Varanophile

I always act in good faith- whether it's gear or livestock, I'm sorry if you have an issue- communication may not be your strongest point I have heard. You seem a little confused buddy....got any 'super deals' on 'guaranteed splits'? There is someone selling some on trade me at he mo, maybe have a look at how to write an honest ad........or ask a professor on how to do it, lol :thup:

PM 'Houthouse', I'm sure he would know- been there done that.

I'm sure we could get it on to feijoas and guavas....nikau palm dates maybe? Release some in the orchards up Keri Keri?

did I replace your bulb? I did for other people. Cost me a packet, good ol' 'Ultimate Reptile Supplies' in Oz did me a deal....pity the bulbs were crap. In hind sight you are lucky it blew, my dragons died of leukemia as a result of those bulbs.

Check this doco out.....giant fruit eating monitor that lives in the trees. Awesome. Maybe it will be on the next MAF list of approved lizards????? Wouldn't eat any native animals if it escaped............ :digH:

Ever had your beardie outside, enjoying the sun...then something blocks the sun....they freak out. Natural response to possible bird predator blocking the sun....wouldn't a thermostat flicking the light on and off be the same? Natural seasonal variation in ambient temp is good, not bad....dragons use these cues for brumation/breeding, so why would you try to regulate everything.... I am sure I am missing something here, are you in the hobby for the 'gismo' aspect maybe FaceAnthrax?

exoterra ones better than arcadia. Petware is the wholesaler for both, so you can order through your local pet shop. I just don't get the thermostat thing. Only time you would use one is if your tank is too small? 5 foot tank. Basking spot of 37-45 Celsius down one end. Then the dragon chooses when to bask and when to go down the cool end. I have used thermostats and I can't see the point if your set up is correct. If your tank is over heating then the ventilation or size of tank or bulb wattage is wrong. Maybe there is an advantage to them in terms of reducing temp for brumation. The other thing is that if you really want your dragon to have the best possible home then you would be using merc vapour bulbs and/or an outdoor cage, and you can't use a thermostat for merc vapours.

Might have me mixed up with someone else on this? Also your right on that that size though is far too small for an adult

1 metre x .5 x .5 for an animal that grows to .75 long is too small...unless you cut its tail off.

And FaceAnthrax I presume this enclosure is until your WD is sub adult and then you will get a larger one (enclosure that is)?

How long you been keeping BD's FaceAnthrax? My knowledge is from 12 years of cock ups I have made....don't super heat your dragons and feed them dog food, remember uva/uvb doesn't travel through glass, don't put merc vapours on a thermostat, don't buy made in china bulbs that are not quality tested, don't use sand that has salt in it, don't keep babies of different sizes together and miss a feeding session, don't sell W T F's on TM.....and so many more.

Maybe...I am yet to see any heated shrubs yet though in desert or coastal areas in Aussie. There is plenty of research about it being good for lizards to chill a bit at night as it reduces their metabolic rate....makes them live longer. Every knows that reptiles need a heat source, but they need it in order to digest food and be active- not 24/7. If in doubt I think its best to imitate their natural environment where their morphology, behaviour, metabolic enzymes etc etc have evolved over 10's of millions of years. Compare a slow grown red ear or snake neck turtle (natural conditions) to one from a heated tank 24/7 and you'll see that one of them looks a lot healthier than the other....same goes for whistling tree frogs- they thrive in 15-20C, but don't do so well above 25C. I raised my first lot of water dragons with the 24/7 heat and they grew really fast....pity about the low fertility though. Inland BD's, Coastal BD's, Water Dragons all require brumation...not a good idea to heat at night then suddenly stop doing that when you brumate them I would think, yeah? Anyone got an opinion on this or am I just being a cheap a-se?

Just curious...define 'too cold'? You know beardies are from the desert and water dragons can tolerate down to zero celsius aye?

If your enclosure is inside, which it sounds like it is, you need a merc vapour bulb or metal hallide (chews through the power) as a source for uva/uvb. You'll be amazed at how superior these bulbs are compared to standard light + fluoro tubes. You'll get about 24 months out of a good quality one, which works out at about $40 a year for the exoterra ones. You want the merc vapour down one end so that there is a heat gradient that allows your w/d to regulate its own temp. No need for night time heat source. 60W is probably a bit low in terms of wattage, the bulb would need to be really close to the basking spot.....go for a 100w merc vapour, or failing that a 160w. Then email me and let me know where you bought it.....I need some too. DONT use a thermostat on a merc vapour, you will blow the bulb.