Care Sheet For Bearded Dragons
So, you are thinking about a Bearded Dragon!!
In my opinion Beardies are one of the best lizards to have as a pet. In my experiences, Beardies are friendly and great with children.
If you are just new with owning a Beardie, I suggest that you start with a juvenile or an adult. Baby Beardies requirer more care because their food must be smaller and they have special needs.
Always remember to research and research any reptile or other animal that you are interested in purchasing well before you actually buy it.
Enclosure
First things first, so where are you going to keep your new Beardie when you bring him/her home? If your Beardie happens to be a baby, then a 15 to 20 gallon enclosure would work well, this would also be appropriate for a juvenile. What happens when you purchase an adutl or your Beardie grows up? If you are going to be housing one adult Beardie it is best to have a 40-75 gallon tank.
There are several types of enclosures, there are two types of enclosures that I choose.
Store bought enclosures
This can be the common aquarium (fish tank). The enclosure is made completely of glass and it is nice to look at, ther come in many shapes and sizes. You can also purchase a custom fit screen top that is exspecially for reptiles.
Home made enclosures
This can be an ideal enclosure for a Beardie whose owner is handy with tools. This is a great idea because you can have your enclosure just the way you want it. Keep in mind that beardies love floor space. Most materials that are used are :
- wood for 3 walls and floor, or
- all plexiglass for walls and floor
- plexiglass for the front
- mesh screening for the top.
Heating
Well I am not from Australia and most Bearded Dragon owners arent either, so, how are we going to keep them warm? Beardie babies and juveniles should be kept at 110F and for adults 95F. NEVER USE A HOT ROCK !!!! they can KILL your Beardie.
Some sources of heat can be:
-
Household light bulbs
-
Reptile bask light (there are a variety to choose from)
-
Ceramic heat emitter
For these heat sources you will need a dome light with a ceramic fixture and it has to be the proper wattage for the bulb you use.
You should have a proper thermometer to monitor your enclosure heat. I use a indoor/outdoor thermometer, one at the basking site and the other at the cool side.
-
Bask temperature
- Babies and juveniles 110 - 120F
- Adults 100 - 120F
-
Cool side temperatures
- 80F 85F
-
Night time temperatures
- Can drop into the 60 s
Lighting
In reality we all dont live in Australia, even though it would be wonderful. Beardies need proper UVB lighting. They need at least a 0.5 UVB fluorescent bulb. This is a major necessity because they need UVB light in order to prevent Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD).
These bulbs have to be suspended safely in the enclosure or put on a screen; they cant be put on glass because your dragon wont receive the UVB.
These bulbs have to be changed after 6 months maximum.
Substrate
Substrate can be a touchy area. Here are the choices:
Babies
- Paper towel
- Newspaper
Adults
- Sifted pre washed play sand (no Silica)
- Paper towel
- Newspaper
- Rabbit pellet
- Linoleum
- Crushed limestone
- Reptile carpet
- Butcher paper
- Crimped oats
- Indoor/outdoor carpet
- Shelf liner
Remember all substrates have their good and bad points.
Dont use
- Calci-sand (Impaction)
- Silica sand (can cut bellies)
- Reptile bark (Impaction)
- Corn cob (Impaction)
- Walnut shell (sharp, Impaction)
- Wood shavings (impaction)
- Lizard litter (Impaction)
As you can see impaction from substrates can be very dangerous and can kill your lizard, so please choose carefully!!!!
Cage Accessories
There are many things that you can put in your enclosure to decorate, but most of the decorations must be for necessity.
Accessories that are a must:
- A place to bask
- Drift wood (cured) (must support Beardies stomach)
- Large rock (sterilized)
- Hammock (make your own or buy)
- Twisted grape wood
- Hide box
- Rubber maid container
- Hollowed wood
- Reptile cave
- Coconut shell (babies)
- Bowls
- Shallow for feeding
- Water bowl (never use for a babies always mist them)
Beardies very seldom drink from a water bowl, for hydration:
- Mist 1- 2 times a day for adults and juveniles
- Mist 3 times a day for babies
You can provide a bowl for adults.
