermometer?

 

[jetson1401]

there's a calcium dust for the crickets ,no vitamins, and there's a thermometer in there but i mean it looks like one of those youd stick into meat. kims not bright.

 

[Jess]

K, well he will need a vitamin powder too. I like the Repcal/Herptivite brand.
A meat thermometer...?! Weird. Get the digital kind with the probe, those are the more accurate.

 

[Toirtis]

Order a ReptiSun 10.0 flourescent tube light from www.petmountain.com. They are by far the best UVB light right now. Some of the MVBs have been causing issues lately, so I would stick with the ReptiSun.

I am sorry, but no....the mercury vapours are far better, and apart from some production quality issues with a few batches of ExoTerra bulbs, there are no problems with the mercury vapours. The UV is better quality, has double the penetrative depth, and they last twice as long before requiring replacing.

 

[Toirtis]

K, well he will need a vitamin powder too. I like the Repcal/Herptivite brand. .

With a good UV source, he should never need vitamin D...in fact, using a supplement with vitamin D could cause chronic overdose....stick to a calcium powder and a separate vitamin supplement with no vitamin D.

 

[Jess]

Well, last time I checked some of the Mega Rays and T-Rex Active Heats had been causing eye issues, and I heven't heard of them being completely fixed as of yet. I don't use those though, so I could be a little outdated with my info LOL, but last time I heard they weren't perfect yet. With the Exo Terra Solar Glos, I do believe that the problem with those is that the UVB output gets weaker really quickly. ReptiSuns have never had any issues, and my beardies along with many others have always done great with them.


The vitamins I was talking about weren't D3, there is a seperate vitamin/mineral powder that you should have for beardies.


And since the flourescent tube UVB lights aren't strong enough to allow a beardie to produce their own D3, it's usually recommended that calcium D3 is used with those. If you are using a MBV though, you are right that you don't need additional D3.

 

[Toirtis]

Well, last time I checked some of the Mega Rays and T-Rex Active Heats had been causing eye issues, and I heven't heard of them being completely fixed as of yet.

Sorry, but incorrect...a small number of speculative, anecdotal stories with no scientific basis.

I don't use those though, so I could be a little outdated with my info LOL, but last time I heard they weren't perfect yet.

The technology is not new...the use of them for reptiles is newish (about 10 years now), now that cost of manufacture has come down.

With the Exo Terra Solar Glos, I do believe that the problem with those is that the UVB output gets weaker really quickly.

No....it was some physical weaknesses in the design caused by faulty manufacturing, and only effected a few lots.

ReptiSuns have never had any issues,

Actually, they have...three times they have had recalls due to problems...just not recently (in the past 4 years).

And since the flourescent tube UVB lights aren't strong enough to allow a beardie to produce their own D3, it's usually recommended that calcium D3 is used with those.

Actually, if the light is a quality 10.0 tube, is fresh (not permitted to be used after 2000 hours of usage), and the tube has unobstructed access of radiance and is within 14" of the lizard, you should never give additional D3.

What is more, since calcium carbonate is quite stable, and D3 is not (and degenerates fairly quickly...particularly with heat and moisture), you should never buy a mix of them, but purchase them separately, keeping your D3 in an opaque jar, in a sealed baggie, in the fridge.

 

[Jess]

Well, I guess we just have different opinions on UVB lights then.


Like I said before, I haven't used the MVBs so I didn't remember EXACTLY what was up with them, but a I know of a number of people who experienced a lot of problems with some of the MBVs, and from what I've heard they just aren't the quality that they used to be.
Here are some discussions on their quality that I had been reading:
http://www.beardeddragon.org/bjive/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=127476&start=0
http://www.beardeddragon.org/bjive/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=124451
http://www.beardeddragon.org/bjive/viewtopic.php?f=34&t=127476


IMO, the ReptiSun lights just have had the least amount of problems lately, and they are what works best for me to use. I don't think that you can deny that they are over all good UVB lights, and I know of plenty of good breeders that use and recommend them, as well as many other people who use them with great results.


Plus, in a tank as small as the OP's (It looks like a 20 long?), a MVB would get too hot for it anyways. Since they get so hot and put out a lot of UVB, they are better for 40 gal + cages.


I'll look into the D3 information though. Dudley usually gets calcium 2X a week, so he doesn't get very much of it anyways. Mine expires in December, so I was thinking of buying some plain liquid calcium instead this time because they are supposed to be able to absorb it better.


And I'm not saying that you are wrong or trying to start a debate, but being my paranoid self I'm just a little cautious of the MVBs right now. I'm still fairly new ot beardies (2 years) and I'm 17 so I don't exactly understand all the the technical stuff about UVB and D3, so I guess what I know so far is based a lot on what I've learned from and the experiences of other people, and from the experience that I've had with my own beardies so far.

 

[jetson1401]

woah. insaneness broke out. thanks to both of you, your different opinions gave me a lot of information.

 

[Toirtis]

Well, I guess we just have different opinions on UVB lights then.

Likely.

IMO, the ReptiSun lights just have had the least amount of problems lately, and they are what works best for me to use. I don't think that you can deny that they are over all good UVB lights,

No, it is just that the MVB are better.

Plus, in a tank as small as the OP's (It looks like a 20 long?), a MVB would get too hot for it anyways. Since they get so hot and put out a lot of UVB, they are better for 40 gal + cages.

Ah, but depends on the wattage used, the vivarium's ventilation, and the ambient room temperature.

I was thinking of buying some plain liquid calcium instead this time because they are supposed to be able to absorb it better.

Be cautious, remembering that vitamins in liquid form decompose much more quickly than in dry form. Unfortunately, the jury is still out as to just how much D3 reptiles can absorb from ingested sources, and which types are best absorbed. Chances are that a liquid form would be more readily available, but it is hard to be certain.

And I'm not saying that you are wrong or trying to start a debate, ....so I guess what I know so far is based a lot on what I've learned from and the experiences of other people, and from the experience that I've had with my own beardies so far.

And to be fair, what I know comes from my experience over the past three and a half decades, from both personal animals and working with/at a number of zoological institutions and universities. As far as beardies go, my experience goes back only 18 years now...nowhere near my experience with other agamids, much less with varanids, boids, and chelonians.