New beardie questions

[Corrie]

Hi everyone

Wondering if someone can answer a few quick questions regarding young beardies feeding regime. I have researched but there is a LOT of conflicting info out there! S/He is all healthy and eating well (we'll keep working on the vegies part) so no problems, just trying to prevent any by doing the right thing from the start.

I'm not sure how old my beardie (centralian) is, but s/he is about 9cm nose to vent (20cm w tail). I don't have a weight but can get one if needed. Does anyone know:

1. Approximate age? (just out of interest really, the attendant at the shop was new so wasn't sure)
2. How many crickets should s/he "roughly" eat per day? Or do you let them at it for 10 mins (or similar)? I'm equally concerned about overfeeding as underfeeding
3. How often should you dust the crickets in calcium? EG every meal, daily, every other day?
4. Should i also use a multi-vitamin & if so how often?
5. Regarding the 80%/20% protein/veg "switch" - do you keep them on 80% protein until they are adults and then slowly switch it, or do you slowly switch it throughout their growth phase so that it is 80% veg by time they are adults? (hope that makes sense....)

I'm happy with my enclosure set up & temps etc (as i said, i've done lots of reading here & google), really just need feeding advice Oh, if there is a thread that answers this already that i didn't manage to find - please just point me to it, don't want to time waste.

Thanks in advance.

 

[animal805]

1.Approximate age? (just out of interest really, the attendant at the shop was new so wasn't sure)

*Really an unknown as you have no idea wether it has had a normal healthy start to life but I would say 2-3 months if it has

2.How many crickets should s/he "roughly" eat per day? Or do you let them at it for 10 mins (or similar)? I'm equally concerned about overfeeding as underfeeding

*I am feeding my 3-4week olds around 10-15 crickets twice a day. (I have 40+ atm, lol)

3.How often should you dust the crickets in calcium? EG every meal, daily, every other day?

* I use multical and am dusting every first meal of the day during the week and none on the weekends. If you are using seperate supplements I would calcium dust for 4-5 days and multivitamin dust 1-2 days until about 4 months of age then cut back to calcium 3-4 times a week and vitamins once.

4.Should i also use a multi-vitamin & if so how often?

Answered above

5.Regarding the 80%/20% protein/veg "switch" - do you keep them on 80% protein until they are adults and then slowly switch it, or do you slowly switch it throughout their growth phase so that it is 80% veg by time they are adults? (hope that makes sense....)

* I have found that they will just naturally eat more salads/vegies as they get older. I am now feeding my adults crickets every second day and the demolish a large bowl of salads every day, hope this helps

 

[iHerp]

Very nice post Animal805 but aren't hatchlings meant to be feed calcium every feed? well thats what i did until age of 8 months.

 

[Corrie]

Thanks for that animal805. I should have mentioned that there was a whole clutch (is that the right term?) the same/very similar in size, so i don't see any reason why s/he wouldn't be "normal size for age" - if there is such a thing. Wow 40!! That's a lot of mouth to feed!

So if at 3-4 weeks they are eating 10-15 twice daily, at 2-3 months would 20-25 small crickets twice daily be around a good ballpark? Can you really overfeed at this age or will they stop when full?

I'm a vet nurse, so for people with dogs i would recommend weighing regularly to monitor growth rates, is that a reasonable idea with these guys too? If not increasing weight/size - up the food intake? Sorry - not sure if that's a dumb question!

 

[animal805]

Very nice post Animal805 but aren't hatchlings meant to be feed calcium every feed? well thats what i did until age of 8 months.

No, you can over do the calcium just as easily as under doing it. As long as they are supplied the correct uv lighting and heat, their little bodies will absorb as much as they need. I have been breeding for a couple of seasons now and have found all are strong and growing well using this method.

- - - Updated - - -

Thanks for that animal805. I should have mentioned that there was a whole clutch (is that the right term?) the same/very similar in size, so i don't see any reason why s/he wouldn't be "normal size for age" - if there is such a thing. Wow 40!! That's a lot of mouth to feed!

So if at 3-4 weeks they are eating 10-15 twice daily, at 2-3 months would 20-25 small crickets twice daily be around a good ballpark? Can you really overfeed at this age or will they stop when full?

I'm a vet nurse, so for people with dogs i would recommend weighing regularly to monitor growth rates, is that a reasonable idea with these guys too? If not increasing weight/size - up the food intake? Sorry - not sure if that's a dumb question!

You can over feed them for sure and this can cause impactions. Those numbers of crickets should be ok but I like to err on the side of caution, you can always add more if needed. I weigh all my dragons weekly or fortnightly as I am a little anal, lol

 

[Corrie]

Lol - so we can be anal together and weigh our dragons Thanks for your help and advice. It gets confusing after you read so much. Much appreciated