Rankins Dragon .co.uk - Latest Topics

Absence from the Board

2012-02-02T21:18:11+01:00

Hi, Some of you may have noticed that I haven't been posting to the Board much recently. I was made redundant from my job at the beginning of January, so most of my attention has been focused on looking for a job. On a brighter note, I accepted an offer this morning, so I hope to be back in the workplace again soon Best regards, Mark

Posted by: thelizardbloke
Replies: 4

waving tale

2012-02-02T20:13:51+01:00

Hi, what does it mean when they wag the tale like a dog?? my younger rankin which i beleve is female?! which i put with my older male she sat on his back with her nose touching his neck and the males tale starting waving side 2 side? what does this mean??

Posted by: kevin89
Replies: 2

Rankin Dragon Wanted

2012-01-28T20:14:36+01:00

Hi I'm after another Rankin Dragon to replace the one we had that died a few weeks ago, I believe he was too young, so unfortunately he only lived about three weeks, & this has greatly upset my young son. I have a 2 foot Viv, so if somebody could help me out with one local to me in the wolverhampton area, I'd be very much apprecaitive.

Posted by: Mark65
Replies: 2

Finding them hard to find

2012-01-27T15:10:25+01:00

Hi there I'm totally new to this forum so I should introduce myself My name is heather, I'm 40 years old, devoted to my many animals, I breed guinea pigs (& show them), have 2 parrots & a cockatiel, 2 Horsefields tortoises and 1 crested gecko, Ollie. I'm also soon getting a leopard gecko, she's called Magic Anyway I've been searching and searching for Rankins within the Manchester area and they seem impossible to find. It's taken a while for me to persuade my elderly dad (who I live with) how cool lizards are and he is also keen on getting a rankins, I've got the shopping list, I've read all the info, but can't find my dragon The problem is I have back problems and am disabled and although I do drive I can't drive too far, an hour each way max, I'd rather go to a breeder but a NICE pet shop would be ok, if anyone could recommend one Heather

Posted by: Heatherjhenshaw
Replies: 2

calcium and vitamins

2012-01-27T11:44:30+01:00

hi we got our first ever rankins dragon a few days ago ROCCO and are new to this he is about 2 i was just wondering do u feed calcium and vitamin? or just vitamins 1 time a week and calcium a few times a week ? at the mo we are dusting insects and food with nutrobal sorry for being stupid in advance [url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/706/lol005f.jpg/:1w7nbpma][img:1w7nbpma]http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/2031/lol005f.jpg[/img:1w7nbpma][/url:1w7nbpma] Uploaded with [url=http://imageshack.us:1w7nbpma]ImageShack.us[/url:1w7nbpma]

Posted by: shelleywishart
Replies: 2

Advice needed re night time temperature

2012-01-27T11:12:19+01:00

I need some advice about night time temperature for my Rankins Dragon. Before I purchased it, I tested the vivarium and noticed that, with everything turned off at night, the temperature dropped to about 58F. So I purchased a day and night thermostat. Using this raised my night time temperature to 68F. Now I've got my dragon, we noticed one night that he was trying to bask under the spot lamp at 4:00am. This worried me because it meant that he wouldn't be getting a full night's rest and also, I'm sure that being up and awake when the temperature is low can't be any good for him. Last night I turned off the night time part of the thermostat and instead covered the vivarium in a blanket. The temperature only fell to 62F, and, my dragon was still asleep when the spot lamp came on this morning. by the time we came to feed him, he was alert and ate well. So my question is this. Even though it's below the recommended 65F, is 62F still an acceptable night time temperature? It was quite a cold night last night and I'm guessing that in the Summer I won't have any issues with it getting too low. Or should I look at buying a low powered ceramic heater (say 40W or even 25W) just to prevent the temperature from dropping too low? Thanks.

Posted by: melliott1963
Replies: 4

Lunar.

