Links to Amazon will be included in this guide. Be sure to check our other guides for more detailed information.

Background:

Bearded Dragons (Pogona vitticeps – Central bearded dragon) are friendly lizards that can be a great addition in any home! They are fantastic for beginners due to how docile they are and their adaptability to captivity. Affectionately known as Beardies, bearded dragons are a large, semi-arboreal native lizard of Australia, bearded dragons spend their time dwelling partially in the trees and on the ground. Including their tail, they grow to about 15-20 inches long and have spines on either side of their body that run to the base of their tail. They are known for their mouth-wide-open smiles (which is actually how these cuties cool down!). Beardies live for between 7 and 12 years in captivity. They are relatively healthy pets and most bearded dragons will only experience health issues that arise from improper husbandry.

Diet:

MUST Staple Insects:

• Roaches
  • Size medium – large. Nutritionally dense!
• Black Soldier Fly Larvae
  • The best for calcium and phosphate- nutritionally dense!
• Crickets
  • Not our favorite since they smell and make loud noises, but do offer great nutrition!
• Mealworms, ButterWorms, Phoenix Worms

Treat Feeders (Do not feed more than 2x a week):

• Waxworms
  • Similar to our fatty treat! Not a ton of nutrition
• Silkworms
  • Great amount of fluids and vitamins
• Hornworms
  • The candy of the herp world! Tons of fluids, not a ton of nutrition

Where to Buy Feeder Insects:

• Dubia.com
• Tastycritters.com
• Rainbowmealworms.com

Staple Dark Leafy Greens:

• Collard Greens
• Turnip Greens
• Mustard Greens
• Dandelion Greens & their flowers (make sure if you are taking from your yard, there was no pesticides used)
• Kale (Feed less than the previous greens. Can lead to calcium challenges)

Safe Veggies:

• Butternut Squash
• Yellow Squash
• Acorn Squash
• Spaghetti Squash
• Zucchini (Raw)
• Bell Peppers (Raw)
• Bok Choy
• Carrots
• Pumpkins
• Parsnips
• Chicory

Safe Fruits:

• Apples
• Peaches
• Strawberries
• Apricots
• Blackberries
• Blueberries
• Cranberries
• Cherries
• Chayote
• Watermelon
• Guava
• Papaya
• Mango

Dusting Insects with Vitamins & Minerals:

Dusting involves “dipping” the insect into calcium & multivitamin powder right before it’s fed to your pet. Follow these steps to dust your insects:

1. Find a plastic or glass box with a lid
2. Pour some vitamin powder in the box
3. Put the insect’s inside
4. Close the lid
5. Shake the box or bag with up-down and left-right motions
6. Take the insects out and put them on the beardie’s feeding bowl 

As the beardie eats the insects, it will also ingest the vitamins and minerals. As long as you perform this action, there will be no need to “gut-load”, or the method in which you feed insects with nutrients and supplements before giving them to your beardie. 

The amount of supplementation is different based on the age of the bearded dragon. 

Supplementation & Feeding Schedule:

Baby Beardies (0-4 Months Old):

Insect Protein: 4x a week

Salads: 1x week

Calcium & Vitamin D3: 3x per week

Multivitamin: 1x per week

Juvenile Beardies (5-18 Months Old):

Insect Protein: 3x a week

Salads: 2x a week

Calcium & Vitamin D3: 2x per week

Multivitamin: 1x per week

MALE Adult Beardies (1-2 Years Old+):

Insect Protein: 2x a week

Salads: 3x a week

Calcium & Vitamin D3: 2x per week

Multivitamin: 1x per week

FEMALE Adult Beardies (1-2 Years Old+):

Insect Protein: 3x a week

Salads: 3x a week

Calcium & Vitamin D3: 3x per week

Multivitamin: 1x per week

We recommend these products:

Repashy Calcium Plus

Repashy Vitamin A Plus

Heating & Lighting:

Bearded Dragons MUST HAVE A UVB added to their enclosure. UVB bulbs (Specifically T8 UVB 10.0 Lamp Fixtures) have been proven to encourage calcium levels to remain even and should be added on their enclosure on a 12 hours on, 12 hours off cycle. You can achieve this by plugging in any light fixture to a smart outlet or remembering to shut off the light manually yourself.

