Help a Daddy Out!!

[fluxlizard]

Are they just as happy living on their own?

Yeah, I think so. Your son can provide plenty of social outlet for a dragon.

Many people nowadays keep them singly as a precaution against conspecific aggression and potential injury. I've always kept them in groups- usually 1 male and 2 females and that has always worked for me. But the point is, they are fine singly- and to some people's thinking that is the better way to go anyway.

My biggest recommendations-

Get one that is extremely well started- around 12-16 inches long if you can. At that size they are still young, but far less delicate and very difficult to mess up if husbandry isn't the best at first until you get up to speed on a lizard. They are also sturdier and calmer and easier for small hands to handle. Smaller ones grow extremely fast (some of mine literally an inch in a week) and that fast growth puts high demands for more exacting nutrition and husbandry conditions. Once they are larger, they are much sturdier and easier.

And get a male to start with. Females sometimes need to lay eggs and sometimes have health issues from that which can complicate ownership. They also tend to be more laid back and less social. Males are more brave and socially outgoing with humans as a general rule. Will often trot over to check you out and give a lick hello or head bob hello to you. Females usually are far more likely to stay put and observe.

And for what it is worth- I'm not big on leatherbacks, although before the fire I did have a few of my own that developed here independently of outside sources- 1st generation of them. But I prefer that spikey rough look on a dragon.

 

[Daddymike]

I know! It's a shame you'll need to find a forum for beardies

Nope, this is the forum for me!
I'm sure we can all get along.
Herpism-free-Zone!

 

[Daddymike]

Here is a great beardie forum I am a member of. Similar to this one just for bearded dragons. Lots of pics and advice.

http://www.beardeddragon.org/

EB, noted, but I feel so at home here!

 

[Daddymike]

My biggest recommendations-

Get one that is extremely well started- around 12-16 inches long if you can. At that size they are still young, but far less delicate and very difficult to mess up if husbandry isn't the best at first until you get up to speed on a lizard. They are also sturdier and calmer and easier for small hands to handle.

I am indebted to you!
Re:12-16 inches long, would that be around 18 months old?
Thanks in advance Fluxlizard!

 

[fluxlizard]

No problem- this stuff is fun for me.

Re:12-16 inches long, would that be around 18 months old?

It depends greatly on the individual dragon and the husbandry. It could be around that age, but usually they are more like 18-20+" by that age. I think more usual here in my care would be 4-8 months depending on the individual dragon- they can have a wide range of growth rate even in the same care.

I learned to steady that out by feeding lots of tiny insects 3x per day, but that becomes quickly impractical for most breeders. I took 100 dragons one summer and did that- feeding very small insects but lots of them for the summer. I fed out 3/4 of a million roaches by the time I called the experiment quits. But I had a very uniform and rapid growth rate throughout the group- surprisingly uniform. But it just takes too many insects when they are so small compared to the lizards.

Which has nothing to do with your question other than to say- size doesn't equate with age very accurately often times. It can take as fast as 6 months to reach adult breeding size or as long as 2 years depending on conditions.

Size is more important than age.

 

[Daddymike]

Fluxlizard, nice one.

I it wrong that I am super-excited about this Beardie???

 

[little leaf]

Daddymike - I find myself checking on this thread often - I am so excited for you and your son- lol if you were not "across the pond" I would give you my little dragon - I just know you will be good parents to your little guy when you get him !! and when things settle down , YOU , Daddymike need to treat yourself to a Panther

fluxlizard , I for one give "hats off " to you - you are so helpful and I love your pics

 

[Daddymike]

Daddymike - I find myself checking on this thread often - I am so excited for you and your son- lol if you were not "across the pond" I would give you my little dragon - I just know you will be good parents to your little guy when you get him !! and when things settle down , YOU , Daddymike need to treat yourself to a Panther

fluxlizard , I for one give "hats off " to you - you are so helpful and I love your pics

Little leaf, appreciate the comment!! It's an absolute pleasure to have met all of you guys and gals! Little man is so excited too, we keep watching videos on youtube and checking out as much info as we can!
And re: the Panther, I am with you on that Littleleaf!

Also agree re: Fluxlizard...an absolute legend!

 

[DanSB]

It looks like your decision has already been made but I certainly hope you consider a chameleon once the beardie settles. I really believe it depends on a childs temperament. Just like adults all kids aren't the same. My guess is your son wanted a hands on pet, in which case the beardie is a far superior choice.

