Owning A Bearded Dragon
We've all heard of 'The Crazy Cat Lady' before right? Living alone with her 20+ cats...
Well I sometimes think of myself as 'Crazy Animal Lady', although I don't live alone, I can completely see myself having enough pets to start a zoo!
To my partner Neil's relief though, we currently only have one pet, our gorgeous Bearded Dragon, Smaug.
We have had him now just over a year, after I impulsively decided I wanted a pet one day whilst I was working. We had of course (Me and Neil) spoken in the past about wanting a pet and maybe looking into getting one, so when I rang him mid-day on a break from work on a Saturday, to say 'Let's get a Bearded Dragon!' He wasn't completely against the idea, he said we could talk later on that day and look into going to a pet shop during the week.. We did!
To begin with I was a little torn, not sure whether to get a Beardy or a Rabbit, but as soon as we saw Smaug, being the little trouble maker he is, we fell in love.
There were two tiny Bearded Dragon's in the vivarium at the pet store, and as we got up to the glass, we saw one (Smaug, of course), budge himself onto the branch that the other Beardy was on, and basically pushed it off, before he noticed us, ran to the glass to see us, then was trying to claw to get out to us!
I think that is what sold us on him, there was no way we weren't having him now.
We then spent the next few day, before getting him, setting up his vivarium, getting the temperatures right, the humidity etc.. And honestly, that is a whole stress on its own!
Once everything is set up though, it's pretty simple, and it just kind of stays correct, unless a bulb blows or you leave a door to the vivarium open, obviously!
Picking him up was also really simple, he was already preserved for us, they knew we were coming to get him, so it was in and out, and a really warm car ride back to keep Smaug's temperature up, as they are cold blooded animals.
Now,the one thing I think most people cringe from, including my mum and my sister, is that as-well as daily vegetables they also eat live food.
If you are not a fan of insects, which I can tell you now, I wasn't to begin with, then there is a high chance you might freak out a little trying to feed one, especially the first time!
Grass-hoppers, Crickets, Roaches etc, is what they eat, and of course, you feed it them alive.
As you might have already guessed, we had quite a few disasters involving the insects for the first couple of months, and I'm glad to say we look back and laugh now, we finally know what we are doing, haha!!
One of our first mistakes... Underestimating the grass-hoppers!
Even as tiny baby hoppers, my gosh can they bloody jump some heights!
And yes, they can nip.. Oh yeah, and they can also walk up walls...!!
Imagine the surprise of finding all that out whilst you have about 10 of the buggers hopping around your lounge whilst we tried to catch them all! We must have looked like a comedy act!
Second mistake... Underestimating the crickets!
I don't know why we expected easy after the multiple occasions with the hoppers, but we did, and let me tell you now, are are just as bad!
To begin with at night we use to put a towel over the glass of the vivarium whilst Smaug slept, as not to wake him with the TV etc, and we also had his viv on a set of draws then , where we kept his food, powders etc..
Clearly not paying enough attention, I must not have put the lid on the crickets correctly, or even closed the draw correctly and the towel must have been hanging a little lower than usual, we were sat there and next thing you know there is one cricket.. Two.. Three...
They were only making a bloody army line out of the draw, up the towel, then onto the floor!!
I'm so glad to say we have learnt our lesson, we now have full control, haha!
As for having Smaug as a pet, a Bearded Dragon, he is honestly the greatest pet in the world, and they are so much more intelligent than people give them credit for!
But don't get me wrong, he is the easiest pet when in his vivarium, but when he is out, it is like having a child, honestly! You can not take an eye off him for a second, or he will be running off somewhere or trying to eat something he shouldn't, even if it is just the smallest bit of fluff on the floor!
But if I'm honest, I wouldn't change him for the world, he is incredible, adorable, and makes me smile loads just by all the small things that as a lizard he does.
Even though he poos on the floor sometimes... Haha!
Let me know in the comments if any of you have a Bearded Dragon, know anyone that does, what pets you do have, or if you would ever consider owning an exotic animal if you don't.