2012-01-26T19:19:51+01:00

I took Solar and Lunar my beardies to the vets for a check up in December. They were in perfect health though we were worried about 2 small growths on Lunars back and tail (just where it joins her body). The vet had a look and took some photos of them and told me to keep an eye on them, any changes to take her back. The one on her back was probably a damaged scale as it disappeared when she shed. Yesterday I bathed Lunar and the skin on her tail shed shortly after but the growth was still there and looked a funny colour. I kept an eye on it today and noticed after she'd been running around her tank it was bleeding quite a bit. It seemed to take ages to stop but when it did I covered it in Germolene. I rang the vets and they could fit me in this evening. The vet had a look at it and we decided between us that she should remove it tomorrow morning under anaesthetic. Poor little Lunar has to stay at the vets tonight. She is going to send the growth to be analysed to see what it is. Before I left her I opened the pet carrier and Lunar jumped out onto my shoulder for a cuddle. It was as if she knew I was leaving her. I just hope she will be alright. Terri x x x

Posted by: Terri
Replies: 11

dragon not eating and lathargic

2012-01-25T18:36:15+01:00

Hello, i collected my 12 week old rankins dragon (Elvis) on sunday he was in a 18" enclosure with 2 others of the same age, the shop assistant said they were shedding and eating really well, when i got home i put him in his new viv 36/18/18 with 10% uv light, a 50w basking lamp and a ceramic lamp controlled by a habistat pulse thermostat. my temperatures are Basking spot 100 - 105 middle 85 - 90 cool end 80 - 85 at night 75 im concerned now because since sunday he hasnt eaten a thing and just seems to stay in his little cave in the cool end, i take him out and place him near the basking spot and he just watches me but the second i walk away he goes back into his cave. can someone please help and shed some light on this sort of behaviour

Posted by: filthyswine
Replies: 7

Sleeping habits of rankins?

2012-01-24T23:46:31+01:00

Hi, New (and very delighted) owner of a 3 month old rankins for about 3 weeks now and everything is going great -- eating habits are fine, no signs of stress/illness and she loves to be handled. Her name is Ursula and she lives in a vivexotic 3x2x2 viv with white paper towel as the substrate for the time being. she's got some logs and grape vines to climb and hide under as she pleases. I just have a question about her sleeping habits, which I think may seem a bit odd -- she sleeps pretty much as soon as the uv light goes off, but i notice that she always, and i mean every night, sleeps in the hot end of the vivarium. during the day i turn the temp up to 34 degrees celcius and at night i drop it to about 32 degrees. i would assume that they like to burrow or hide in the cooler end of the tank, but not Ursula. Just wondering if this is out of the ordinary and if I have to do something about it? Thanks, and I look forward to hearing from you. M

Posted by: masonlyeh
Replies: 1

age

2012-01-22T12:14:05+01:00

How do you tell the age of a rankin?

Posted by: spikeypopcorn
Replies: 1

breeding !

2012-01-21T19:11:43+01:00

Hi, is it 2 early in the year for breeding?????? ive recently put 1 of my males with a female who is brumating and ive just seen him biting her neck and head bobbing ??? is this a sign of agression or mating?

Posted by: kevin89
Replies: 2

What age should a baby Rankins be sold ?

2012-01-21T15:48:12+01:00

Hi I am looking to buy some baby Rankins and I was wondering, at what age are they normally sold ? Or what would be the ideal age to take one on as a novice ? Any advice would be really appreciated. Thank you Mel

Posted by: mel & Tim
Replies: 6

Loss of apetite and lethargy

2012-01-10T16:29:18+01:00

Scratchy is a male 5 month old Rankins that we have had for two months. We feed him hoppers with the odd bit of cress. He gets handled a bit every day. Scratchy has stopped eating and spends most days buried and sleeping. I rouse him if he hasn't got up by himself. It has now been 12 days where the most he has eaten has been a couple of hoppers after being presented them. He didn't eat for two days the day after he came home but this could have been the stress of moving and a prolonged period out of his vivarium when I had to move the heater. The vivarium is 4X2X2 ft and we use wood chip rather than bark as flooring because the original bag of bark was riddled with mites. He has eaten the odd bit of wood chip (while catching a hopper) with no obvious side effects previously but this could of course be a factor now. The temperature in the hot end is about 95F (deduced from a cheap thermometer in the cool end that measures about 85F). Any advice gratefully received.

