beardie care

[A_Kap]

I'm going to the Hamburg reptile show in PA and I am deciding between a SD retic and a bearded dragon. The Bearded dragon appeals to me in its temperament and handable nature. The only part that bothers me is the care-(particularly the feeding) I would plan on getting an adult beardie so I understand they primarily should be eating vegetables with insects daily. How much of it though? Some people have said that they should be getting around 40-50 crickets a day!? Seems like a lot of work for a "beginner" pet. The SD retic can be fed frozen thawed rats every once in a while that are easy to store. Also they dont require UVB lighting .
Not to mention who would take care of the beardie on long trips away from home? The one advantage the beardie has over the retic is that I can take him out of his enclosure more often since my pare ts aren't afraid of them (I'm 17) so does anyone have an easy system of feeding they can share with me? Thank you!

[Stewart_Reptiles]

A bit off subject but still valid since you seem to like lizards however would prefer something low maintenance, look into BTS, they are way underrated.

BTS make great pets, but their care is much easier than the one of a beardie, adult eats once or twice a week a mixture of 50% veggies, 40% meat (chicken live or quality cat food) and 10% fruits.

You can prepare meals in advance and freeze them and offer as needed.

[A_Kap]

That is a beautiful animal. I'm not too familiar with them. Are the housing requirements manageable? I assume they're not quite as tame as a beardie? I've pretty much made up my mind on the SD retic. Their just much more suitable for my schedule.

[HVani]

That is a beautiful animal. I'm not too familiar with them. Are the housing requirements manageable? I assume they're not quite as tame as a beardie? I've pretty much made up my mind on the SD retic. Their just much more suitable for my schedule.

BTS are awesome! They are just as tame as a beardie IMO, but they are pretty lazy. I had mine in a 40 breeder but that was a little small for him. I took him out very frequently so he got plenty of exercise. They eat just about anything. Mine loved bananas, eggs and pinky mice(as a treat). They are really cool animals.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

That is a beautiful animal. I'm not too familiar with them. Are the housing requirements manageable? I assume they're not quite as tame as a beardie? I've pretty much made up my mind on the SD retic. Their just much more suitable for my schedule.

Like many animals it is a matter of working with them and getting them used to interaction, whether it's a beardie a BTS or a retic, they all need regular handling.

My BTS will hang in the chair with me and stay there, he will sometime move to chase the dogs if they come too close

Ideal housing is a 4X2 cage (which is what you are looking at for a Beardie or SD Retic as well)



UV has been and still is a controversial issue, many people do not use them and yet have work with those animals for decades successfully other believe they are essentials.

This will be a great place to get you started if you ever change your mind http://www.bluetongueskinks.net/ and if you have specific questions, housing, diet, how to prepare their meal etc just shoot me a PM

The only reason those guys are not as popular is the fact that they are near impossible to sex and therefore people can't just buy a pair and breed them.