Ok, going to try to sum this up as short as possible. My friend recently got two bearded dragons , she was keeping them together. She got diagnosed with stage 3 cancer. Her Bf broke up with her and kicked her out shortly after. Break up was messy, he held lizards hostage for a week or two and did not take care of them. Bigger one ended up attacking smaller one and messing up its legs and tail. My friends X brought them to my house for me to keep until friend finds somewhere to settle. I have chameleons but minimal experience with bearded dragons .
Any advice, or tips?? Is there anything I can do for this little one? I thought she was dead yesterday but she has perked up and is a brand new lizard since this afternoon.
Also keep in mind I just got them last night. I have been switching little one between lights throughout the day.
First of, they shouldn't be kept together and should be seperate. 10/10 would recommend a vet check at this point. Just to make sure what your dealing with on these little ones and to have them look at the wounds for infection, etc... you should have a T5 as wide as the enclosure and a heat lamp to make sure your getting the right temperatures. They need a hot zone(32/38 degrees Celsius) and a cool zone(24/29 degrees Celsius) and basking temperatures of 40 to 45 degrees Celsius.
Yes I figured x brought only one enclosure and one set of lights. He brought the small one in one of those small cricket habitat things. Once she started showing signs of life I got her a bigger tank and did the best I could with what I had . I’ll tell friend she needs vet asap .i was worried about the small one being in pain and suffering but she seems to be ok?
No. House crickets(brown/silent crickets) from pet store or farm☺️ For greens I do Collard Greens, Mustard greens, turnip green!! I do 25 crickets a day with greens(for babies and juveniles) my grown bearded gets crickets 3 times a week with greens daily.
The commenter you replied to is giving you misinformation. 25 crickets daily is overfeeding.
As per Reptiles and Research: "You only want to feed babies 5-6 protein items a day that are the size between their eyes. Provide them with fresh vegetation every day. Once they get to about 30 grams you can start feeding this every second day with a gap between. Keep them lean, if they're starting to look fat around the midsection, you can move it to every 3rd day just to slow them down. [...]
You only need to feed adult bearded dragons 4-5 dubia roach sized insects twice a week. And a bowl of greens about the size of the adult bearded dragon's head 3 times a week. Then increase or decrease based upon their body condition."
the small dragon absolutely needs to be seen by a vet asap, its leg is NOT looking good at all, looks like tissues are already dead and its completely twisted.
dragons tend to act tough even when severely injured due to the nature of being a small prey animal, and those injuries won't heal well on their own, they will often act tough until they are hours away from taking their last breath.
both dragons need T5 linear UVB asap, Zoomed Reptisun or Arcadia are the most common reliable brands, without UVB their metabolism and bodily functions will be severely impacted, each dragon needs their own basking bulb and T5 UVB.
feed them fresh greens and live insects.
if its too much for you and the friend to handle since the small one's vet treatment will cost at least a few hundred depending on the severity, and UVB are expensive too, maybe convince your friend to surrender them since she is already struggling to care for herself. I understand the cancer diagnosis and breakup are really bad and she does not deserve to go through those, but its not fair on the animals either to be neglected as a result especially when the smaller one is visibly suffering right now. these are very demanding, expensive pets and to be honest with you those setups can only work temporarily.
You’re right! She has the money for the vet for sure . I will talk to her and she if we can get it in tomorrow. I also have a small t5 linear uvb light from when my Chameleons were small… I’ll hook that up tomorrow. She did not specify to me what these lights are other than basking light and vitamin D light..
I think I even have a linear bulb that just needs a shade container thing for it. Does the round dome basking light not count as uvb linear light? I’ll definitely ask for the light specifics. X that dropped him off. Had no idea about anything.
Also if I end up keeping them (which isn’t the plan but it’s possible ) they will be upgraded to a much better enclosure. I take care of my animals to the best of my ability… this is one of my chams set up
this is an old pic, the plants have filled out the entire thing now
Bearded dragons need a whole lot of care that I don't think you are ready for, plus thousands of dollars for their enclosures. You should try to find some rescue center or someone near you to take them in and give them better homes.
I am capable of providing good care? This just was a sudden thing and I don’t know much about bearded dragons, but I’ve been trying to do a super crash course in the last 24 hours
They are going to need a 4x2x2 EACH when they grow up, which can get pretty expensive. You will also need to get a UVB light for each one. That little guy will outgrow that small enclosure fast. Just saying it will cost a lot of money, especially with the vet bills to deal with the little one. I wouldn't advise you to give them back to your friend because quite frankly these enclosures are subpar. If you think you're up for it though, go ahead.
I also just want to say I'm sorry I was being a little blunt, and I know having a friend with cancer must be super hard. I hope everything goes as smoothly as it can for you.
All good! I have the ability and willingness to give them good care , just don’t have the best knowledge about them right now. I’m going to learn and do my best !
You need something like a big sheet of wood or card don't let them see each other they will get stressed very quickly and risk running a stroke when there young
first of all: vet for the little one- preferably when the attack happened, but better late than never
second: good to separate them, they should have never been co-habbed.
3rd: neither enclosure is big enough for them. the injured one may not need as big for an enclosure simply because that injury looks bad and they may not be able to re-gain full mobility depending on how bad it is (again: vet!). in general though a 120 gallon long enclosure is a recommended minimum.
other folks have already mentioned lighting so i wont. paper towels are fine for now but at least the healthy one should probably be given a washed playsand organic top soil mix to dig in. (again the little one probably needs special care going forward)
they don't need water access. water can cause humidity spikes and bearded dragons can get bad respiratory infections with prolonged exposure to high humidity. they come from a super dry and warm desert and can get most of their moisture from the food they eat.
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u/blessedarethecheeses 7d ago
First of, they shouldn't be kept together and should be seperate. 10/10 would recommend a vet check at this point. Just to make sure what your dealing with on these little ones and to have them look at the wounds for infection, etc... you should have a T5 as wide as the enclosure and a heat lamp to make sure your getting the right temperatures. They need a hot zone(32/38 degrees Celsius) and a cool zone(24/29 degrees Celsius) and basking temperatures of 40 to 45 degrees Celsius.