How do I keep my bearded dragon healthy?

What should I know about bearded dragons at a glance?

The bearded dragon (Pogona vitticeps) is a lizard from the dry scrub and woodland of Australia. Pet dragons live about 7 to 15 years, grow to about 45 to 56 cm from nose to tail, and need heat, UVB and space every day of their lives.

What health problems do vets see most in bearded dragons?

Metabolic bone disease, parasites, adenovirus, impaction, egg problems in females, respiratory infections, mouth rot and yellow fungus are the problems vets see most. Many of them start with the setup: the heat, the light, the food or the floor.

• Metabolic bone disease: soft, weak bones from too little UVB, calcium or vitamin D3. VCA sees it most in dragons under 2 years old. Signs are a swollen or soft lower jaw, swollen back legs, trembling legs and lying flat from weakness. Left untreated, the limbs, jaw, spine or tail can stay deformed for life.
• Parasites: pinworms and coccidia are common, often with no signs at all, or with loose, smelly droppings and weight loss when there are many. A vet finds them with a fecal exam.
• Adenovirus: a virus that is very common in young dragons and can cause poor growth, weakness, refusing food and sudden death. It has no cure, and healthy-looking dragons can carry it.
• Impaction: a gut blocked by swallowed substrate or food. The RSPCA warns that loose substrate with large pieces, like bark, wood chips, crushed walnut or corn cob, can block the gut, and that a dragon kept too cool digests poorly. A dragon that eats but stops pooping may be blocked.
• Egg problems: females make eggs even without a male. If she has nowhere suitable to dig, or her diet, heat or UVB fall short, she can fail to lay them (egg binding), or the eggs can stall before they are released (follicular stasis). VCA notes this is often fatal without treatment.
• Respiratory infection: sneezing, discharge from the eyes or nose, bubbles at the mouth or nose, and breathing with the mouth open. It is linked to stress, poor food and cold or dirty enclosures.
• Mouth rot (stomatitis): pinpoint bleeding or swelling on the gums and thick mucus or cottage cheese-like material in the mouth.
• Yellow fungus: a serious and often fatal skin infection with the fungus Nannizziopsis (older name CANV) that shows as thick yellow to brown crusts. It spreads between reptiles, and treatment takes weeks to months and doesn't always work, so the WSU veterinary hospital says early treatment gives the best chance.

Do bearded dragons need vaccines?

No. There is no vaccine for any reptile. What protects a bearded dragon instead is a vet check soon after it comes home, a fecal exam, and keeping a new dragon apart from your other reptiles at first.

Which parasites and infections should I ask my vet about?

Reptiles are dewormed when a fecal exam finds parasites, not on a calendar. The Merck Veterinary Manual recommends fecal testing and treating when parasites are found, and VCA advises an exam with a reptile vet soon after a new dragon comes home.

• Worms and coccidia: found with a fecal exam. The RSPCA suggests asking your vet for a parasite test on a fresh dropping when droppings change or your dragon loses weight.
• Adenovirus (atadenovirus): a common cause of death in young captive dragons in the US and Europe, mostly under 12 weeks old, according to Wildlife Health Australia. Carriers often look healthy: a UK study it cites found the virus in 40% of healthy dragons aged 13 to 18 months. Vets test with PCR on a swab or a blood sample. There is no treatment, so ask your vet about testing a new dragon before it meets others.
• Keeping infected dragons apart: the Merck Veterinary Manual advises keeping a dragon that recovered from adenovirus away from other lizards for at least 3 months, and never selling or trading one that was infected.
• Cryptosporidium: a gut parasite that affects many lizards. It is found with fecal tests, and treatments don't work consistently.
• Mites and ticks: tiny dots under the scales, around the head and in skin folds. Ask your vet which product to use, because some aren't safe for every reptile.
• Salmonella: reptiles can carry it while looking healthy. The CDC advises washing your hands with soap and running water after touching your dragon, its food, its droppings or anything in its enclosure, and keeping reptiles and their things out of the kitchen. It says children under 5, adults 65 and older, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems shouldn't handle reptiles, and suggests another pet for homes with them.

