bearded dragon, size tank needed?

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Pandamania

Feeder Fish
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Jan 9, 2011
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Planetwithlotsofwater
Hello there! I'm new here. My kids are getting a bearded dragon for free,from a friend. It's only 6" now. But I've seen the adult ones. Is it best to get a large enclosure right away?, or is it alright for it to be kept in a smaller enclosure, 36"length x 18"height x 16" wdth., until it grows a bit larger? And please tell me what is all needed, for warming lights and sand, etc. TIA !:)
 
Beardies grow fast and it will probably be close to full size in roughly 1 year. you will need a 40 gallon breeder minimum for it as an adult however it can be kept for roughly 6 months in a 20 long before graduating to the larger size.
sand is ok to use with these guys IF you keep them at the right temps.... basking spot of 105, cool side mid 80's. I would highly recommended play sand over "reptile specific" sand. it is the exact same thing but the reptile sand is in a smaller bag and costs more. Calcium sands are really useless and seem to cause more problems than good...also they are not quite as fine as play sand and tend to clump easier.
you NEED a UVB and a heat bulb. you can get a combination bulb that does both but these are pretty pricey. UVB is absolutely essential for proper bone growth so do not skimp because of the price.
a temp gun would be a very useful tool so you can measure the surface temparture of any given area... dials, sick ons an dother thermometers only measure the ambient temp of that area..... to get an accurate basking spot you will want a temp gun
feed crickets, meal worms and a variety of a veggies. NEVER ice berg lettuce. avoid lettuce all together really, dark leafy greens like collards and mustard greens are best. you can give them some things like strawberries and peppers as treats but not as a daily thing. avoid spinach and cabbages.
If it eats it's greens pretty good then it probably will not drink water at all often however you should always provide a water dish just to give them the option.
 
Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou extremely! You've just helped us talk my husband into letting them have a larger tank, and all the needed supplies. :headbang2 IYO, what kinds of woods or rocks are safe/best for them? Also, wanted to know if I can put two baby ones in same tank, if they will get along with one another, or only keep one by itself per tank? Supposed to get tanks and supplies for the BD today. [Will be having kids pick their new pet(s?) out Wednesday after school, if there is school. The amount of snow here is ridiculous! Usually kids love snow days, but NOT when it's making them wait longer to have their new pet.:nilly:] Have you ever used the 'heated basking rocks'?
 
stay away from heat rocks....they are supposedly safer these days... but i would never trust em....
just stuck with heat lamps that is usually good enough
get a nice gnarled branch like structure, real or fake...and place it under the heat lamp, this usually gives the beardies a number of places to bask and regulate their temperature.
you can keep two babies together without problems but problems will come later..... because you can't know the sex of the babies till they mature you will most likely have to separate them in the future unless you luck out with two girls.
males cannot be kept together because they will most likely fight.... male and female can't be kept together because they will breed and that brings on a whole bunch of other complications... not to mention bearded dragons are already extremely common in the hobby and theres really no reason to be breeding them
 
Thanks for all the info on these animals! Gonna have to wait until at Friday to get all the supplies and the Beardies, on the count of the stupid snow. I'm looking forward to this totally 'new' pet. And there's no way we would breed anything! I have already got 3 cats, and 7 aquariums. With the addition of BD tanks, I think there's enough non-human 'wild life' in this place!
 
Haha well thats good, if you want any more info or other opinions or even just to show off the new pet when you get 'em to a more reptile related crowd I am a member on a number forums that can help.. my home being herpfamily.com but of course iherp.com and darksidereptiles.com....among others hehe.... my life is in forums sometimes
 
YOU CAN START IT OFF IN A 20 GALLON LONG AND LATER UPGRADE TO A 55 ATLEAST THAT WHAT I DID AND MY BEARDIE (KING) IS STILL HEALTHY AND HAPPY
 
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