new beardie question

I thought the uvb only got them to produce the d3 and they needed the d3 to absorb the calcium? I know they still need the uvb lights.

Gah! I meant to say if you take them outside for sunlight! I found the quote it was a few down from the one you quoted. I'm so sorry!

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You want to give them calcium with D3 unless they get regular exposure to direct sunlight. D3 helps them absorb calcium the lights you buy including MVB don't allow them to produce as much D3 as direct sun light. If they get direct sunlight on a regular basis then you can get the calcium w/out D3 for them. I believe that as long as they get a couple of hours of natural sunlight a week you can get away with/out D3 but I have to double check. I have always given all my dragons calcium with D3 even when I let them outside in spring and summer months with no problems...

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Originally Posted by maverickgtr

I thought the uvb only got them to produce the d3 and they needed the d3 to absorb the calcium? I know they still need the uvb lights.

Gah! I meant to say if you take them outside for sunlight! I found the quote it was a few down from the one you quoted. I'm so sorry!

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Im not 100% sure on this, but I do think that they need the D3 that is added to the Calcium, to obsorb the Calcium, and the Uvb ( BTW UVA is not important to look for, all bulbs produce it reptile or not, and they need UVB as it is) bulbs do not produce strong enough Rays to make enough or any D3 in the dragon, so you add the D3 and then the Calcium is obsorbed making the Added D3 and the Uvb bulb nessesary. That is why when you take them outside the sun gives them the D3 they need, hence not needing any supplements with d3 in it, while outside.

That is also why if you feed Pheonix worms you need to make sure you are giving them D3 somehow as well if you do not give them Calcium.

Someone correct me if I am wrong.

Yeah, I knew something was off with that, no one would say that no Uvb is needed along with Calcium and D3.

Forgetting the whole "if you take them outside" bit really changes the meaning of the whole post... haha figures the one time I don't preview a post I mess it up...

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Originally Posted by maverickgtr

Forgetting the whole "if you take them outside" bit really changes the meaning of the whole post... haha figures the one time I don't preview a post I mess it up...

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Its fine, everyone messes up sometimes. I do it more than average myself :P I just wanted to correct that so you ( If you had thought that was true) or anyone reading it does not get confused.

wow thats alot of info im not sure I understand. So as long as im taking the little guy outside for about 30 min a day and dusting the crickets with D3 I will be ok for right now? did I get that correctly? lol My brain is like a sponge..but its a tiny one!!

Until you get a bulb he'll be fine if you take him outside every day. For how long, I don't know. And you should be dusting crickets with calcium with d3 powder 5-6x per week and a multivitamin 2-3x a week for a juvie.

Here's a good caresheet I use.

And here's an awesome site for what you can feed your beardie.

And you'll need more crickets very soon. A dozen only lasted my beardie when he was a juvie for a day or two.

yeah I just got about 30 more crickets today which puts me around 50 or so total. Thanks for all the help guys!!

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Originally Posted by monty's dad

yeah I just got about 30 more crickets today which puts me around 50 or so total. Thanks for all the help guys!!

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What size are the crickets? Just make sure that they are no longer than the width between your dragons eyes because of impaction issues. ID suggest ordering crickets online, its less than $25 shipped for 1000. 50 crickets could actually be eaten in one day by these garbage disposals.

Matt if you are using a type of bulb like PowerSun...that gives the heat and the sun....then you don't use D3!! At least that is what I was told???

"You want to give them calcium with D3 unless they get regular exposure to direct sunlight. D3 helps them absorb calcium the lights you buy including MVB don't allow them to produce as much D3 as direct sun light. If they get direct sunlight on a regular basis then you can get the calcium w/out D3 for them. I believe that as long as they get a couple of hours of natural sunlight a week you can get away with/out D3 but I have to double check. I have always given all my dragons calcium with D3 even when I let them outside in spring and summer months with no problems... "

This was the quote that I had left re: calcium supplements... Maybe I should of worded it better... You should be using calcium with D3(no phosphorus) 5-6 times a week and multi vitamin 1-2 times a week... The only time you can get away with using calcium with out D3 if your dragons are kept outside with daily exsposure to direct sunlight or with a Quality MVB... Sorry for any confusion...

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Originally Posted by BPelizabeth

Matt if you are using a type of bulb like PowerSun...that gives the heat and the sun....then you don't use D3!! At least that is what I was told???

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This depends on the amount of UVB your bulb is producing and the only way to know for sure is with a UVB light meter. I use mega ray's for all my adults and still given them one feeding a week dusted with calcium w/d3 and use calcium w/out D3 for all other feeding's I dust. This is after using bulb for a year, when the bulb is new just use the non D3 calcium. This is directly from the reptileUV site(mega ray).


"Almost all living creatures have the ability to develop vitamin D3 from UVB exposure and do so automatically when they are exposed to ultraviolet. Many reptiles develop all their D3 from the exposure to UVB in their natural habitat. The natural production of D3 under UV light is a self limiting process. Because our Mega-Ray® mimics a piece of real sunshine, we strongly recommend not using any D3 supplements. Our extensive blood serum 25-OH-vitaminD3 testing has shown that supplementing D3 is completely unnecessary while proper UV levels are maintained. It should also be noted that when normal D3 levels are present in the blood stream, the body has the ability to metabolize all the calcium that's needed from the normal diet and in most cases if the animal is being fed a high calcium diet, calcium supplements aren't necessary.

If you have doubts about the sufficiency of the calcium in your animal's diet or you have a juvenile or gravid animal and feel its best to supplement calcium, we highly recommend the Rep-Cal brand Calcium, No VitD3, Phosphorus Free only for use with our bulbs."