- Optional
- Plastic plants
- Background
- Real plants (check to see which ones are not toxic)
It is a good idea to not to have too many decorations in your enclosure because live food can hide in the decorations and your Beardie can be injured or underfed.
Before you get your Beardie it would be a good idea to set-up your enclosure and monitor their temperatures so that they are perfect for when your Beardie comes home.
Feeding
Once you bring your Beardie home, you have to feed him properly and know what he/she can eat.
- Hatchlings (0 2 months)
- Crickets (nothing bigger than the space between your beardies eyes) these should be offered 3 times a day what ever they can eat and remove any uneaten crickets.
- Finely chopped vegetables (see list below) these cn be offered once a day.
- Juveniles
- Crickets (nothing bigger than the space between your beardies eyes) these should be offered 2 times a day what ever they can eat and remove any uneaten crickets.
- Molted meal worms
- Finely chopped vegetables (see list below) offered once a day
- Super worms
- Wax worms
- Dry pellet food
- Silk worms
- Earth worms
- Adults
- Crickets (nothing bigger than the space between your Beardies eyes) these should be offered 2 times a day what ever they can eat and remove any uneaten crickets.
- Finely chopped vegetables (see list below) offered once a day
- King meal worms
- Pinkie or fuzzy mice (gravid females)
- Meal worms
- Super worms
- Wax worms
- Dry pellet food
- Silk worms
- Earth worms
The first feeding of insects should be vitamin supplemented daily.
NEVER FEED YOUR BEARDIE:
- Fire flies
- Spinach
- Always read up on what plants are toxic and non-toxic for your Beardie
Vegetable List
Staple
- Dandelion greens - Endive
- Dandelion flowers - Carrots (not often)
- Escarole - Peas
- Mustard greens - Green beans
- Collard greens - Chicory
- Arugula - Radish Tops
- Chard - Carrot tops
- Clover - Squash
- Corn - Sweet potato
- Parsley - Kale
- Broccoli - Turnip greens
Other
- Romaine lettuce - Melons
- Strawberries - Cucumber
- Yellow squash - Papaya
- Figs - Mango
- Raisins - Roses
- Kiwi - Hibiscus
- Apple - Calendula
- Banana - Grapes
- Zucchini - Pears
- Green pepper - Plums
- Blueberries - Cantaloupe
Edible plants
- Purslane - Rose petals
- Pathos - Abutilon
- Hibiscus (red favorite) - African Daises
- Sprouts of beans - Babys Tears
- Sunflowers - Bachelors Buttons
- Clover - Balloon flower
- Violet Leaves (not African) - Balsam
- Daylilies - Bamboo
- Lilacs - Bee balm
- Nasturtiums - Bellflower
- Pansies - Bird of Paradise
- Black-eyed Susan - Blue daisy
- Spider plant - Daisy
- Insects (choose the appropriate ones for Beardie size)
- Meal worms
- Wax worms
- Super worms
- Grasshoppers
- Spiders
- Silk worms
- King meal worms
- Earth worms
When feeding things that are not store bought, always watch for pesticides. Pesticides are toxic.
Supplements
There is not much to say about vitamins but they are very important.
There are two supplements needed:
- Calcium
- Use calcium with d3
- Dust one feeding 6 out of 7 days a week
- No Phosphorous
- Multivitamin
- Dust 1 feeding every 7 days
Rep-cal products are the best.
Cleaning
Well with all pets comes the nice job of cleaning poop. I use sand as a substrate with my Beardies. A good method is sifting out poop with a screen strainer (used in kitchens). Spray poop spots with T-Rex Biofresh. Poop should be removed on a daily basis. Beardies should never live in dirty enclosures; they can contract some life threatening illnesses.
I have buried an ice cream lid slightly under the sand and my Beardies poop on it and I take it out daily and clean it.
Bathing
Bathing your Beardie is not for cleaning, it is more for hydration and shedding. A Beardie should always be bathed in warm water and your Beardies feet should be able to touch the bottom. Never leave them unattended and only bath for 15 minutes. Norbert loves to swim when he is in the bath.
