Considering a Bearded Dragon or two - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

Tophat665 · 01-23-2008, 11:51 AM

Hey there folks. One of my little Girls has expressed a desire that the next Aquarium I get should have a lizard rather than more fish. Since I have 11 tanks either housing or earmarked for fish, I don't think this is an unreasonable request, and since I have been planning on setting up my livingroom so that the TV is bracketed by 4' tanks, I think one of them would be a good candidate for a lizard of some sort.

So I have done my initial reseach and found that the only pet lizard that actually enjoys being handled is the Bearded Dragon, which, being a dry climate critter would also assuage my worries about being able to hit a humidity count higher than 50% but lower than 100% in a heated enclosure.

Can you point me toward any good resources for care and feeding and housing and the like? Books, web sites, forums, that sort of thing. Can you give me any advice on them from personal experience? Would a 48x18x18 (75 gallon) tank be adequate for one of these? Two?

I hear they need to be bathed weekly. Is that true? Easy? Fun? A good bonding experience? Something a 5 or 7 year old could help with?

How well do they deal with the normal noise level of a house with kids and your standard domestic carnivores (Dog and four cats)?

Thanks in advance.

kramus · 01-23-2008, 01:21 PM

/threadjack

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tophat665

*snip*
I hear they need to be bathed weekly. Is that true? Easy? Fun? A good bonding experience? Something a 5 or 7 year old could help with?
*snip*

I am minded of the Steve Martin "Let's Get Small" vinyl comedy album I once owned.
"Oh, here's an interesting thing. I gave my cat a bath the other day. It was fun for me, the cat enjoyed it . . . the fur tended to stick to my tongue, but other than that . . ."
Let's hope that if you follow Mr. Martin's methodology of pet care, the Bearded Dragons are not like those hallucinagenic toads that crazy kids lick. I could see the fish looking out of their tanks at the household of Mr. Tophat being totally cranked up on dragon-sweat. That would be a very scary sight for something trapped in a tank

/end threadjack

Tophat665 · 01-23-2008, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kramus

Let's hope that if you follow Mr. Martin's methodology of pet care, the Bearded Dragons are not like those hallucinagenic toads that crazy kids lick. I could see the fish looking out of their tanks at the household of Mr. Tophat being totally cranked up on dragon-sweat...

Oh that would be amusing. Really.

Thinking of the scene in Big Trouble where Mr. Herk ends up face down in Enemy Toad and is convinced thereafter that the dog is Elizabeth Dole come to suck his soul out.

Unfortunately, licking a toad is one thing, licking a lizard is entirely another. Lizards can carry Salmonella, and you ALWAYS wash your hands before and after handling them. If I have to choose between Elizabeth Dole sucking my soul out or Gastroenteritis, well, let me think on that a little.

/ end threadjack, really

inBOIL · 01-23-2008, 01:50 PM

The General Care and Maintenance of Bearded Dragons by Philippe de Vosjoli and Robert Mailloux
is a very good resource that can be found at many pet stores.
I have a 75 gallon terrarium that I used for my dragon, I think that's big enough for 2, but probably too cramped for 3.

They don't need to be bathed, though wiping down with a damp cloth is a good idea when they get feces dried on them. And their droppings stink something fierce. Seriously, you wouldn't thing something that small could produce such a stench.

You should probably get two, so your kids can see the head-bobbing and arm-waving social behaviors, although they tend to be mellow and most of the time they just sit there. One thing to watch out when you're handling them is that they'll sit still for a long time and then suddenly dart away, even if you're holding them high above the ground. They also have a tendency to run into walls at full speed

but mine never injured herself.

As for the noise level, I don't it will be an issue. Just make sure to train your mammals to stay away from them, and only have them out of their enclosure under close supervision.

snowy · 01-23-2008, 01:58 PM

Your research is correct--the great thing about bearded dragons is that they really don't mind being handled. When I finally get a lizard, I'm going to get a bearded dragon. When I get to handle one, I like to hang it on my shirt. Makes a great accessory. I think your kids will definitely enjoy owning a bearded dragon.