Posted by: mart@egbert.co.uk
Replies: 7

Suitable Vivarium size? Prospective owner..

2012-01-06T19:19:25+01:00

Hello all! I am looking into owning a Rankin's Dragon, and have discovered much information through this website (for which I am very thankful!) I am the kind of person however, who is never sure if they're doing the right thing! I've been browsing through my different options in terms of vivarium size, and have discovered that anything larger than this [url=http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vivexotic-LX36-Walnut-Reptile-Vivarium/dp/B0035V1596/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1325874774&sr=8-7:1ca41je0]Vivexotic LX36[/url:1ca41je0] Vivarium would be unsuitable with my available space. Would this be acceptable? The Vivarium measures L 92x W38x H41 cm, or L36"xW15"xH16". I think it's long enough, from my reading, but would it be wide and tall enough? I've read that Rankin's Dragon's tend to enjoy climbing a fair amount. I will probably have many more questions if this is a suitable size....and if it isn't, then I shall wait until I do have the space - I don't want to be a cruel owner, and not provide enough space! Many thanks in advance ladies 'n' gents! P.s. this is an idea in the pipeline...and I have a lot more research to do first - does anyone have any links to a good place for information (Other than this website) so I can do some further reading? Cheers.

Posted by: asandhu
Replies: 1

calcium powder

2012-01-03T14:46:35+01:00

Should i buy calcium and vitamin powder for my rankin with D3 or not?

Posted by: spikeypopcorn
Replies: 1

What size viv is perfect?

2012-01-01T18:07:19+01:00

Well, Ive had mila around 9 months now and cant help but think shes getting a tad bored, I was thinking of doing a viv where I do the old polystyrene and such and build a nice enclosure for her to grow old in though im not sure weather to stick to this or get a new viv, currently shes in a 30" by 18" and was wondering whether it would be better to go to something a bit longer (thus getting the right temps and such) though Ive read about dragons especially rankins becoming somewhat overwhelmed by there vivarium size thus creating stress. So my question is should I upgrade and in the process upgrade her viv? Id be getting it in black like this, and using the draws I have underneath as a "cabinet" of sorts.... Im sure the regulars have seen her viv though if nobody knows about what draws ill be using they are the following http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos- ... 8470_n.jpg Im also wondering what everyone else's viv size is? James

Posted by: James
Replies: 2

Wanted quickly, adult female Rankin

2011-12-30T12:51:20+01:00

Just sadly lost my lovely girl, and my male is looking lonely. Does anyone have a female of any age over about 9 months? Not using for breeding, so beauty not important as long as healthy and happy.

Posted by: frances
Replies: 1

Solar and Lunar

2011-12-30T00:37:24+01:00

I took Solar and Lunar to the vets before Christmas just for a health check and worming. I was worried about them as they are not brumating despite lowering the temperatures and turning the lights off earlier at night. They are both a good weight at 604g and 612g and are still eating and running around as usual. She checked them and they are both very healthy. Solar is a definate male and she checked to make sure that Lunar is female because I wasn't 100% sure, and she is. Would they still be able to breed successfully if they don't brumate? They are about 19-20 month old now. I don't want to start investing in an incubator and another tank etc if it's not going to happen or should I wait until next year and see if they brumate next winter. I don't want to put them under any stress if nothing is going to happen. I have a reptile shop quite near me who sold me Solar and Lunar and they said they will sell any babies for me. The owner of the shop actually owns both of Solars parents and Lunars parents are from a few miles away so I'm confident they are not related in any way. I would be grateful for any advice on breeding as I want to give them the best chance I can. Terri x x

