Central Bearded Dragons - info and breeders?

[erin993]

Ok, so I have applied for my wildlife licence, I have the tank and a few accessories, and am now in the process of researching Central Beardies, feed and enclosure requirements (heat/light etc) and have begun looking for a suitable breeder. I do however have a few questions and thought some people here might be able to assist.

1. We have a largeish tank - probably about 1mtr long - is this a suitable size for 2x adult Beardies?

2. We need to put a lid on the tank - should this be a framed mesh type/solid glass or otherwise? What are the best surfaces etc - sand?

3. We would like 2-3 Beardies. I read that they are not super social animals - should we be looking at 2x females or 1 male and 1 female to increase chances of them being happy together?

4. I notice that a lot of breeders offer sibling pairs that are male and female. Obviously if kept together and conditions are right they would eventually breed. Is this an issue with reptiles?

5. I would really love some super striking and bright colours. Can someone please explain to me the colours available and all of the abbreviations used when advertised. How soon do you know what colours young dragons should end up maturing to? Are fancy coloured ones more expensive? What prices should i be looking to pay?

6. We have crickets galore at home. Is it safe to feed wild caught crickets or is there a risk of disease or similar and as such only captive bred crickets should be fed?

7. How do I tell if a Beardie is in good or poor health? When buying what should I look out for?

Feel free to include anything I might have missed. Have been doing plenty of reading but sometimes it's easier to just ask an expert and get a reply in simple english!!!

Thanks!!!!

 

[Grogshla]

Hi Erin,
Your tank should be a good size. You will need a mesh top with a uvb tube light (with a rating of 10.0) and you will need a basking bulb to get a basking area to 40degrees c.
It is not recommended to house dragons together. If u have a male and female they will mate. multiple times every year. This will cause lots of stress on the dragons.
If you insist to house dragons together the best chance you can have is getting 2 female sisters and bring them up together (although sexing young dragons is difficult until they get a bit bigger).
I would feed captive bred crickets as you know that they are coming from a sterile environment with no pest sprays or pollutants. Generally look for clear clean eyes, a clear nose, active dragons with all toes and tail tip still in tact. Don't get a dragon if it looks skinny and has saggy skin. Also check the vent to make sure it is all clean and nothing is hanging out.
Proper temperature and uvb is essential in keeping dragons. As for substrate I would personally avoid sand as it can trap the urates and bacteria from the dragon. I would just use paper or non slip tiles.

 

[kingofnobbys]

I'm no expert , I've only kept lizards as pets for about 8 years , and bearded dragons for about 4 years. That said.

Central bearded dragons are best housed separately even as very young hatchlings (cute as they might look when 2 or 3 are sharing an enclosure when little). Even very young hatchlings will exhibit dominance behaviours (even if these are very subtle) and if you have 2 or more together there will be a dominant hatchling who will get the lion's share of the live food, greens, best basking spot, best sleeping spot, and the others will be under constant stress, will not feed as well, will loose out on UVA and UVB , and will grow more slowly, it can even be attacked by the dominant and be serious injured - even killed by it.

They will be happier and will be more likely to thrive if you provide each with it's own enclosure.

TWO adult bearded dragons should NOT be housed together (though some claim success with two females raised and housed together) , they are best brought together ONLY to do the deed and fertilize the female and only for a short time.


Hatchling and juvenile central beardies are fine in LARGE modified storage tubs (100L is very good), they will grow out of their tub before their first birthday and as adults will need a full sized 1200mm L x 600mm D (footprint) enclosure each , the height of the enclosure is governed by the physical size of light fittings, globes chosen , and the recommended distance to basking spot for the basking light or MVB if you choose to use an MVB, and by the furnishings you have (hides, fake or real rocks, branches etc you will want to put in the enclosure ) , commercially theses these can be bought (made of particle board as flat packs (MDF if you are lucky) , or glass or you can build your own from plywood, perpex, MDF etc if you handy and have the tools. Some folks modify timber furniture and cabinets etc.

TWO adult bearded dragons should NOT be housed together (though some claim success with two females raised and housed together) , they are best brought together ONLY to do the deed and fertilize the female and only for a short time.

Wild caught insects used as food are very risky, you don't know where they have been , and what they've been eating, or what parasites they harbor, or if they have been exposed to pesticides and other toxins.
Best to buy your live feeder insects IN BULK on a regular basis by mail order (I recommend Frog Arcade .... they supply an excellent service and their insects are high quality).

