Guide to Keeping Bearded Dragons

A South African Context

Timothy Zedi

written by:

The Author owns all the rights to this work. No one may resell this book for a profit. The book may not be modified or changed in any way. This book may be shared between peers who share an interest in the subject matter of this book. This book may be used and shared at educational institutions as long as a mention is made of the author. This book may be shared on non commercial websites on condition that the website provides a link to the authors website.

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Table of Contents
Get to Know your Beardie
A Brief look at Biology and Natural History

Here Be Dragons
Where to Purchase your Bearded Dragon and how to choose a healthy pet

The Land Down Under In Your Bedroom

Creating the perfect home for your Bearded Dragon

Chow Time

What to feed your Bearded Dragon and some misconceptions about food that can harm your Dragon

Health and Happiness

A list of common health problems

The Next Generation

Baby Bearded Dragons and the future of Bearded Dragons as pets in South Africa

Final Thought

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Chapter 1 Get to Know your Beardie

'Bearded Dragon' is the common name for lizards of the genus Pogona, in the family Agamidae. All bearded dragons are indigenous to Australia, and are further classified by their native habitat. The only Bearded Dragons in the pet trade are the Inland Bearded Dragon which is the species we have for sale in South Africa, the Eastern Bearded Dragon and the Rankins Dragon. The last two species are not available in South Africa. These two species are sometimes available in Europe and the USA. These different species can interbreed so it may be possible that some of the Bearded Dragons on the market may be hybrids. There is a breed of Bearded Dragon called German Giants these are a cross between the Inland Bearded Dragon and the larger Eastern Bearded Dragon. Hybrids between Inland Bearded Dragons and Rankins Dragons are called Vittikins. I hope one day that these two species will become available in South Africa. The hybrids would be a nice addition to any South African reptile keepers collection. All other Bearded Dragon species are not available in the pet trade as it is illegal to import them from Australia.

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The Inland Bearded Dragon is a medium sized lizard which grows to around 60cm in length most of which consists of its tail. The Bearded Dragon is named after the spiky pouch under its neck. The beard will turn black when the males are displaying. These lizards are somewhat social and have evolved movements and behaviors to communicate with one another. These included head bobbing and leg waving. Males are most likely to head bob as it is a dominance display used during breeding and to mark territory. Bearded Dragons can be found on fence posts, logs and rocks in the deserts of central Australia where they spend a vast majority of their time basking. Your Beared Dragon will do the same in his or her cage. Basking is a biological necessity as Beared Dragons are exothermic ( Cold Blooded) and therefor cannot maintain there own body temperature. A Bearded Dragons day would consist mostly of basking in the sun to warm up and lying in the shade to cool down. The rest of the time would be taken up by feeding, mating, laying eggs and defending territory and fighting over females. In captivity the range of behaviors is more limited, consisting of eating and basking and possibly breeding once or twice a year. Natural prey would include: Insects, small mammals, smaller lizards and some plant material. Natural predators would include: Birds of prey, snakes, monitor lizards and dingos. Introduced species such as foxes and feral cats would prey on Bearded Dragons as well. Beared Dragons have a threat display which consists of flattening themselves out, Puffing out their beards which blackens during a threat display, the Dragon will gape and hiss at its attacker to make their point. You should not see a threat display from your pet Dragon as they are extremely tame in captivity. This makes them perfect reptile pets.
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Chapter 2 Here Be Dragons