Posted by: Terri
Replies: 2

About to buy a Rankins Dragon

2011-12-29T17:16:14+01:00

Hi, I'm shortly about to buy a Rankins Dragon and am in the process of setting up my vivarium and have a quick question about substrate (oh no, not another one, I hear you all cry!). I've got an Exo Terra glass vivarium (or should that be terrarium as it's glass?). I had initially purchased some Zoo Med Vita Sand (All Natural Vitamin-Fortified Calcium Carbonate Substrate) having read in a book that this is by far the best subtrate for Rankins. Of course, I've now read on here, and other articles, that this really isn't a good idea, so I'm going to go for the safe option of shredded paper kitchen roll. Now, do I just put this straight onto the glass base, or would I be better off putting some slate tiles or lino on the base first and then the paper towels? Thanks for your help. I'm sure there'll be more questions to come!

Posted by: melliott1963
Replies: 6

pinworm and giving meds !

2011-12-28T20:23:18+01:00

Hi i took a sample to the vets and it came back back they have a high amount of pinworms, so the vet gave me 5ml of panacur 10% suspension. she game me the amounts to give each one but didnt really give any tips on how !!! ive just managed to give them there meds today by opening the corner of there mouths nd trying to wedge it open with the syringe until i can squirt it in which worked well for 3 of them but the other 2 wer stubborn and wouldnt open there mouths till i put them down !!! and i know you have to be a little rough but i didnt want hurt them ! any tips or other ways to give them the medicine? cheers

Posted by: kevin89
Replies: 1

Happy Christmas and New Year

2011-12-25T05:39:44+01:00

Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year. [img:22phl46p]http://i991.photobucket.com/albums/af31/caz8210/Terry/1stdec18.jpg[/img:22phl46p] Hope to see you in 2012. Mark

Posted by: thelizardbloke
Replies: 3

In the wild !

2011-12-19T20:36:45+01:00

Hi could anyone post any pictures of rankins in the wild or pictures of their natural environment, i want to try mimick it! thanks

Posted by: kevin89
Replies: 2

pure rankin

2011-12-10T00:44:20+01:00

Hi, how do you know a pure rankins from a vittikins?

Posted by: kevin89
Replies: 3

Shedding

2011-12-09T21:52:52+01:00

Hi, Is it common for a rankins to lose their appetite when they're shedding? Choco has been active & eating really well but just yesterday and today has been right in the middle of shedding around his chin and on his face. Today was the first day he wasn't interested in anything more than a waxworm. He's been a bit slow out of bed in the mornings and took himself off to bed early the past couple of days, so maybe the season is having an effect too. He has looked rather fed up about the shedding so I'm hoping it's that. Also, would a bath help him with shedding or is it a time to avoid baths? Thanks, Catherine

Posted by: Catherine
Replies: 2

A Beardie for us

2011-12-08T22:03:38+01:00

Hi, It's taken all week to post but we got another lizard at the weekend! An adult Bearded Dragon, who we've named Harry. Apparently he was brought to the pet shop by his previous owner because his landlord didn't allow tenants keep animals and had carried out a spot check. We had seen Harry on a trip to the pet store 3 weeks ago and were very drawn to him . The pet shop owner thinks Harry is about two. He's a big boy, compared to a rankins anyway I haven't weighed him yet but that will be interesting! I've held him briefly a few times and he's very cuddly . Am mostly leaving him be though for this week while he settles in. He seems pretty mellow and is settling in well as far as I can tell. He's in the 3ft glass viv I had been preparing for Nalani. I'm going to see how that goes and will move him to a bigger one in a few months if he's seeming cramped. Will be letting him out for exercise too of course. At the moment he's not moving much - he looks happy enough, and either basks on his log (if I put him there) or more often lies all pancaked out on the floor of his viv, watching what's going on. He's eating well, though hasn't pooped since we got him, so I think perhaps a bath with a little olive oil tomorrow . He's in the sunroom where we spend quite a lot of our day, and from there can he see the kitchen, and into the sitting room and a little bit of the garden. Choco is doing pretty well with the new arrival. As he arrived first he got the sitting room spot, and I'm keeping one of the curtains part way across for now so they can't see each other. It's only an oblique view but he did seem rather interested/anxious after one brief sighting. He's settled again now and seemed happy today so fingers crossed we're fine. Anyway - I rambled as usual! Just wanted to share. They're not the best of him but here's a couple of photos I took on Saturday. I put him on the beech chippings at the pet shop owner's suggestion and he does seem to like burrowing in something at night (or maybe he was trying to get them out of the way, I don't know!). (He was on calci sand in the shop ) . From what I can tell he prefers lying flat on the vinyl during the day though so I've removed some and there's more vinyl now and the chippings just on the left side. I'm thinking of switching to something a bit comfier, like carefresh, once he's more settled. Also think I may put a hide in the cool end. I was told he wouldn't need one but think he may want the shelter more than the space at this stage. Lots to learn about him . [img:38b3e8u4]http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/1944/031220111466.jpg[/img:38b3e8u4] [img:38b3e8u4]http://img856.imageshack.us/img856/7845/031220111467.jpg[/img:38b3e8u4] Catherine

