Bearded Dragon Care Guide

Housing Requirements

• Terrarium Size: 48 x 24 x 24 inches (a 4 x 2 x 2 foot enclosure) is the absolute minimum for a single adult; 60 x 24 x 24 or 72 x 24 x 24 is strongly preferred. Larger is always better. A juvenile can start in a 36 x 18 x 18 Exo Terra or similar and upgrade as it grows
• Tank Mates: Always housed singly. Bearded dragons do not cohabit safely, even females together will compete for basking space and food, and males will fight. Do not attempt to keep pairs or groups outside of a controlled breeding introduction
• Temperature: Basking surface temperature 100 to 110 degrees F (38 to 43 C) on one end, measured with an infrared thermometer on a flat basking rock or platform. Ambient warm side 85 to 90 degrees F (29 to 32 C). Cool side 75 to 80 degrees F (24 to 27 C). Night drop to 65 to 75 degrees F (18 to 24 C) is fine and healthy. Use a high-wattage halogen flood on a thermostat for the basking spot, never a red or colored bulb
• Humidity: 30 to 40 percent ambient. Dry environment; do not mist the enclosure
• Lighting: UVB is required, not optional. Use an Arcadia T5 12 percent (Desert or ShadeDweller Max) or Zoo Med Reptisun T5 10.0 spanning approximately two-thirds of the enclosure length, mounted 8 to 12 inches from the basking area per the bulb's specifications. Replace T5 bulbs every 12 months, T8 bulbs every 6 months, regardless of visible output. 12 hour photoperiod

Substrate & Environment

• Tile, slate, repticarpet, or a bioactive desert mix (a compacted mix of topsoil, play sand, and excavator clay over a drainage layer) are all acceptable
• Do not use pure loose sand or crushed walnut, especially with juveniles, impaction risk is real
• Provide a large flat basking rock or slate slab that heats to the target basking temperature
• Include a cool-side hide, low branches or driftwood for climbing (bearded dragons will climb readily and enjoy elevation), and a shallow water dish
• Live plants tolerate the enclosure poorly at desert humidity; artificial plants and desert-hardy dry decor work better

Diet & Feeding

Bearded dragons are omnivores, and the ratio of insect protein to plant matter shifts with age. - Juveniles (under 12 months): roughly 70 percent insects, 30 percent greens. Feed insects twice daily, greens available at all times - Adults (over 18 months): roughly 30 percent insects, 70 percent greens. Feed insects every other day, fresh greens available every day - Staple insects: dubia roaches (best staple), crickets, black soldier fly larvae, and discoid roaches. Rotate for variety - Treats: hornworms, silkworms, superworms (adults only, occasional). Waxworms only as a rare treat - Do not feed mealworms as a staple, the tough chitin exoskeleton is poorly digested. Never feed pinky mice, they are too high in fat and unnecessary for the species - Greens (offer daily): collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion greens, escarole, endive. Rotate; variety is important - Vegetables (offer regularly): squash (butternut, acorn, yellow), bell pepper, shredded carrot, snap peas, green beans - Fruit (offer sparingly, 1 to 2 times per week): berries, mango, papaya, apple, pear - Supplements: dust insects with plain calcium (no D3) at every feeding when UVB is present. Multivitamin once weekly. A small dish of plain calcium in the enclosure is optional - Feeder insects should be gut-loaded 24 hours before feeding on quality greens, oats, and commercial gut-load - Fresh water in a shallow dish, changed daily. Many adults will not drink from a dish, offer a weekly warm-water soak in a shallow container

Breeding

Bearded dragons are prolific breeders in captivity and are one of the reliably reproduced species in the hobby.