My best friend is a vet tech and amateur herpetologist. I'll ask her for some information. She loves to do research for other people if it involves lizards or snakes.

Tophat665 · 01-23-2008, 06:08 PM

Thanks, folks. InBOIL - I'll definitely check out that book. I lived with a 2 1/2' long Savannah Monitor for a couple of months in college (Psychotic room mate - also had two rattlers, a cobra, and a couple of hedgehogs), and well do I remember the stench of droppings. They can just be litterscooped out of a playsand substrate, though, yes? So the stink would not necessarily become all-pervasive?

Onesnowyowl - I'd really appreciate anything your friend can tell me. With fish, I started small and learned by trial and error (more than a few errors) to the point that nearly every room in my house has a tank, but I neither have nor want that track with reptiles so I aim to learn everything I need to know well in advance. I am hoping to present this to the girls as a birthday present in July, so I have six months to become an expert (only took me a year to get to be able to speak authoritatively on several types of tropical fish).

inBOIL · 01-23-2008, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tophat665

They can just be litterscooped out of a playsand substrate, though, yes? So the stink would not necessarily become all-pervasive?

A sand subsrate works best for ease of waste disposal. And the smell doesn't have much staying power; it just tends to bowl you over at first.

spindles · 01-23-2008, 06:37 PM

I have a mate who breeds reptiles and reptile food (frozen mice and rats). His website has quite a bit of info, though being in Australia might make it a little less relevant:

http://www.dolittlefarm.com.au/

Hopefully you'll find it useful.

Crack · 01-24-2008, 05:50 AM

I always heard "Bearded Dragon" was slang for vagina. I was going to come in here and fully support this thread.

Now, all I have to offer is do not get an Iguana. They are mean and their tails hurt. A Bearded Dragon on the other hand sounds pretty cool.

MSD · 01-24-2008, 06:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tophat665

Oh that would be amusing. Really.

It would be hilarious until you found out how traumatized your kids are from watching you lick their pet and have a 5-MeO-DMT trip.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Crack

I always heard "Bearded Dragon" was slang for vagina. I was going to come in here and fully support this thread.

But it's for his kids

Tophat665 · 01-24-2008, 06:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MSD

It would be hilarious until you found out how traumatized your kids are from watching you lick their pet and have a 5-MeO-DMT trip.

Now now. There's a time and a place for everything. College. I have all my neuroses safely locked in their little cages after 20 years, and I really don't need to be feeding the aromatic compounds to let them out to play, thanks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MSD

But it's for his kids

They're both girls. Sooner or later they'll get one. :/

Redlemon · 01-24-2008, 08:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tophat665

Thinking of the scene in Big Trouble where Mr. Herk ends up face down in Enemy Toad and is convinced thereafter that the dog is Elizabeth Dole come to suck his soul out.

/ bonus threadjack
This is only true in the excellent book. In the somewhat different but equally excellent movie, the Enemy Toad is portrayed by Martha Stewart.
/ end bonus threadjack

fatmanforprez · 01-24-2008, 09:35 AM

I kept a bearded dragon for a number of years, the only pet in the house I ever considered mine or cared for.

Buy it as soon as it is safe to transport (mine was 2 weeks) and handle it soon and often in the begging. Yes it is safe to let the young ones to handle the lizard when it is young and fragile (I would also call it necessary), just make sure they know not to squeeze when it moves and keep the doors shut and towels under then for that encounter. When it reaches decent size buy a leash. Yes, I said leash (they make um just for lizards). I have rarely had more fun than taking this 3 ft long (with tail) lizard for a walk down the street or going around town with a lizard on my shirt (they love that BTW). You will get asked where you got that realistic shirt, until the lizard re-adjusts it's position which usually results in a freaked out bystander.