Posted by: Catherine
Replies: 9

Electric went off :(

2011-12-08T16:37:32+01:00

Well, today I was at our new house (me and my family are moving!) Her lights at the mo are 10 on 10 off well at the "old house" where the little one is my mother forgot to top up the electric so at half 9 in the morning the electric went off..... So effectively shes been asleep from 10 last night and its currently half 4, im at a miss what to do, weather to put her on a 12 hour cycle from now to get the back again and go back an hour each day or what! or to let them go off at 10 tonight and come back on 10 the following day Can someone please help lol, ive no idea!

Posted by: James
Replies: 3

female Rankin

2011-12-08T14:27:46+01:00

Hi all My male Rankin has unfortunatly been on his own for about eighteen months ue to my female dying, I have been trying all this time to get another female but carnt get one anywhere. Does anyone have any babies i could grow on or an adult they are wanting to sell or know where I may be able to get one, poor archie has lost all personality since being on his own so im sure he'd like a mate. Can anyone help please x

Posted by: michele
Replies: 6

Mitzi

2011-12-07T19:37:18+01:00

Hi everyone, Today we made a new addition to our Rankins family, Mitzi. Here in the U.S. Rankins are pretty hard to come by, females even more so and pureblood females even more than that, so Mitzi is a rare gem [url:1oy7m8f1]http://lizardsonline.dyndns.org/photo/photo_one.php?name=494d475f32303131313230375f3131323931302e6a7067&dir=4c697a61726473[/url:1oy7m8f1] Mark

Posted by: thelizardbloke
Replies: 5

2012 Meet & Greet ?

2011-12-06T23:47:13+01:00

OK, I tried this back in 2010 and failed epically because I just ran out of time I'm planning a trip over to the UK next August/September to visit my Mum and was wondering if anyone would be interested in doing a get-together? I'll have my (3 year-old) daughter and my Wife so it would be fun to do it somewhere where the kids and adults could enjoy themselves. I was thinking of doing something down south, like LegoLand and something further north (like Alton Towers). It would be a Saturday or a Sunday. I'd flesh out the details a bit more once I got a feel for who would be up for it. Any takers?

Posted by: thelizardbloke
Replies: 8

Lenny loves electric plugs

2011-12-03T15:15:46+01:00

My male Rankin is one year old, and he has developed a passion for electric plugs. Whenever I let him out for a run, he finally ends up draped on top of some electrical gubbins, usually a transformer (he lives in my study with lots of computing equipment). Is he just looking for warmth, or does he get some sort of pleasure from the activity in the transformer? He often goes straight to one of his favourite perches even if he's still really warm from the viv. Photo attached. [url:1ck3hd7z]http://www.soliduspress.com/GreyArea[/url:1ck3hd7z]

