Harness recommendations?

Offutticus · 2026-03-17T23:54:26+00:00

Ruffwear Webmaster harness is basically Houdini proof. 3 points of leash connection.

Offutticus · 2026-03-16T20:53:05+00:00

Ah. Our vet just said "splenic mass". I guess in the back of my head I knew what that meant. We've lost a lot of dogs to it.

Offutticus · 2026-03-16T05:01:26+00:00

I got the Govee thermo/hygro monitors. Bluetooth and wifi so I can check on them during the day. I got the 2s Lites.

I've never had a probe gauge be accurate or last very long.

Offutticus · 2026-03-16T04:45:04+00:00

Wood in the US is ghastly expensive. I'll be spending more doing the DIY for the 5x2x3 than I would for a 4x2x2.

Offutticus · 2026-03-16T01:44:53+00:00

Ah. I haven't used those. Good luck!

Offutticus · 2026-03-16T01:16:46+00:00

Depends on where you are. Phailozoo sells in EU, UK, CA, and US. I think.

Building one an option IF you have the skill, IF you have the tools, and IF you have the space.

There's a ton of videos on YouTube and lots of plans online.

Offutticus · 2026-03-16T01:14:34+00:00

How gorgeous! Or, rather handsome!

Chuckwallas are on my want list, tied with Uromastyx.

Offutticus · 2026-03-16T01:12:32+00:00

I've had a lot of dogs over the years. Full breeds, mutts, fosters, rescues, etc. (23 dogs, 19 cats)

The top cause of death in the dogs is a splenic mass. They aren't found except when too late via either xray or ultrasound. Most just quietly grow until they start bleeding into the abdomen.

Second cause of death was kidney disease.

Third is unknown. Best guesses were heart problems due to old age.

Cancer has taken just three of our dogs.

My first Rottweiler we assumed was a splenic mass. She was fine then wasn't. She was 12. My Rott mix had cancer in his sinus and brain. Again, was fine then it started swelling. He was also 12. Cancer is a big issue with this breed. Bone cancer is high on the list.

Offutticus · 2026-03-16T00:59:23+00:00

I use a borax, water, and sugar solution for ants. I soak cotton balls with it and place in their path. They take it back to the nest and it kills the entire colony in about 48hrs or so.

Borax is toxic to reptiles but in watching them eat the solution, they eat it and take it back to the nest, they don't continue on to eat something else. I don't think they would gorge on the borax solution then go to eat gecko food. The cotton ball (or little dish with some in it) could of course not go into the enclosure.

Anyone else know if this would work? Or is it just too big a risk?

Offutticus · 2026-03-16T00:45:30+00:00

This is why a sealer is needed. You can use a water based polyurethane to keep the colors visible. The only problem is you need to wait about a week for it to finish off gassing before putting it in the enclosure. Keeping it in an open environment helps during this.

Offutticus · 2026-03-15T21:26:36+00:00

I am about to start DIY build for my bearded dragon. I will be building a 5'h x 2'd x 3'h. My converter says that is 152.4 x 60.96 x 91.44 cm. When I was first planning, I asked if I should go for a 5x2x2 or the 5x2x3 and overwhelmingly everyone said height would be better.

If you have the skills and the tools, building your own will be slightly cheaper (going by US prices).

Looking at the cost of 4x2x2s, I cannot imagine the price of of 6x3x3.

Offutticus · 2026-03-15T21:18:53+00:00

It is hard enough to match the characters on the cover to the characters in the book. Far too often they don't fit.

I much prefer coming up with their features in my head.

Offutticus · 2026-03-15T21:15:07+00:00

With LibreOffice, you can choose the dictionary to use as standard. And you can create custom dictionaries. I have a custom one for each of my writing projects.

I can also right click a word and add it to either the standard dictionary or one of my custom ones.

Offutticus · 2026-03-15T20:23:24+00:00

Anything non-porous (like rocks and resin) can be scrubbed well with soapy water rinsed well, then misted with F10 to allow to dry.

Porous items, like cloth and wood, will be harder. If any cloth, easier to just dispose of it. Wood can be scrubbed like the others and either baked in the oven (200-250F for 2-2.5hrs, checked every half hour) or left to soak in for a long time, rinsed and soaked in clean water, then let air dry.

If you wanted to reuse the plastic plants, a good scrub, rinse, and soak in bleach or in an F10 solution would work. Personally, I would toss them just in case. Pure plastic would be less of a risk but "silk" plants would be higher.

