Relatively New Owner With Some Worries… Any and All Advice is Welcome!
Hello everyone. I’m super new at posting on Reddit and not sure this is even going to post. I have a 1+ yr old little buddy named Gus Gus who I’ve been taking care of for about 7 months. My wife and young kids (ages 5 & 7) purchased him last March and then my wife tragically died less than two months later. It was, and still is an extremely difficult transition for me, the kids and Gus Gus.
I’ve NEVER been a reptile or amphibian fan but over the past 8 months, I’ve grown to love this lil guy beyond comprehension. I spend a lot of time online googling questions and lurking Reddit pages to learn and give him the best life I can.
But I have some certain questions for my
guy, personally… Pics are attached…
I recently bought him a 5-foot cage and he absolutely loves it. 2/3’rds fake grass and 1/3rd Australian sand. He has a heated rock on his sand, two hammocks, a couple bricks to separate the sand and “grass” and a cave which he can go in or also climb. I’ve also put in some natural plants which I made sure are safe.
I’m having some issues with food though. He grew up loving crickets but a few months ago seemed to grow bored of them and not want to chase & eat ‘em. That resulted in my cleaning his cage with what seemed like 50 crickets hidden under the carpet, most dead.
So he got really into giant worms and then super worms. He was eating a ton while also eating grass n lettuce and celery leaves and what-not when he was young (4-8 months).
Well, recently, he eats like 2 super worms per week and barely touches his greens.
I’ve tried many different types of greens to no avail. Am I doing something wrong? I lightly spray him and the plants every day with water.
I have this one plant that he’s OBSESSED with which he climbs and spends 80% of his time on, just chillin’ or sleepin’. He poops 1-2 times/week and they seem normal.
He doesn’t like to come out of his cage much. When I take him out, he’ll chill on my chest for a bit and climb around but not very much. He usually tries to find a warm spot on the floor to go to sleep.
I hate to say that he’s kind of boring but I don’t know if I’m doing something wrong or if he’s just a chill dude who’s a home body and wants to kind of be on his own. 🤷🏼♂️
Any tips? He has two lights: a T5 HO long hood and another heat lamp that doesn’t emit light, only heat (pics attached).
Does anyone have any advice for my lil guy & I? Am I doing something wrong?
I see so many bad ass Dragons on this thread that love being out of the cage and going for car rides and what-not. Even wearing LEASHES!
It’s unbelievably cool.
Any and ALL advice and opinions are beyond welcome. I will not get offended by anything— I just want to know if I’m missing something or doing it wrong.
I’d LOVE to answer any questions as well. He likes pets on the head and hangin’ on my chest for a bit. Other than that, he just wants to be on his own and in his cage and because of that, the kids are rather disinterested in him 🤷🏼♂️😔.
THANK YOU, this group is amazing!
-Drew