7 month old bearded dragon

by matt
(michigan)

When I got my bearded dragon zilla when he was 2 weeks old. It was my first reptile I have ever owned and I was a little scared that I was going to do something wrong or not have the temps right. I started out feeding him 6 small crickets and 4 small mealworms a day but he wasnt going to the bathroom so I got really worried. I was giving him baths every day and he would only go to the bathroom every 2-3 days. I started to feed him only 2 crickets in the morning and 2 mealworms at night and then he started going to the bathroom daily. Also, when he was young he wasnt playful and he would just sit in his basking spot all day. 7 months later, he is very active and loves to chill outside and soak up the sun. He eats 4 big crickets and 5 mealworms a day. He is very active and loves to be held. When i had my cage open and i was watching tv, he jumped out and ran over to me. For people that are wanting a beardie or just got one, try not to over feed him and if he is really young, give him a bath every day just to be safe. Also, dont be afraid of your beardie and hold him every day.

Response:
Good advice. The other very important thing to do is when they reach adulthood (around a year old) only feed them bugs 2 to 3 times a week
-less as they get older. They need to be eating way more greens (collard greens, dandelion greens, mustard greens, turnip greens) than bugs. Just because they like the bugs doesn't mean bugs should be the main part of their deit.