Above his living space is another vivarium, housing a large male Yemen chameleon, which was another rescue. He's called 'Marlon' and is a grumpy old git and, like most chameleons, dislikes being handled.
Then there are Stumpy and Ember the 2 youngest bearded dragons. Stumpy was bred by someone who owned a reptile shop. He'd been left in with other bearded dragons and had had his tail and one back foot bitten off. He was about to be fed to a large python when I begged for him and was given him. Since I've had him, he has grown into a large healthy dragon. I say 'he', but in reality, I don't know his gender. His tail was bitten off right at the base and he therefore has no hemipene lumps to see. He was in effect castrated at the same time.
Then there is little Ember. Sold by the same shop and returned, emaciated a few weeks later. I was spun a tale about idiot owners, not feeding her properly, her only being fed salads and veggies etc. All lies as I now discover that the reason she never ate her live food (crickets, mealworms etc) was because she is blind. She simply cannot see them. I watched her as she could hear them, and ran about in their general direction, with her mouth open, much as a big whale holds its mouth open as it trawls for krill. If I place mealworms in a small dish with a little salad, she can simply aim for the salad and scoop up mealworms by luck.
Ember and Stumpy live in the same large vivarium, very happily, although it's not really recommended to keep bearded dragons together. However, these two like each other and spend their days sat beside each other or cuddled up close.
Because of Ember's blindness, if I throw a load of live food in. Stumpy hunts and scoffs everything while poor Ember, runs about with her mouth open, desperately hoping that something might jump in. Of course it doesn't!
So, every morning, Stumpy gets removed and placed into a temporary enclosure with some food, while I hand feed Ember. I couldn't find my tongs this morning and so fed her by hand. I hold a locust, and touch her nose and she opens her mouth and I pop it in. She must have been really peckish this morning as she grabbed fast, got the locust and the tip of my finger. Wow that was painful.
Now, the tongs are hanging on a hook next to their vivarium.
In the summer, if the weather is warm and sunny, my bearded dragons have secure outside cages where they get a chance to absorb real UV rays from the sun. I heard once that one day in the sunshine, gives them as much UV as a week's worth of UV bulb, and of course, with them being outside, it means I get to turn off the UV and the heat bulb in the vivariums, saving me money on the electricity costs, and prolonging the life of the UV bulbs, which have to be replaced every 9 months.
Last year I didn't have Ember and it was Stumpy's first summer with me. Moriarty likes to be handled and understands that when I open his door and get him onto my arm, he is going outside, which he enjoys. He can bathe in his bowl of water, bask in the sunshine and hunt the insects which fly or crawl into his cage. Stumpy hated to be handled so it took a little training for him to realise that handling and being carried, meat a nice day outside in the sunshine. This year, it'll be Ember's turn to learn about the outside.
I have no idea why most people never provide some sort of outside cage for sunny days and I feel sorry for bearded dragons which spend their whole lives in a vivarium.
A funny story about my bearded dragons. At the time, Moriarty was my only one. I had visitors with 2 small children and was showing the oldest one, a boy, of around 4 years old, some of my pets. He pointed to Moriarty and asked what he was and I said "he's a bearded dragon". The little lad's eyes widened and he said, with awe in his voice "a real dragon?" I replied that of course he was. "Does he make fire?" he asked, and I replied that indeed he did. So could I get him to make fire and show him, he asked. To which I shook my head and said that fire is dangerous, and besides, he only did it in winter. I pointed to the woodburning stove behind the boy and said, "do you see that? It's a fire for winter. I have no radiators, so in winter, when it's cold, I put paper and wood into that, then get Moriarty, hold his face to the paper and give a little squeeze..............not a big squeeze, just a very little one. Then the dragon burps out some fire, which lights the paper, and burns and makes the room warm. He then asked why I didn't just use matches and I explained that matches could be dangerous, and people mustn't ever play with matches as they could burn themselves (might as well try to get a lesson in there) .Well, his eyes were like saucers and he looked with awe at my little dragon.
Yes of course it was a fib but oh the look on that little boy's face as he realised that he was in the presence, and had even stroked, a real live fire breathing dragon that an old lady used to light her fire in winter. I hope he remembers, as he must now be a big boy, since this was around 6 years ago.Kids sometimes need some magic in their lives.
The top photo shows poor mutilated Stumpy. The second is a very thin Ember shortly after I got her and before I realised she was blind. She seems to get comfort from having Stumpy in with her. Lastly, old Moriarty in his summer cage.
Of course the cages always have an area of shade, and have clean water for drinking and sitting in. These are the dragon cages, set in the tortoise garden (yes I have a large 60 year old tortoise too). The grass on top provides a shaded area. Bother have wired bases so to allow dandelions (rich in calcium) to grow through. They are the tops of these large indoor rabbit or guinea pig cages that I have picked up at car boot sales.
Keeping any kind of pets means more than simply providing food and water and a space to live. It should mean that you think about how they would live in the wild and trying to replicate this. The posh term for this is 'enrichment' but to my way of thinking, being rich, means having something more that you need, whereas providing this should be a basic thing.
Bearded dragons are fabulous, affectionate, intelligent lizards and perfect for any novice who wants to own a reptile. But I beg you not to think "what's the minimum I can get away with to keep it alive" and instead, think of what you can provide to keep the animal happy. A bearded dragon in a vivarium will soon be a boring pet. You'll get fed up with the cost of the electricity costs and the cost of replacing the UV bulbs (which aren't cheap) every 9 months, and the cost of live food. That's why so many are advertised for sale. "kids lost interest". You get out of any pet, only what you are prepared to put into it.
And please, if you get one, don't be tempted to breed them to keep your interest. They are the most commonly bred lizard and if you can sell them at all, you might get a fiver each if you aren't fussy who you sell them to. These funny charismatic little animals deserve better than a life in a boring 3 foot vivarium getting the minimum attention.
Did I mention that I have a huge soft spot for them?
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