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Bearded Dragon from Craigs list...help!!

KingCrimson<3

KingCrimson<3

Crackberry Junkie
I contacted some one about a beardie after reading a post on craigs list. The person did not seem to be taking care of the animal and as I have been considering a beardie for quite a while, I figured I would step up and make an offer for the poor creature. She says it is about a year old and 12 inches long, is that about right? I have no idea what condition the little guy might be in if I do bring him home.

Obviously I didn't/might not have a lot of time in preparing for this, especially since she says she isn't feeding him, I was hoping someone could help me in terms of emergency preparation. What should I do for housing? I have space, but not a lot of money and I am really not a handy person. He might come with a tank, but I have the horrible feeling that it is a 10 gallon. Would housing him in plastic temporarily or even permanantly be bad? I have all my snakes in tubs, so getting a large plastic tub and building a screen top wouldn't be too hard... I'm a little nervous. Of course she might not respond, but I would like to be prepared in case she does.

Please help me out and feel free to contribute any additional information or advice you think might be useful.

Thanks,

KC
 
12 inches is a little small for a yearling, but I'm sure he can be caught up.
The only issue that a tub would have is the possibility for melting. They need like a 110 degree basking spot (i think). They also need to be provided with a UVB bulb that has to be placed on them directly, it can't pass through glass or plastic, but a screen is okay.
As he grows a 40 gallon tank is the minimum size I'd put him in, though in my opinion bigger is always better! Building a custom cage is probably the best way to go. If you can avoid the melting tub and provide uvb then I don't see a reason why it wouldn't work temporarily.
My favorite thing to feed my lizard is Dubia roaches! They're super easy to keep, don't smell, and super healthy for them! So, I would get some of those for him :)
 
Thank you for responding!!!!!

I think, and this is still completely up in the air that I will probably start out with a large sturdy plastic tub and build a screen top. I can put ceramic tile on the floor to keep the plastic from super heating, and use a tile or stone shelf to obtain optimal basking temperatures while keeping the plastic itself from warping or melting. I'm on top of the uv thing, I've head not to use coil bulbs so I will have to go out and get a fixture and a bulb. Those are expensive though, but probably more important than a fancy tank.
 
I would use a reptisun tube. I'm not sure what exact tubes the beardies need, I use reptisun 10.0 for my frillie. I know they're expensive, but once you're past the initial cost it's good for 6 months. I suggest going to petmountain.com to order the bulbs and fixture! If it is still warm in your area you can take him outside for an hour a day for natural sun until your bulb gets here. Tile is a great idea for the bottom!
 
Yeah, I'm definitely going to go the repti sun 10 route if I end up bringing this guy home. For the fixture though I'm just going to go to the hardware store and get a regular florescent fixture instead of paying $50 for the petstore ones.

Thanks again.
 
As far as UVB is concerned, I actually really, really like the MVBs for beardies (and other diurnal reptiles)--UVB and heat all in one, and much stronger UVB output than the fluorescents. The UVB output lasts a year instead of just 6 months, and you don't have to deal with an extra light fixture unless you want to add extra light. The Powersun is the best bulb currently on the market. I use them over my guys... Powersun 100 watts over my beardie and leopard tortoise, and a T-Rex Active UVHeat 160 watt over my Russians. The T-Rex are hard to find these days, if I remember right, they stopped making them, but they're a fantastic bulb. The Reptisun 10.0 is ok (definitely wouldn't use a weaker bulb than that over a beardie!), too, if you don't want to do the MVB.

Anyway, just wanted to get that said. Beardies are fantastic, and not too difficult once you get set up, but the key is to set them up right... And be prepared for a sick beardie!!! Which means, of course, be prepared for VET BILLS--parasites are a strong possibility, and MBD an even stronger likelihood if this person's care is underpar. One great product, if he's calcium deficient and/or suffering from MBD, is Repashy's Rescue-Cal product. It's a highly digestible form of calcium and SO helpful for treating severe calcium deficiencies. Also helpful is high quality feeders... Silkworms are a great one, and are said to have an enzyme called serapeptase (if I remember right) which increases the efficiency of their calcium absorption.. Or something like that, I'm having trouble remembering right now and this computer will crash if I open a second window to check, lol. Other good ones include Butterworms, a high-fat, high-calcium, very nutritious treat (fatty like waxworms, so feed in moderation, but also very nutritious!), and pheonix worms (I believe they're also sold under the name repti-worms now), which are a super high calcium worm and have been said to help reverse MBD and severe calcium deficiencies. A good place to get all of these is Mulberry Farms (mulberryfarms.com). I've been ordering from them since '09 and have never had a bad experience.

Anyway, I have to get going, and there's not a great deal more advice to be given without hearing more about the situation and the beardie's health status, so I'll leave it at that. A couple great resources for beardie care info, if you haven't found them, are http://beardeddragon.org and http://beautifuldragons.com. They may both be very helpful in preparing for your new baby. BD.org has a forum, much like here, where you can get some great advice. They even have a forum dedicated to rescue beardies, so browsing through that to see others' experiences, and posting there for others' advice, may be a good idea as you prepare for this venture.

Good luck!!! :)
 
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