Quality over Quantity!
Rob's~Reptiles Beardie Caresheet
Feel free to print this out and use it as a personal reference, do keep it mind that it is a continual work in progress.
We have found that there are two keys to good beardie husbandry:
1. Observation - know your dragon(s)!
If your beardie starts to act odd, find out why ASAP.
2. Strive to imitate the dragon's natural wild surroundings as much as possible in captivity.
If your beardie is happy in captivity then there will be few health problems if any.
~DIET / HYDRATION~
Q: What do you recommend for food?
A: Dusted "gut-loaded" crickets and mixed greens bags from the supermarket that have been rinsed in the sink. I like the "spring mix" as it comes with a good variety of appropriate greens. I recommend: chopped collard greens, turnip greens, mustard greens, alfalfa, dandelion greens, (acorn, scallop, and spaghetti) squash and cactus pad/leafs, endive, escarole.
We do not recommend plain lettuce as it has little to no nutritional value and can cause diarrhea in beardies. We also do not recommend spinach, which contains a high amount of oxalic acid, which binds with calcium, rendering the calcium unusable by the animal. This can lead to MBD (Metabolic Bone Disease).
Beardies are also notorious over eaters in captivity; they have been known to go for days without food in the wild. We like to offer them their greens first, and then dusted crickets to ensure they get a balanced diet.
Q: How should I give my dragon water?
A: Beardies rarely if ever have access to free standing bodies of water in the wild and mostly inhabit dry areas. I don't recommend water bowls as they are ever so quickly fowled and get substrate in them. What I do recommend is a bath / soaking in warm (not hot) water in a shallow pan or plastic bin a couple times a week. They seem to like these allot, and it assists with shedding (quite a few of my dragons like to drink from their bath water as well).
Hatchings and Juveniles can also benefit greatly from a daily light misting, water drops on their head from an eyedropper, and misting the surrounding area of the beardie.
~HOUSING~
Q: What kind of housing do you use for your Beardies?
A: I use large plastic Tupperware containers that can be easily acquired at Wal-Mart, Big-lots, et cetera for Hatchings & Juveniles and Sub-Adults. The specific the one I use is 106 quarts. It works great, but of course an aquarium always looks better for display. The only mod I do, is dremeling the top of the lid, to create air vents / holes and an area to rest the bulb housings. After I have cut off the appropriate part, I will use wire-mesh to support the bulb housings. I then zip tie the mesh securely to the lid with small dremel holes.
I keep my adults / breeders in various 40 Breeder up to 100G aquariums or custom built cages. The minimum size aquarium for an adult beardie should be a 40 Breeder. When possible give your Beardie(s) as much room as you possibly can.
~SUBSTRATE / FURNITURE~
Q: What do you recommend for substrate?
A: Beardie substrate is a highly debated topic. I like to go with a natural approach so I recommend sifted children's play sand available from such places as home-depot, or the fancier stuff from the pet-stores. I don't recommend the colored "Calci-Sand" as it stains their skin and is expensive. Or for a more utilitarian approach the green-carpet stuff from the pet store. Some owners like to keep their babies / juvie's on paper towels or green-carpet and their adults on sand
Newspaper may also be used (I don't recommend it). If you do use it remember not to use the colored ink paper as it can poison your beardie.
Papertowels or Duck Brand shelf liner are good utilitarian choices for maintaining an optimal level of cleanliness in the cage.
Remember that pretty much any granular substrate has an impaction risk. As for me, I have kept everything from freshly hatched babies to adults on sifted sand for several years and have never had a dragon have an impaction problem.
Q: What kind of cage furniture should I use?
A: Anything that allows the dragon to get closer to its basking site, and will not have the risk of falling over on top of the dragon. Crickets should not be able to hide in the cage furniture, try to keep the furniture to a minimum for the first 6 months or so. I like to put some sanitized driftwood / hiding logs in the cage along with a rock or two. Beardies will also use these as shedding aids and will rub up against them when necessary. Another benefit of the wood / rocks is that it assists in filing down their claws.
