Caring For Your Bearded Dragon

     The road to owning a bearded dragon can be long and often times take a few unexpected twists and turns. I've been finding this out as I've done full days of research for the past couple of weeks on these interesting little reptiles.

     The first thing I began to learn is there's not a definite right or wrong. Sure, there are a few big "NOs" and a few big "MUSTs", but everything else is left in a rather undefined grey area. I've spent the past week picking apart care guides from many different sources, including reputable Bearded Dragon websites, reputable reptile supply stores, and of course several bearded dragon breeders. Here's some of the information I've gathered.

The Cage

• The most agreed on size of the tank should be a 40 gallon breeder tank or a 55 gallon long tank.

• For younger beardies, a smaller tank can be used, but it will quickly be outgrown, so nothing smaller than a 20 gallon tank will be worth your time and money to buy and set up
• The tank should have a screen lid as to allow airflow, keep humidity from rising, and is better for the UVB rays in the light (glass doesn't allow these important rays to pass through intact). A lid is not necessary, however, as lights can be placed on racks instead of on top of the cage.
• In the warmer months, a bearded dragon can be housed in a outdoor cage as natural sunlight is a thousand times better for your beardie than artificial light is. However, this can pose a problem with keeping temperature regulated

The Substrate

• Everyone agrees that sand or anything lose should NOT be used for babies and juveniles. They have a tendency to put everything in their mouths and any loose substrate will not be digested properly and get stuck in your beardie and cause paralysis and even death
• For babies and juveniles, newspaper or inkless paper towels can be used as substrate, as they're easy to just crumple up, throw away, and replace daily to keep the cage super clean for the delicate babies
• For older bearded dragons, some substrates that were commonly suggested include: paper towels, newspaper, washed play sand, outdoor carpeting without loops for the toes to get stuck in, reptile carpet, non-adhesive, non-slip shelf liner (Sunshine Dragons). Slate and ceramic tile are also good substrates as they are easy to clean too. Sani-Chips are used by LLLReptile for over 20 years and have caused zero impactions in their reptiles.
• If keeping bearded dragons in play sand, offer food in a dish to keep them from gulping down sand with their food and putting them at risk for impaction

Decor in the Cage

• Sparse decoration is recommended as to keep the cage simple to clean and to give your beardie plenty of room to run around
• If you have a taller cage, try and utilize the upper space with things like driftwood and grapevine to make the most of the space you have
• Make sure all decorations are secure as to keep the beardie from injuring himself on his playthings
• Create a basking spot where the beardie can get closer to the heat lamp or heat source using rocks, driftwood, and branches. Make sure the rocks don't heat to dangerous temperatures as bearded dragons can't detect heat from underneath and can lay there and burn themselves without knowing
• Also provide a hiding spot either away from the heat source or under it. Beardies like to feel secure (at least young ones) so a tight space is preferred
• A hiding spot can be some cheap patio stones stacked on top of one another or even a flower pot turned on its side

The Lighting

• The most recorded and used light source out there is the Reptisun 10.0. It comes in a tube light or a coil bulb. However, there has been reports of the coil bulbs (of all brands) being too strong and causing eye injury in beardies, so I personally would avoid them until more studies come out and/or the bulbs are refined
• This light needs to cover the entire length of the cage (acting like an artificial sun). The light given off needs to be uninterrupted as the important UVA and UVB light that the bearded dragon needs are blocked by glass. A screen lid is fine as long as the spaces in it aren't extremely small.
• The UVB is most important, as beardies use this sort of light to produce vitamin D3 (as do humans). The vitamin D3 is used in the absorption of calcium, and without it beardies will often develop Metabolic Bone Disease. D3 can be supplemented into the diet, though studies have shown that dragons actually receive little to no D3 orally.
• Natural sunlight is best for your beardies, as a short while in natural sunlight is equivalent to sitting under an artificial UVB light for around 24 hours. Taking beardies outside when the temperature is high enough or letting them sit in the sunlight of an open window (no glass to interrupt the UVB light) will help keep them happy and healthy.
• Light should be provided for at least 12 hours a day, increasing the hours in the summer. As long as you follow a somewhat natural light pattern of the sun (i.e. have the light on when the sun's out, have the light off when its dark out), your bearded dragon should be getting enough

