Hello all.

I came to my dragon by a rather unusual path. My room mate worked for a Petco and a fellow came in to offer his water dragon for adoption. My room mate took it home. He got a 90 gallon glass aquarium with one side siliconed off for a water pool, a 150 watt heat lamp, and a still immature dragon. We thought he was a girl until he got all puffy.

The tank slowly got retrofitted. More branches, plastic plant things. A UVB light on the top with a 150 watt ceramic heater. Well. I inherited the dragon, and the tank, as my room mate in his infinite wisdom discovered that his room wasn't quite big enough. I decided it wasn't big enough, so embarked on my latest insane project. I extended the tank up twenty inches.

The upper tank is made of five plexiglass segments, welded together with cyanoacrylate at the corners and sealed with aquarium grade silicone glue. Because plexiglass you get from the hardware store is weak enough to break if a sneeze settles on top of it, I shoved in four 3/4 inch PVC pipes, one in each corner, all connected together for structure and stability. The old wireframe lid sits on top of the PVC.

There's not a lot of climby stuff so far, one plastic vine and some branches. The PVC makes a wonderful attachment point via zip tie or hooks screwed into the pipe itself. I also found some wonderful plastic screen material at the hardware store and I've attached that makes suitable climbing material. It doesn't fray, it's sturdy, and it deters some of the more popular 'I can climb through the glass' spots.

Things I've got still planned:
Timed mister system using those 1/4 inch plant drippers/sprayers. Basically a water resevoir, a pump, and a timer set to go for maybe a minute at a time.

Some sort of drain system for the pool, as it's presently a royal pain to drain, needing an aquarium pump and about ten feet of tubing, and that doesn't do the best job.

What I'd really like is to find my dragon a friend or two, as the enclosure would be big enough now. He spends a lot of time hiding, or glaring at me, and only seems to get excited when fed, which he's quite enthusiastic about.

Not had much luck finding any WDs in SoCal though, save for a couple of six inch babies at a Petco, which honestly I'm rather hesitant about.

http://img118.imageshack.us/img118/8...6071652zx3.jpg
My dragon, through rather dirty glass.
http://img131.imageshack.us/img131/9...6071653lv1.jpg
Side shot, with lizard face. Slightly blurry.
http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/8...6071655ic6.jpg
More dirty glass, pool, hidey log.
http://img410.imageshack.us/img410/7...6071656kz0.jpg
Full shot of tank, including crappy mesh door replacement.

Welcome to HC. That set up looks great.

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Ken
"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don't have that problem." -- Ronald Reagan

He/She, Is SOOO CUTE! You should post some pics in the herp photos section! Water Dragons, usually dont do well with "friends" They are usually solitary critters, and a friend could cause fights, not eating for the "lesser" dragon, and not to mention stress em all out.... Pretty much everyone reccomends they dont have cage mates....

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"We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals." ~ Immanual Kant

"Until one has loved an animal, a part of one's soul remains unawakened." ~ Anatole France

What a sweet little dragon. I bet he's happy in a home like that! Definitely a good idead building up. They're happier with the more height you can give them.

I agree with Ipanda. Water dragons are generally solitary creatures. They don't always do well with other dragons in the same area. Two (or more) males will always have some dominance issues, and usually they eventually fight. Females or a male and females do better together, but you still really have to watch them closely. If one dragon grows, while another stays the same size, or if one of your dragons stops eating or becomes nervous and skittish, you'll have to separate them right away.

If you do decide to get him a companion, make sure you have a second setup ready just in case.

Oh, um, i'd also recommend replacing the bark substrate. It tends to mold, and if he swallows any of it, it can cause impaction.

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"Let's eat, Grandpa!"
"Let's eat Grandpa!"

Punctuation. It saves lives.

upward space is great, but it would be good if you could add some larger branches so they can use the upward space. Do you have a straight on photo of the enclosure. Its kind of hard to tell the general setup with just a few close ups.

Welcome

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My name is Liz
Do what's best for the animal, not what's best for you.

The 'bark' substrate is some weird degradable junk. When it gets dumped in the water it comes apart. My room mate purchased it. It's on my list of things to revamp (live plants maybe?). Anyway, he's not too keen about eating things in the tank. He'll go for pennies though, ironically too big for him to eat. They get picked up, tasted and spat out in disgust, much like my attempts with feeder fish.

I'll take a few more pictures when I have a moment.

And honestly I'm surprised about the whole not getting along bit. Tricia's page never mentioned any real problems, except for the one with the dislocated leg. I've got a fair bit of experience with pointless aggression problems. I keep saltwater fish as well, and there's nothing quite as irrational as a big purple tang. Though I'll admit, sticking a water dragon in a perforated soda bottle isn't as practical. Main problem seems to be finding one his size, and female, as he seems to be pretty much at his adult length.

She didnt mention anything specific, but generally males do not get along with each other because of the dominance issue. They will tend to fight unless you have a huge enclosure like a room where they wouldnt have any contact with one another. I'm with the others, I would love to see more pictures of you whole enclosure

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MARSHA

:D I'm smiling because I have no idea whats going on!

