New Bearded Dragon Owner

Hello everyone!
I am a new bearded dragon owner. I have had my little guy for a week now. He is happy and eating crickets like crazy! I bought him from a well known pet store chain. The lady in the pet store said he was eating his "salad" everyday for her along with his "protein" items (crickets and superworms). He will not touch his spring mix here. That's exactly what he was eating in the pet store. I understand he us still a little guy (about 13 inches) and eats about 80% bugs and about 20% greens and veggies. Any ideas on how to get my little dragon to eat his greens?

Also I was reading that superworms may bite them on the inside and cause internal bleeding. Is this true?

Thank you for any and all information and suggestions!

What! No pictures!

Pictures of my little guy. He still doesn't have a name. I'm leaning toward Puff or Spike : )

Apparently I walked by him to quickly and I scared him.

Congrats on the new addition to your family!
Have you checked out my other forum, Bearded Dragon Forum?

Get one of those low-sided feeder cups and put the insects and chopped up salad all together. If you pinch the crickets legs near the knee the legs will fall off and they won't be able to jump out of the cup. As your beardie grabs for them, he will get some salad too. Over time he'll start eating both.

I highly recommend starting a dubia roach colony. Very easy and so much better for your beardie.

I have never seen a lizard injured by eating live superworms. To my knowledge that is an internet myth. On the other hand, I don't think any mealworms are a great food anyhow, so I don't use them. I know lots of people that do.

Did the pet store emphasize the use of calcium supplements with your insect feeders and the ENORMOUS importance of UV for this species? Build or buy a large outdoor enclosure and use real sunshine whenever you can. Those little reptile leash and harnesses can work too. Always make sure lots of shade is also available so your baby doesn't cook. Indoor UV can work, but you'll need a light meter if you are going to rely on that alone.

He has a UVA/UVB light I was using for my sulcatas when they were indoors as baby's. As you know those guys don't stay small for long! I will be getting a new bulb soon though because I know those don't last forever. I'm pretty sure it was a power sun bulb.

I am looking for one if those reptile leashes. My local pet store doesn't have them. I tried a "hamster" leash but it was like Velcro to my lizards scales. Not fun at all. But I do want to get him out in the nice Arizona sun as much as possible.

I feed my beardie superworms, but he is an adult. From what I understand they shouldn't be given superworms until they are 16 inches total length. As for the salad, there are other leafy greens that are much better for them. And they also seem to like them a lot better too......mustard greens are great and are a favorite as are collard greens. Turnip greens are good too. I tear them up into bite size pieces. Give those three a try. The bonus is they are also cheaper than spring mix!

Sounds Great! Thank You!!

Good Morning Everyone, I have another question about my little guy. He's usually ravenous when you give him crickets, but the past three days he hasn't touched them. He has started to shed his feet and all the way up his legs. Will this make them not want to eat? He also is still not eating his greens fruit or veggies.

I soaked him in warm water to keep him hydrated with hopes he would drink but of course he didn't. He is still very active and acting happy. Just shedding and won't eat.

Thank you for any advice,
From a paranoid pet owner... Lol

MistyChee' said:

He has a UVA/UVB light I was using for my sulcatas when they were indoors as baby's.

Click to expand...

Without using a light meter, there is no way to know if that bulb is effective or not and UV is CRITICAL for this species. If he is not going outside in direct sunshine then you NEED a light meter to make sure your lizard is getting adequate UV.

What size tank is he in and what are your four temps? Substrate?

He goes outside for 20 minutes in the morning and 20 minutes in the afternoon while I water my vegetable plants. He gets direct Arizona sun during this time. Should I increase the time spent outside since his light may not be providing what he needs?

His substrate is green reptile carpet on one side, a large wooden log (hide) in the middle and flat rocks on the warm side. His cool side is 75 degrees and it is 101 under his light on the warm side. He has access to water and greens at all times.

Thanks for everything you do Tom. I know everyone on this site must appreciate all the help you provide!

Update

Puff ate his crickets this morning. He finished shedding his legs too. Still not eating greens/veggies/fruit but at least he's eating again.

I recently bought a couple of UV meters just to play with and learn. What I've been seeing is pretty surprising. The day I got them it was about 4:30pm and I popped the box open and ran outside with them. In full direct sun with the meters pointed right at the sun, there was almost no UV registering. Thinking they were not working, I brought them inside and put them under my new florescent UV bulbs and got the moderate reading I was expecting. Then next morning I tried again and at 9;30 am in full direct sun, there was almost nothing again. I checked every half hour and it steadily increased as the day went on, but then quickly started dropping off in the early afternoon. The mid-day reading were quite high, as expected. In years past I frequently put my tortoises outside in the late afternoon to "catch some rays". I had no idea they were getting almost NO UV benefit from the practice.

So to answer your question: In the case of a beardie, or iguana or tortoise, yes I do think you need to increase the time and try to do more mid-day whenever you can. Don't forget that they always need shade and a cooler area to retreat to, ESPECIALLY in the mid-day heat. The amount of time you are sunning sounds fine, but the times of day you are doing it is of minimal benefit. Having indoor UV is good insurance too, in my opinion.

I'm belaboring these points because beardies are HIGHLY susceptible to MBD and its SOOOOO easy to prevent with proper diet, calcium supplementation on your insects, and sunshine.

Oh wow, that is very interesting! And so good to know! Thank you so very much for sharing that information.