My favorite vet,
Dr Doug Folland, likes to say that the single best thing you can do for your reptile is to give it sun time. Especially this time of the year when it is warm outside, sun time is a great way to make your beardies healthy.
I have two males, Max & Spike, who have their own cages outside, and they both believe they should NEVER have to be inside in a tank. As soon as the sun rises past my neighbor's trees, I take my big boys outside and they spend the day in the sun/shade.
Their set ups are simple: a rat/guinea pig cage with leftover pieces of astroturf on the floor. Max's cage has a shelf on it; Spike's cage has a tree branch. I use astroturf or reptile carpet to cover part of the top of the cage so there is always shade.
Today I put my old parakeet cage on the table on it's back so I could sun Toothless for awhile. Because he's so small, he could fit through the bars on the other cages. A parakeet cage is perfect. He has a rock to perch on.
When these guys are outside, I check them hourly to make sure they have sun & shade. In the heat of the day (between noon and 3) when the sun is at its highest, I put up my patio umbrella and position it so it shades their whole cages. Even with the umbrella up, they get plenty of heat and UVB reflection. Also when it is hot, I'll spray down the astroturf with a water bottle to keep them from overheating.
Upstairs in our south facing window is Lizzie. He's the little bump on the right side of the window. The window filters out the UVB light, but he still enjoys have the sun & warmth.
Downstairs in our south facing window is SweetPea. She is too timid to be outside, but she loves being on the window ledges in the sun. Here her head is up, but most of the time she looks like this:
So here's my helpful hints for outside sun time:
1-- NEVER EVER EVER use a glass tank. You will kill your reptile quickly!! Use an old bird/ferret/rat/small animal cage.
2-- Check on your beardies hourly to make sure they have plenty of sun & shade. Put them in a location where they won't be bothered by neighborhood animals.
3-- Windows filter out UVB (that's their job) so the only natural UVA & UVB light is direct sunlight. So get them outside when it's warm or consider opening up your windows when it's not as hot.
4-- Always keep water in their cages. When they spend a lot of sun outside, bathe/soak them more often to keep their hydration levels up.
5-- Beardies like the heat. It may be too hot for you, but it is perfect for them. In the wild, beardies sun themselves in temps up to 110 degrees. As long as they have both sun and shade and water, they should be fine with the heat. But that goes back to rule number 2-- check them a lot. If they are gaping consistently, or hiding, or trying to get out, it may be time to move them back to their tanks.
6-- Start off small. Try 30 minutes a day until they get used to being outside. SweetPea is too freaked out by alone outside time. She'll stay with me on my lap, but can't handle being outside. Most other beardies will adjust quickly to being outside with new sights & smells & sounds. But you can build them up. Until you are sure they can handle the new environment, give them short segments of time during the day (maybe once in the morning and once in the afternoon).
Anything else? Leave a comment below!
