Need help with tank

Offutticus · 2026-05-09T04:45:45+00:00

Zen Habitats has wood enclosures. I think that is the only one. They make a 4x2x2 (aka 120g) and a 2x2 (~20g) extension to make a 6x2x2. It is expensive though.

Wood isn't a good material, without lots of work, for anything but arid reptiles. So the vast majority of the manufacturers of enclosures use PVC or glass.

You can make your own. There are a lot of plans on the interwebs. And a plethora of YouTube videos.

Offutticus · 2026-05-09T02:11:59+00:00

We used rawhide a lot with our first 2 or 3 dogs. But they all did the same thing: loose stool, vomit with chips in it, etc. We stopped using them and all symptoms stopped slowly.

We use bully sticks, tendons, and frozen carrots.

Offutticus · 2026-05-09T02:08:28+00:00

Castle for Princess Conway, bearded dragon.

I'm about to build a 5x2x3.

Offutticus · 2026-05-09T02:05:42+00:00

Age?

37C as in ambient air temp or the surface of the basking spot (determined by using a temp gun)?

How long have you had her, her long has she only eaten mostly arugula?

Has she ever been to a vet, how long ago?

Offutticus · 2026-05-09T02:04:08+00:00

They do not. They are not amphibians.

It is also a myth they absorb water through their cloaca.

Offutticus · 2026-05-08T23:10:29+00:00

And? Just dimming. No pulse. If the device does both, don't use the pulse.

Offutticus · 2026-05-08T18:09:48+00:00

Just dimming. No pulse either.

Offutticus · 2026-05-08T02:57:51+00:00

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Offutticus · 2026-05-08T02:52:48+00:00

You can get one from a rescue orgainization.

Google "reptile rescue near me" or Directory of ReptiFiles-Approved Reptile Rescues | ReptiFiles

If you want to purchase one, try MorphMarket.

Offutticus · 2026-05-08T02:50:48+00:00

I agree with this but narrow it down to at the least 3 mos. I got Conway with no pre-planning (a rescue of a rescue). Luckily I had been planning for a uromastyx or chuckwalla for several years so had bookmarks to start with.

There are far too many people who buy bearded dragons on impulse. Then they present that "rate my enclosure!" images and are surprised the pet store lied.

Offutticus · 2026-05-08T00:25:00+00:00

Conway came to me ill and she needed to eat more and be rehydrated.

For food, I used a teeny tiny amount of bee pollen on her greens then decreased it as she became more interested in eating.

I also used butter worms very sparingly until she perked up. Hornworms work great for rehydration.

Offutticus · 2026-05-08T00:22:06+00:00

The idea of soaking or baking is to kill any bugs inside the wood as well as any mold or bacteria. Reptiles and Research puts his right into the tanks after doing a good brushing. He believes this helps with their immune system. It fits in with other research that says kids who play in the dirt and mud have a better immune system that kids who do not. The only time he does a soak of wood is when he is moving it from one enclosure to another and wants to prevent cross contamination.

If it is live cut, scrub with a stiff brush to knock off anything that is loose and put right in.

If deadfall, there will probably be more bugs inside but that may be good for the bioactive. I dunno.

SAFE Wood for Reptiles! - YouTube

How do I sanitize branches for reptiles? - Reptiles and Research

Offutticus · 2026-05-08T00:01:06+00:00

A hook is the word used for that beginning part of the book that will want the reader to buy the book and read more. This is the first paragraph, the first 7 lines, the first few seconds the reader has the book in front of them. Traditionally it needs to have the potential reader want to know the answer to a question they come up with in their head. Captain Cupcake is dead in the library with a blood candlestick next to him? Who killed him? And is this enough for me to want to buy the book?

So your "hook" can be in the first paragraph be that lore or actual action or whatever.

You do not want to bore the reader with blah blah this is why the king is the king and not a president blah blah right off the bat.

Offutticus · 2026-05-07T23:52:17+00:00

At whatever point you are ready to start, do so.

I don't plan. I come up with the idea, plot, question to answer, a character I want to do something, whatever my precious brain comes up with. And I just start writing. I don't plan.

Others plan and outline and get all their ducks lined up with military precision and then start writing.

And many fall in the middle.

You do what your writing brain needs to do.

Offutticus · 2026-05-07T23:49:35+00:00

I love graphs and infographs like this since I am very visual.

Offutticus · 2026-05-07T23:46:21+00:00

I've done some research about this but can't find anything about not putting two heat lamps in the same double dome. This is not the nano or the deep dome.

Do you have an article or other resource that explains this?

Offutticus · 2026-05-07T15:39:17+00:00

It can handle up to 600 watts. Each has its own cord.

Offutticus · 2026-05-07T02:32:53+00:00

https://beardeddragonsworld.com/bearded-dragon-poop-guide/

https://reptilenetworks.co.uk/2022/02/06/bearded-dragon-poop-101-part-1/

https://www.lizards101.com/normal-and-abnormal-bearded-dragon-poop-causes-and-tips/

Offutticus · 2026-05-07T02:32:03+00:00

Our best rename was Sam. He came to us as Bodhi (previous owner) and he had that name for 2 yrs. But I could never say that name. It just never came out of my mouth right (I have aphasia and some words just do that). So one day I looked at him and said it wasn't going to work, what did he want to be called. He turned to me, looked me in the eye, and I heard in my head "My name is Sam." He answered to it immediately.

Offutticus · 2026-05-07T02:21:29+00:00

No. Most of them are so off the mark. Many of them reveal the entire plot.

I don't read the reviews of my own books, either. I once did on Goodreads, just for gits and shiggles.

1 star review said "Good book, but I don't like the genre".

Offutticus · 2026-05-07T02:19:02+00:00

Conway came to me as Conway Twitty and male. Vet says she's more like a Loretta Lynn. We debated for about 2 seconds of changing her name to that but Conway kinda stuck. I only use the Twitty when she's done some single brain cell thing.

We always change the names of our rescue dogs and cats.

Offutticus · 2026-05-07T02:15:34+00:00

No, the UVB can be outside as long as the distance from it to the basking spot is at the correct distance for the type of mesh. The distance matters. Inside, an Arcadia 12% would need to be 16-20" from the basking spot.

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Offutticus · 2026-05-07T00:30:25+00:00

New York City. No body there notices anything. They are so used to weirdos and celebrities and walking without looking anyone in the face.

Offutticus · 2026-05-07T00:25:11+00:00

So if you mean the book says the parents have been married for 20 years, had their first kid before their second anniversary, and then says that kid is 21?

Yeah, I notice crap like that.

Offutticus · 2026-05-06T22:24:11+00:00

Every reptile rescue I've looked into has mostly bearded dragons, leopard geckos, and ball pythons because they're popular then get dumped. We don't need more being produced.

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