Bearded dragons are hardy and will survive a child's forgetting to feed and clean up after them routine. They will need a vitamin D lamp however, and no heat rocks (for any herp, I don't know your experience so it's worth throwing in). I tried to give mine a bath once, which was funny, never re-attempted. That was the only time I ever saw the lizard freak or go into scared animal mode (I gave it a get out of scared animal mode free card for the first time it was handled, which actually went pretty smoothly considering). I left a large bowl in his cage from then on and changed the water once a week. You may catch your lizards running through it (and yes they will leave droppings in it).

Bearded dragons are true omnivores, choice foods being meal worms, crickets, and pinkies for the large ones. For veggies I used kale, yellow squash, and carrots I believe. I hope you like the sound of crickets (and you eat lots of eggs in your household) as breeding crickets seems to be a common theme. The good news is that they are dead simple to take care of (I can elaborate if need be) and to this day the sound of crickets (avg. colony for 1 dragon was like 2000 crickets [by weight, this was overkill]) is something I reminisce over.

Any other specific information you need?

01-23-2008, 11:51 AM	#1 (permalink)
Tophat665 Minion of the scaléd ones Location: Northeast Jesusland	Considering a Bearded Dragon or two Hey there folks. One of my little Girls has expressed a desire that the next Aquarium I get should have a lizard rather than more fish. Since I have 11 tanks either housing or earmarked for fish, I don't think this is an unreasonable request, and since I have been planning on setting up my livingroom so that the TV is bracketed by 4' tanks, I think one of them would be a good candidate for a lizard of some sort. So I have done my initial reseach and found that the only pet lizard that actually enjoys being handled is the Bearded Dragon, which, being a dry climate critter would also assuage my worries about being able to hit a humidity count higher than 50% but lower than 100% in a heated enclosure. Can you point me toward any good resources for care and feeding and housing and the like? Books, web sites, forums, that sort of thing. Can you give me any advice on them from personal experience? Would a 48x18x18 (75 gallon) tank be adequate for one of these? Two? I hear they need to be bathed weekly. Is that true? Easy? Fun? A good bonding experience? Something a 5 or 7 year old could help with? How well do they deal with the normal noise level of a house with kids and your standard domestic carnivores (Dog and four cats)? Thanks in advance. __________________ Light a man a fire, and he will be warm while it burns. Set a man on fire, and he will be warm for the rest of his life.

01-23-2008, 01:50 PM	#4 (permalink)
inBOIL I have eaten the slaw	The General Care and Maintenance of Bearded Dragons by Philippe de Vosjoli and Robert Mailloux is a very good resource that can be found at many pet stores. I have a 75 gallon terrarium that I used for my dragon, I think that's big enough for 2, but probably too cramped for 3. They don't need to be bathed, though wiping down with a damp cloth is a good idea when they get feces dried on them. And their droppings stink something fierce. Seriously, you wouldn't thing something that small could produce such a stench. You should probably get two, so your kids can see the head-bobbing and arm-waving social behaviors, although they tend to be mellow and most of the time they just sit there. One thing to watch out when you're handling them is that they'll sit still for a long time and then suddenly dart away, even if you're holding them high above the ground. They also have a tendency to run into walls at full speed but mine never injured herself. As for the noise level, I don't it will be an issue. Just make sure to train your mammals to stay away from them, and only have them out of their enclosure under close supervision. __________________ And you believe Bush and the liberals and divorced parents and gays and blacks and the Christian right and fossil fuels and Xbox are all to blame, meanwhile you yourselves create an ad where your kid hits you in the head with a baseball and you don't understand the message that the problem is you.

