A long 64 - 67 days have passed and your eggs are beginning to hatch... "How do I take care of a hatchling / baby" is a question commonly asked.
Lets hope this was researched prior to hatching day!
As anxious as you are you must leave the hatchlings to break into the world on their own. Do not try to hurry the process along by opening the
egg(s) yourself or trying to "help" them out. While your intentions are honorable - you can severely injure or even kill a hatchling because they are
so very delicate at this stage. If they cannot make it out of their egg on their own... It is probably not meant to be. It may seem harsh but its the
truth. In the wild they don't have humans interfering and pulling them out of their eggs.
First off, you should know it can take up to 2 days to come out of the egg. It is very hard work! They take many breaks and naps while preparing to
make their debut. Once they come out of the egg they usually fall right to sleep. Please leave them be. It is best to leave them in their incubator
for at least 24 hours... 48 hours is better.
You don't need to worry about feeding them. Prior to hatching they have been polishing off their yolk sack and are very full. Sometimes they even
hatch with their yolk sack still intact. DO NOT remove it. They are not finished with it and it is still attached to them. It will eventually die and detach
from their belly.
Once you see signs of the clutch hatching you should be preparing their enclosure for them. Ensuring the temperatures are right. Remember,
hatching temperatures are different from Juvies and Adults. The temperatures for a hatchling enclosure should be 105°F - 115°F in the hot/basking
zone. Their cool side should be between
90°F - 100°F. Babies love it hot and cozy.
When you are ready to put them into their enclosure after the 24 - 48 hours has passed please remember to wash your hands very well before
attempting to handle them. You need to try and keep things as sterile as possible. They are young, delicate and very susceptible.
When you open the incubator you will see a difference in their appearance and demeanor. They will not be as tired. They are fast Lil' things so
exercise caution when opening the incubator because they will be startled and very afraid and will try to run away from your hand. Also watch your
fingers! Even though you mean no harm to them - they don't know that. They will flair out their little beards and twist & flatten their bodies (to make
them look bigger and more intimidating - Ha!) and may try to bite you. This is their natural instinct. So don't take offence to it! In the wild everything
is a predator to them (including their own parents). Hatchling nips do not hurt. I expect them to try to bite me so I am quite good at avoiding it, but I
have had a nip or two from newly hatched babies. It is more surprising than anything.
Keep their enclosure as simple as possible! Extravagant enclosures for hatchlings is just not recommended for several reasons. The more stuff
that is in there offers more hiding spots for crickets. Hatchlings do not need hiding dens. The more complicated things are in their home the more
stressed they will become. A basking rock or two and maybe a sturdy stick or vine will be MORE than enough for them. The substrate in a hatchling
cage should be paper towel or non adhesive shelf liner... Things of that nature. Absolutely NO sand. Sand will cause impaction with your hatchlings
and they can quite easily die from it at that age/size. Simplicity and cleanliness is the key. Paper towel for example is easily retrieved from the cage
and tossed when soiled and replacements are added. I completely clean and sterilize the hatchling cages and their contents every other day.
In Hatchling cages/bins you should keep it under 10 hatchlings per cage. It is better that way. The hatchlings are less stressed from over crowding
and it is much easier to monitor who is eating and who isn't.
Hatchling rearing or care requires an ongoing and dependable commitment. Hatchlings require to be fed crickets
3 times per day and fresh greens once per day. Greens and crickets should be size appropriate! Starting off on 1/4" crickets is best. To be
honest, anything smaller is very difficult for them to see and catch. New hatchlings will not want to eat for approximately 3-7 days... You can begin to
offer them fresh and very finely chopped greens from day one but a tiny amount will suffice as they may not want to eat any or much. Many people
get all panicked when their hatchlings don't want to eat greens. This is very normal. Bearded Dragons in the first year are protein vacuums! I have
hatchlings that love their greens though. So it's different for each individual.
Water mistings should be 3 times a day. Remember babies love it hot. With that increased heat comes dehydration. Dehydration happens rapidly
with hatchlings as they are so tiny. It is very important to remember to mist them, bathe them and ensure they have greens available to eat. Water
dishes tend to be a debated subject. I personally offer my Dragons water dishes. Yes, even the hatchlings have water dishes. Inside of all water
dishes up until 6 months of age I put river rocks or marbles for them to stand on and feel safer. Many of my hatchlings learn very quickly how to
drink from a dish. Some dragons never learn to and thats okay because you have to still mist several times a day. I personally just feel better
knowing that they have fresh clean water to retreat to for a drink or a soak should they feel the need.
When misting the hatchlings try to aim for the tops of their heads - it will trickle down towards their snout which will stimulate them to lick & drink. You
can also mist the enclosure wall, and their stick/vine. Try not to completely drench the cage. Because of the high temperatures + water mistings =
too humid.
As difficult as it may be, try to handle the babies as little as possible. It doesn't take much to stress out new hatchlings. Even something as simple
as moving things around in their enclosure can stress them out immensely.
Survival rate of hatchlings is pretty good. Approximately 10-15% of them will not survive. It is actually quite exceptional considering in the wild only
about 30% live.
