Hi!

Does anyone have any advice for a couple of nervous new parents?

We got a new baby yesterday & he doesn't seem to be very happy with his new home.

The information on this & Tricia's websites have been very helpful in setting up our enclosure. Thank you all.

This is Zooki's second day with us & he still hasn't eaten.
Is this normal?
We've had iguanas before, but it's our first water dragon.

Hello,
All reptiles require a grace period for adjusting to their new environment. Unnecassary handling and disturbance should be avoided. This will help them acclimate in a much faster manner. Moving is stressful, and new environments can be scary for the critter.
Going off feed for a few days won't hurt him/her. It is actually quite normal after having just been moved.

Thanks Rich!
That makes us feel better.
He was very active last night, but not today.
He's very non-active.
His enclosure is a 4 ft. long aquarium. Should I cover half the screen top to keep the temp. higher at night?

Firstly, congratulations on your new baby!

As Rich says, give the little fella a few days to settle in and leave him or her alone apart from changing water, feeding, etc. Once he aclimatises to his new environment he should eat well and you can slowly get him used to you.

How big is the WD? - the enclosure is quite large for a baby and plenty of hiding space will stop him from getting freaked out. As for night time temps, what are they currently at? Night time temps can drop a little and mimic the animals natural environment, and unless it's too cold you shouldn't need additional heating at night.

What's your set up like?

Also curious as to what and how you are feeding him?

Good luck, and it might be worth getting a faecal exam at the vets to check that the WD is in good health. If the dragon becomes very lethargic and doesn't start eating in a few days then you will need to take it to a vet.

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"If you know everything you may as well blow your brains out because the reason for existence is to learn more everyday." - Mark O'Shea, 2004

if anything you should cover a large portion of the top to keep the humidity in. WD's are humidity loveing creatures. They get dehydrated very easily. They are worth it though ive been a happy owner for 1 year and counting now

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1.0 Golden Gecko, 2.o Cresties (super dal/ patternless fire)

Thanks for all the info!

Our WD is about 2 months old & is 2.5 inches from snout to vent.
We've got him in a 55 gallon tank(4 ft. long) with a screen top. We're using a night bulb & a UBV daytime bulb. The substrate is cedar bedding recommended by a reptile shop in Gilbert, Arizona. There's a food dish & a water dish big enough for him to sit in. He has two climbing branches & a log tunnel to hide if he desires. We're using 3 fake plants(he loves the ivy ****er cupped to the side wall).
The reptile pet shop said to feed him a few crickets each day & try finely chopped non-acidic fruits or maybe some greens.
As of tonight, I don't think he's eaten any of the crickets. I haven't seen him near the water either.
The thermometer stays between 75 -80 degrees at night. We're really worries about temperatures this summer. We're in Arizona & it gets quite hot. We've been misting his tank a couple times a day as we have very low humidity.

All your advice is greatly appreciated. Our past experience was with iguanas when we lived in Buffalo, New York. We're finding our WD is quite different & can use all your input.

Congrats on your new baby ....

Warning !! Cedar is toxic to reptiles.....please take it out asap !! I can't believe a reptile petshop would have recommended it !! You can use newpaper or papertowels for now. Check out our caresheet here for some additional info http://www.herpcenter.com/a/

Good luck with everything.

Sorry. I mis-spoke. The substrate is cypress.

( ( ( Whew ) ) ) , Glad to hear that

Me too HM! My head was about to burst as I prepared to go completely ballistic regarding a herp shop recommending Cedar!
Glad it was just a mistake!

joeker You mentioned a UVB daytime bulb. What kind is it? Brand name, flourescent or incadescent?

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Merlin,
What's Life Without A Little Magic!