Bearded Dragons cage help

[DeesBalls]

so i NEED to redo my bearded dragons cage... he is in a 4x2x2 melamine cage with a 150 watt MVB. heat is fine stays aorund 110-115 basking, and cools down to around 70 at night... as many of you know my beardy is anti social from h3&& and doesnt tolerate handling, which is not a big deal to me, but i need to give him a good cage...

I KNOW MY CAGE IS NOT CORRECT!!!!!!!!

here is a pic DeesBalls | Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/DeesBalls)

this is from my facebook page for my animals, so please go look...

i want to either do linolium or tile. not too sure ive tried ALOT of different substrates and dont like any of them.. the potting soil i have in now was/is a temporay thing from when i carried the cage downstairs i needed to fill it with something after i ruined the carpet that was in it... so that will go..

i want to add another light, for at night... getting to be cooler outside so want to keep the cage around 70 at night then up to the noraml day temps...

again, please throw out advice, do NOT BE NEGATIVE- i know it is wrong. Let me know suggestions guys, thanks!!!

[Philmul]

How about this for a good viv design???

20980

[DeesBalls]

Is that 2 cages, or 1 big one? What's the substrate?

[Terranaut]

I switched from repticarpet to ceramic tile and am so glad I did. Cleaning is a breeze. I pull the tiles out and wash them then put it back.
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j9/terranaut0/photo-1595.jpg

[DeesBalls]

You didn't seal them down at all?

[Terranaut]

You didn't seal them down at all?

Nope. They are just set in place. She can't move them at all. It was suggested to me by another member here and I have had her this way since last March. Works great.

[Philmul]

No it's one cage. He climbs the log to get to the second level. its not my viv its a friends. i saw it and took picture, It has reptile sand in it, the beardie is just popping out at the bottom left side.

[DeesBalls]

okay, thanks you two. the cage is awesome looking, but i alreayd have a 4x2x2 cage built, i just need help with the insides of the cage, and decor.

i want tile, i may try and do that- but where can i get the tile cut, if needed?

[Terranaut]

Don't bother cutting it. Mine is overlapped. Cost me $11 for all of it.

[DeesBalls]

oh ok, awesome!

[Jack C]

I had half tile and half sand, tile stayed warm for a while at night after lights out.

[7niteshades]

i have a slate bottom and a sand

[DeesBalls]

Pics anyone??

[DeesBalls]

Bumpin it up.

[EmbraceCalamity]

Bumpin it up.What's your question at this point? If you want ideas of how exactly to set it up, try Google Images for "bearded dragon setup" or something similar. Helped me with ideas for my leo.

~Maggot

[jhinton6932]

are you looking to design a larger enclosure height wise or just redo the bottom of the current one? my 2cents is keep a substrate in there other then tile lol i always used a heavy sand/soil mix with my adult beardies years ago. never had impaction issues in their 10 years plus it looked pretty. i have some old polaroids but i dont know how to upload them without a scanner of some sort -_- lining the bottom with tile helps hold heat if your house gets cooler at night.

[DeesBalls]

Well. All my reptiles are in a room in the basement I built.... it has its own heater so the room is always at least 70.... I just want to redo the current cage. I was thinking tile... or sand... but wanted to hear what is best. I was also thinking of doing a 1/2 and 1/2 with sand soil mix for half and tile the other half... and use the tile part for food since he is a very messy eater and I would want the greenavto stay off of the sandy mix as much as possible.

[DeesBalls]

What's your question at this point? If you want ideas of how exactly to set it up, try Google Images for "bearded dragon setup" or something similar. Helped me with ideas for my leo.

~Maggot

I did that already.... but honestly I don't trust the internet or anything when it comes to reptile help.... my question is simple.... what do you all do for your bearded dragons foe substrate and decor?

[Danimal]

My experience..
I used sand for a long time, it's easy to clean, they like to dig in it but it gets everywhere eventually (especially bad for glass tracks) and if you use any of the cal-sand it's very, very dusty. It will dust up your entire room every time you clean. A lot of people don't like this stuff and don't recommend it, It never cause me any problems but I only kept sub adults and adults on it. For me it was the mess.

