scully - jo grant

Yes, that's the kind of thing I was wondering about. I knew that large quantities of Vit D, among several others, is dangerous to us. It's good to know that the beardies, being far wiser than us mere mortal humans, have a built in defense against substance abuse. ;-)

You know, everyone talks about skin cancer and how dangerous the sun is. I have to wonder just what would happen if we could metabolize sunlight the same way they do................................ LOL

cheri smith

We do, we also make Vitamin D-3 in our skin, but then we do not have the
thick skin/scales they do

There is one group in the UK that is doing UVB readings through skin and
scales of animals... its on the reptile UV site link


CheriS
http://www.reptilerooms.com/

maxim1899ca

This is getting very deep. I thought we add the vitamins to make up
what is missing in their diets. This which "veggies" to feed or not,
should or not make a difference when supplemented with vitamins. In the
wild they don`t get these and I`m sure their not getting top vegatables
full of the nutrients either, so could we say that we maybe going over
board to a point that is confusing? UVB also? All day long (14hrs) he
is no more than 4"-8" from the flourescent repti-glo 5.0 uvb 15watt in
a 10 gal tank. Now the point to all this is can we be giving them TOO
much of a good thing? Gord

cayanne

First off... You should be using an 8.0 not a 5.0. They would get a full spectrum of light and UVA/B in the desert for 14 hrs a day so why not give them the best we can whilst in captivity? Yes we give them a wide variety of greens, veggies etc - truth be known do we really know how much of what and what exactly they are eating in the wild.

The multivitamins arent expensive - well they are ok priced but they should last you a long freakinnnnn time. Ive had the calcium with D3 for a year. You arent supposed to do every single meal every day and its a dusting....

If we are going to keep these marvellous creatures in captivity we should give them the best chance we can to thrive and be happy. Dont you? Sure we give them more than they get in the wild we love them. Would you want to eat chicken every day for the rest of your life? Or some variety now and then. "Food" for thought.

~ cayanne


what is missing in their diets. This which "veggies" to feed or not,
should or not make a difference when supplemented with vitamins. In the
wild they don`t get these and I`m sure their not getting top vegatables
full of the nutrients either, so could we say that we maybe going over
board to a point that is confusing? UVB also? All day long (14hrs) he
is no more than 4"-8" from the flourescent repti-glo 5.0 uvb 15watt in
a 10 gal tank. Now the point to all this is can we be giving them TOO
much of a good thing? Gord


Kennedy & Sandalwood Pkwy Vicinity ~ Brampton

scully - jo grant

In reading this thread, I'm thinking the question was meant to be: Is it possible to overdo things? Excessive amounts of certain vitamins and minerals are dangerous to humans...is it possible to give too much calcium, or UVB, or whatever, to a beardie? What's the fine line between enough to keep them in top condition, and too much that might make them sick?

bambii

I don't use vitamins to supplement mine, but I do use cuttle bone in
the worm cage, & I add powdered milk to the dragon food on occasion, I
use lots of greens & fruits, especially berries, during the summer the
kids spend most the day outside for real sun time.
I have had 2 recent deaths of girls of 11 years of age, i'm not saying
you shouldn't supplement, this is just what has worked well for
meremember, variety is the spice of life!!
Daisy ~_~

cheri smith

Animals that are eating greens, veggies and insects really well, do not
really need much supplements if they also have access to good usable UVB.
But baby dragons in captivity rarely eat greens that well especially to
match their growth rate and most people using Florescent tubes should still
use supplemnents also... a baby dragon in the wild often has no choice but
to eat greens, bushes, water sprouts.... and insects are a rare treat for
them unless they happen to luck out and find some a termite mound, beetles
or dead animals they can snack on (they love turtle). So they are taking in
a lot of greens and also have sunlight that produces UVB readings in the
200-400 each day for several hours a day to assist them in the absorbtion of
nutrients.. Another time they should have supplements is when a female is
gravid. In those cases the supplements are an insurance that the animal is
getting enough. They do not store some vitamins very well, like the B
vitamins only store a few weeks worth, so those deplete very fast. But
Vitamin a stores for a year... so they do not need much of that.

Stress depletes some Vitamins like he B's, C, D and E. so a new dragons into
a new home that is young should have supplements reguraly, even if they are
eating. It's not an across the board amount.. you have to consider age, what
they are eating, how well and the circumstances they are under

As far as your repti-glo 5.0 uvb 15watt in a 10 gal tank that he is 4-8
inches from 14 hours a day. You are not going to overexpose or overdose him
with supplements on that light. That list is only giving him about 10% or
less than what he would get in UVB in natural sunlight/shades in the wild.
He needs to be on supplements no matter what his age is. what he is eating
and his situation with that light. THats not knocking the light, it is a
good one as far as tubes go, but it is no where near what they get in nature

CheriS
http://www.reptilerooms.com/

cheri smith

Usually if the nutrients are in their diet foods and not supplements, there
is not a problem with too much vitamins or minerals (there can be problems
with fats and sugars). There are a few things you do need to watch out for
and that is not to give many high oxalate food. Often those are the rich
greens so that is why we recommend you also add small amounts of spring
mixes and even romaine to the salads.

Here is another example, Vitamin supplements of Vit A are not good for them
to have too much, you get a toxicity due to excess vitamin A. Even a
smaller dose can cause toxicity in the very young. But if it is eaten in
the diet, such as in carrots, it is not a risk. It's is beta-carotene that
is converted into Vitamin A in carrots that give it it's orange color, but
the body will only convert as much as it needs and passes the rest out of
the body.

Vitamin D is another one, if added in by supplements, you can overdose on
it, yet if you allow the animals access to good usable UVB, their skin makes
a pre D vitamin that allows them to make Vitamin D and absorb calcium. Yet
their body will stop making this when they have a adequate store of it.

So, it is possible to give to much UVB? No, not if it is in the appropriate
ranges. Can they OD on calcium? No in the dietary foods, but they could in
supplements, but you would really have to use a excessive amount of the
commercial powders on the market to OD them. Liquid calcium should ONLY be
used with monitoring by a vet.

CheriS
http://www.reptilerooms.com/

scully - jo grant

Yes, that's the kind of thing I was wondering about. I knew that large quantities of Vit D, among several others, is dangerous to us. It's good to know that the beardies, being far wiser than us mere mortal humans, have a built in defense against substance abuse. ;-)

You know, everyone talks about skin cancer and how dangerous the sun is. I have to wonder just what would happen if we could metabolize sunlight the same way they do................................ LOL

cheri smith

We do, we also make Vitamin D-3 in our skin, but then we do not have the
thick skin/scales they do

There is one group in the UK that is doing UVB readings through skin and
scales of animals... its on the reptile UV site link


CheriS
http://www.reptilerooms.com/