The Heating

• You can buy Mercury bulbs that combine heating with the needed UVB lighting, but these bulbs require special housing and and stand.
• A simple incandescent bulb can be used to provide heat, such a Zoo Med's Basking Spot Lamp
• Under-tank heaters and heat rocks should be avoided at all cost. Bearded dragons sense heat from above, but are completely oblivious to any heat coming from below. Because of this, a beardie can be sitting on an extremely hot area and not even notice, burning itself and potentially even cooking itself. Any heat source that doesn't originate from above your dragon should NOT be a part of its enclosure.
• There's a lot of debate over the temperature of the hot side/basking side of the enclosure. I've seen everything from 90°F to 110°F. However, I read on one breeder's website that temperatures 110°F and above cause heatstroke in all lizards, so I wouldn't go any higher than 110°F.
• There is also a lot of debate on what temperature the cooler side of the enclosure should be kept at, but a 10 degrees difference is needed in order for bearded dragons to properly thermoregulate, so whatever you keep your hot side at, the cool side should be about 10-15 degrees cooler, around 75°F to 85°F.
• The biggest controversy is over what night temperature is safe. “When below 65 degrees at night, use special night heat lights,” says Sunshine Dragons. “As long as your home stays above 60F at night, no extra heating needed,” says BNK Reptiles. I posed the question of what night temperature is safe on the forum on beardeddragon.org, and most everyone who replied said that 65°F was about the lowest temperature, and that anything below that they used additional heat.
• For additional nighttime heat, use a ceramic heat bulb. They give of heat but no visible light, so they're good for using at night when your beardie is sleeping. You could also use special night heat lamps, but even the red or blue light may disturb your dragon.
• Baby bearded dragons need it a little warmer than adults. Just remember to try and avoid temperatures over 110°F as they may be potentially dangerous.

The Food

• Bearded dragons eat meat, plants, fruits, and insects. For babies, they should be fed about 10-20% plant protein and 80-90% animal protein. These numbers reverse as your bearded dragon reaches adulthood.
• For a list of all the foods beardies can and cannot eat and their nutritional stats, visit: http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html

Plants

• Bearded dragons should be fed mostly dark, leafy greens that are high in calcium.
• Greens that are good to feed your dragons include: mustard greens, collard greens, turnip greens, dandelions, escarole, chicory, arugula, and hibiscus leaves.
• Spinach, Kale, and Swiss Chard are all high in oxalic acids, which bind calcium. They should be mostly avoided and only given infrequently.
• When feeding beardies their greens, make sure to remove any large stems or rotten parts before giving them to your dragon. Rip the leaves up into pieces no larger than your beardie's head.
• Other vegetables that can be added to your beardie's salad include: yellow squash, summer squash, zucchini, green, red, or yellow bell peppers, peas, green beans, cooked corn, bok choy, carrots, cucumbers, parsnips, and sweet potatoes.
• These should be grated or chopped into very small pieces as your beardie can't chew them. Some, like squash, can be run through the food processor.
• Fruits should be given as well, but in even smaller amounts and infrequent. These include: all the berries, mango, papaya, grapes, apples, cantaloupe, strawberries, blueberries, and kiwi.
• Bananas can be offered, but are high in phosphorous and high levels of phosphorous can block the intake of calcium.
• Fruit should be offered in small pieces as well.

Insects

• Most animal protein is offered to bearded dragons in the form of insects
• Crickets are the most popular form of insects to use, but other insects that can be fed included Dubia roaches, hornworms, silkworms, phoenix worms, and super worms.
• Wax worms can be given to adults as treats as they're high in fat. Mealworms are best avoided because they are high in fat as well as having a lot of chitin, which is hard to digest and may cause impaction.
• The insects given should be no bigger than the space between your bearded dragon's eyes. Any bigger will risk impaction.
• All insects offered to your beardie should be store bought and bred specifically to be feeder insects; do not catch from the wild or buy insects at bait shops
• Insects should be dusted in a calcium powder or multivitamin powder. This will be discussed in more details in the Supplements section.
• For baby and young dragons, feed crickets 2-3 times a day. Let them have as many as they can eat in 10-15 minutes. Babies will eat around 25-50 crickets in a sitting.
• For adult and juveniles dragons, feed insects only once a day. Too much animal protein is leading to problems in bearded dragons such as gout and kidney and liver problems.

