Care Sheet

  Bearded dragons are one of the easiest reptilian pets to care for.  They are great for a starter reptile or for the experience collector. Before purchasing your bearded dragon, please do lots of research on proper care.  If you have any questions do not hesitate to ask us.

Housing & Lighting

  Bearded Dragons live in a desert like environment.  All that is needed is a cage of proper size with something to climb on, a UVB fluorescent light source, and a basking spot. A 55 gallon aquarium, 40 breeder reptile tank, or equivlent size enclosure is large enough for an adult bearded dragon. Hatchling and juvenile dragons can be kept in a smaller enclosure to reduce stress. Some common substrates are tile, newspaper, and play sand.

  All that is needed for lighting is a UVB fluorescent light and a basking spot light which can be picked up at most local pet stores. We keep our basking spots between 100 & 105 degrees with the cool side of the enclosure around 85 degrees. We recommend that your dragon's climbing structure allow him/her to be within 6 to 10 inches from the UVB bulb.

 

Food & Water

  Bearded Dragons require a variety of greens, vegetables and insects. Some common greens and vegetables are:  kale, collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, squash, zucchini, and shredded carrots. Some common insects are: crickets, roaches, super worms, wax worms, and silk worms. We do not recommend feeding your dragon wild caught insects, some may be toxic or carry parasites. The size of the greens and the insects depends on how big your dragon is. You should not feed a dragon insects bigger than the space between their eyes. We recommend that fresh greens be offered daily. Hatchling and juvenile dragons need a lot of protein since they grow so rapidly. They need insects offered 2-3 times a day as much as they can eat in 10 minutes.  An adult dragon only needs insects of proper size offered once a day, do not be surprised if your adult dragon does not eat every feeding. We recommend using a calcium supplement that contains vitamin D3 six days a week and a multi vitamin supplement once a week. You can pick these up at most local pet stores. A shallow water dish may be offered but not all dragons will drink from a water dish. We put a little bit of water in the dish with our greens and mist their heads with water once a day so they lick the water off their lips. They may also drink during bath time. To bathe your dragon place him/her in shallow lukewarm water once or twice a week for 10 to 15 minutes.