I then used tile in the same manor as Terranaut. This is very efficient. Easy to place, replace and clean. I moved away from this just recently mostly because I use glass tanks and cringed every time I bumped the glass with the big pieces. Secondly, and this is only a very minor complaint but insects have places to hide when they are stacked like that. Not a big deal but it bugged the crap outta me, pun intended. :)

Very recently I bought plastic board and laminate tile. Cut the board to fit and then stuck the vinyl on and trimmed it. Only takes a slight bend to remove it. I use one big piece but because you can cut it with a knife you could make it any size you want. I just wanted something that laid flat. I then took a couple of smaller pieces of regular tile and place them in the area that they usually poop. Usually they hit the tile and I spot clean.

Other than that there is a food dish, a water dish, a climb to a hot spot and a hammock. My older male (9) lives in his hammock and eats. He still likes to hunt but not interested in digging any more, he never was a big digger anyway. My younger male (4) does like to dig so he has a dig box with alfalfa pellets in it.

[DeesBalls]

Thanks so much for the help. I will think that stuff over and decide .. I like the sands.. what about child play sand??? I am just worried cut a lot of people told me not to use sand.... but some say I can...

[Terranaut]

I use a huge glass tank and have never hit the side with a tile. If you don't want bugs under it cut them to size or have them cut. My latest rescue had sand and I was going to try it a while but when I saw how much ended up on his food I thought no way. Tile isn't perfect but its so easy and safe for your beardie. I also feed mine dubia which are quite a bit bigger than crickets so they don't get much of a chance to hide. I also drop 1 in at a time, let him eat it then drop in another.

[jhinton6932]

i used heavy play sand/organic soil mix years ago mostly to allow the female to lay her eggs without using an ugly nesting box, and just fed roaches and greens from dishes.

[Danimal]

Thanks so much for the help. I will think that stuff over and decide .. I like the sands.. what about child play sand??? I am just worried cut a lot of people told me not to use sand.... but some say I can...


Well remember I am just telling you what I know from my personal experience, not telling you what to do. If you want to try sand you'll probably will, but it will get old. Also, after taking a look at your enclosure, which is nice by the way, if your bd decides he's going to excavate you will have sand all in your door track. sand on glass is like nails on a chalk board to me and a huge pain in the butt. It's just a mess.

[EmbraceCalamity]

NEVER use calcium sand. It can cause impaction and death, as it clumps when it gets wet (as opposed to regular sand, which doesn't).

~Maggot

[DeesBalls]

So... IF I use sand, should i use childrens play sand, i heard that is safe.... if not i will be using tile....

[SpOoKy]

I use 50/50 children washed play sand and dirt.

[DeesBalls]

I use 50/50 children washed play sand and dirt.

have you had any problems with impaction or anything like that? also what do you mean washed? do you soak the sand then let it dry out? then use it?

[SpOoKy]

Nope, you buy it in bags and it is called washed play sand.

No problems with impaction ever. Is your husbandry is correct, this will not be an issue. I also offer my dragons basking spots of 130.

[DeesBalls]

Nope, you buy it in bags and it is called washed play sand.

No problems with impaction ever. Is your husbandry is correct, this will not be an issue. I also offer my dragons basking spots of 130.

i see.. i will look for that... i am just worried about his greens getting on the sand... hes not a very neat eater :) my basking is around 125 or so. whats your cool end temps/ambient...

i got terrible advice when i got my bearded dragon, so im trying to correct evertyhing now.

[DeesBalls]

50 lb. Play Sand-111351 at The Home Depot (http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1v/R-100318476/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=washed+play+sand&storeId=10051#.UJK1DsXoTAE)

this stuff work?

[SpOoKy]

Yes that sand is perfect. Just mix with some top soil (no additives) and away you go. My beardies have been so much happier since I gave them this substrate.

[DeesBalls]

Yes that sand is perfect. Just mix with some top soil (no additives) and away you go. My beardies have been so much happier since I gave them this substrate.

okay. now i use organtic potting soil for my tortoise... can i mix this with the sand? sorry not too sure what top soil is... :(

[SpOoKy]

Yes that will work

[EmbraceCalamity]

okay. now i use organtic potting soil for my tortoise... can i mix this with the sand? sorry not too sure what top soil is... :(I use rocky soil mixed with sand for my leo. I'm sure it would work fine for a beardie too. :)

~Maggot

[DeesBalls]

Thanks guys! I will be hopfully doing this tomorrow and getting him all set up. I am hoping with a better husbandry, he will let me actually hold him. lol.