Posted by: frances
Replies: 5

Substrate for baby rankin 2 months old! HELP :(

2011-11-30T17:33:33+01:00

Sorry for the third post in as many minutes but hoping to get some confirmation. When I bought my rankins a few weeks ago the shop owner gave me large wood chip for his substrate, ive since been told my numerous people that this is the worst thing he could be on and he needs to be on tiles or play sand. I went back to the shop to buy some sand and explained to the guy what I had been told and he said that it is rubbish and the wood chip is too large for my rankins to eat and that he will spit it out. He said he would not advise putting him on sand at his age because of impaction. He said that wood chip is best at his age as it will curb aggression and help his eating habits from a young age. Basically Im now just so confused as to what to do as I dont want any harm to come to the little thing but dont want to change to sand and make things worse! Would be extremley grateful of advice on this one! xx

Posted by: LittleC
Replies: 5

What fruit / Salad do you feed your rankins?

2011-11-30T17:27:23+01:00

Hey guys! Im just wondering what fruit and/or salad your rankins tend to like / dislike? I know to stay away from spinach & ice burg lettuce and have only really been giving my rankin baby leaf salad but was wondering if they are ok to eat fruit and if so what sort or any to avoid? xx

Posted by: LittleC
Replies: 0

Mixing Sexes / Siblings ?

2011-11-30T16:57:35+01:00

Hey everybody! Im new to this forum but have been referred from reptileforums.co.uk I bought a baby rankin a few weeks ago and am thinking of buying another so he has a tank mate due to them being such a sociable species. The shop I bought him from still have his brothers and sisters so what I need to know is A) can i mix him and one of his brothers or will they fight being 2 males? B) can i mix him with another female or does this cause problems with mating due to them being siblings? (id like to point out my intention is not to breed) or should I not be getting one of his siblings at all? Hope somebody can offer some advice! Thanks Charlotte x

Posted by: LittleC
Replies: 2

Choco has a new home!

2011-11-29T20:02:00+01:00

Hi (edited to cut all the waffle!) Just wanted to share a few pictures of this beautiful boy! We are thrilled to have him with us . He's settling in extremely well what from I can tell - eating, pooing, active, basking and frequently up at the window watching what's going on:). Catherine x [url=http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/843/281120111443.jpg/:3uh9xfv1][img:3uh9xfv1]http://img843.imageshack.us/img843/5073/281120111443.jpg[/img:3uh9xfv1][/url:3uh9xfv1] [img:3uh9xfv1]http://img21.imageshack.us/img21/8919/dsc07432zc.jpg[/img:3uh9xfv1] another basking position [img:3uh9xfv1]http://img847.imageshack.us/img847/4827/dsc0744c.jpg[/img:3uh9xfv1]

Posted by: Catherine
Replies: 5

How much should I feed?

2011-11-28T20:18:36+01:00

Hi Everybody I have just become the proud owner of a couple of rankins. The smaller one is an absolute animal, and eats as many crickets as I can throw into the vivarium! Norbert who is bigger does eat them but not as many nor as quickly. Can I over feed them? And how many of those small crickets should they be eating in a day? Thank you in advance, I am new to reptile keeping and don't want to get it wrong. Christine

Posted by: tinytint
Replies: 3

superworms

2011-11-28T09:15:55+01:00

can i feed my rankin super worms?

Posted by: spikeypopcorn
Replies: 1

Looking for Baby/Juvenile Rankins

2011-11-28T00:35:57+01:00

Hi, im looking for a pair of healthy girls please let me no if any1 can help

Posted by: fire_bst
Replies: 1

Custom background

2011-11-26T07:59:03+01:00

Hello, I'm new to the forum and this is my 1st post, I have decided I'm going to keep rankins, I've kept various lizard in the past such as green iguana, bearded dragons, and chameleons so I have no problem providing the correct care for these little beauty's. The reason I have posted this is because I'm going to create a custom 3d background for my 3ft vivarium, I was going to do this using polystyrene sheeting, cut to shape and rough the edges, once I've got the design I want I'm going to cover the entire thing with a couple of layers of brown tile grout To give that rock texture, I would appreciate any thoughts, concerns or tips any1 has, I'm not sure what type of paint to use, this is a work in progress as Im not rushing out to buy my rankin just yet

