Getting a bearded dragon?

Question

I am thinking of purchasing a bearded dragon after Friday. What am I looking at price- wise for equipment? I will be getting a baby, any advice. Also how fast do they grow?

Ive been googling stuff, but been getting all sorts of different answers...

Is there anywhere online where you can buy the equipment for fairly cheap?

Answer 1

if your getting a baby dragon then you can get a 10 gallon tank for starters.

they soon will out grow this with in around 8 months or so. then it would be time to get a very big cage 4 him that will last through his life time

i never really bought equipment off line.

cause i would think that it would be easier to get the equipment at the pet store.  

i have a bearded dragon and that is what happened to me.

either way there going to end up being farely pricey.

Answer 2

its not that expensive but its sort of a commitment. there are uv lights wich are about 30$ each (2 uv lights, uva and uvb) that need to be changed every year or they will burn out and the dragon wont get what it needs. babies are pigs!!!!the babies eat about 40-80 crickets a day, they eat 4-6 times a day but it doesnt stay like that, as it gets to about 6in you can feed it 2-3 times a day (when its a baby try and get it to get use to veggies). these dragons grow QUICK. a 40 gallon tank will do but its a little cramped, the 40 gallon tank is around 100$ that will house an adult but i reccomend a cage 4(l)x3(h)x2(d) that can be built. id buy everything in person because you can save money by not paying shipping. everything should run you about...150 with the dragon no more than 200 for everything, i spoiled mine =]

Answer 3

for the tank try eBay see if any are near you so you can pick up

well since your getting a baby it should be cheap but they sell them buy color but i would say 60-100

make sure u get a basking spot and uvb the uvb is very important and make sure to have lots of crickets in hand ur gonna need them also veggies

Answer 4

The only thing that I can say that is in conflict with what is listed here is the don't use light at night in the tank.  I have a red night light in Jibblet's tank and he has never been bothered by it. In fact I have read that the red light isn't even visible to them, but it is to us. If you don't want to use the "red" night lamp, there are blue ones or a ceramic heat emitter which give off no light, only heat, but if you go ceramic you want a open cage dome with it so the bulb doesn't over heat. I also wholeheartedly agree with NEVER get a 10 gallon tank, I lost 2 baby lizards to overheating.

Check out

beardeddragon.org and  bearded-dragon.com for really good info    GOOD LUCK

Answer 5

Bearded dragons are expensive to house, light, and feed. They grow FAST. Some babies, if cared for correctly, can grow 1/2 an inch a week. Beardies normally get around 17 inches as adults, but can get up to 25 inches (that is pretty uncommon).

Yes. You can get most of the supplies for cheap off of http://www.petmountain.com/

For a baby, the MINIMUM cage size would be a 20 gallon long. A 10 gallon isn't even suitable for a hatchling. They will be able to stay in the 20 gallon long for a few months, but should be put in a minimim of a 40 gallon *breeder* (breeder tanks are wider then regular, so they are better for beardies) when they are about 6-10 inches long. They can live in a 40 gallon breeder for the rest of their life, but bigger is always better. You do have to remember that the width of a cage is just as important as the length. Also, NEVER keep bearded dragons together no matter the age, size, or s*x. They are not social animals.

You will need a basking light that gives off *white* light. Don't use the lights that give off red, blue, or black light, those are no good for beardies; they need their cages to be bright. You don't have to use basking lights specifically for beardies, you can use regular household bulbs, as long as they give off white light, and the correct temperatures. Remember, if you get a reptile specific basking bulb, and it says it has UVA/UVB, you still need a specific UVB bulb!

Do NOT use a bulb for nighttime heat, the light given off by "nighttime" bulbs disturb beardies at night, and keep them from sleeping well; even the bulbs that are red, black/blue. A beardie doesn't need nighttime heat unless the temps in your house drop below 62 degrees. A beardie *does* need perfect quiet and darkness to sleep.

A beardie needs a basking spot of 105-110 degrees, and the cool side of the tank needs to be 75-80 degrees. Use a digital thermometer to check those temps. Stick the probe directly onto the basking spot, and let it sit for 40 minutes to make sure the readings are correct; if the beardie is sitting on or touching the probe, the reading will not be accurate. Do NOT use cheap stick on/dial thermometers, they can be off up to 20 degrees!