Which signs in a bearded dragon can't wait?

Reptiles hide illness, so by the time you can see a problem it is often advanced. Call a reptile vet if you see any of these.

• Open-mouth breathing with bubbles or discharge: a sign of respiratory infection. Call your vet now.
• Trembling, twitching or a soft, swollen jaw: signs of metabolic bone disease or low calcium. Don't treat it at home. Call your vet now.
• A female digging without laying: if she keeps digging for a day or two without laying, or is weak and stops eating while carrying eggs, call your vet the same day.
• No droppings while still eating: this can mean impaction. Call your vet.
• Lying flat and weak, or not eating while kept warm: this can be illness, not brumation. Ask your vet before assuming it.
• Crusty yellow or brown skin: this can be yellow fungus, which is often fatal and spreads to other reptiles. Keep your dragon apart from other reptiles and call your vet now.
• A dark, shrivelled tail tip: this can be tail rot, which needs treatment quickly.

Find a vet who sees reptiles before you need one, and take your dragon in a warm, ventilated box to keep the trip short and calm.

How do I set up a bearded dragon's enclosure?

The enclosure is most of a bearded dragon's health. It needs a range of temperatures from a hot basking spot to a cool end, strong UVB over the basking spot, low humidity and a safe floor.

• Size: the RSPCA recommends at least 120 cm long, 60 cm high and 60 cm deep for one adult. VCA suggests 60 to 100 US gallons (about 230 to 380 litres) or more for adults, at least 3 times as long as the dragon.
• Heat: the RSPCA gives 38 to 42 °C for the basking spot, 22 to 26 °C at the cool end and no lower than 20 to 22 °C at night. VCA gives a cooler range, 32 to 38 °C at the warm end and 24 to 27 °C at the cool end, so ask your vet which fits your dragon. Put every heat source on a thermostat, keep a digital thermometer at each end and read them every day. Heat comes from above, guarded so the dragon can't touch it, and never from a hot rock.
• UVB: a high-output UVB tube, such as a T5 HO. The RSPCA recommends a 10 to 12% tube up to half the enclosure's length, mounted toward the hot end, giving a UV index of 3.0 to 5.0 at the basking spot and none in the shade. VCA places the lamp within about 15 to 45 cm of the dragon, depending on its output. Glass and plastic block UVB and mesh reduces it, so a window doesn't count.
• Changing the UVB lamp: UVB fades long before the lamp stops glowing. VCA advises changing it every 6 months or when the maker says. The RSPCA suggests checking it with a UV index meter at the dragon's level.
• Light and dark: 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness, on a timer, with all lights off at night.
• Humidity: the RSPCA advises around 30 to 40% at the cool end. Higher humidity can cause skin and breathing problems, so add ventilation if it climbs.
• Floor: VCA advises paper or reptile carpet and no sand, gravel, wood shavings, walnut shells, corn cob, cat litter or calcium sand. The RSPCA accepts sand or a sand and soil mix for healthy adults. Loose substrate is riskiest for young dragons, so ask your vet what suits yours.
• A dig box: a tub of moist sand and soil in the cool end lets a dragon dig, and a female needs one to lay her eggs.
• Alone: bearded dragons are territorial. Kept together they can fight, and a smaller dragon can be hurt or even killed, so the RSPCA advises housing them separately.

What should a bearded dragon eat?

Young dragons eat mostly insects and adults mostly greens. The RSPCA suggests about 65% insects and 35% greens for young dragons, moving to about 40% insects and 60% greens once a dragon is longer than 30 cm.