(more information to come!)
Lets hope this was researched prior to hatching day!
As anxious as you are you must leave the hatchlings to break into the world on their own. Do not try to hurry the process along by opening the
egg(s) yourself or trying to "help" them out. While your intentions are honorable - you can severely injure or even kill a hatchling because they are
so very delicate at this stage. If they cannot make it out of their egg on their own... It is probably not meant to be. It may seem harsh but its the
truth. In the wild they don't have humans interfering and pulling them out of their eggs.
First off, you should know it can take up to 2 days to come out of the egg. It is very hard work! They take many breaks and naps while preparing to
make their debut. Once they come out of the egg they usually fall right to sleep. Please leave them be. It is best to leave them in their incubator
for at least 24 hours... 48 hours is better.
You don't need to worry about feeding them. Prior to hatching they have been polishing off their yolk sack and are very full. Sometimes they even
hatch with their yolk sack still intact. DO NOT remove it. They are not finished with it and it is still attached to them. It will eventually die and detach
from their belly.
Once you see signs of the clutch hatching you should be preparing their enclosure for them. Ensuring the temperatures are right. Remember,
hatching temperatures are different from Juvies and Adults. The temperatures for a hatchling enclosure should be 105°F - 115°F in the hot/basking
zone. Their cool side should be between
90°F - 100°F. Babies love it hot and cozy.
When you are ready to put them into their enclosure after the 24 - 48 hours has passed please remember to wash your hands very well before
attempting to handle them. You need to try and keep things as sterile as possible. They are young, delicate and very susceptible.
When you open the incubator you will see a difference in their appearance and demeanor. They will not be as tired. They are fast Lil' things so
exercise caution when opening the incubator because they will be startled and very afraid and will try to run away from your hand. Also watch your
fingers! Even though you mean no harm to them - they don't know that. They will flair out their little beards and twist & flatten their bodies (to make
them look bigger and more intimidating - Ha!) and may try to bite you. This is their natural instinct. So don't take offence to it! In the wild everything
is a predator to them (including their own parents). Hatchling nips do not hurt. I expect them to try to bite me so I am quite good at avoiding it, but I
have had a nip or two from newly hatched babies. It is more surprising than anything.
Keep their enclosure as simple as possible! Extravagant enclosures for hatchlings is just not recommended for several reasons. The more stuff
that is in there offers more hiding spots for crickets. Hatchlings do not need hiding dens. The more complicated things are in their home the more
stressed they will become. A basking rock or two and maybe a sturdy stick or vine will be MORE than enough for them. The substrate in a hatchling
cage should be paper towel or non adhesive shelf liner... Things of that nature. Absolutely NO sand. Sand will cause impaction with your hatchlings
and they can quite easily die from it at that age/size. Simplicity and cleanliness is the key. Paper towel for example is easily retrieved from the cage
and tossed when soiled and replacements are added. I completely clean and sterilize the hatchling cages and their contents every other day.
In Hatchling cages/bins you should keep it under 10 hatchlings per cage. It is better that way. The hatchlings are less stressed from over crowding
and it is much easier to monitor who is eating and who isn't.
Hatchling rearing or care requires an ongoing and dependable commitment. Hatchlings require to be fed crickets
3 times per day and fresh greens once per day. Greens and crickets should be size appropriate! Starting off on 1/4" crickets is best. To be
honest, anything smaller is very difficult for them to see and catch. New hatchlings will not want to eat for approximately 3-7 days... You can begin to
offer them fresh and very finely chopped greens from day one but a tiny amount will suffice as they may not want to eat any or much. Many people
get all panicked when their hatchlings don't want to eat greens. This is very normal. Bearded Dragons in the first year are protein vacuums! I have
hatchlings that love their greens though. So it's different for each individual.
Water mistings should be 3 times a day. Remember babies love it hot. With that increased heat comes dehydration. Dehydration happens rapidly
with hatchlings as they are so tiny. It is very important to remember to mist them, bathe them and ensure they have greens available to eat. Water
dishes tend to be a debated subject. I personally offer my Dragons water dishes. Yes, even the hatchlings have water dishes. Inside of all water
dishes up until 6 months of age I put river rocks or marbles for them to stand on and feel safer. Many of my hatchlings learn very quickly how to
drink from a dish. Some dragons never learn to and thats okay because you have to still mist several times a day. I personally just feel better
knowing that they have fresh clean water to retreat to for a drink or a soak should they feel the need.
When misting the hatchlings try to aim for the tops of their heads - it will trickle down towards their snout which will stimulate them to lick & drink. You
can also mist the enclosure wall, and their stick/vine. Try not to completely drench the cage. Because of the high temperatures + water mistings =
too humid.
As difficult as it may be, try to handle the babies as little as possible. It doesn't take much to stress out new hatchlings. Even something as simple
as moving things around in their enclosure can stress them out immensely.
Survival rate of hatchlings is pretty good. Approximately 10-15% of them will not survive. It is actually quite exceptional considering in the wild only
about 30% live.
(more information to come!)
Written by: Robin Moniz 2006
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