bearded dragon as first lizard?

[krood]

My brother and his wife are considering buying a bearded dragon (for their son but my brother will be taking care of it since their son is only 4). Is this a good species for a "first lizard" or would there be a better choice? My brother has some (fairly limited) experience with bearded dragons. Any advice/suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks all.

[elevatethis]

So long as you get the proper lighting (for UVB exposure) and understand that these guys need to be fed every single day, I'd say go for it.

I answered this question a lot when I worked in a pet store that sold a lot of bearded dragons...and took in a lot of returned bearded dragons when the young children they were bought for lost interest.

Like most "fish tank" pets, its very easy for a child to lose interest and forget about the animal. If its for a 4 year old, I'd consider it more YOUR pet...so if its something you want to have, go for it...

[krood]

Yeah that's kind of how "my son's" bp is. It's his pet, and he is fascinated by it and loves it, but I'm the one who maintains it, etc. My son is 5, but he's learning about bp husbandry. Eventually it will be his responsibility to monitor the temp/humidity, take care of cleaning, etc. Right now he sort of helps out with cleaning and definitely loves feeding it.

[Pork Chops N' Corn Bread]

Although I haven't kept any YET, I have helped at a petstore that had a good number of them. They are a lot of work but very rewarding. Usually friendly and always fun to watch. I would say as long as he knows what he is getting into, go for it.

[Python-77]

Beardeds can make a great first lizard. They are great for young children for 2 main reasons 1 they rarely ever bite and 2 they are pretty sturdy animals and deal well with handling. Being that your child is 5 you can count on doing all of the work with the dragon, but you child will be able to hold it for short periods once it gets to be about 5-6 months old. Once its over a year old they deal real well with being held for long periods of time.

[krood]

cool. thanks all!