Hatchlings and juvenile require over 80% of the protein from live insects and as many as THREE feeds per day (when very young) , and TWO live feeds per day + greens and salad (see BeautifulBeardies for guide on suitable foods for a bearded dragon). Adults require a daily feeding and can go 2 or 3 days between feeds on occasion).
Be prepared to need to buy 800 - 900 small crickets per fortnight-ish for hatchlings. (My 19 week old hatchlings Peppa and Toothless are polishing off 30 x 2/3 sized crickets per day + greens and salad EACH PER DAY).

There are central bearded dragon care sheets available , print some off them and make sure you are boned up on the care requirements.

I wouldn't recommend a mesh top on an enclosure , very hard to maintain a temperature gradient , warm air is very buoyant and rises and will simply be lost, what you want is a circulating air flow with some fresh air drawn in and some air exchange with the air outside the enclosure. My recommendation is a solid plywood top with the light fitting attached under it.( Wood has very good thermal properties. )

Is very easy to mount a light hood , even Nano Hoods, and dome style reflector sockets under solid lid or top in an exclosure.

I agree with the person above, and will not recommend sand or any particulate bedding for a beardie. There are beardie keepers who use dried screened playsand from Bunnings and sware by it even for the youngest hatchlings. Common practice does not make it best practice. I'd recommend scottowel or news print for hatchlings and loose floor tiles for adults as the bedding.

As hatchling - it should be alert, inquisitive, even flighty (this is OK), about the right weight for it's age, no open wounds (from attacks or accident bites by it's fellow hatchlings), starting to eat some salad each day and greens each day, and good on it's insects.
As an adult, a nice thick tail base is good indicator of good health and condition + being alert, clear bright eyed, and a good feeder.

 

[dragonlover1]

Hi Erin,I agree pretty much with everything Grogshla said except for the sand bit,all my hatchies go straight from the incubator to a tub full of sand and all my adults live on sand with no problems,the problem with paper or tiles as substrate is they don't wear the claws down which can cause feet problems.Most of the claims of impaction come from America where they use a horrible thing called calci sand which sets like cement in their guts,we use washed play sand which is no problem at all.Different people like different things though.
Your 1 metre tank will do for a while but ideally you want a 120x60cm enclosure for 1 dragon and your UVB light should be within 30cm of the basking spot.
As for prices ..you can pay anywhere from $40-$500 depending on colour, morph etc.
Normal scale,hypo, leatherback,silky etc.

 

[Smittiferous]

Well aware that this is likely the exception rather than the rule but I've been housing two unrelated females together since they were juveniles, going on five years now, with no observed dominant behaviour by either. Both are equally well-fed as attention is paid to make sure each individual receives a good amount of food, and they have ten square feet to share (1500x600x600).

In terms of substrate, particulates should most definitely be avoided for young dragons, but my trio (my male resides in his own 1500x600 home) are now on that kritter krumble stuff mixed with leftovers from my sand monitor blend (washed play sand, coco peat, topsoil, gum leaves) which they actively forage through and even sometimes sleep in by burying themselves partially, eschewing their hides altogether. I prefer the more natural theme and the inhabitants certainly seemed to behave differently and seem happier when I made the switch. No health issues have arisen. Mine do have a large assortment of real rocks (mudstone and large scoria) to climb over, which aids wearing their claws.

I'd also be cautious of care sheets provided on the Internet, some I have seen have been laughable... Cobbled together and sometimes woefully inaccurate. Also heard pet shop staff giving bad advice to potential buyers regarding care requirements. I'd pay most attention to information provided by qualified individuals, rather than people trying to make sales in shops or the like.

 

[pinefamily]

Hi Erin and welcome to APS.
As you can see, there is a wide range of opinions on here, mostly from people's own experiences.
Beardies love to roam, and chase their prey, so the tank you have is perfectly fine for a juvenile as Dragonlover1 has said. Depending where you are in Australia, the mesh top is probably no good for heat retention as mentioned above; plus the UV is considerably reduced through the mesh. A solid top is better, as long as there are vents for air circulation, one at each end. These are easily bought at Bunnings.
Sand is perfectly fine for juveniles, and the mixed blend described by Smittiferous is fine for adults, except it might give the live food more places to hide. No offence to anyone on this thread, but paper towel and tiles are not suitable for beardies. I have seen photos of beardy claws that have been housed on tiles/paper towel, and they have curled right round. A rock or two form your garden or nearby park and a branch to climb on will also help keep your beardie's claws trimmed. The playsand from Bunnings is perfect, as long as you dry it out first.
And lastly, don't get caught by buying sand or heat lights from a pet or reptile shop. Both can be bought from Bunnings. The Philips spot globes provide a perfect basking spot temp. Only the UV globe has to be bought from a specialty shop. Make sure your UV is a 10.0 too.
Hope I haven't confused you, lol.