I just want to say your doing a great thing for your son regardless of choice. The critical thinking, natural history, math, language skills, responsibility, and general interest in nature exotic pets give kids gives a huge advantage in life. With you supporting and by his side (starting off you do all the work) to make the endeavor successful I see only good to come of it.

If you hang out here long enough you will get a chameleon though. Spend the time learning and reading. Chameleons are very tricky at times and you want your sons first herp experience to be positive. The most expert among us lose chams for no visible reason regularly. If I were you I would get the beardie for your son and get the Cham for you. That way he can still experience the cham but has his beardie buddy to help teach him herp keeping.

 

[Carlton]

All this talk about beardies has sparked my interest in owning one now! It might sate my need to try to train my cham to be more 'likeable'. Good luck with your project with your child. That, after all, is more rewarding than the pet regardless of which you choose!

If someone were to ask me what my beardie was like I would usually say "a little spiny lapdog". I'd normally kept classically solitary antisocial herps, but when I took in this rescue adult male he changed my world. He would follow me around the house, make a point of climbing into my lap for pet sessions (and a warm up), seemed to soak up handling, rode around on my shoulder (on a leash as he'd jump down to greet anyone he saw), was so responsive and friendly I couldn't believe it. We benefit because beardies are semi-colonial in the wild and have more highly developed social behaviors than most other herps.

Really, for most kids this is by far the better choice. They still need the correct temps and lighting chams do (so the techy side of designing their cage is still intriguing), but their diets are easier and better understood. They are also produced widely and you might be able to get an older juvenile (hatchlings will be fragile for a while) or adult from a herp humane society or rescue group who may know their animals' individual personalities enough to ensure a good match with your son.

 

[Carlton]

It looks like your decision has already been made but I certainly hope you consider a chameleon once the beardie settles. I really believe it depends on a childs temperament. Just like adults all kids aren't the same. My guess is your son wanted a hands on pet, in which case the beardie is a far superior choice.

I just want to say your doing a great thing for your son regardless of choice. The critical thinking, natural history, math, language skills, responsibility, and general interest in nature exotic pets give kids gives a huge advantage in life. With you supporting and by his side (starting off you do all the work) to make the endeavor successful I see only good to come of it.

If you hang out here long enough you will get a chameleon though. Spend the time learning and reading. Chameleons are very tricky at times and you want your sons first herp experience to be positive. The most expert among us lose chams for no visible reason regularly. If I were you I would get the beardie for your son and get the Cham for you. That way he can still experience the cham but has his beardie buddy to help teach him herp keeping.

Personally I like keeping a combination of a beardie along with other classic herps...they remind me that SOMEONE actually appreciates me and doesn't mind spending time with me. When my chams give me their typical cold shoulder routine I can go soothe my feelings with a clowny beardie. Either than or you need a cat or dog!

 

[ChameleonMom]

Jannb, I salute you!!! It's easy to see I am in the right place.
More research leads me to the conclusion that this is a big big decision and a lot of responsibility to take on! Still excited though!

One other question (open to all btw).....which is the easier option, Bearded Dragons or Chameleons?

Bearded dragon. By far!

 

[Daddymike]

It looks like your decision has already been made but I certainly hope you consider a chameleon once the beardie settles. I really believe it depends on a childs temperament. Just like adults all kids aren't the same. My guess is your son wanted a hands on pet, in which case the beardie is a far superior choice.

I just want to say your doing a great thing for your son regardless of choice. The critical thinking, natural history, math, language skills, responsibility, and general interest in nature exotic pets give kids gives a huge advantage in life. With you supporting and by his side (starting off you do all the work) to make the endeavor successful I see only good to come of it.

If you hang out here long enough you will get a chameleon though. Spend the time learning and reading. Chameleons are very tricky at times and you want your sons first herp experience to be positive. The most expert among us lose chams for no visible reason regularly. If I were you I would get the beardie for your son and get the Cham for you. That way he can still experience the cham but has his beardie buddy to help teach him herp keeping.

DanSB, Thanks for your input, I cannot wait to begin this journey! Regarding the Cham, that will be a gift to myself for my birthday next December. That will allow enough time for the Beardie to settle and for us to get used to looking after a herp.