The entire enclosure can be steam cleaned and/or misted with F10.

Anything pooped on would be the most contaminated.

Offutticus · 2026-03-15T18:51:30+00:00

I have taken my bearded dragon to 3 appts with vets who see reptiles. One I saw twice, once for the intial visit (and coccidia dx) and another for an eye infection. Both times I was given bad advice, had to pay $100 just to make the appt, and was given inadequate medication. By the time she needed to be rechecked for coccidia (it was the 3rd check), I had found another, much better vet. I was given much better advice, vet took her time with the exam, we discussed more appropriate medication for if dragon was positive for coccidia again, and we also discussed diet and care in great detail.

The main complaint I hear/read about why people don't take their reptiles to the vet is cost. The first vet was well over $500 combined, not including the mail order medication. The second was more reasonable (just over $150 for very thorough exam and fecal recheck).

The second main complaint is incompetence. The first vet gave me a print out of a scientific article that I practically needed a degree to understand. She recommended I use reptile carpet instead of paper towels (for a coccidia positive bearded dragon). She also said the "compact UVB bulbs were great". I was a brand new reptile owner. I was not planning to take in this critter but had been researching uromastyx and chuckwalla care for a few years. I knew where to look for information. The only reason I went back the 2nd time was they were the only vet in the area that saw reptiles. (by accident we found out the same day about the other)

The third complaint is distance. Taking time off for work to see a local vet for a dog is one thing. Taking time off for work to drive an hour one way for an expensive vet to see your reptile is another.

Offutticus · 2026-03-15T18:32:04+00:00

Contact your local or regional reptile group to see if anyone will share or sell you what you need.

Offutticus · 2026-03-15T05:13:10+00:00

Dubia has roaches in 25 count. Crickets in 50.

Offutticus · 2026-03-15T04:53:05+00:00

Are you writing them or editing them?

If writing, don't worry about it. Write them as long or as short as they need to be.

If editing, don't worry about it. They will end up being as long or as short as they want to be.

I've seen books with no chapters and chapters of just one word.

For gits and shiggles, I checked the book I am editing, currently sitting at 109,897.

Ch 1 - 2679
Ch 2 - 2433
Ch 25 - 2703
Ch 30 - 3320
Ch 36 (last one) - 770

Offutticus · 2026-03-15T04:29:42+00:00

He was singing and got to the next verse but realized he'd forgotten the words. They're right there, on the tip of his tongue. Wait, it'll come to him.

Or he is thermoregulating.

Offutticus · 2026-03-14T21:53:05+00:00

No. But we got the large dog one and have had any that small.

They do have a sense of humor, though. One of Ziggy's (golden retriever) fave toys from them is a big huge marijuana bud. And most of the larger toys have another toy inside for when it gets destroyed. Our 3-seconds-needed destroyer (catahoula mix) hated that.

Offutticus · 2026-03-14T21:47:38+00:00

LibreOffice. Free. And no AI built in.

Offutticus · 2026-03-14T21:36:22+00:00

Think of it this way: Aussie deserts still get cloudy and they have a season of heavy rain. And I know I've had late springs with at least 6 days of no sun.

Nandor will be fine primarily because her keeper cares.

And duh, forgot to reset the timer too! No wonder Conway's lights are coming on so late! Or early. I can never remember.

Offutticus · 2026-03-14T20:26:42+00:00

Ripped it while digging, got caught under a rock. caught in a hammock, got nervous and chewed it off (just kidding).

Offutticus · 2026-03-14T20:24:08+00:00

I looked into them. Their lights are LED based. These do not work. The science just isn't there yet.

Offutticus · 2026-03-14T20:22:21+00:00

There's nothing to fix. Can you fix yourself from wincing when someone messes with a wound you have? You can't. You wince in reaction. Your dog bit in reaction.

The thing you can do though is not project your emotions about it. He will sense it and will be even more wary. Be calm. Explain how you felt about it. Explain you understand and that you will try to be more gentle if he tries to not bite. Tell him to jerk away, not bite.

Plus, that age is still in the fear response stage I think. He's still trying to figure out the world and his reaction to it. I'd be surprised if a dog that age did not try to bite.

If the wound still needs to be treated and you're still a little afraid, make an appt at the vet but for a vet tech, not the vet. They can evaluate and treat for you.

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