mybeardeddragons.co.uk

Bearded dragons grow at an amazing rate.  Although what you want to end up with is a 20″ plus adult bearded dragon, it is really satisfying to buy a small baby and see it grow almost before your eyes!

Since having started this website I get emails almost on a daily basis from people who have purchased a baby beardie, and who need help and advice on how to help it be healthy.  I have become increasingly concerned about the advice given to people, particularly by some (not all, there are good ones out there!) pet shops and other suppliers, e.g. garden centres.  I’ve also been looking as I go around shops, and find the conditions in which baby beardies are kept are really less than suitable.  For instance, baby beardies should not be kept on sand as they can ingest it with their food, and end up with an impaction in their stomach - if this happens it is fatal.  Yet take a look at young beardies for sale in shops - they are almost always kept on sand.  And of course, the new owner, not knowing any better, thinks this is an ideal substrate for them!

This weekend i saw a pretty, but unspectacular (i.e. not expensive morph) for sale in a local pet centre not only on sand, but also without any veg - there were no crickets in with it, but there were a few unsoaked bearded dragons pellets.  It was being sold for £97.50 - and I had to wonder what advice would have been given to the poor person who parted with that much money for it.

Advice on buying a beardie

If you want to buy a young bearded dragon go straight to a breeder.  Many, like myself, give away care sheets with the beardies, and will always be there should you need advice.  I think my beardies are a lot prettier and more colourful than the one in the above pet centre, yet are being sold for only £35, so as well as getting better advice, it will be cheaper too.

Breeders don’t sell expensive accessories, so we will be able to advise you what you need to help the baby grow into a healthy adult.  Breeders will advice you keep your baby on plain old kitchen towel for some months - and won’t try to sell you calci sand which is potentially fatal. 

Males and Females

A lot of people like to have a male and female, and hope that they will breed in the future.  But you do need to remember that it is very difficult for all but the most experienced breeders (which I certainly am not!) to sex with any reliabilty before the beardie is at least 4 months old, if not older.  Also, never buy a male and female from the same clutch if you want to breed - they will be brother and sister, and the strain will be weakened.  You may end up with deformed babies, or with problems that aren’t visible to you.  It is not fair to try and sell these on to other people - would you like to buy a baby that was less than perfect?

If you want to buy a pair which will eventually breed accept you may need to get these from different breeders, at different times.  As long as you match them in size this shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

Your beardie should be your companion for 10 years or more - to avoid problems and disappointments you owe it to yourself, and to your beardie, to make sure you purchase him/her from the healthiest stock you can find, and from someone who can give you, if you need it, the best advice to give him/her the best start in life.