UVA and UVB for snakes

[JasonL]

Do you give your hatchling beardies UV light?

Whats so uncommon with growing beardies to full size in a year? Mine hit full size in 8 months and then start dropping eggs.

No one here can deny the fact that UV light on dragons is benefial, bearded dragons kept under constant daytime UV feed better have brighter color and are more active.
Adult bearded dragons can go for long periods without UV but it is a very important part of their growth.

No I dont give a single reptile I own any UV, there is nothing unusual about a beardie hitting full size within a year, but the point that I an making is that they reach that size without any UV or cal powders. As my oldest UV free dragons are only four years old ( I do have a 17 year old UV free green tree frog) I certainly wont comment on the longevity of UV free beardies...yet. But the only point I will push is that there are many articles ect. that state that dragons CAN NOT produce calcium without it, well if this was true none of my dragons would grow an inch, (although I would like to play around with something that could measure amounts of UVB penertrating through glass ect for my own learning.) I disagree with the comment (respectfully) about brighter colour with UV ect. Dragons love light intensity and there is no better light source for this than the sun, this will bring out better colours, but test I have done by raising seperate dragons in the same size enclosures with same light intencity and using uv for one has proven they grew up the same for the first year at least (test stopped). I do feed my reptiles every day and put that down to my success. Every person who buys a dragon off my gets a detailed care sheet and I do tell them to use UV as untill there is more known about this we should still tell new comers to use UV.

 

[SLACkra]

just thought i would add that acording to the Reptile Vet that spoke at the recent VHS meeting who said that diamon pythons do not need uva/uvb. Also that UVA is if useful at all only helps promote a good apetite. UVB is what is nessesary to make vitamin d. However in animals that eat whole animals, like snakes which eat entire rats or mice they get all the Vitamin D and calcium they require simply from the animals internal rogans such as liver etc. This may explain why say people have kept lizards and frogs effectivly when they are say being fed whole small fish or other vertabrates.

andrew

 

[Carvid]

Im pretty sure that I have read somewhere, maybe on this site, and have been told by expierienced herpers that you will get more uv by taking your python out side for half an hour a week even in cloudy conditions then you will from a weeks worth of uv light globes.

 

[Darkon]

it wasnt my intension to cause arguements about this thread, but everyone has had good points to make and in the end i guess it comes down to personal choice..... anyways thanks everyone for replying

xx