Like in the wild, beardies absorb heat from basking on a rock; which also helps them digest their food. To achieve the perfect temperature, provide a high basking spot on one side of the enclosure with a heat lamp simulating the sun above it (Reptile Basking Bulb 100W ). If you are having a difficult time reach proper basking temperatures, you can also add a heat emitter bulb. Proper lamp fixtures for these two bulbs can be found here.

Every enclosure needs to work like an ecosystem. You have three temperatures to keep in the tank; the warm side, cool side, and ambient temperature.

Babies & Juveniles:

Warm Side: 95-107°F 

Cool Side: 80-90°F

Night Time: 70-75°F

Adults:

Warm Side: 90-93°F 

Cool Side: 80-90°F

Night Time: 70-75°F

To measure these temperatures, I would highly suggest purchasing an infrared temperature gun and for the ambient temperature, using a thermometer.

Humidity & Shedding:

Beardies require an ambient humidity level of 35-40%. Anything higher than this could cause respiratory infections while anything lower could cause issues with shedding.

Due to the importance of maintaining the humidity levels for your bearded dragon, avoid putting them in an all-glass tank with a glass or plastic top cover. These covers tend to increase the humidity inside the tank or terrarium by trapping the moisture inside.

Be sure to invest in a reliable and accurate hygrometer. A hygrometer is a measuring instrument designed to accurately measure the water vapor in the air, soil, or confined spaces such as an enclosed reptile tank.

Housing:

The Enclosure:

A 4ft x 2ft x 2ft enclosure is the minimum size for an adult bearded dragon. Some affordable enclosures can be found here. Depending on the age of your dragon depends on the tank size. Be mindful: YOU WILL NEED TO UPGRADE YOUR TANK IF YOU PURCHASE A BABY!

• Babies (under 10 inches long): 20 gallons
• Juveniles (10 to 16 inches long): 40 gallons 
• Adults (over 16 inches long): 50 to 75 gallons
• Adults (over 20 inches long): 75 to 125 gallons 

Please DO NOT cohabitate beardies together, including males and females. You do not want beardie babies and the mating process is stressful for them. Like most reptiles, beardies are solitary animals and do not feel lonely or desire the company of other lizards other than for the sole purpose of mating.

Bearded dragons are territorial and could kill each other, especially if you house two males. If you house two females together, the less dominant of the two could become seriously ill because the more dominant one will take over the food bowl and basking spot. If you house a male and female together, they will begin to reproduce and you MUST be prepared to take care of up to 40 baby dragons.

Inside the Enclosure:

• Basking log or rock. Your bearded dragon will need a large surface to bask on beneath the heating lamp. A log or rock is perfect for this.
  
• Hideaway. For bedtime, brumation, and following the natural instincts of burrowing, your dragon needs a hide. There are plenty of options available so you can find one that matches your tank’s style.
  
• Things to climb on. Whether it’s branches, rocks, logs, or some other fixture that matches your decor theme, bearded dragons love to climb on things. Of course, just make sure there is still room on the ground for your dragon as well. 
  
• Hammock. Bearded dragons love hanging out and lounging in hammocks. Place one in the corner of your tank opposite the heating lamp, and your bearded dragon will thank you.
  
• Plants. Many Dragon Keepers enjoy decorating the terrarium with plants, live or fake.
  
• LAYING BOX FEMALES ONLY. A digging box, also known as a lay box, is a shallow, open container filled with moist, warm substrate and used by gravid bearded dragons to deposit their eggs. The purpose of this egg-producing plant is to mimic the warm, damp sand habitats of wild bearded dragons.
  
  Female bearded dragons can lay unfertilized eggs as young as nine months of age. Male bearded dragons, contrary to popular belief, do not lay eggs. When a female bearded dragon reaches maturity, she is typically infertile, but she can still make and lay eggs. Female bearded dragons can lay eggs without the assistance of a male, but these eggs will not hatch. An unfertilized egg will not result in the development of a bearded dragon. A bearded dragon clutches its eggs in groups or clutches. The average number of eggs produced in a single clutch is 15-30.

