# (pygmy)Black soil Bearded dragon. question



## mero1 (May 14, 2009)

hey all, 

recently got my first pair of 1 month old (pygmy) black soil bearded dragons off a member (adictv, very helpful reliable and good price ), the one started to bully the smaller one n it stopped eating moving so i seperated them and he seemed better moving and eating but then unfortunately about one day later i woke up and found him dead for unknown reason!!! If i get another baby is there goin to be a problem putting them together ? 

The second is doing well.and last night built him a new home until hes bigger which he seemed to be very happy about, just had a few quick questions.

. I have him on paper at the moment but looking for another substrate, should i be looking for a black substrate or is the red desert sand okay? should i get the cal inriched one aswell? 

. i just wanted to know generally the light cycles( times) i should be running?

and last .. how many times a day? and at what stages in the day do they like to eat? and how many is too many? at the moment he only eats about 2-8 a day... i have him feeding on just small crickets dusted,should i be giving him worms or woodies or anything else?? the ones i can get from local shop are pretty big tho!! so i dont think hell be able to eat them. 
Iv been trying to get him used to having vegs but he doesn't seem to interested, iv tried bok choy and carrots what else should i try? 


thanks everyone look forward to your responces and ill try find a camera n try get some pics


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## Eylandt (May 14, 2009)

First and foremost Im sorry to hear about your loss. Sucks when these things happen.



mero1 said:


> If i get another baby is there goin to be a problem putting them together ?


If you had problems housing him with other beardies you will more then likely have problems again in the future. Out of interest what sex are both beardies?



mero1 said:


> . I have him on paper at the moment but looking for another substrate, should i be looking for a black substrate or is the red desert sand okay? should i get the cal inriched one aswell?


Personally I wouldnt put any Beardie on sand as they run the risk of Impaction. I keep all of my Pygmys on Newspaper.



mero1 said:


> . i just wanted to know generally the light cycles( times) i should be running?


I ran my Hatchies 8 hours a day under UV, 24 hours on heat light.



mero1 said:


> and last .. how many times a day? and at what stages in the day do they like to eat? and how many is too many? at the moment he only eats about 2-8 a day... i have him feeding on just small crickets dusted,should i be giving him worms or woodies or anything else?? the ones i can get from local shop are pretty big tho!! so i dont think hell be able to eat them.


 
8 dusted Crickets a day is great. Its hard to say how many is too many but as long as he stays active and isnt putting on weight you should be okay. Woodies are a good and easy to breed alternative to crickets but you will have difficulty finding suitably sized Woodies for such a small Pygmy.



mero1 said:


> Iv been trying to get him used to having vegs but he doesn't seem to interested, iv tried bok choy and carrots what else should i try?


 
Try purchasing some Mealworms from your local pet store. Mix them in with the chopped Bok Choi and throw a bit of shredded carrot in too. The Mealies will squirm around thus incrasing the Pymgy's interest. With a bit of luck he'll start feeding. As time goes by reduce the amount of Meal worms you mix in and eventually you'll find your Pygmy feeding on Vegies no problems at all.



If you need any more help dont hesitate to ask.


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## mero1 (May 14, 2009)

Eylandt said:


> If you had problems housing him with other beardies you will more then likely have problems again in the future. Out of interest what sex are both beardies?


 

i actually dont know hes too young to tell. wasnt bulling to the max but i think it was just more of a domanance thing. if i was to introduce say 2 more instead of 1 would that even it out? Or a older pygmy dragon ? 



Eylandt said:


> Personally I wouldnt put any Beardie on sand as they run the risk of Impaction. I keep all of my Pygmys on Newspaper.


 
yeh thats what iv herd which is why he is only on paper at the moment, well i saw in the reptile shop about 2 days ago, calcium enriched eatable red desert sand. would that be okay? 



Eylandt said:


> I ran my Hatchies 8 hours a day under UV, 24 hours on heat light.



so you have a heat light that doesnt emmit light just heat ? otherwise how do they get there night cycle? 




Eylandt said:


> Try purchasing some Mealworms from your local pet store. Mix them in with the chopped Bok Choi and throw a bit of shredded carrot in too. The Mealies will squirm around thus incrasing the Pymgy's interest. With a bit of luck he'll start feeding. As time goes by reduce the amount of Meal worms you mix in and eventually you'll find your Pygmy feeding on Vegies no problems at all.



yeh that sounds like the way to go!! i shall try and hopefully the mealworms they have arnt massive. what other vegs besides Bok Choi and Carrot should i be feeding? 

how many times a day do i feed and when do they like to eat most ? morning noon night ? 

thanks for the quick reply


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## Lollypop (May 15, 2009)

The calci sands, although advertised as totally digestible & therefore even more calcium for your lizards, actually tends to set like cement inside them apparently, so I'd steer clear of them, especially with a pygmy that seem to be less hardy than normal beardies. Until he's about 2yrs old, just use rough textured tiles or lino (u can buy leftovers of either for next to no money). The rougher the texture, the easier for them to walk properly instead of sliding everywhere. If you have a hide for him, you could possibly put a little bit of sand or even mulch hay in there to get him off the cold flooring.
I'd imagine if he's dominant/bullying already, won't matter how many u put in with him, it'll still be the same. If u do go down that track, & if he's being totally dominating again, move him this time, not the other stressed out one.


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