which lizard

Question
i have a 3ft, 1ft, 1ft tank with nothin in it, i want a lizard of which will enjoy playin with me, but fit in my tank, i would like a bearded dragon but i think my tank is too small. what are my options, also all i have is a UV lamb not a UVB lamb does that matter

Answer
Hi Chris

It sounds to me from the dimensions that you gave me that you have a 20 gal. long tank
A Bearded Dragon would quickly outgrow that tank but if you can upgrade to a much larger tank soon(40 or more gals) you could start a baby beardie in that tank

You need a full spectrum UV bulb-florescent tubes are best
What brand and type of UV light do you currently have and how old is the bulb?

The tube ones have to be replaced every 6 months to keep them at optimum UV output

The Mercury Vapor Lamps are way too hot to place on/over a small tank
The coil UV bulbs have been reported to cause eye injuries in Bearded Dragons and should not be used

You will also need a spot heat lamp for basking and combine that with the florescent UV tube fixture and that will take up the whole top of a 20 long tank

If you are set on getting a Bearded Dragon(which sounds like the best lizard for you) my advice would be to get a much larger tank-you will have enough room for the lizard that you decide upon and all of the lamps that go on the top and cage accessories that go inside it

Also-keep in mind that you will be buying a lot of crickets and chopping up greens and vegetables on a daily basis to keep you dragon happy and healthy
Also they need calcium and vitamin and mineral supplements too

The last thing that I would like to add is that you should never use any brand of sand that contains calcium or ever use any kind of an ingestible substrate-no matter what they tell you in the pet shop-for baby lizards

Honestly-I can't really think of too many reptiles that actually like to be played with

A Bearded Dragon is more tolerant of being handled than many other types of lizards and will "hang Out" with you but even they have their limits

Nocturnal lizards such as Leopard Geckos and Crested Geckos do not really like to be handled for extended periods of time and should  be handled when they are awake at night for short periods of time
They prefer to be left in their tanks

Reptiles to me are more of a pet for observation that a hands on pet but that of course is just mho

I hope that this helps and if you have any more questions-just write back
:)

Sandy aka LadyGecko