It is essential to set up your bearded dragon’s to set up his tank BEFORE you bring him home. Here are 5 tips for making your dragon a comfortable home.
#1 Tank size
When setting up your bearded dragons home try to make it as close as possible to his natural habitat. The minimum space for an adult bearded dragon should be no less than 36” x”’ x”’. However 42” x 24” x 20” would be better.
In addition make sure his tank is easy to maintain, keep clean and have nice easy access when you want to play with your ‘beardie’.
Also think about where you are going to put the tank. Dragons like to see things happening around them but too much coming and going can also cause them stress. And make sure the tank location is in a spot thats not too hot (direct sunlight), or not too cold (beside an air conditioning unit).
#2 Essential tank items
When choosing ‘furniture’ for your bearded dragons home bear in mind that any items should be easy to clean and maintain. And make sure they are secure so that they cannot come loose or fall over etc and injure your pet.
Essentials for tank are: food dish, something for your dragon to climb and perch on and a ‘hide away box’ (Beardies, like to hide away when they feel stressed!)
#3 Tank bedding
Try to make your bearded dragons home as natural as possible. Sand is fine also reptile carpets are excellent, but pricey. If you are on a tight budget non-adhesive shelf liner or newspaper-will do.
#4 Tank heating
Remember your dragon comes from an environment where he would depend on the sun to heat his body. So a ‘basking lamp’ is crucial. And if the temperature in your home goes below 65F at night your pet will need some extra heating. This could be provided by a heater under the tank.
However you should not have the same temperature throughout the tank as your pet needs hot (90-95F) cool (75-85F) and basking (100F) heat. So you need to make sure you have thermometers in the tank.
#5 Lights for the tank
Your beardie is active during the day and needs both Ultra Violet-A and Ultra Violet-B rays for his health. Ultra Violet-A rays are provided with the ‘basking lights’. And in his natural environment your dragon would get his Ultra Violet-B rays from the sun. So its a good idea to expose him to natural sunlight from time to time. One hour of sun is worth eighteen hours of tank light.
Finally check all lights regularly and replace them every 6 months (they lose their Ultra Violet concentration after that), even if they still seem to work okay.
So there you have it. A comfortable home for your dragon.
Now…go to this linkbeardie careand get a full and comprehensive manual listing all the basic information you need to keep a pet Bearded dragon, including housing, selecting and purchasing, handling and feeding and lots of more advanced and interesting subjects..or go tohttp://www.beardeddragontanks.com