I have a question! I spoke to a person who is selling their beardie, he is about 15 months old and the lady told me that she is just a "bit freaked out" by him. She said her nephew and child of 7 were happy to handle him and the beardie was happy too, its just that she hasn't taken him out of his viv for about a month, although she does stroke him etc and he displays no signs off aggression, never tried to bite or anything like that. She did say that he does flail his legs when picked up but that he stopped when he was resting on her lap or arm etc which I assume is normal? His body is about 8-10 inches long. Am thinking of bringing him home but just wanted to ask the experts their opinion!

 

[Daddymike]

Now I have found a pair (male and female) both are approx 2 years old and almost fully grown. Very friendly and handled daily with no probs, healthy eating well etc. I am not sure if the are worth checking them out?
Are they too old??

 

[ridgebax1]

I would say that depends on the experience you want for your son. Beardie babies are awfully cute and they grow fast. My granddaughter got her beardie as a baby and it was fun watching her grow. Interestingly babies and adults have slightly different dietary requirements which I thought was cool. Izzy is a couple of years old now and even though she does not get handled as much as some of the others who have answered here she is still very friendly. I might let that choice up to your son. Maybe look on Youtube for different ages of dragons and let him make that decision.

 

[fluxlizard]

I'd probably take a look at the younger male first. A pair may be more than you want just yet. Age- they should still have several good years in them if you decide to go that route, but I'd recommend a single animal first- you can always add another later if you want and a single animal is more likey to be a child's best buddy- a pair can quickly become a chore instead of a pal. That's just my thoughts though- my son has really enjoyed growing up with his pair so I guess it depends on the kid some as well, just remember it's twice as much poo to clean up and if your son is like mine, that means trying to be fair and giving both lizards attention and time etc and you will have eggs and babies if you want to incubate them and the whole 9 yards.

Handling- When the owner describes flailing limbs- it's probably because she is not picking up the lizard the best way.

The only way I can think of that limbs would flail is if she grasps the lizard by the sides and lifts it out before placing it on her lap. They don't like to be lifted like this- it makes them feel insecure and they will flail. The better way to do it is to scoop under the lizard with your figers and when you lift make sure you immediately give support to it's limbs and body weight- you want the lizard to rest it's weight on you, rather than have it's weight dangling down while you pull it up- scoop like a shovel rather than lift like a mechanical crane. The dragon should feel he is in control of the situation and be able to adjust his body weight and shift around a bit without feeling restrained. You can trust them without restraint (except for the very occasional one that is nuts crazy but you want to pass on an individual like that anyway as completely tame ones are easy to find).

Here is a pretty good video about how to do it that I quickly found on youtube- there may be others better or worse to see. Main difference between the way I pick them up and this guy is I immediately support the rear feet, not just the body weight under the belly. When picked up that way, it is very difficult for any flailing to occur as the feet of the lizard are already on something and supporting the weight of the lizard.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQD5AkRD53Q

Something easy and quick for most kids is to immediately put the lizard on their chest like a baby after lifting it up. This allows the lizard to support his own weight so it feels in control and happy and the child to still feel in control as he can restrain the lizard in a way the lizard doesn't mind (hands on lizard's back) while supporting it's weight.

Be patient if you don't find quite what you want right off as far as selecting a bearded dragon- they are very popular and it shouldn't take too long to locate one that is a good match for you even if you have to pass on a few at first.

 

[Daddymike]

Fluxlizard...We opted for the male beardie, 15 months old.
Little man was happy and comfortable when we met the beardie, I made sure that he was certain, or as certain as a 6 year old could be lol, he wanted it and his reaponse was " Yes Daddy, so can we take him home now?"

So anyway, its been 3 hours since King Beardo has arrived, he has eaten lots of spinach, did a big poop, and is looking very comfortable.
I am too excited to keep typing and really need to get back to King Beardo lol, its 1am here in London so I will share what happened in more detail tomorrow....apologies in advance if I seem over the top, but I need to tell someone! A big thanks to everyone who got involved!

 

[fluxlizard]

Hey that's great!

Hope it's something your son will look back on fondly for life.

Good luck!

 

[FlChamMom]

You will be the cool dad! Your son will enjoy his new pet for many years.

 

[melble68]

....apologies in advance if I seem over the top, but I need to tell someone! A big thanks to everyone who got involved!

OMG are you kidding me? DO NOT apologize, i'm sure just like many others that gave their 2 cents worth on your thread, i'm just as excited for you and with you on the new beardy. oh wait not your beardy, your boy's. LOL, i'm having a hard time typing this. congrats.