Bearded Dragon

Is a bearded dragon right for you?

The bearded dragon is the most recommended starter species in the reptile world. Calm, tolerant of handling, active by day, and easy to read. In return it requires a serious equipment set-up and is a commitment of 10 to 15 years.

The most honest question when deciding: will you be able to feed live insects (locusts, roaches), and do you accept the increase in the electricity bill? The heat lamps run all day.

Before you adopt

The most frequently overlooked point: a UVB lamp loses its UVB output while still producing visible light. Appearing to work is not enough; it must be replaced every 6 to 12 months according to the manufacturer's instructions. This omission is the most common cause of metabolic bone disease.

When buying, the animal's eyes should be open and bright, the jaw and legs should sit straight, and there should be no dried skin left on the tail tip or toes. Do not take an individual that hides constantly, does not bask, or has no appetite.

Also look at rehoming advertisements; because of the set-up cost and the long lifespan, adult bearded dragons needing a new home are common and are usually given with their vivarium.

Vivarium set-up

In this species the set-up is the health. An incorrect set-up produces disease quickly.

Size

• Juvenile: 90x45x45 cm temporarily
• Adult: at least 120x60x60 cm. Bigger is always better. A glass terrarium or wooden vivarium is used.

The heat gradient (the most critical setting) A reptile takes its body heat from outside, so the vivarium must have both a warm and a cool zone.

Measurement must be taken at the basking surface with a digital probe thermometer; an ambient thermometer is misleading. The heat lamp must always be controlled by a thermostat or dimmer.

Do not use a heat mat. It causes belly burns; this species takes heat from above.

UVB (non-negotiable)

• A T5 HO linear UVB lamp, 10-12% output, with a reflector.
• It should run along at least two thirds of the vivarium length.
• The distance to the basking spot must be set according to the manufacturer's instructions (generally 30 to 45 cm).
• UVB does not pass through glass or plastic; the lamp must be inside the vivarium or above a mesh screen.
• On for 10 to 12 hours a day, off at night.

Without UVB the animal cannot produce vitamin D3, cannot absorb calcium, and metabolic bone disease becomes inevitable. This is the most common cause of death in captive bearded dragons.

Substrate Paper towel or reptile carpet is safest for juveniles. For adults a soil and sand mix can be used (for digging behaviour); do not use pure calcium sand or fine sand, which causes intestinal blockage if swallowed.

Decor A flat rock or branch for basking, at least one hiding place, a climbing branch, and a shallow water bowl.

Feeding

Feeding changes fundamentally with age. This species is largely carnivorous as a juvenile and largely herbivorous as an adult.

Juvenile (0-6 months)

• 70-80% live insects, 20-30% vegetables
• Two to three times a day, as much as it can eat in 10 to 15 minutes

Young (6-12 months)

• 50% insects, 50% vegetables
• One or two meals a day

Adult (12+ months)

• 20-30% insects (three or four times a week), 70-80% vegetables (daily)

Suitable insects: desert locusts, dubia roaches, silkworms, black soldier fly larvae. Mealworms and superworms are high in fat and should be given sparingly as a treat.

The insect size rule: an insect should be no larger than the distance between the animal's eyes. Too large a mouthful can cause paralysis and blockage.

Suitable vegetables (daily): collard greens, endive, rocket, purslane, courgette, sweet pepper, squash.

Limited: spinach, chard, cabbage (they block calcium absorption or cause goitre).

Do not give: avocado, rhubarb, iceberg lettuce heart (no nutritional value), onion, citrus fruit, fireflies (lethal), insects caught at home (pesticide and parasite risk).

Supplements (obligatory)

• Calcium powder without D3: dusted on insects four or five times a week
• Calcium with D3: once or twice a week
• Multivitamin: once a week

Insects should be fed on vegetables before being offered (gut loading); what is inside the insect passes to the animal.

Health and lifespan

Average lifespan is 10 to 15 years.

Signs that mean a vet visit:

• Loss of appetite, weight loss, a sunken tail base
• Tremor, twitching, a soft or swollen jaw, deformed legs
• Difficulty breathing, open-mouthed breathing (outside basking), foamy saliva
• Cessation of droppings or bloody droppings
• Prolonged hiding, ceasing to bask
• Swelling or closing of the eyes
• Retained skin during shedding, particularly on the toes and tail tip

Common diseases:

• Metabolic bone disease (MBD): insufficient UVB or calcium deficiency. A soft jaw, bent legs, tremor, fractures. It is preventable; advanced cases leave permanent damage.
• Impaction (intestinal blockage): swallowing sand or too large a mouthful. Cessation of defecation, weakness in the hind legs.
• Respiratory infection: caused by low temperature and high humidity. Open-mouthed breathing, foamy saliva, wheezing.
• Parasites: particularly in wild-caught individuals or those from poor conditions. An annual faecal analysis is recommended.
• Mouth rot (stomatitis): redness of the gums and cheesy deposits.
• Atadenovirus: a known viral disease in this species causing growth retardation and immune weakness.
• Shedding problems: skin trapped on the tail and toe tips cuts off blood flow and leads to tissue loss; it should be supported with humidity and warm baths.

Salmonella: it can be present in the natural gut flora of reptiles and can pass to people. Washing hands after every contact is compulsory. Do not bathe the animal in the kitchen sink. The risk is high for young children, pregnant women, and immunocompromised people.

Handling and behaviour

The bearded dragon is one of the most tolerant reptiles to handling.

1. Do not touch it for the first week. It needs to settle into a new environment; only feed it.
2. Lift it supporting from below. Under the chest and under the hind legs. Grasping from above is a predator movement.
3. Never lift it by the tail.
4. Short sessions. Start with 5 to 10 minutes and increase gradually. Fifteen to thirty minutes a day is enough.
5. Watch the temperature. Outside the vivarium it gets cold; do not keep it out for more than 30 minutes at room temperature.

Reading the behaviour:

• Blackening of the beard: stress, a sense of threat, or discomfort.
• Arm waving: a sign of submission; usually in young animals, and normal.
• Head bobbing: a display of dominance; common in males.
• Open-mouthed basking: normal heat-regulating behaviour, not a cause for panic.
• Brumation: prolonged dozing and loss of appetite in winter. It is natural in adults; if there is no weight loss it needs no concern. In juveniles it should be investigated.

Do not house more than one individual. This species is territorial; two males in particular will fight fatally, and a dominant individual will keep the other from basking and eating.

History and life in the wild

The bearded dragon (Pogona vitticeps) is native to the arid regions of central and eastern Australia. In the wild it lives basking on scrub, rocks, and tree branches; it is active by day and shows territorial behaviour. It takes its name from the spiny throat skin that it inflates and darkens when threatened or displaying.

Australia banned the export of wild animals in the 1960s, so the entire captive population worldwide has been bred from the limited number of individuals that left before the ban. That means the species is not taken from the wild for the pet trade, which is good news for it.

Breeding became widespread from the 1990s, and today it is one of the most kept lizard species in the world. Colour and pattern varieties (morphs) are the product of selective breeding; some extreme morphs (such as the scaleless "silkback" types) carry skin and thermoregulation problems, and the standard types are safer for health.