I don't why that struck me so funny.

My post was mostly just a friendly warning that it could become a problem, and if it does, you'd have to have another enclosure ready, or you risk losing one of them. That way if you really have no room or money for a second enclosure, you might think twice about how many water dragons you wish to purchase.

There are a few social reptiles in the wild, but most are not and are very territorial. They don't really lose that, even if they are bred, born and raised in captivity.

Simple Repti-carpet works great for water dragons and is decorative. I'm not sure how well live plants will work out for you. I never had great success with them, myself. They mysteriously ended up getting shredded... and then Kono would drag the soil into his water and it all became a big mess. Maybe I'm just not good with terrariums, though.

__________________
"Let's eat, Grandpa!"
"Let's eat Grandpa!"

Punctuation. It saves lives.

Yup. You definitely have a male, but not because he got "puffy" (puffed out his throat?). Females can get puffy too. His fat jowls, large crest, large crest spikes, and large tail spikes indicate him to be a male. How long is he? He is handsome.

Like people already said, dragons are rather solitary animals and prefer to be alone. Two males will fight and stress each other once matured, so you would only be able to get a female with your dragon; and that female would have to be a similar age and size to your current dragon. With multiple dragons, you have to be prepared to separate them if necessary, and be prepared to deal with potential problems such as the new dragon infecting your first dragon with parasites. Keeping multiple dragons can be done successfully, but make sure you have the money, time, and space before considering it.

The enclosure you have is a nice size, but it would not hold more than two dragons - rule of thumb: minimum of 75 gallons per adult dragon.

As schlegelbagel already mentioned, put in some branches along the top of the enclosure when you can. The space is useless unless a branch or two is added.

The best substrate, in my opinion, is plain ol' dirt. It is as natural as it gets and holds humidity too. The only problem is that it can be rather messy when it gets into the water source. However, in my opinion it is our duty as reptile keepers to mimic the animal's natural habitat to the best of our ability; even if that means a little extra work of cleaning out the water source more often (a drain in the water source would make it easier to clean, or you can use a shop vacuum to suck out the water). You can get soil at a garden or home improvement store (free of manure etc.), or you can dig it up in a pesticide free area. You should bake the soil in an oven at 350F for 15-30 minutes to kill any potential "bad" critters (insects, insect eggs, "bad" bacteria).

Live plants are great, but as Typhanie said, they are easily killed. There are two solutions to this. One is that you can replace the destroyed plant often. The second solution is better though - you can have several of the live plants (at least two) and keep some outside the enclosure and some inside. Once the plants inside begin to look worn down, switch them with the plants kept outside the enclosure to give the worn down plants some time to rejuvenate. Keep switching the plants like this to keep them alive. Also, keep live plants away from the heat source to prevent the leaves from burning. Keeping the plants in a pot is best. They are easier to switch that way, and thrive better. Here is a list of non-toxic plants: Non-toxic Plants - VeterinaryPartner.com - a VIN company!. There are other lists. Just google "list of non-toxic plants".

You sound very resourceful and creative and with a trip to Home Depot - I'm sure you can make an enclosure that totally rocks.

Each one of my adult female WDs currently have their own enclosures (that are large) but, I am working on one enclosure (about the size of an entertainment unit) with a removable section - so, the one enclosure can be made into two enclosures within moments. Each side will be equiped with lighting, water, sandboxes, plants, vines, etc.

My girls will play nice together but they also are very particular about their own space. So, this solves my problem.

I gave up on the bark substrate early on (and carpet is a potential bacteria zone that tends to hold moisture and an odor). I actually came up with my own little floor idea - a wood panel (sanded, etc.) that fits the bottom of their terrariums. This has worked great for years.

The new enclosure is solid wood with a safe and sturdy screen material (found at Home Depot) used in place of glass panels to limit snout damage, give them something to climb (because they love to climb the sides) and help the enclosure to breathe as well.

I spent loads of money with these live plant set ups in the beginning... it was awesome. But, the girls just pounce on their plants - so, the plants got trashed real quick. My dozen or so plants came down to one lone survivor. So, now I buy my plants at a discount and switch them out frequently - so, they do not end up destroyed altogether.

The girls have lots of sturdy hanging vines and tubs filled with water and sandboxes too. Though, they still don't have the whole sandbox thing figured out yet and tend to use it as a litter box instead of an egg deposit.

I hope to get a male at some point to add to my family - and encourage the girls to make their deposits so they don't get egg binded (when they are ready to do so). Besides, males are so beautiful and regal. Not that Emmie and Zoey are not gorgeous as well. They truly are. But, I've had a name picked out for a male and I'm dying to use it. LOL.

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My Reptiles:
2 Female Water Dragons - Emmie & Zoey (age 2)
More About My Own WDs:
Water Dragons, Not Just Lizards
Emmie & Zoey
Wishlist:
Uromastyx
Chameleons
Sugar Gliders
My Other Pets:
1 Female Ferret - Jackie
3 Parakeets - Taj, Sprite & Willow
1 Male Pit Bull - Noah
1 Female Husky/Wolf Mix - Angel

~ Jess ~