Anyone here have Bearded Dragons?

[gtrdeath87]

I want another Reptile outside of my breeding project as a pet. I have had some interest in Leachianus Geckos, Spiny Tailed Monitors and Blue Tongued Skinks but all are a bit pricey. I haven't wanted to have any lizards that require a mainly insect based diet. Crickets stink I don't like to have to take care of them and they make a lot of noise dusting them is a pain in the butt and they escape and get all over the place. I have been thinking about settling on a Crested Gecko but feel I may be overall disappointed with the small size of the animal. So even though I have a general distaste for the keeping and care of insects I have been seeing a lot of cute Bearded dragon videos on YouTube. When I was a kid Bearded Dragons weren't even popular yet and I cut my teeth on tokay geckos, leopard geckos and box turtles things like that. When they finally did hit the scene they were than as now kind of laughable to seasoned hobbyists as "just a beginner pet" and "not exotic enough for me" because of their huge popularity and availability. I have always felt the same that I liked the more advanced stuff and when they came around I was moving on to monitors and boas. Well anyways now just seeing how interactive they are in general and their relatively easy care and good nature small price tag and not too small but decent size I think I might want one after all since the things I really want are a bit expensive and probably won't be anywhere near as fun as far as being anything close to an actual "pet" type pet. So any of you ladies and gents out there have any of these and do you think it would be worth my while? Should I just save up for a blue tongue an ackie or a leachie?

[SCWood]

I want another Reptile outside of my breeding project as a pet. I have had some interest in Leachianus Geckos, Spiny Tailed Monitors and Blue Tongued Skinks but all are a bit pricey. I haven't wanted to have any lizards that require a mainly insect based diet. Crickets stink I don't like to have to take care of them and they make a lot of noise dusting them is a pain in the butt and they escape and get all over the place. I have been thinking about settling on a Crested Gecko but feel I may be overall disappointed with the small size of the animal. So even though I have a general distaste for the keeping and care of insects I have been seeing a lot of cute Bearded dragon videos on YouTube. When I was a kid Bearded Dragons weren't even popular yet and I cut my teeth on tokay geckos, leopard geckos and box turtles things like that. When they finally did hit the scene they were than as now kind of laughable to seasoned hobbyists as "just a beginner pet" and "not exotic enough for me" because of their huge popularity and availability. I have always felt the same that I liked the more advanced stuff and when they came around I was moving on to monitors and boas. Well anyways now just seeing how interactive they are in general and their relatively easy care and good nature small price tag and not too small but decent size I think I might want one after all since the things I really want are a bit expensive and probably won't be anywhere near as fun as far as being anything close to an actual "pet" type pet. So any of you ladies and gents out there have any of these and do you think it would be worth my while? Should I just save up for a blue tongue an ackie or a leachie?

They are very rewarding pets to have! I own a rescued beardie and she is my love
She is very friendly and I take her out and we cruise around the house together. I'm going to buy a reptile leash for an outdoor adventure soon. Beardies CAN eat a majority insect diet as babies, however my girl eats mostly sald. I give her ten mealies a day and 10 crickets along with a salad. My cricket setup is simple and to the point and I don't lose any because I use tongs to feed them to her. I honestly think it's worth it ^^

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[jclaiborne]

If you have any doubt about wanting one I would pass. Let me put it into perspective like this for you. I have 2 blueys, a tegu, and a beardie. I spend more money each week feeding my beardie then I do on the blueys and tegu combined. On another note (this is my personal opinion) I love all animals, I don't want to sound as if I am putting down beardies, they will always have a special place in my heart because it was the first lizard I owned as a child. That being said my BTS are way more rewarding IMO. They have such unique personalities, they have a decent size to them, are very intelligent, interactive, but don't require the same level of care as say a monitor or a tegu.

[gtrdeath87]

Ya I was watching some stuff that said you can pretty much get away with feeding the blue tongues dry dog or cat chow and wet cat chow as a treat. When you say interactive do they seem to actually like attention? The thing that has been turning my head on the beardies is they seem to act like scaly puppy dogs. The blue tongues just seem a bit more sedentary. How are your blue tongues as far as energy? Pretty lazy or somewhat playful?