A beardie needs good quality UVB lighting. The ReptiSUN 10.0 flourescent TUBE is the best bulb available in a pet store. It should be 6-8 inches away from him. Do NOT use any compact or coil UVB bulbs, or ReptiGLO 10.0; all three of those can cause blindness, seizure, conjectivitus, and even death. If you can not find the ReptiSUN 10.0, then get the ReptiSUN 5.0. If you can't find that, then get ReptiGlo 8.0. The best UVB available anywhere is the MegaRay MVB bulb, which is heat&UVB all in one. The MVB bulbs are the *only* bulbs that can provide that. You can only get MegaRays off of http://www.reptileuv.com/  Remeber, you can only use MegaRays with cages 40 gallon breeder or bigger. If the cage is any smaller, it will get too hot for him

You need supplements for your beardie. The best are RepCal and Herptivite. If you have a flourescent tube, use Repcal+D3 calcium powder, and Herptivite multi-vitamin. If you have MVB, then you need Repcal NO D3, and Herptivite multi-vitamin. A baby will need Repcal 5 days a week on one feeding a day, and Herptivite 2 days a week, one feeding a day. An adult will need Repcal 2 days a week, and Herptivite 1 day a week.

A baby beardie will NOT eat 6 times a week, but only 3. Babies will eat insects 3 times a day, and get greens&veggies once. A juvie will eat insects 2 times a day, and greens&veggies once. An adult will eat insects 1 time a day, and get greens&veggies. A baby should be put in a seperate enclosure/container to be fed, 3 times a day. Let him eat all they want during a period of 15 minutes; they can eat up to 100 crickets a DAY! Then put him back in his enclosure so he can bask. Sometime between all 3 feedings, prepare your beardies greens, and put them in the cage. A baby may not always eat their greens, but you still have to offer them. A juvie should put in the "Feeding bin" 2 times a day, and be offered greens once. An adult should only be offered a *small* amount of insects a day; only about 30-50 insects per week. They should get large dishes of greens daily. Adults need 80% of their diet to be greens, and 20% to be insects. The reson for that is, they don't need as much protein as babies, is because they are no longer growing. If an adult gets too many insects, they can get kidney failure, and/or fatty liver disease.

Here is a list off all the greens&veggies beardies can&can't eat. Remeber, only offer fruits once of twice a week; they are high in sugar. Never feed anything acidic! http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.co...

Bearides should never eat insects any longer or wider then the space between his eyes. They can eat crickets, silk worms, butter worms, tomato/goliath horn worms, pheonix worms, dubia roaches, discoid roaches (neither type of roach can fly or climb glass), wax worms, and superworms. Wax worms should only be a *rare* treat, only a few per month; they have no nutritional value, and are highly addictive. Superworms should only be fed to beardies 14+ inches, because they are so large. You can order cheap, high quality feeders (all of the ones listed) from http://www.mulberryfarms.com/ If you want roaches, they are cheaper from http://www.theroachguy.com/ Remember, you *must* gutload your feeder insects with commercial insect diets&water gels and/or fresh greens.  Do NOT feed mealworms or king mealworms; they have no nutritional value, have too much chitlin, and can cause impaction.

For substrate, do NOT use sand, calci-sand, vita-sand, crushed walnut, or any other loose particle substrate. ALL loose particle can cause impaction, which can be fatal. They can get into beardies eyes, scratch the cornea, and cause permanent blindness. Also, sands are *very* dirty and unsanitary. Even if you scoop for p**p daily, the germs are still in the sand. These germs cause smells, and can give your beardie parasites. The germs from the p**p are not removed, even if you take away the p**p, the germs, and the liquid from the p**p are already soaked into all the sand in that area.  Safe, cheap, and easy to clean substrates are paper towel, newspaper, slate tile, and non-stick shelf liner. They can not be ingested, and are easy to clean&sanitize daily. Just replace the papers, or take the individual tile out (do not glue them down) and wash it, or take the liner out and wash it. Proexotics.com sells good reptile friendly disinfectent. Also, ceramin tiles will keep your beardie's claws filed.

I reccomend this site to you if you need more advice, or have an emergency http://www.beardeddragon.org/bjive/  There are a lot of very knowledgable people there, who have been working for beardies for years.

Good Luck!