The Water

• Water happens to be one of the most controversial subjects I have looked into. Opinions range from NEVER keep water in the enclosure to ALWAYS keep water in the enclosure, and every possible opinion in between.
• “We do not provide water dishes for our dragons” -Sunshine Dragons

• “You can also offer water in a shallow dish (such as a jar lid); be sure to keep this dish and the water in it clean” -Reptile Channel

• “I do not leave standing water in my cages. Once or twice a week I offer a bit of water for the dragons to drink from, if they will, or swim in” -BNK Reptiles

• “You should also provide you beardie with a water bowl at all times it should be big enough to soak in but not too deep to drown” -HerpSupplies.com

• Bearded dragons can get most of their hydration needs from the plants they eat. Be sure to rinse the vegetables and/or mist them with water before giving them to your dragon
• You may also mist the dragons directly, so that they may lap the water from their face and drink it. Do this daily with adults. It is suggested, since baby bearded dragons eat mostly crickets and insects, to spray babies two to three times a day
• Another good way to provide hydration is a weekly bath or soak. Letting your dragon sit in lukewarm water no higher than their belly or "elbows/knees" will allow them to lap up the water to to absorb it through the skin. Soaking also aids in shedding and is a cure for constipation in beardies.

The Supplements

• Both a calcium supplement (with or without vitamin D3) and a multivitamin supplement should be provided to your bearded dragon. Everyone has their own schedule of when and on what to give these supplements.
• There is also a guide on how often a week to give a calcium and multivitamin supplement depending on your beardie's age here: http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html

Calcium

• Here's a few calcium supplement schedules from some of my sources.

• "Hachlings and young dragons need supplemented with calcium 4-5 days a week (Rep-Cal calcium STRONGLY recomended). Juvies & Subadults generally get 2-3 days per week of calcium" -BNK Reptiles

• “Dust insects with a calcium with D3 (Rep-Cal) vitamin daily or whenever live insects is offered” -Sunshine Dragons
  
  
• “Every other day, dust crickets with Rep-Cal or other phosphorous free calcium powder” -HerpSupplies.com
  
  
• One thing to consider with how frequently to give calcium is the plant diet you are providing already. If you are giving calcium-rich vegetables such as collard greens, dandelion greens, and escarole, you probably should supplement calcium less frequently than if you were giving, say, vegetables higher in Vitamin C.
• Also, calcium doesn't need to be added to every single meal a day. One sitting of crickets dusted in calcium, or perhaps two smaller sittings of crickets, is usually enough calcium for a bearded dragon
• There's a lot of debate over whether to use the calcium with vitamin D3 or without it. Bearded dragons need vitamin D3 in order to absorb calcium. Beardies make their own D3 when they are able to bask under UVB rays (such as ones from the sun or the Reptisun 10.0). Studies have shown that Bearded dragons absorb very little vitamin D3 from oral supplements. A dragon can be vitamin D3 deficient, which isn't healthy. And yes, you CAN have too much D3, but I haven't found out just how much is too much. A vitamin D3 overdose would have to come from giving supplemented D3, as Bearded dragons only produce what they need.
• In my personal opinion, I think that since they don't really absorb much D3 from oral supplements, providing them a calcium supplement with D3 isn't a bad thing. However, since natural sunlight is so much better for you bearded dragon and they can probably produce much more D3 in natural sunlight, if you take your dragon outside frequently in the summer, you should switch at that time to a calcium supplement without D3.

