Bearded vs Mountain Horned Dragons

[grizz2534]

Wasn't sure if I should put this in here or general lizards, but I'm leaning towards a bearded dragon. Anyways...

I am trying to decide which one of these two to get. We have a MHD at my work (Petsmart) for $50 as we speak. And we don't have any beardies yet, but they are either $70 or $80. Which one makes a better pet? I'd like to handle which ever one I get. Which ones are easier to care for? I don't know any info about either could help. I have 2 leopard geckos and a BP and am looking to add to my "Zoo" Any info would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance for all the help!

D

[PythonChick]

I don't think I have ever even seen a Moutain Horned Dragon so I can't offer any comparisons to beardies for you. What I can tell you is that I have had my baby beardie for two and a half months now. Right now he is living in a 20 gallon long tank, but within another six-eight months or so I am going to upgrade him to his adult sized enclosure. I am by no means an expert on their care, most of my info comes from some forum surfing and a book I purcahsed, but I have heard a good size for an adult enclosure is 4 feet by 2 feet by 2 feet, so they can take up a lot of space. My beardie tolerates being handled very well and is increasingly calm, though he still has a tendency to sit very still for a while only to try and zoom off in another direction if something moves too fast. I have 3 ball pythons as well, and, though I love my snakes, Yoshi is by far more fun to watch on a general basis. If you chose to get a beardie, make sure the one you purchase is lively and alert, and doesn't spend a whole lot of time laying on the floor of the cage without sitting up, and that his vent area is clean. Also, it helps if they are over 8 inches long when you buy them, since before that they are too fragile to handle a whole lot. I would say my bearded dragon is a very fun pet to have, but at the same time he takes up a lot more of my time than my snakes, since he has to be offered calcium dusted crickets 2-3 times a day in addition to having a salad of greens avaiable at all times. If you are looking for more info on bearded dragons, then www.beardeddragon.org is another great resource!

[grizz2534]

Cool, thanks for the info. I have looked into bearded dragons a lot, and they seem to be really cool. MHD's just look mean as hell, but they are pretty calm from what little i've heard, but I talked to someone at work and they said bearded dragons like being handled a lot more then the MHD's. So now I'm really leaning towards a bearded dragon.

[Flirtycuddle]

I have had my guy for about 2 months and he is at the stage of teenager already. This simply means hes testing his boundries and me every time I stick my hand in to hold him. He lunges at me open mouth as in get away and I just throw some food in that open mouth and he stops dead in his tracks and gives me this WTH look lol. As babies they need baths 3-4 times a week to stay hydrated and can easily become dehydrated when little. They eat from 30-100 crix a day depending on an individual basis. Never house more then one together cuz if one gets sick they both do and finding out which one has issues is not easy always. At least a 55 gallon aquarium or equivelent in size. They need UVB lights and greens daily. However getting a baby to eat greens is not gonna happen normally.

[ADEE]

flirty.. i dont know anything about the MHD but my baby beardies (19g and 40g, approx 10", hatched around august) both love their greens, always have since the day they came home... the breeder starts giving them greens right away too. They almost give me dirty looks if i dont drop them by 7am ... they do love their crickets but love their greens just as much. Im going through a bag of spring mix a week with these girls, and very little gets wasted. Im averaging about 600 crickets a week between the two of them... Nikon (bigger) is more of a hearty eater so when Canon catches up im sure we will be going through about 1,000 a week between the two of them, for the record they do NOT live together and while they do require a bit more attention for diet, lights, exc its worth it to me because they are so interesting and entertaining. i cant wait until they get a bit bigger... canon and nikon were both about 6" when they came home. Mine have never once lunged or even had open mouths at any of my family.... actually your response is the first time ive ever heard of a beardie lunging...


for the record.. my breeder charges approx $40 per normal beardie baby... if you go through a breeder you might be able to not only hand select your animal but also get to ask lots of questions, hatch dates, diet, exc.

just my .02 and experience

[mischevious21]

Well I have a BD, and I love him to death- but I like to worn anyone thinking of buying one that they require alot of time, and ALOT of money. Between cages, crickets, two differnt types of llights (and a new flouresnt every 6 months), vitamins and suppliments, greens, CRICKETS, mealworms- its all worth it, but if you dont want to be spending at LEAST $50 a month, as I do for everything (sometimes even more), then.. I dont know, because I dont know what the other lizard is like. lol.
But they are great and fun animals- with ALOT of personality and spunk!!

[ADEE]

I second Jessikas comments... a box of $1,000 crickets a week (What were getting into soon) is going to be $20, the salad a week is about $4.00 and thats without lamps, paper towels, exc.

So if you go by that (Depending how many you get, yours might not consume that many crickets since i do have two, twice the food) im averaging about $90 give or take a month.. ouch when i think about it that way!!!

[ADEE]

I have no money and no room.

This comment you left on my thread with the Canon and Nikon pictures concerns me... if you dont have the money or the room perhaps you should wait a bit.. The beardies to require quite a bit in terms of cost to keep and you have to be prepared before you jump in..

[Bright202]

I work with dragons everyday. Haha, sorry bearded Dragons. Their great, just like a cat! The older they get, the lazier they get, but their really cute, you can put then on your shoulder and they will just sit there. Beardies all the way.

[ADEE]

lol, mitch i dont know how much lazier nikon can get lol.. i hardly see her move off the drift wood except to eat, now canon shes another story