01-23-2008, 01:58 PM	#5 (permalink)
snowy Kick Ass Kunoichi Location: Oregon	Your research is correct--the great thing about bearded dragons is that they really don't mind being handled. When I finally get a lizard, I'm going to get a bearded dragon. When I get to handle one, I like to hang it on my shirt. Makes a great accessory. I think your kids will definitely enjoy owning a bearded dragon. My best friend is a vet tech and amateur herpetologist. I'll ask her for some information. She loves to do research for other people if it involves lizards or snakes. __________________ If I am not better, at least I am different. --Jean-Jacques Rousseau

01-23-2008, 06:08 PM	#6 (permalink)
Tophat665 Minion of the scaléd ones Location: Northeast Jesusland	Thanks, folks. InBOIL - I'll definitely check out that book. I lived with a 2 1/2' long Savannah Monitor for a couple of months in college (Psychotic room mate - also had two rattlers, a cobra, and a couple of hedgehogs), and well do I remember the stench of droppings. They can just be litterscooped out of a playsand substrate, though, yes? So the stink would not necessarily become all-pervasive? Onesnowyowl - I'd really appreciate anything your friend can tell me. With fish, I started small and learned by trial and error (more than a few errors) to the point that nearly every room in my house has a tank, but I neither have nor want that track with reptiles so I aim to learn everything I need to know well in advance. I am hoping to present this to the girls as a birthday present in July, so I have six months to become an expert (only took me a year to get to be able to speak authoritatively on several types of tropical fish). __________________ Light a man a fire, and he will be warm while it burns. Set a man on fire, and he will be warm for the rest of his life.

01-23-2008, 06:37 PM	#8 (permalink)
spindles Mine is an evil laugh Location: Sydney, Australia	I have a mate who breeds reptiles and reptile food (frozen mice and rats). His website has quite a bit of info, though being in Australia might make it a little less relevant: http://www.dolittlefarm.com.au/ Hopefully you'll find it useful. __________________ who hid my keyboard's PANIC button?

01-24-2008, 05:50 AM	#9 (permalink)
Crack Misanthropic Location: Ohio! yay!	I always heard "Bearded Dragon" was slang for vagina. I was going to come in here and fully support this thread. Now, all I have to offer is do not get an Iguana. They are mean and their tails hurt. A Bearded Dragon on the other hand sounds pretty cool. __________________ Crack, you and I are long overdue for a vicious bout of mansex. ~Halx

01-24-2008, 09:35 AM	#13 (permalink)
fatmanforprez Tilted	I kept a bearded dragon for a number of years, the only pet in the house I ever considered mine or cared for. Buy it as soon as it is safe to transport (mine was 2 weeks) and handle it soon and often in the begging. Yes it is safe to let the young ones to handle the lizard when it is young and fragile (I would also call it necessary), just make sure they know not to squeeze when it moves and keep the doors shut and towels under then for that encounter. When it reaches decent size buy a leash. Yes, I said leash (they make um just for lizards). I have rarely had more fun than taking this 3 ft long (with tail) lizard for a walk down the street or going around town with a lizard on my shirt (they love that BTW). You will get asked where you got that realistic shirt, until the lizard re-adjusts it's position which usually results in a freaked out bystander. Bearded dragons are hardy and will survive a child's forgetting to feed and clean up after them routine. They will need a vitamin D lamp however, and no heat rocks (for any herp, I don't know your experience so it's worth throwing in). I tried to give mine a bath once, which was funny, never re-attempted. That was the only time I ever saw the lizard freak or go into scared animal mode (I gave it a get out of scared animal mode free card for the first time it was handled, which actually went pretty smoothly considering). I left a large bowl in his cage from then on and changed the water once a week. You may catch your lizards running through it (and yes they will leave droppings in it). Bearded dragons are true omnivores, choice foods being meal worms, crickets, and pinkies for the large ones. For veggies I used kale, yellow squash, and carrots I believe. I hope you like the sound of crickets (and you eat lots of eggs in your household) as breeding crickets seems to be a common theme. The good news is that they are dead simple to take care of (I can elaborate if need be) and to this day the sound of crickets (avg. colony for 1 dragon was like 2000 crickets [by weight, this was overkill]) is something I reminisce over. Any other specific information you need?