As a precautionary measure, whenever I bring home a new piece of wood from nature / the pet store, I like to first wash it in hot water, let it dry off, and then bake it in the oven for about 15 minutes at 350 degrees or so. This ensures that any little crawly nasties (like mites or ticks) that might have been on there will not get in your cage and infect your beardies.
~LIGHTING / HEATING & TEMPERATURE~
Q: What kinds of bulbs do you recommend?
A: Exo-Terra 100W Sun Glo Neodymium Daylight Lamps
Exo-Terra Repti-Glow 8.0 / the new 10.0 terrarium lamps (I use the 18 inch ones).
And of the course the most beneficial bulb is sunlight. If the outside temperature is appropriate your dragon will greatly benefit from sun basking.
Q: What temperature should I keep my beardie at?
A: The temperature at the basking site should measure between 90 -105F. A proper level of heat is important , without it the dragon will not be able to digest its food properly. The temp on the "cool" side should be around 80-85F.
Q: Do you recommend heat pads / rocks?
A: No. Beardies cannot adequately sense the heat coming from beneath so a heat pad / rock is going to do nothing but injure your dragon and or increase the potential for a fire hazard. Beardies have a "third eye" on top of their heads that allows them to properly sense heat & temperature and take the necessary steps to cool down, move to a better spot to bask, et cetera.
~CLEANING / DISINFECTING~
It is very important that you have a cleaning / disinfecting regimen in place for your beardies. If any fecal matter comes in to contact with anything, it should be immediately cleaned and disinfected.
Just because it looks "clean" doesn't mean it's clean.
~MISC~
Q: How often should I handle my beardies?
A: If it is a hatchling or juvie beardie, we recommend letting them adjust to their new surroundings and not handling them for 2-3 weeks. After that, I would recommend interacting with them a few times a week to get the most enjoyment out of your dragon. Hand feeding your dragon small treats such as a piece of lettuce will help build a good bond between pet and owner.
All About Beardie Morphs
Under construction, check back later.Other Beardie Caresheets
Rob's~Reptiles encourages you to ''do your homework'' and not rely on only one source for information.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Are your dragons tested for Adenovirus?
A: No.
Why not you ask?
It is our opinion that reptile adenovirus is poorly understood, (it is our experience that many Herpetoculturists have not even heard of it) and that there are many rumors and much misinformation in general out there regarding reptile adenovirus (especially within the Bearded Dragon community).
Further reliable research is definitely needed.
Many people in the scientific and private fields have known of and have been testing reptiles for adenovirus for several years now. We ask, where are all the results, what has been the outcome of all this testing? Where is a concrete solution for preventing the spread of adenovirus?
If one and or all of your cherished dragons tested positive for adenovirus what exactly would this mean to you? Would you discard them, would you not allow them to breed? We would recommend taking a close look at your husbandry practices.
We feel that the formula is simple: Stress + poor husbandry / ignorance + re-infection = disease.
We believe that adenoviruses are associated with disease, but usually there are additional co-factors involved that will promote a progression to illness in your bearded dragon.
If you wish to test, an easily understood method of the testing methods used can be found here:
PCR vs. EM Adeno Virus TestingThis is a brief review of reptile adenovirus PCR and sequencing at the University of Florida CVM:
AdenovirusAnd here is Melissa Kapplans (Herp Care Collection) article concerning adenovirus:
Adenoviruses in ReptilesWe also encourage you to do the research yourself and come up with your own conclusions.
Q: Do you handle international orders?
A: Not currently. Eventually I plan to do so however.
Q: Do Bearded Dragons Shed?
A: Yes, they will continually shed as they get older. They shed in small patches as they grow, a head piece, a tail piece, et cetera. Resist the urge to "assist in shedding" and pull skin off your beardie, you can do more harm then good.
Q: Can a bearded dragon's tail break off?
A: No. (It is possible for a dragon to lose its tail due to getting it bit off by another dragon though. However, if you provide good husbandry then this should never happen)
Q: How long do beardies live?
A: This of course varies, but most beardies seem to last to around the ripe old age of 5 to 7 years. To our knowledge the oldest recorded beardie lived for 10 years 1 month.