• Sexual maturity: 18 to 24 months in females, sooner in males. Females should be at least 400 grams and in strong body condition before pairing. Do not breed a young or underweight female, gravidity is physically demanding and can permanently damage her
• Sexing: at 4 to 6 months males begin to show hemipenal bulges (two distinct swellings on either side of the tail base just past the vent) while females show a single central bulge or none at all. Males have larger, more prominent femoral pores along the underside of the thighs. Behavior is a secondary clue: males head-bob more, females arm-wave more
• Cycling (brumation): a 6 to 10 week winter cool-down at 60 to 65 degrees F (16 to 18 C) with an 8 to 10 hour photoperiod and no feeding is the traditional cue. Bring the pair out of brumation together in mid to late winter, resume normal temperatures and photoperiod, and offer heavy feeding for 4 to 6 weeks to rebuild condition before introducing
• Introduction: place the male into the female's enclosure or a large neutral space and observe. A courting male head-bobs aggressively; a receptive female arm-waves in submission and holds still. The male grips the female's neck and mates for 30 seconds to a couple of minutes. Separate the pair after mating; leaving them together long-term stresses the female and risks injury
• Clutch size and schedule: bearded dragons lay large clutches, commonly 15 to 25 eggs and occasionally 30-plus. A well-conditioned female produces 2 to 4 clutches per season roughly 4 to 6 weeks apart. Females store sperm and can produce fertile clutches for a year or more from a single mating
• Gravidity: a gravid female becomes visibly heavier through the abdomen 2 to 3 weeks after mating, eats heavily for a stretch, then loses appetite and becomes restless as she approaches laying. Palpation confirms eggs. Increase calcium supplementation through the gravid period to protect against calcium crash
• Lay box: provide a deep container of moist substrate (a mix of play sand and topsoil, or bioactive soil), at least 10 to 12 inches deep and roughly 2 x 1 feet in footprint. She will dig a burrow, lay, and backfill. Check the enclosure daily once she starts digging test holes
• Incubation: vermiculite or perlite mixed 1 to 1 with water by weight, in a lidded container with small ventilation. Incubate at 82 to 84 degrees F (28 to 29 C) for approximately 55 to 75 days. Sex determination in Pogona is genetic (ZW system) but incubation temperature at the extremes can influence sex ratios in ways that are still being studied; stay in the standard 82 to 84 range for typical outcomes
• Hatchling care: hatch out at roughly 3 to 4 inches. House singly or in very small groups (2 to 3 same-size juveniles) in small enclosures on paper towel or repticarpet, with a proper basking spot, UVB, and heavy feeding. Small crickets, small dubia, black soldier fly larvae, and chopped greens from day one. Juveniles grow fast under proper conditions
• Retained eggs (dystocia): a female straining without laying for more than 24 to 48 hours, or a gravid female that becomes lethargic and stops moving, is a veterinary emergency. Prevention is the best treatment: proper calcium, a proper lay box, a well-conditioned female, and a warm basking spot
• Female recovery: after laying, offer heavy feeding to rebuild body condition. A hard-breeding female should be rested for the following season if she is under target weight
• Genetics and morphs: the bearded dragon hobby has developed a wide range of established color and scale-type genetics. Color lines include Hypo (hypomelanistic), Trans (translucent), Zero, Wero, Witblits, and Paradox. Scale-type genetics include Leatherback (reduced scale size) and Silkback (essentially scaleless, an incomplete dominant homozygous form that requires specialized humid care and reduced UVB exposure). Named color lines (Red, Yellow, Sandfire, Citrus, Tangerine, and many others) are worked selectively over decades

Special Notes

• Handling: bearded dragons are among the most tolerant reptiles for regular handling. Support the full body, do not lift by the tail or limbs. Most individuals become genuinely tame with consistent, gentle contact and often seek shoulder time with their keeper. Let new arrivals settle and eat consistently for 1 to 2 weeks before beginning regular handling
• Brumation: adult bearded dragons often enter a natural winter cool-down (brumation) lasting 1 to 3 months, during which they eat little and sleep for long stretches. This is normal and healthy for adults with fat reserves; do not force-feed a brumating animal. Juveniles should not be brumated
• Beard darkening: the "beard" (throat skin) darkens to jet black as a stress, dominance, or breeding display. Occasional beard darkening is normal; persistent black beard combined with lethargy or refusal to eat warrants attention
• Long-lived, plan for a 10 to 15 year commitment
• Quarantine all new animals for 30 or more days before introducing them near existing collection