Posted by: filthyswine
Replies: 1

Shedding in reptiles

2011-11-12T11:11:27+01:00

I found a brilliant product to aid with shedding especially on toes. It's called 'Repti Shedding Aid' by 'Zoo med' It's a very gentle spray containing vitamin e and jojoba oil and is alcohol free. I use it on my two guys after a bath and it really helps to loosen dry shed. Just spray it on and rub in gently. It's very safe to use and smells quite nice too. I've used it on mine since they were tiny and they are used to it now. It costs about �5 from reptile suppliers for a 64ml bottle which lasts for ages. Terri x x x

Posted by: Terri
Replies: 4

looking for a pure female rankins

2011-11-11T18:44:11+01:00

Hi im looking for a female rankins in birmingham, i can travel abit so let us know if you have one and need 2 sell or if you have seen 1 in a shop please.. looking for one about 1 - 2 years old. cheers

Posted by: kevin89
Replies: 0

Calci/Reptile Sand - Reasons not to use it

2011-11-10T20:57:52+01:00

Hi Everyone, I know that there are quite a lot of posts on here already about whether to use Calci/Reptile or Playsand as a substrate for Rankins Dragons but I just wanted to let you know about what I have seen this evening. I had to visit a specialist vet who has kept Bearded Dragons himself and has had first hand experience of what sand can do. We had a lovely conversation about what to feed, decoration and I asked about the perfect substrate as paper towel can look a bit boring. At this point he said the only thing that Dragons should be kept on is newspaper or paper towel. He then went onto show me numerous x-rays of dragons with impaction caused by sand - it is something that I will remember for a long time. He said that even though the manufacturers say that they can be digested that just isn't the case. The sand basically congeals together and when he operates to remove these impacted balls it is like removing a hard cement ball. Some of them were huge - grape size! It was quite shocking - my Rankins will never ever go on anything other than paper towel or newspaper - as the vet said it might not look pretty but it is the best thing you can do for them. I just wanted to share this with you and I will now get off my soapbox! Emma

Posted by: Emma21
Replies: 1

Hiding Rankin

2011-11-08T20:21:26+01:00

Hi I have two Rankins, both 12 weeks old. I noticed that the smaller of the two had taken to hiding in a cave for large parts of the day. Following advice I have split them up, so the smaller one is in his own viv, in case it was being bullied, or was not getting his share of the food. He seems a bit happier, and is eating around 5 locust a day and some meal worms, but still insists on hiding in hits cave for large sections of the day. Is this normal, does he not need to bask. I have a uv tube exo terra 10, a ceramic heat on a stat, water bowl, rocks and branches, paper towel as substrate. Any advice great fully received.

Posted by: Cssh0599
Replies: 7

In memory of dear Nalani July 2008-7th April 2011

2011-11-07T10:29:59+01:00

Nalani slipped away in her sleep last night after fighting the increased infection so bravely over the last week. Goodbye sweetheart, my heart breaks to let you go. Thank you for all you have been to me and all you will continue to be. For a tiny person you have given us so much joy over the past three years. You and Kekoa are in our hearts always. Catherine xxx

Posted by: Catherine
Replies: 0

Help with temps

2011-11-05T11:34:24+01:00

Head is getting batted hear guys! Was worried my viv was getting to hot so have bought I dimming stat never had a prob in summer to need one but think with us using our heating now the room temp is alot higher, the prob I have is how does everyone messure the basking temp. I have a dig themo but when it's resting against her log it's seems to reach 38c but yet her sickty thermo is reading much lower. I have know suspended it in mid air and is as close as I can to it being under the bulb. I have done this coz with the dimming stat is says this is how it should be done. Any help would be greatful.