Shedding
A Beardie will shed off and on throughout his/her whole life. They dont shed in one piece like some other reptiles they tend to flake. Never pick off the skin during shedding because it could be still attached to their scales.
There are some products that can help with shedding, but with regular bathing you wont have to use any shedding products. One product is Shed ease.
Behavior
- Arm waving A counter clockwise circling of the arm, this is a submissive gesture.
- Head bobbing The Beardies beard may turn black and they will bob their head up and down, this is a sign of I am king of the castle.
- Gaping When your Beardie has his/her mouth open, this is when your Beardie is trying to regulate his/her body temperature.
- Flattening their stomachs and puffing up their beards This is a Beardies defense when he is scared.
- Digging They may dig a hole to sleep in. A female may dig a hole for laying eggs in.
- Tail held high in the air The Beardie is alert and ready to pounce on his/her prey.
- Eye popping Dont worry his eyes arent going to fall out. There is no known reason why they do this but they may do this to help loosen their skin while they are shedding.
Sexing
Babies are almost impossible to sex until they are about 3 to 4 months old.
Male Female
Procedure
Lay Beardie on a flat surface, lift his/her tail and close to the vent on the base of his tail is the genitals.
- Male there should be two bulges with a valley between them.
- Female There should be one bulge it the center of the base of the tail, ond no valley.
Breeding
This is a hard subject because I plan on breeding when the time is right, but it is something that I have put a lot of thought into. Before you even consider breeding your Beardies here are some questions to consider:
Are your Beardies of age and super healthy?
What are you going to do with all those babies?
Babies eat a lot, do you have the resources to feed them all?
Do you have enough enclosures and the area to keep them all?
Do you have an incubator to keep the eggs in before they hatch?
First you have to lower the temperatures in the enclosure to about 80F at the bask site and 75F during the night to influence brumation. Do this for approximately 2 months.
Raise the temperatures back to normal and within a month you should start seeing signs of breeding. (Head bobbing and beard display).
When the act takes place there will be some biting. Breeding dont last long and may happen for several days.
After the deed is done, egg laying should start about 21 28 days after. Before this happens, there should be a proper area set up for the female where the substrate consists of potting soil mixed with sand. A female can lay about 7 clutches from one breeding every 28 days.
Take the eggs out of the burrow and lay them exactly as they were laid into vermiculite in an incubator.
The eggs should be incubated and if the eggs start to dry out, then they should be misted. Keep the temperature at about 82F to 84F. At about 55 to 75 days the eggs should hatch.
Before you breed think it through thoroughly because it is a big project to take on. See pictures on breeding page.
Disease and sickness
Coccidia
This is one of the most serious illnesses for Beardies. It is caused when feces and food and water are mixed together.
Symptoms
- Diarrhea/smelly feces
- Blood in feces
- Weight loss
- Lethargy
- Weakness
Treatment
- See the Vet!!!!!
- Usually a sulfa-type antibiotic sulfadim-ethoxine A.K.A. Albon should clear this problem up.
Metabolic Bone Disease
This is caused by not enough calcium it the body
Symptoms
- Twitching of the body
- Neurological problems
Treatment
- See a vet!!!!!
- Calcium supplement with D3
- Exposure to natural sunlight for at least ½ hour a day
Partial Paralysis
This is caused by feeding a Beardie too large of prey.
Symptoms
- Extended/paralyzed hind legs
Treatment
- See a vet!!!!!
- In most cases they die
Internal parasites
Symptoms
- Runny stool
- Weight loss
- Listlessness
- Gaping
Treatment
- See a vet and the vet should recommend the proper course of action.
Loss of limbs
Cause Babies are not fed enough and the rule of thumb is if it moves it is food. There is no treatment because they will never grow them back.
Eczema
My vet said that Norbert's spots were Eczema.
Conclusion
These are the things that I do to ensure that my Beardies are healthy and happy. Always remember to research any animal you want before you purchase them and make sure you keep them babies fed properly. If you have any questions please e-mail me at dsquires95@hotmail.com