About BeastlyFacts

It's just me. My name is Michael Ryan. I go by Mike. I built and maintain this whole site myself. I am not a veterinarian. I am a keeper who spent years hunting for straight answers and decided to write down the ones I found.

I want the person who just took in a bearded dragon, a gecko, or a rabbit they did not plan on, or a new owner in general, to find everything I wish I'd had in one place. Written plainly. Sources on the page.

The same standard applies to the rest of the site: care guides, species profiles, checked facts, legal pages, and the Chronicles.

I grew up with dogs. Ladie was a keeshond who was around from the day I was born until I was about ten. She hid behind the couch in every thunderstorm, and I used to lie back there with her. Autumn and Spencer were golden retrievers, half siblings, and we brought them home together in the mid 1990s. Autumn would drive her head into you until you gave up and petted her. Spencer greeted everyone with a shoe he never chewed, just carried, and he'd back up until he was pressed against your legs. When Autumn passed, Spencer fell apart and followed her not long after. I miss all three of them.

In February 2022 a friend of my sister's was moving and could not take her bearded dragon. I said I would take him. He was four. His name is Dex. I call him Baby at home. I had no idea what I was getting into. Bulb wattage, UVB versus UVA, coil versus T5, which greens, which bugs, how often. None of it was hard information. It was scattered across forums, old books, and pages that contradicted each other.

In 2024 my aunt's bearded dragon needed a home too. I named her Cera, after the triceratops. She has the bigger enclosure, and she is the most curious lizard I have ever met.

I also watch my sister's rabbit, Otis, sometimes for weeks. That is why he has a Chronicles page of his own.

A little over a year ago Dex's eyes started swelling and he stopped acting like himself. The vet diagnosed heart disease. He is on medication now, with arthritis on top of it. He is still here. If I had not known what I know now, I would not have caught the early signs. That is the reason this site exists.

Every guide is checked against veterinary references, published papers, and agency sources. Those sources are listed at the bottom of each article. I use AI tools to help draft and organize. Nothing goes up until I have checked it against those sources myself. I go back over published articles and correct them as I learn more. If you spot an error, email me. I will fix it and note the change.

Nothing here replaces a vet. If your animal is sick, the right move is an exotic or reptile vet, and the guides will tell you when that moment has come.

Some articles contain affiliate links, marked on the page. I earn a small commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. There are printable care packages for sale, and a donation button. None of that changes what I recommend.

hello@beastlyfacts.com. I read everything, and I answer. It may take a couple of days. There are two dragons who need me first. The contact page has the social accounts too, and the welcome post is the short version of how this started.