NOTE: 

Live plants can affect the humidity levels in your dragon’s tank, so be sure to use your hygrometer often. Keep in mind that your dragon may eat some of the live plants, so it’s important to only keep live plants and herbs that are safe for your bearded dragon to ingest.

Safe plants include:

• Aloe vera (If your dragon eats too much of this, she may get diarrhea, so just keep an eye on things) 
• Herbs such as rosemary, basil, oregano, and parsley (they may wilt in the humidity so replace them when they begin to go bad)
• Turtle vine
• Succulents such as echeveria and haworthia 
• Prickly pear cacti (with spines removed)

Another thing to keep in mind if you are interested in using live plants is that you will have to water and care for them as well as caring for your dragon. If you’ve never taken care of plants before, you may want to start with a plant outside the terrarium and go from there.

Substrate:

NOTE: 

USING LOOSE SUBSTRATE LIKE SAND, CALCIUM SAND, COCONUT HUSKS, ETC. INCREASE THE LIKELIHOOD OF IMPACTION. 

***IF YOU ARE GOING FOR A LIVE ECOSYSTEM IN THE ENCLOSURE, JUST BE MINDFUL OF YOUR BEARDIE’S BEHAVIOR.***

• Kitchen Liners are a great option for your dragon. It doesn’t cost much and it’s easy to clean.
  
• Paper Towels or Newspaper is easily the cheapest option for your bearded dragon. It’s a great choice for babies since they go to the bathroom a lot and the paper towels/newspaper  is incredibly easy to replace.
  
• Non Adhesive Shelf/Kitchen Liner is a great option for your dragon. It doesn’t cost much, it’s easy to clean. You do have to remove it to clean it. Most owners we know use this option.
  
• Clay is a really fun option for your bearded dragon if you have time and are willing to put in a little extra effort to set it up. You can get really creative with it and sculpt an exciting desert-like terrain with burrows, hills, and hideaways.
  
• Tile is a very popular choice among Dragon Keepers. Dark-colored ceramic and slate tile are ideal choices. Both materials provide your dragon with traction to move around comfortably, and dark colors will prevent the tile from getting cold. Make sure you don’t use vinyl or linoleum, which are too slippery for your bearded dragon’s claws to gain any traction. The other issue with those materials is they retain a lot of heat and there is nowhere for it to escape in your dragon’s tank, so it can burn your dragon. Be very careful when putting the tile in your bearded dragon’s tank. It can scrape or break the terrarium floor, especially if it’s glass. Using a thin towel or newspaper between the floor and the tile can help protect the tank’s floor

Cleaning:

Beardies are very simple to clean up after! It will be important to spot clean your beardie’s enclosure and change your substrate once a week. The tank should be cleaned fortnightly with dilute soap and water.

If there is old food, feces, or spilled water on the substrate, spot clean this daily. When checking and cleaning out your dragon’s waste, you should look for any abnormalities. A Bearded Dragon’s normal feces should be brown and pelleted, and there should also be a semisolid urate. If the waste looks abnormal or if you see blood, this could be a sign of an endoparasitic infection and you should bring your dragon to the vet.

Food bowls and water bowls should be scrubbed weekly. Be sure to always provide fresh, clean water for your dragon.

Common Illnesses:

Bearded dragons are prone to some illnesses. It is important that you know your nearest exotic vet in case your beardie ever shows signs of illness. 

Signs of disease in bearded dragons may be specific to a certain disease, such as jaw or hind limb swelling seen in bearded dragons with metabolic bone disease, or may be non-specific, such as anorexia (lack of appetite), depression, and lethargy, which are seen with many diseases. Any change from normal is cause for concern and should be immediately evaluated by your veterinarian.

• CANV (Chrysosporium anamorph of Nannizziopsis vreisii)
  
  • CANV is an aggressive and potentially fatal fungal infection of several types of lizard species but is most commonly seen in bearded dragons. It is also known as ‘yellow fungus disease’.
    
