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Bearded Dragon Care
Introduction
It is said that
Bearded dragons are hardy and easy lizards to keep. This is
only half true. Yes, in comparison with some other pet
lizards, Bearded dragons are easy to keep, but you need to
know how. I’ve seen a lot of Bearded dragons getting ill because of
the incorrect keeping. Bearded dragon husbandry is by no
means easy if you don't know how! There are a few basic rules one
needs to adhere to properly care for your Bearded dragon.
Bearded dragon care can be summarized in the following
broad categories:
-
Correct Bearded
dragon food,
-
correct Bearded
dragon supplementation,
-
correct Bearded
dragon housing,
-
correct Bearded
dragon heating, and
-
correct Bearded
dragon lighting.
I won’t go into too
much detail on each of these topics, but will give enough
information for you to figure out whether your husbandry is
correct or not. For all the information you need to keep a
pet Bearded dragon, including a Bearded dragon care sheet,
also refer to The Basic Bearded Dragon Manual.
Bearded Dragon Food
Although there are various foodstuffs and feeder insects on
the market, pet Bearded dragons need specific types of protein
for optimum growth. Fifty percent of young Bearded dragon food
should consist of a good quality insects, namely crickets or
cockroaches, while the other fifty percent should be a
mixture of safe greens (fruits, vegetables, leafs and
flowers).
Bearded dragon food
and feeding, the correct feeding
and keeping of crickets are discussed in
much detail in
The Basic Bearded Dragon Manual.
Various types of safe greens and Bearded dragon
supplementation are also mentioned and
discussed in detail.
Bearded Dragon
Supplementation
In nature insects are exposed to a multitude of different
feedstuffs, but in captivity they are only fed a limited
amount of proteins and minerals. It is said that you are
what you eat. This is why it is so important to know the
correct Bearded dragon supplementation. The word
supplementation literally means supplementing the regular
diet with additional needed ingredients. It is usually in
the form of vitamins and minerals. The most important Bearded dragon
supplementation is calcium.
Various
supplementation types and methods are discussed in much
detail in The Basic Bearded Dragon Manual. Metabolic bone
disease, the main problem caused by calcium deficiency are
also discussed in some detail.
Bearded Dragon
Heating
Bearded dragons are desert animals. They spend most of their
time basking in, and on warm areas. To stimulate the same
behaviour in captivity, a basking area temperature of 35 -
40 ºC / 95 - 104 ºF should be maintained on one side of the
container with a natural drop to about 24 – 34 ºC / 75 – 93
ºF towards the other.
Proper Bearded dragon
heating and various ways to
regulate and maintain the recommended Bearded dragon basking
spots are discussed in much more
detail in
The Basic Bearded Dragon Manual.
Bearded Dragon
Housing
It is important to house a pet Bearded dragon in a large enough,
but easily cleanable container with the correct, safe floor
substrate and cage furniture. While this is important, it is
even more important to make sure the rest of the container
is up to standard with regard to other parameters like
height, ventilation, exposure etc. Remember that the Bearded
dragon housing
container is probably the place your Beardie is going to
spend most of its time, so the setup needs to be
perfectly done. It is recommended that the cage should be at
least (90 x 35) cm / (35 x 14) " for one Bearded dragon. The
safest substrates with regard to ingestion are probably
carpet or newspaper.
The Basic Bearded
Dragon Manual explains the perfect housing setup for captive
/ pet Bearded dragons. Various types of substrates and cage
furniture are compared. It also mentions all the important
pointers to consider before the final construction or
purchase of the final size container.
Bearded Dragon
Lighting
Bearded dragons and other lizards see differently from you
and me. They need different and specific types of light to
see their surrounding and to absorb calcium through the gut.
Bearded dragons cannot function without a combination of artificial
reptile specific and natural UVB. They will also benefit
from artificial UVA for better sight. It is also important
to have these lighting installed at the correct distance
from the main basking area and take your Bearded dragon outside for
certain periods of time.
Additional Bearded
dragon lighting, including
artificial UV and other types of lighting are discussed in
much detail in The Basic Bearded Dragon Manual. It
also contains a recommended UV
exposure table to make sure your Bearded dragon gets enough UV.
Bearded Dragon Care
Conclusion
This concludes the
section on basic Bearded dragon husbandry. To prevent
unnecessary stress and disease I would not only recommend
that you adhere to them, but also that you read The Basic
Bearded Dragon Manual. This manual is written with Bearded
dragon care and Bearded dragon husbandry in mind. All the
topics mentioned above, namely Bearded dragon food, Bearded
dragon supplementation, Bearded
dragon housing, Bearded
dragon heating, and Bearded dragon lighting are
discussed in all necessary detail. |
2008 - 2010 Renier Delport