hi,
just got my daughter a bearded dragon, and need some advice. in the vivarium there is only one heat source, a heat bulb in the roof, as this is switched off at night, should there be a secondary source like a heat mat?

also what is the best thing for the floor? sand or carpet?

been online and read a couple of books and getting contradicting advice

cheers
fiona

No never use a heat mat they can be dangerous for them.

I use woodchippings/bark in my tanks as they dont like the sand.

The dont need any source of heat during the night as this mimicks what it is like in the desert, really hot during the day and cold on a night.

Also make sure you have a good uv lamp in there

As above, heat mats have no benefit to a beardie at all, and can damage their tummys.

I house mine on Chipsi, it just little wood chippings as she decided she was going to eat sand.

If you find that your house is getting very cold at night, you can get a ceramic heat emitter to put in overnight. Attatch it to a thermostat and keep it on a low temp.

thanks guys, that helps
pets at home said dont use chips, but its wood chips in their vivs
im sooo confused, so im needing a uvb light, does this give off enough heat for basking or is it just for the rays?

cheers
fiona

wow did you get the beardie from p@h? they really should have given you better advice.

right so, you need a uvb light. 10.0 uvb. this helps the beardie use the calcium in its diet properly. this bulb need to be as long as the viv will allow and beardie needs to be able to get within 6-10 inches of it. they don't give off heat.

you will need a spot bulb for the basking spot. the size of your viv determines the wattage of the bulb. oh, yeah, how big is you viv?

the temperatures in your viv should roughly be 110f under basking spot, and no lower than 80f really in the cool end. i guess you have a thermometer?

food wise are you supplementing his diet? xx

no, she bought it privately.
its a 3ft viv, need to get a uv tube and fittings take it i'll need a 30" tube but what wattage

she's got it into her head the beardie needs heat at night, the temp this morning was 70, with everything switched off, i think this is fine. she's determined to have a heat mat.

its feeding on hoppers and fresh veg, do you recommend crickets as we've been told not to as these cause worms. rex (the beardie) is a yr old

cheers fiona

just look at the length of the uv bulb when buying it should say 30" then underneath what wattage it is. You will need to get a ballast to connect the bulb to power supply they usually come in 20 watt, 30, 40. so you need to match it up so if it is a 14w bulb go for 20, 25w bulb go for 30 etc etc. uvbulbs work best when you buy a strip bulb version.

you will need to go out and buy a uv bulb 2mo, beardies can suffer from MBD without it which is nasty disease that causes their bones to bend and distort.

Please tell her that a heat mat is a bad idea. 70 overnight is fine, in the winter you may need a heat emitter for the cold nights. Beardies have very little feeling in their bellies, so will not know that they are burning and won't move. also they soak all of their heat up from the top, being desert animals this is what is natural for them. get her to read this if she won't listen, last thing you want is a burnt beardie!!

hmm crickets are a staple part of their diet, and it is always good to mix it up a bit for them. hoppers are really good nutritionally, mine only gets them once or twice a week. crickets are fine, just buy them from a reputable reptile shop and you won't have any problems.

are you dusting the bugs and veg with calcium powder etc?

oh, also, a 3ft viv will need to be upgraded to a 4ft soon!!

let me know if you need anymore advice!! oh and where are the pics????? xx

yes have calcium dust for food, although he hasnt eaten anything yet
but have been asured this could just be due to the move, just to keep an eye on him.

cheers fiona

lol
will post some pic as soon as i figure out how

fiona