    This disease can affect bearded dragons at any age and may involve both males and females. This disease is typified by thickened yellow plaques on the face, back, sides, or legs. These plaques will crack, peel, and bleed if not attended to early on. In advanced cases, the infection becomes invaded by bacteria from the environment and adjoining skin regions and causes the bearded dragon to start losing weight and become noticeably weak.
    
    This disease necessitates a veterinary examination and aggressive treatment with antifungal medication, and often antibiotic treatment as well.
• Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD)/Nutritional Secondary Hyperparathyroidism
  
  • Metabolic bone disease (MBD), or nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism, is a complex disease that is one of the more common diseases in pet bearded dragons.
    
    It is most often seen in juvenile bearded dragons (less than two years old). MBD is generally caused by feeding an improper diet that is high in phosphorus and low in calcium and/or Vitamin D3.
    
    This imbalance may be caused either by a direct nutritional deficiency of vitamin D3 or a lack of exposure to the UV-B light required for lizards to make vitamin D3 in their skin. Common signs include swelling of the lower jaw, softening of the bones of the jaw and facial bones (‘rubber jaw’), and/or swelling of the hind limbs (fibrous osteodystrophy).
    
    Legs also commonly tremor as the lizard tries to walk and many bearded dragons with MBD are so weak that they can neither walk nor push their bodies up in a normal stance, so they crouch low to the ground or lay on their abdomens instead.
    
    Radiographs (X-rays) reveal thin bone tissue (decreased density), widening and thickening bone shafts, and possibly fractures that appear to have occurred in the absence of any trauma or for no apparent reason. Greenstick fractures (bones that appear to fold or bend rather than break apart) may also occur when bones are soft.
    
    Blood tests may show either a low calcium level or an imbalance of calcium and phosphorus blood values, usually with phosphorus being higher than calcium. A normal calcium to phosphorus blood level should be two parts calcium to one part phosphorus.
    
    As the condition progresses, muscle twitching, seizures, loss of appetite, and severe lethargy are seen. Not all cases can be resolved.
    
• Atadenovirus
  
  • Atadenovirus infection is very common in young bearded dragons but may affect dragons of any age. It typically causes fatal hepatitis (infection of the liver) and gastrointestinal infection.
    
    Affected animals are weak, do not eat, and often die acutely suddenly. Others show a more chronic infection in which they fail to thrive, do not grow at a normal rate, are weak, may become paralyzed, and periodically do not eat. Ultimately, they die as well.
    
• Infectious Stomatitis (Mouth Rot)
  
  • Infectious stomatitis is not seen in bearded dragons as often as it is in other lizards, such as iguanas. It is a bacterial infection of the gums and/or jawbone that appears as pinpoint hemorrhages on the gums, gum swelling, or excessive thick mucus production. Oftentimes, a material resembling cottage cheese may be seen in the mouth. In advanced cases, infectious stomatitis can also cause swelling of the jaw when the infection invades the bones of the jaw.
• Parasites
  • Parasites, especially pinworms, motile protozoa (single-cell organisms), and coccidia (Isospora amphiboluri), are common in the intestinal tracts of pet bearded dragons.
    
    The pet may show no clinical signs or just mild loose stool formation. These parasites are diagnosed by a microscopic examination of the fecal material by a veterinarian. In advanced cases, parasites may cause foul-smelling feces, profuse diarrhea, and/or weight loss.
    
    Pinworms and several types of motile protozoa are common parasites that live within bearded dragons’ gastrointestinal tracts in small numbers. They are probably commensal organisms, in which the parasite benefits from living in the lizard while the lizard is neither harmed nor benefits from the parasite.
    
    Problems occur when there are excessive numbers of these intestinal parasites. Mites and ticks may be found on bearded dragons’ skin. These parasites are transmitted from other bearded dragons. They are often seen moving around, under or between scales, around the lizard’s head, and in skin folds.
• Respiratory Infections
  
  • Respiratory infections, especially pneumonia, can occur in bearded dragons that are stressed, improperly fed, or kept in poor, cold, or dirty conditions. Respiratory tract infections may be caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites. Infections with any of the above diseases may weaken your bearded dragon’s immune system and allow bacteria to invade the respiratory tract. Affected lizards may sneeze, have discharge from their eyes or nose, bubbles from the mouth or nose, unnaturally rapid or shallow breathing, open-mouthed breathing, decreased appetite, and lethargy. These cases call for immediate attention and aggressive therapy from your bearded dragon’s veterinary team.
    
