HOUSING

One or two adult Bearded Dragons can be set up in an enclosure as small as a 40 gallon (36" x 18" x 13"H)

when juveniles but a larger minimum enclosure of 70 gallons (36" x 18" x 25"H) to the recommended 90 gallons

(48" x 18" x 25"H) would make an excellent size for adults. A secured screen top is required to prevent your dragons from

escaping the enclosure. One of our Cages would make an ideal enclosure... we'll be happy to set you up with the correct

cage, heating, lighting and accessories for your new pet.

You may house several similar size female Bearded Dragons together but males are territorial and typically will fight. One male and several females can generally be housed together but we recommend this for more seasoned reptile enthusiasts as there are multiple issues that can arise causing stress, shortened lifespan, etc.

Remember that even multiple females will compete for food so make sure any smaller Dragons are receiving their share of the food, heat, etc. You might consider separating any vastly smaller or larger animals.
 

SUBSTRATE

Sand is usually the best choice substrate for subadults and adult Bearded Dragons. You can use Repti-sand or Vita-Sand (located in our bedding section) but do not use industrial sand because it contains dust that that can be harmful. If you decide to use play sand use only extremely fine sand. Fine size play sand grain is hard to find which is why we recommend that you stick with the Repti-sand or Vita-Sand products.

Baby Dragons are best kept on paper towels or similar product until they are about 10 inches long. As active feeders they usually ingest some of the substrate while gobbling up crickets or mealworms and while adults can usually digest some fine sand along with their food babies cannot handle this as well or at all. We have heard of baby Dragons becoming impacted with sand and not being able to pass it so please follow this advice.
 

HEATING

As with all reptiles, Bearded Dragons need a thermal gradient consisting of a Basking Spot (100 to 110 Deg. F) and a cool side (80 Deg. F). The best way to heat your Dragon enclosure is with a combination of a heat mat and ceramic heat emitter. We recommend the Intellitemp Heat Mat and Black Heat Ceramic Infrared Heat Emitter to accomplish the heating of your Dragon's cage. The heat mat and ceramic heat emitter should be located on one side while the other side should not have any heat source. It is a good idea to control the ceramic emitter with a thermostat but make sure to purchase a quality thermometer to keep track of your warm and cool sides. Thermometers and thermostats are available in our heating supply section.
 

LIGHTING

Bearded Dragons must have a UV bulb to keep them healthy. We highly recommend a Sunforce UV Mercury Vapor bulb or other brand mercury vapor bulb. Successful UV can be produced with a Zoo Med Reptisun 10.0 bulb as well but your dragon should be within 15 inches of the 10.0 bulb. All of these bulbs can be found in our lighting section of our reptile department. Don't forget that you must change your UV bulb every 6 months in order to maintain proper UVA/UVB.
 

SHELTER

Bearded Dragons MUST have hiding places in their enclosure as it is essential to their well being. The shelter can be anything from a cardboard box to an attractive repti-shelter. Please note that we have a large selection of shelters in our habitat Furnishings section. It is always a good idea to have a shelter on the warm side and on the cool side. There are a lot of commercial choices available but if you choose to make one out of rocks please make sure that it is sturdy enough that there is no potential for collapsing and crushing your Dragon.
 

SHEDDING

Like all reptiles and amphibians, Dragons shed their entire skin all at once. Babies shed more often than adults because as babies they outgrow their skin faster. Dragons can normally pull their shed off easily but sometimes they have issues if they do not have the proper humidity while shedding. You need to check your Dragon after it has shed to make sure it was able to peel all the skin off.

Providing a moist shelter will enable your dragon to have a high humidity location when it is shedding. Using moistened sphagnum moss or Zoo Med Forest Floor Bedding works well and both of these items are available in our bedding section. If your Dragon has retained skin after shedding you can place it in a small plastic container lined with warm, wet paper towels. With the top of the container on, let the dragon sit for approximately 30 minutes. The high humidity in the container should loosen the skin enough to allow you to remove it easily with a pair of tweezers. If the skin has not loosened enough reheat the paper towels with warm water and provide another 30 minute session. NEVER use hot water as this can burn your dragon's sensitive skin.
 

WATER

It is true that Bearded Dragons typical environment is dry but they do require some humidity and water. Water should be made available three to four times a week by way of a bath in a water container. However, make sure your reptile can Bearded Dragons typically enjoy bath time and some will drink during their bath periods. We also recommend you mist down the vegetables you provide to your dragon as this is an excellent way for them to get their water needs.

It is a good idea for Baby Bearded Dragons to be misted occasionally and for the entire cage to be misted several times a week. This is especially true if your dragon is getting ready to shed its skin. In addition, if you mist your Bearded Dragon directly they will often intake water that drips into their mouth.
 

FOOD

Bearded Dragons are hardy eaters and will typically devour a large number of crickets, mealworms, giant mealworms, superworms, wax worms and even small pinkie mice. However, Wax worms and pinkie mice should only be offered occasionally due to their high fat content. When Bearded Dragons are babies they need to be fed insects twice a day and as adults daily. However, dragons also require a large quantity of vegetables and as they grow from babies to adulthood the quantity of insects should be reduced while the quantity of vegetables should be increased.

Vegetables can consist of leafy green lettuces, cucumbers, squashes, dandelion, green beans, carrots, sweet potato and any other healthy vegetable that you might put into a salad. Make sure to chop the vegetables into small pieces or grate them. Dragons will not be able to chew large pieces and its also not easy for them to digest. Fruits like papaya, grapes, berries and mangoes can also be utilized but should make up a small percentage of the total diet.

We recommend that you feed only as many crickets or mealworms as your dragon can eat in 10 to 15 minutes. It is important to select the proper prey size and the general rule for selecting the proper size of crickets is the cricket should be no longer than the distance between your Dragon's eyes. For baby dragons this usually means 3/8" crickets and for juvenile dragons 1/2" crickets and adult dragons can handle full size crickets. NEVER leave any uneaten crickets in the cage with your dragon as they can actually cause serious damage and/or kill your reptile. Please note that Rhode Island Reptile Enclosures carries all of the food items dragons need in our live feeders section.
 

VITAMINS

It is important to feed high quality food to your prey items, called "gut loading". The food that is in the prey item's belly is the food that your reptile will be eating. In addition to this you need to coat your crickets and mealworms with vitamin and calcium powders before feeding them to your reptile. We carry a full line of quality insect food and reptile vitamins and calcium in our Food section.
 

CAGE MAINTENANCE

Bearded Dragons require minimal maintenance so if you use a sand substrate you can do a quick cleaning of feces by using one of our scoopers (for sale in our cleaning section) - you can perform this 2 to 3 times a week. The sand substrate should be completely thrown out and the entire cage (including all accessories) should be washed with Quat Plus (available in our cleaning section) or a mild detergent at least once every four to five months. If using paper towels, change all paper towels at least once a week.
 

HIBERNATION

Hibernation while being natural for Bearded Dragons in the wild is not necessary for pet Dragons. We believe you should heat your dragons throughout the winter so that they continue to eat, drink and be active. A general reduction in feeding behavior is normal during winter months due to temperature fluctuations in your house. As long as they keep fairly consistent weight it is generally not an issue and normal feeding typically resume in the spring.