• How often: the RSPCA feeds babies twice a day and juveniles and adults once a day. VCA feeds young dragons once or twice a day and adults every 24 to 72 hours. Your vet can help you set the rhythm for your dragon's age and weight.
• Greens: leafy greens make up 80 to 90% of the plant part for VCA, with fruit only as a treat. Feed spinach, chard and beet greens sparingly and be careful with cabbage and kale.
• Insects: crickets, roaches or locusts, fed well before you offer them. Remove live insects your dragon hasn't eaten, because some bite. Never feed fireflies, which are toxic to lizards, and avoid insects caught outside. Waxworms and superworms are fatty, so offer them only now and then.
• Calcium: VCA advises a light dusting of calcium on the food every day and calcium with vitamin D3 two to three times a week. The RSPCA notes that a dragon under good UVB needs little vitamin D3 from its food, and other reptile vets give D3 less often or not at all, so ask your vet how often for your setup. Too much can harm too, so follow the product's label.
• Weight: adults fed like juveniles get fat. Fatty liver is a common disease in pet bearded dragons, and a survey from Tufts found that about half of owners fed more insects than plants. Weigh your dragon regularly.
• Water: a shallow dish of fresh water, changed every day. VCA notes that a soak in warm water for a few minutes, a few times a week, can help keep a dragon hydrated.

What is brumation, and is it safe?

Brumation is a winter slowdown: a dragon eats less, sleeps more and may stop pooping. In the wild in Australia it falls from May to August, according to VCA, and indoors it is set off by cooler rooms and shorter days.

• See a vet first: VCA says only a healthy dragon should brumate and advises a check with a reptile vet first, because a dragon with intestinal parasites can wake up critically ill. Ask for a fecal exam at that visit.
• Weigh it: the RSPCA notes that a brumating dragon typically shouldn't lose weight. Weigh it before and every 2 weeks during brumation, and call your vet if it drops.
• Leave water in reach: a brumating dragon may still wake to drink.
• It may be illness: VCA warns that a dragon kept at normal room temperature that is lethargic and not eating may be sick, not brumating. When in doubt, ask your vet.

Why does my female lay eggs without a male?

Female bearded dragons often make eggs even if they have never met a male. The RSPCA says this is not a problem when she has a dig box to lay in, but it becomes serious when she can't lay.

• Give her a dig box: a tub of moist sand and soil deep enough to dig into.
• Watch the calcium: some females lay very often, which drains their calcium and energy, so ask your vet about supplements.
• Know when to call: a female who keeps digging for a day or two without laying, or one that is weak and stops eating, needs a vet.

Is it legal to keep a bearded dragon?

It depends on where you live. In Brazil the bearded dragon is an exotic species, since its natural range doesn't include Brazil, as IBAMA's Instrução Normativa 7/2015 defines exotic fauna.

• Brazil: buy only from a breeder or shop authorized by IBAMA or your state's environmental agency. IBAMA asks buyers to check that the seller is authorized, to confirm the SisFauna certificate of origin, and to check that the microchip or ring matches the papers. Ask for the invoice (nota fiscal) too. In São Paulo, breeders register in the state's own system (Gefau), so ask the state environment secretariat to check one. Keep the papers for the dragon's whole life.
• Breeding in Brazil: IBAMA says environmental law forbids breeding animals kept as pets, and the young would have no papers of legal origin.
• Elsewhere: the RSPCA notes that in the UK all bearded dragons on sale are now captive bred. Rules on keeping reptiles change by country and, in the US, by state, so check the rules where you live.

How do I keep my bearded dragon's health record?

VetVitae keeps your bearded dragon's weight in grams and warns you when a weigh-in is 10% below the highest of the last 3 months. It logs each feeding with the calcium or D3 dusting, flags two refused meals in a row, and suggests insects every day for young dragons and every 2 days for adults.

It also keeps the enclosure setup with the basking, cool side and night temperatures and the UVB lamp's install date, reminds you to change the UVB lamp, and logs sheds and stuck sheds, brumation with feeding reminders paused, eggs, and fecal exams and test results. See reptile records, weight and exams and tests.

VetVitae is free on iPhone, Android and the web.

This guide is general information, not veterinary advice. Your vet knows your pet.

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