Posted by: silkcut0012002
Replies: 1

Possible illness - Mabel

2011-11-04T13:01:03+01:00

Hi All, I just wondered if I could have some input from you guys as I am a bit concerned about Mabel. For the last few days she has had quite runny smelly poo and has been a bit quiet. The poo is really quite smelly and liquidy and bless her she comes right up to the window when she's done it so I can clear it out for her. She always poos in the morning. We have had a bit of a nightmare because we managed to pick up mites from somewhere (have no idea where ) and we have been disinfecting the cage with Reptile Cleaner and spraying Mite Off and I think we have got them under control (haven't see one for 5 days now). She has been off her food a bit and I have now been out and bought some mealworms and she has about 8-10 of these and a few small locusts. She has had a few greens although still not as much as I think she should eat but we are getting there. Do you think she is just a bit stressed out from the mites or should I get her checked out? She is happy to come out and her head and tail are up but she does tend to hide in her shelter a little bit more than normal - not sure if this is due to the clocks going back. I am concerned that she might have picked up a parasite but not sure where from. I am about to ring the vet to see if I can get a stool sample tested. Don't really want to take her down to the vet as i don't want to stress her out if that is the cause of the diarrhoea. Any input would be gratefully recieved! Thanks Emma

Posted by: Emma21
Replies: 43

1st time owner needing help!

2011-10-29T22:53:56+01:00

hi i'm a first time owner of a pair of rankin dragons and i'm concerned about the temerature at night because when i turned the uva/uvb bulb and the heat light off the viv, half an hour later seemed too cool to be good for the dragons and one of the rankins was curled up in the corner of the cooler end of the tank and seemed cold when i was checking up on her. should i be concerned at all or am i just worrying too much? please help!

Posted by: Caslass1sttime
Replies: 3

Thank You

2011-10-25T03:59:48+01:00

Three and a half years ago I stumbled on this forum, quite by accident. I saw a few people asking questions that I knew I could help with and I started to post. Just recently I had some health issues of my own and the words of support I had from the people here were incredible to me. I feel like you have all become good friends of mine. Hopefully, I have turned the corner now and I wanted to come here and thank you all personally from the bottom of my heart. I owe a particular debt of thanks to "The Man Behind The Curtain", Mark Stevens, the site creator, for creating this place and bringing us all together. Thank You All, Mark

Posted by: thelizardbloke
Replies: 5

Tail Discolouration/problem

2011-10-16T11:20:45+01:00

Hi All, Everything going really well with little Mabel she is settled well and growing fast but I have a small concern about her tail. The tail is discoloured and it looks like there is a small crack developing along the base of the tail as if it is going to come off. She can move it and flicks it up when she is excited but I wonder if this is normal. She is a lovely olive green colour with the usual round patterns on her back but the tail is a sort of browner colour. She had a long bath yesterday (which she loves!) and is really quite happy, my husband is making me totally paranoid as he thinks that she is going to lose the tail. She shed a couple of weeks ago and this was when we first noticed the slight change in colour of her tail. Should I be taking her to the vet? Everything else with her is absolutely A1 and to be honest if she was to lose her tail I would still love her but is this something that can happen. I have searched the forum and websites but can't see anything about this type of problem anywhere. Thanks Emma

Posted by: Emma21
Replies: 4

Looking for Rankins

2011-10-10T19:43:30+01:00

Hi Folks Newbie here, looking for advice about where i can purchase a couple of Rankins.. Im in Glasgow but willing to travel a bit to get them... Had a Leopard Gecko but sadly she passed away over the weekend (( Thanks for any advice given PG

Posted by: piperglover
Replies: 4

calling people who feed mealworms as a main diet f

2011-10-10T16:36:18+01:00

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- right i have has bailey for a few weeks now and she wont eat much of anything apart from mealworm, i have emailed so many breaders and people who have renkins and am getting mix messages, a lot of them say they use mealworm as there staple diet feeding hoppers on occasion and then feed them veg daily, i just wanted to know what other peole do as on some sites it says mealworm should only be a treat. thanks in advance

Posted by: silkcut0012002
Replies: 2