Do you have Beardie Questions?

Welcome to the forum! My name is Heather and I am the Administrator for this website. Bearded Dragons are my specialty, so if you have any questions feel free to PM me anytime. Also, if you are looking to purchase a beardie I have Chris Allen X Blood red bearded dragon babies from time to time. I hope you enjoy the forum!

I love BDs. I have owned one for over 6 years now and have loved every minute of it. Also, I'm loving every minute that I spend on this forum!

I am glad to hear it, BD's are quite cool. Thanks for joining the forum!

I'm just glad that theres a MN only herp forum! Your beardies have incredible colors, I've never seen such a hybrid before!

Yeah I am working on selective breeding to get only the best colors, size and genetics. I am excited to work with my Citrus tiger (highlighter yellow color with purple side bars) once he is old enough to breed... another few months yet. He gets brighter with every shed.

I didn't even know that beardies could have purple on them! Is it a new morph?

Fairly new, its kind of a grey purple not like a royal purple but they are cool. Draggintails has been selectively breeding them for awhile I think.

How many kinds of morphs do you breed?

Currently just the blood x chris allen reds, but this winter I am planning a cross between my citrus x red & my blood x chris allen, then in the spring the citrus x red with my citrus tiger. I try to only have one clutch at a time so I can make sure they each get all that they need.

is there a good care sheet you can post heather? I was wondering how to care and breed them. are they a handling species or a no handling species? what about vet care? any local herp vets in our area by chance? how long till they reach breeding age. i guess i have tons! of questions and now i'm bombarding you.... kristy

here is a GREAT care sheet that is up to date...its from another forum I frequent

http://bearded-dragons.com/boards/index.php/topic,23.0.html

ok...thanks!! kristy

That is a good care sheet but it does not really cover breeding. I have a care sheet listed in the care sheet forum of this website but it only covers the basics. For breeding, males should be 1 year and I personally wait for my females to be 1 and 1/2 years to allow them to reach optimal size of 350grams or more and to avoid any issues.

It is best to allow your dragons a brumation or rest period before breeding. Females can lay up to 3 clutches from just one meeting with a male and can lay 10-50 eggs each time depending on her size. Most females can be housed together (however I have had cases that were more difficult than others) but males should be kept seperate unless breeding. Some males are more aggressive breeders than others and could hurt your female so it is good to keep an eye on them when first housed together.

They are definately a handling species. Some are more spunky than others but with a minimal amount of work, most dragons can be tamed. If raised from a baby handled regularly, there should be no issues. Dragons are known for enjoying to sit on your lap or shoulder while you watch tv or are on the computer. They enjoy this more when they are older, babies like to explore.

Vet care should be minimal if you keep their environment stable. You can always do a yearly checkup. The most common problems for dragons is generally upper respritory infection and metabolic bone disease. Both of these can be easily avoided if you do your research and provide the correct environment. The University of MN is a good place to go for a herp vet. I also like Dr. Alt who used to work at the vet near my house but is now up in Coon Rapids I believe. Here is the herp vet connection for our area http://www.herpvetconnection.com/minnesota.shtml.

I recommend reading "The Bearded Dragon Manual" if this is a venture you would like to try. Its a great book that covers just about everything about these cool creatures.

Feel free to pm me with any other questions you may have.

wow lots of info! once the darts take off, i would love to get some babies! since i am near coon rapids, lol...where is dr.alt or is it on that website you provided? i wonder if he would do fecal samples on my darts as well. they are a no handle species if possible and can not just be brought in, just the fecals can. kristy:)

She left the place I had used her and is now (I think) at Northern Lights Vet clinic on University. I am not sure if she still does reptiles, I actually used her for my dogs but she was a great vet for them. I would try contacting some of the people on the website, I am not sure if it is completely up to date however.

ok thanks for the info heather! I usually send my fecals over night to a specialist in darts but the overnight fees sometimes eat me up. On a side note...he is the best dart medicine vet there is in this country that i know of. It would be nice to get as accurate and reliable results though locally...more economical. not quite sure if i will and have my doubts. my vet is very very good. i'll give that website a try though. kristy:)