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[Sassafrass]

I absolutely adore dragons. Friendly, outgoing, love attention, animated, so yes, the puppy dog of the herp world for sure. They will even snuggle with you at bedtime, and fall asleep.

Babies like bugs. These days, dubia roaches are really taking over as the staple bug. But as they get older, Rep-Cal pellets are a good choice if you don't want the hassle of salads. I have raised several dragons both ways, and they were all healthy as horses. Just add a little calcium and vitamin dust to either.

They do need a UV light, and a heat bulb. Around 95 on the warm side, 80 on the cool side. They don't need belly heat.

Water in the cage isn't necessary, but they love a good soak once a week. Some of them swim!! They will drink water while they soak if they need it. Also, an extra soak or two while shedding helps.

So they aren't super high maintenence. But they have super high personality.

[reptilecatlady]

Crickets stink I don't like to have to take care of them and they make a lot of noise dusting them is a pain in the butt and they escape and get all over the place....now just seeing how interactive they are in general and their relatively easy care and good nature small price tag and not too small but decent size I think I might want one after all since the things I really want are a bit expensive and probably won't be anywhere near as fun as far as being anything close to an actual "pet" type pet. So any of you ladies and gents out there have any of these and do you think it would be worth my while? Should I just save up for a blue tongue an ackie or a leachie?

I had a Beardie until I moved and couldn't take him with me (NOwhere in Vegas allows reptiles.) A few pointers. Crickets are a pain in the ass. They do stink, it's gross when they die in their little cage. However I only had ONE escape out of thousands, so I'm proud of that. I wasn't just taking care of my Beardie, I was also taking care of 150 bugs at a time. That got old. They're also pretty high maintenance - their diet is tricky to get right and can get expensive. I fed him a lot of different things. That being said he was absolutely wonderful and I miss him every day. I just will hesitate to ever get one again because of how expensive and time consuming they are.

[jclaiborne]

Ya I was watching some stuff that said you can pretty much get away with feeding the blue tongues dry dog or cat chow and wet cat chow as a treat. When you say interactive do they seem to actually like attention? The thing that has been turning my head on the beardies is they seem to act like scaly puppy dogs. The blue tongues just seem a bit more sedentary. How are your blue tongues as far as energy? Pretty lazy or somewhat playful?

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I don't like feeding blueys cat or dog food, a lot of people do it, but I don't agree with it. I make a months worth of food for them at a time, freeze it and thaw as needed. I am able to feed my tegu the same thing. If you decide to go down that route I can provide greater detail, but again not a fan of cat and dog food. As for your other questions. Each reptile will be different. The beardie I have now is the laziest animal I have ever owned, but the one I had as a child was very active. Blueys have short legs so its not like they will dart across the floor, but mine come up to the cage when I walk in the room, will climb out in my hands. The perch up on my shoulder when I walk around and will explore the house when I let them roam. They are very intelligent lizards that benefit from environmental enrichment (changing up their cage, allowing them to burrow, hiding food around the cage). You also have to consider there are different bluey species that require different husbandry.

[gtrdeath87]

Ya I think a Leachie or a Blue Tongue would be a lot easier to feed but a lot less personality. Definitely no real personality on the gecko but I like geckos in general especially the arboreal ones. I always liked my Tokay more than my leopard geckos and I couldn't even touch him but watching them crawl around the glass is something else.

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[reptilecatlady]

My Beardie's personality was fantastic. I was a teacher at the time and had a smaller tank at school I'd bring him to every once in awhile. My middle schoolers adored him. I'd keep him zipped up in my hoodie when I lectured sometimes. He was such a snuggler. Greeted me when I came home or turned on his light in the morning. Loved him to death.... but I do think back to the diet and shudder a little. It was so expensive.

[PitOnTheProwl]

5 Dragons, Curly Tail, Armadillo, Red Iggy, Leopard Gecko, and a Savannah Monitor.
All of them have different personalities and handleability.
Personally I really like the challenge of the Sav, bite hurts like hell though.
All my dragons are easy to handle and will kick back and watch tv with you.