• Tail Rot
  
  • Tail rot occurs when an injury to the tail and its tissues become infected. Physically, the end of the tail turns black, appears shriveled, and feels mushy. Most bearded dragons have a dark coloration to the top of the end of the tail, but tail rot causes the whole circumference to turn black.
    
    This condition requires aggressive treatment; in some cases, surgical amputation of the affected tissue is necessary.
    
• Dystocia (Egg Binding – Eggs Stuck Inside the Females)
  
  • Dystocia occurs when a female bearded dragon has difficulty or is unable to lay eggs in a proper time frame. Dystocia is a common problem in reptiles and can be life-threatening. It may be caused by various factors, including poor husbandry, such as improper environmental UV lighting and temperature, an unsuitable nest site, improper diet (malnutrition), and inadequate humidity.
    
    Other contributing factors include the age and health of the animal, injuries, physical obstruction caused by deformed or oversized eggs, physical abnormalities within the reproductive tract or pelvis, infection, constipation, or the presence of abscesses or masses obstructing egg passage.
    
    A normal gravid (with eggs) bearded dragon may not eat but is generally still bright, active, and alert. A gravid bearded dragon with dystocia will also not eat and rapidly becomes sick, lethargic, or unresponsive. A veterinarian familiar with reptiles should examine an animal in this condition right away. Diagnosis requires a physical examination, blood testing, radiographs (X-rays), and, if necessary, an ultrasound examination. Medical and/or surgical procedures may be required. Without treatment, dystocia is often fatal. Many cases could have been prevented with proper husbandry.
    
    See a veterinarian experienced with reptiles to ensure your bearded dragon’s husbandry is appropriate to prevent dystocia and other diseases associated with improper care.
• Abscesses
  • Abscesses are occasionally seen in bearded dragons and often appear as hard tumor-like swellings anywhere on the body. An abscess is a swollen infected area within body tissue containing an accumulation of pus. Abscesses can occur in any reptile and often go unnoticed until they are large and prominent.
    
    An abscess occurs when bacteria or fungi are introduced into the tissue by trauma, such as with a bite wound, penetration from a foreign object, growth of a tumor, or invasion by a parasite. Subcutaneous (just under the skin) abscesses are frequently encountered in reptiles. Abscesses of the upper or lower jaw may occur from trauma to the mouth or from an infected tooth. Reptilian pus is usually caseous (resembling cottage cheese).
    
    Abscesses are diagnosed by appearance, palpation, fine needle aspiration, or surgical exploration. Abscesses are treated by surgical excision or by lancing and flushing them. The material within the abscess should be cultured to identify the causative organism and to determine the appropriate medication to treat any remaining infection.
• Gout

Gout is a disease in which the metabolism of uric acid is defective. Uric acid is a breakdown product of nitrogen, formed when protein is metabolized in the body. Reptiles excrete nitrogen waste as uric acid, which is removed from the circulating blood by the kidneys. In gout, this uric acid is not eliminated effectively.

Gout is a common problem in many reptiles, including terrestrial turtles. Although they are reptiles, aquatic turtles excrete the majority of their nitrogenous wastes as urea or ammonia and produce only a small amount of uric acid, so they are not usually affected by gout.

Dietary management or modification is the primary focus of treatment, along with correcting environmental deficiencies. The animal may be hospitalized for proper hydration (fluid therapy) and supportive care. Surgery is occasionally used to “clean out” the joints; in severe cases, the damage to the joints is enormous and irreversible. Medications used to treat gout in humans have been used in reptiles with gout, but success is variable and treatment may be lifelong.

In many cases, treatment must be continued for the remainder of the patient’s life. In general, the prognosis for reptiles with a severe case of gout is very poor. The goal is to try and achieve a good quality of life through use of pain medication, proper hydration, dietary changes, and environmental modifications. In severe cases, euthanasia is an option to consider.