So, she picked up a Water Dragon today and neither of us know anything about them. Currently, it is in an extra large Kritter Keeper with a branch and a water bowl. From what I have read you want a tank at least twice as long as their body. Right now that would be about 18" (dragon is about 9") but if my info is right it will grow fast. I found a 120 gallon with a stand for $100 (tank has a crack in the back), but she found a 55 gallon with a stand for $200. I know they climb some, so I think the 120 would be better. Which would you use? Also, she wants a naturalistic viv. What types of plants, if any would be good to house these with?
WD's need a huge tank, preferably tall, they climb a lot and need the height. Adults can be 3ft including tail so they need to stretch out so tail isn't damaged. IMO neither of those tanks are suitable, even for a young one. I had my Basilisks in a 6ft tall cage and they used every inch of it. They also need it to be kept humid with daily misting or fogger. They need UVB lighting and heat, I used a Powersun 100w which did both. They need a very large water tray, they will use it for bathing and bathroom so needs to be very accessable to change daily. Their diet is mainly insects, mine ate crickets most of time, some will eat a small amount of salad type veg but not all will. WD's and basilisks have similar needs. Here's a couple of pics of my setup when I had it. Hope this helps.
i really like that enclosure you had those in bruno , where did you find those branches/logs and did you build the enclosure yourself?
You'll definitely need a larger and probably custom cage to do it right. Here's a few of the cage I built for mine.
Yes I built it myself, most of the branches/logs etc came from trees that had been blown down in gales, I simply asked the contractors if I could have some and they cut it into 6ft lengths, did a lot of my vivs.
Thanks. That's a really good water filter in there to keep the water cleaner longer. I just put that kitty litter box in there today. I used to have a big old 20g High in there full of water but it was too much of a hassle to keep clean, so I went with the litter box. It actually looks cooler than the big tank I think.
do you find it harder to keep the humidity up with a screened door? and thats lucky bruno, did you get rid of your basilisks or did they pass?
It does look better Norse and will be easier to keep clean. Because of the floor area of mine I used the litter tray but no filter as it got so messy with substrate being dragged in. I used an old waterfall pump to drain it then clean out and refill, daily. beefcake. I had to sell as I needed to cut down on collection due to financial reasons.
thats a shame bruno im sure you enjoyed having them, but i understand anyways, yeah norse that litter box should do a better job hopefully the op of this thread will get a similar enclosure edit: looks like he is haha, good luck ratman
Will probably work out cheaper in long run and you get what suits you best. Hope all this chit-chat will give you a few ideas.
Nah the humidity is really easy to keep actually with all the plants and water in there. It's always at 80-90%, so it's perfect.
Should have added, make sure the lower part is fully waterproof, they are VERY messy. Use a good water based eurathene varnish to seal it with.
Norse, if you don't mind me asking. What are the dimensions of your viv? I've got some ideas in my head, but need to take some floor measurements to make sure it will fit in the room. I may have to change it so it is wider than it is deep.