Multivitamin

• Another supplement to give to your beardie is a multivitamin. With most multivitamins, you need to make sure they don't have too much Vitamin A, as an overdose can cause serious problems. That's why I, and most everyone else, recommends Rep-Cal Herptivite Multivitamin. Instead of supplementing vitamin A, Herptivite supplements Beta Carotene, which is converted naturally in the body into Vitamin A, and the un-converted Beta Carotene is simple disposed of when no more Vitamin A is needed. This means there is no risk of a vitamin A overdose.
• Like calcium supplements, everyone has their own schedule of when and how to provide a multivitamin supplement. Here are just a few I have from my sources:
  
  
• "2 times a week you should dust with a multivitamin instead of the calcium" -Sunshine Dragons
  
  
• "Hatchlings and young dragons need supplemented with vitamins 2x a week (Herptivite strongly recommended) Juvies & Subadults generally get 1x vitamins per week maybe" -BNK Reptiles

• Multivitamins can be sprinkled on the plant food as well, but it's all a matter of personal preference and your beardie's preference

Handling Your Beardie

• New hatchlings shouldn't be handled for a few days at the least. A new beardie just brought to your home should be given 1-3 days to adjust to their new surroundings and release their stress
• Once handling does begin, pick up your beardie, supporting its stomach completely. Babies and beardies new to handling will squirm and try to get away. However, you shouldn't put the bearded dragon down until it has quit squirming. Putting down a squirming dragon is teaching it that "squirming" equals "freedom". Let it crawl from hand to hand or very gently pin it down. Once it has stopped squirming, put it back in its enclosure, and give it a treat to reward its good behavior.
• Slowly, you should increase the frequency of these short sessions over several days. This repetitive behavior allows for the lesson of "no squirming" equals "treat" to become ingrained in your beardie's memory.
• After a while, your beardie will become used to being handled and won't squirm anymore when picked up. I would suggest continuing to offer treats after each time you hold your beardie for a while. Continuing to reward good behavior will only benefit you both in the long run. After a while of continuous good behavior, treat-giving can either be stopped or continued depending on personal preference.
• Remember to ALWAYS wash your hands before and after handling your bearded dragon. Bearded dragons and most all reptiles carry salmonella, and even though you are more likely to get salmonella from the food you buy from the store than from your beardie, proper hygiene should be practiced at all times to eliminate any chance of you getting or your beardie sick.

Cleaning the Cage

• Proper habitat hygiene is very important for both you and your beardie. Especially with young dragons, daily/frequent cage cleaning will keep from spreading illness to your beardie and will help to keep both you and your beardie happy and healthy
• Daily, you should scoop out any poop in the cage and toss it out. If you keep a water bowl in the cage, that too should be cleaned with mild soap and water and refilled with fresh water daily. If you bearded dragon poops in the water bowl, remove it immediately to clean and fill with fresh, untainted water.
• Any food bowls kept in the cage should also be washed with mild soap and water daily to prevent buildup of bacteria in the bowls that may contaminate the food.
• About every month or so, remove all cage decorations and soak them in a mixture of  cleaner and water. If you use bleach, make sure you rinse everything until it no longer smells like bleach, then rinse again and let dry before adding to the cage. There are plenty of other strong, pet-safe cleaners out there that I'd recommend using instead of bleach, as they pose no harm if not rinsed off thoroughly enough.
• If you're using a repti-carpet of some sort in your cage, it can easily be soaked and cleaned or tossed in the washing machine.
• Daily cleaning such as scooping out poop and washing the dishes in the cage will help to reduce the frequency of full cage cleanings, as well as benefit your beardie's long-term health.

Sources:

• BeardedDragon.org
• http://www.beardeddragon.org/articles/caresheet/
• Carolina Classic Dragons
• http://www.carolinaclassicdragons.com/bearded-dragons/bearded-dragon-care
• http://www.youtube.com/user/Pogonavision
• Sunshine Dragons
• http://www.sunshinedragons.com/caresheethome.htm
• Black Ninja Kitty Reptile Archives
• http://blackninjakitty.com/herps/care/pogona.htm
• Reptile Channel
• http://www.reptilechannel.com/care-sheets/bearded-dragon-lizard.aspx
• HerpSupplies.com
• http://www.herpsupplies.com/caresheets.cfm?sheet=Bearded%20dragon
• A-1 Reptiles
• http://www.a1reptiles.net/bearded-dragon-care.html
• Delta Dragonz
• http://www.deltadragonz.com/careinfo.html
• DragonMorphs.co.uk
• http://www.dragonmorphs.co.uk/caresheet.php
• Gemstone Bearded Dragons
• http://www.gemstone-dragons.com/careguide.htm
• Rainbow Bearded Dragons
• http://www.rainbowbeardeddragons.com/caringforyournewdragon.htm