AboutThea Expertise I can answer questions on the proper husbandry and diet of Iguanas, bearded dragons, geckoes, skinks, chameleons, tortoises, box turtles, treefrogs, non-venomous snakes and tarantulas. Also the breeding of some species of feeder insects.
I have no experience with venonmous snakes and only limited experience with aquatic turtles.
Experience I have been keeping and breeding reptiles for over 30 years. In addition to my regular job in the medical field I also worked for several years in a pet store that specialized only in exotics. The job entailed both caring for and answering questions on innumerable species. It required constant, extensive research into a wide range of reptiles. I have been called to appear on televised national media (CBC, CTV and Life Channel) as well as CBC radio to discuss the proper care of reptiles and other exotics in captivity. I currently own one or more species of those listed under my expertise with the exception of chameleons. I owned chameleons for years but keep none currently. I keep over 20 snakes comprising 5 species, both Colubridae and Boidae. I bred corn snakes for several years. I have a particular interest in treefrogs and currently have 5 different species. I've raised redfoot tortoises for 10 years and have two iguanas, one for 12 years.
Publications A small and now defunct local magazine called "Pet Vue"
Education/Credentials Diagnostic medical microbiology with some parasitology experience.
We have had our baby beardie for 4 1/2 months . I have a few questions I have not been able to get answers to. Your help would be greatly appreciated.
At what age can I start using sand?
We have recently switched to Med crickets. I over fed him and did not feed him anything but salad yesterday until be had a BM. he has had two and I think we are ok. His abdomen still looks alittle extended so I will limit what he eats today to be sure everything is passing through ok. Is 9 Med crickets allot in a feeding of about minutes? Should I limit him to 5. We switched because he would eat about 60 small crickets a day and of course because he is bigger now. He dose not want to eat any veggies or fruits. He only picked yesterday on a few pieces and licked some bannana.
I believe his calcium and vitamin sups are ok. I know his lighting and temps are ok but he is still acting alitte odd and some days he is really yellow in color. Is this a sign of a problem. Photo shows him dark in color. He is also shaking his left foot like there is something on it but there is not anything there. Is this a seizure? Could he be dehydrated. He is no longer taking water from me but there is water available to him in his home.
I am like a new mom even though he is my sons pet. I'm taking care of him till he is little bigger. Any info would be appreciated. I have included photos from this morning. Thank you for your help and have an AWESOME day. Sincerely Brenda
Answer Hi Brenda, Substrate choice is probably one of the most debated topics in reptile keeping. Any loose particle substrate such as sand is always going to present some degree of impaction risk, although the risk is greater with smaller animals. Many keepers use sand with animals of all ages with never a problem but to eliminate the risk completely stick to something like reptile carpet. I would suggest that you wait until his body length (not including tail) is at least 5 inches if you do choose to use sand.
Young dragons are typically more highly insectivorous and tend to take more greens as they mature. You can encourage him to eat more greens by feeding salad first before any insects have been offered. I used to encourage babies to take more salad by hand-feeding slightly wiggling strips of salad greens. Once they got the end of the strip in their mouth, they would eat the whole thing. I don't think 9 medium crickets should cause any digestion problems. A young healthy growing bearded would easily consume that amount (or more) in a 10 minute feeding interval which is the time that is usually recommended. Medium crickets lack the hard outer wings of adults so they are fairly soft bodied and digestible. You can also feed him less crickets but twice per day if that makes you more comfortable.
Beardeds will change colour slightly in relation to temperature, usually appearing darker when they are cooler and lighter after they have been basking for awhile . They can have hints of yellow and light orange as part of their normal colouration. It tends to become more obvious as they mature. Selectively breeding for more intense colour in beardeds is common.
You can give him a brief soak in a small amount of tepid water once or twice a week to ensure that he stays hydrated, it also tends to trigger a bowel movement so you can feel more confident that things are "moving along" as they should.
The foot shaking is the most concerning part of your question. There is a condition called tetany that results from low blood calcium levels and exhibits initially as slight trembling or shaking of the toes. It is involuntary so if your bearded looks like he is picking up his foot voluntarily and shaking it then that does not sound like tetany. Beardeds grow rapidly and consequently have high calcium demands when they are young. He should be getting supplements (calcium with vitamin D3) around 4 or 5 times per week at this age.
Snickers looks like a cutie, I love the way he is looking right at the camera!
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