Is This Tank Ok?

[catherine896]

Would this tank be suitable for 1 bearded dragon?

Its 36" x 18"

Thanks.

 

[poopsydrew]

Would this tank be suitable for 1 bearded dragon?

Its 36" x 18"

Thanks.

It would suffice for a small one I imagine, of course with all the necessary equipment.You would have to upgrade soon though. They get 2 feet or longer when full grown and the ones we sell at my lfs our huge. So i dont think a 36 inch tank is long enough for a fully grown 24 inch bearded dragon. IMO, 75 gallons is the minimum for a fully grown one as I have seen how large they get. I am sure you will take great care but please make sure you think about accomodations, we just had a very large one returned today because "they didnt know how big it got..." which is very frustrating for everyone and not fair to the bearded dragon. Good luck and enjoy your BD if you decide to get one.

 

[catherine896]

What about this one? Its 4 foot long, 18.5inches wide and just under 21 inches high. Ive bought it now as read online on a few different sites that it was large enough.

 

[Morquinn]

Actually the best would be a 4x2x2 enclosure, but 40 gallon BREEDERS are minimum (breeder tanks are not aquariums they are specific to reptiles and contain more floor space) which you can pick up at petco or petsmart (cant remember which one) for about $100... although young babies should be kept in a 20 gallon for awhile if the beardie is purchased really really small. I personally think that last tank you showed is fine... the hieght isnt as important because they arent very aboreal, although they will and can climb to get to good basking perch's, they just tend to be clumsy

Oh I will also tell you flat out, to please consider using tile as the substrate, or non-adhesive shelf liner (although that tends to stain after awhile and can hold smell if you dont take care of it right away) but tile is the safest to use, along with easiest to clean.. if you do get tile, make sure its a bit rough on the top so that they aren't sliding around, this also helps keep their nails trimmed.

 

[catherine896]

Do you mean like normal floor tiles that you would put in a bathroom? Have had bathroom re-decorated and have lots of them spare.

And not to sound stupid, what about the gaps between the tiles? Will they not get a claw stuck or something...?
Thanks for your advice

 

[grahamsokel]

My beardies are kept in a 4x2x2 vivarium,Glass tanks are no good for beardies as they dont hold the heat and dont have good ventilation

 

[demonmagus]

how much was that viv?

thanks

 

[Morquinn]

You'll want to keep a bit more of a gap in the tile anyhow so that they can be taken out easily for thurough cleaning, with a big enough gap the claws shouldnt get stuck. (but not too big of a gap either)

Even though 40 gallon breeders are glass enclosures, they do keep heat in very well, and ventilation isnt a problem with the full top being screen.

I wish I had some better pictures, but my digi was broke at the time so I was using my cell phone for taking pics...
This is a 4x2x2 custom we built with opening doors in the front (not sliding) we have a vent right above the basking so the hot air doesnt just sit there, and a vent on the other side as well.. we used a darker greyish tile for the floor and more of a sand colored tile (as to not attract too much heat) in the basking area.
The enclosure

The basking area

another pic of the enclosure, you can see we put two hides in there... you can also see one of the vents on the right hand side

A darker pic, but you can see where all the lights were placed... those are two 50 watt basking bulbs connected to a dimmer (this is for hotter or cooler days to keep temps correct, and a 12" and 24" UVB tubes

Here is Taz sleeping... I turned the lights on a bit to get the picture cuz he looked so cute!

 

[pica_nuttalli]

that's a gorgeous set-up you have there; a great example of how a DYI project can often turn out better than anything bought in the store!

 

[catherine896]

That is a nice setup! And Taz is very cute

The floor tiles we have a light browny colour, very similar to the ones in your basking area.
So Ill leave about a 1/2 inch gap between the tiles...?

Veg/salad wise - greens? lettuce? cabbage? And spinach is that OK? Anything else? Does it have to all be cut up into small pieces or will they do that themselfs when eating it?

Demonmagus - the vivarium was £89.99 with £9 delivery and the matching stand was £59.99 or £69.99 - cant remember sorry!

Im going out today to get all the stuff!!!!



Thanks for your help!

 

[grahamsokel]

yes that wooden viv will be fine

I still say a glass Tank with a mesh viv cover doesnt get the correct air flow and i have been keeping reptiles for well over 30 years

They cant have a lot of Spinach as its Calcium binding.

 

[catherine896]

Ok, thankyou

 

[Morquinn]

As for veggies... let me give you a link real quick to a list of foods that are color coated to which are staples, occasionals and never feed..

Spinach and Kale are both veggies that bind calcium so I would stay away from those..

You will find on the link that the staple veggies are Collard, mustard, turnip and dandelion greens... along with endive and escarole... squashes are also good (mine LOVED buttnernut)

As babies beardies eat a 20% veggie to 80% insect diet... but I always kept some veggies in their when they were babies to get them interested so the switch as adults to 80% veggie and 20% insect was easier.

The gap doesn't have to be a 1/2 inch.. it can be closer then that, you wont want crickets or other insects to hide in the cracks (if you plan on feeding inside the enclosure) most people dont suggest to feed inside the enclosure (the insects) but thats mostly for sand enclosures..

Here is the link to the food chart

LINK


Thanks for the nice comment on the enclosure, I wish I had better pics but I dont lol
The only thing we actually purchased for the enclosure was the vents, the dimmer and the reptile door handles, everything else we already had like the plexi glass and the wood.. the lights are just extras we had because of the other reptiles.. we keep a stock lol