Bearded Dragons are readily available in South Africa. Bearded Dragons are one of the only reptiles you will find in a pet shop that does not specialize in reptiles. These pet shops also sell tarantulas but never snakes or other lizards of any kind. This may be a good thing as these pet shops have sold puppies, kittens, goldfish and various small furry mammals for most of their existence and are often not aware of how to care for reptiles correctly. For example these pet shops sell Bearded Dragons which are missing tails. A Beardie which has no tail has been in a serious fight. Hatchling bearded dragons often bite the tails off each other when left in an overcrowded cage to compete for inadequate amounts of food and basking space. If you want to get a Bearded Dragon go to a pet shop that specializes in reptiles. Reptile pet shops are a good place to buy your dragon. Reptile shows are a great place to get your dragon, this is where I got mine. You can also acquire your beardie from a breeder. Breeders range in size from private individuals content in making a bit of cash every year by breeding one or two pairs of Bearded Dragons to large scale breeding operations which increasingly concentrate their efforts on creating designer colour morphs. You will be able to find private breeders on classified sections of reptile forums. Professional breeders have websites. Professional breeders often sell there animals at reptile shows, or you can go to them personally. Do not buy any live animals online.
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Once you have found a Bearded Dragon in any one of the places I have suggested above, you will have to make sure it is healthy. I would recommend that you buy a Bearded Dragon that is between three to six months of age. An older dragon will be more expensive but on the other hand will be hardier and easier to care for. Buying a slightly older dragon will benefit in the long run. A healthy dragon should have a full tail, have no missing fingers or toes and have no bite marks or scratches that could indicate fighting. Check for kinks in the dragons spine or tail and a deformed jaw, these are sure signs of a condition called Metabolic Bone Disease or MBD. Do not purchase a dragon showing these problems as MBD is a serious condition that shows lack of proper UVB lighting, supplements and a bad diet. MBD will be explained further under in the health chapter of this book. The dragon should not be emaciated nor should it be obese. A healthy dragon should not have any faeces surrounding the vent. Check for mites, these appear as silver specks on the dragons body. Ask the seller to chuck some crickets or a giant mealworm in the dragons cage. A healthy dragon should grab the food almost immediately. You can take your dragon for a post purchase health check to a reptile vet. Now That you have chosen a healthy Bearded Dragon that will become your future pet you will have to create the perfect environment for him/her to live out a long happy life.

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Chapter 3 The Land Down Under In Your Bedroom

Bearded Dragons require a cage measuring 90cm-1m in length and 60cm in width and 60 cm in height for a single adults. Juveniles and babies can obviously be kept in smaller cages. The most common type of cage available in South Africa is a chip board or oak finished chipboard cage with sliding glass doors. I use this type of cage but mine has glass windows on each side for better viewing and the top can open. You can buy these cages from reptile pet shops or reptile shows, alternatively you can build one yourself if you have decent carpentry skills. Do not over crowd your dragons as they will fight over food and basking space. Adult males will fight if kept together. I would recommend that one male and two females be the maximum amount of bearded dragons kept together. Bearded Dragons require a dry environment, use a substrate of corn cob or fine sand. Provide a basking log above which a daylight incandescent light bulb is placed, the temperature under the basking lamp should reach between 35-40 Celsius .Alternatively an infrared basking lamp can be used or a ceramic heat emitter, these will not disturb the dragon at night while it sleeps. A very important aspect is to provide UVB lighting,a UVB bulb with a 10.0 rating should be used for 12-14 hours a day. Turn all UVB lamps and daylight bulbs off at night to give your dragon a chance to sleep. Infrared lamps can be kept on at night as reptiles cannot see that spectrum of light and thus will not disturb your dragon.
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The list below is a step to step guide on setting up your Bearded Dragons enclosure. Purchase the cage Purchase the correct size cage. Decide whether to purchase a second hand cage or new cage. Decide on the type of cage such as glass or wooden display cage. Shop around for good prices but do not skimp on quality. Purchase the supplies Purchase the heating, lighting, substrate and heating accessories. Install your heaters and lights Fix a porcelain lamp socket to one side of the cage for your infrared light bulb, daylight basking lamp or ceramic heat emitter. Fix a porcelain lamp socket to the cage for the UVB bulb. Do all the electric wiring for the lights and heaters. Get someone who is good with DIY to do this for you, unless you are good at DIY yourself. Add substrate and decorations Add the correct type and amount of substrate. Add cage decorations such as rocks and pieces of wood. Make sure any logs etc are sterile and free of parasites.

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Supply appropriate size insects for your dragon to eat. Babies will eat small crickets, very small mealworms and small cockroaches. The size of the food will increase as your dragon grows. Adult bearded dragons will eat crickets, superworms and larger cockroaches. Bearded Dragons will also eat green leafy vegetables. Bearded Dragons are more than likely completely insectivorous in the wild due to the fact that suitable plant material would be scarce, due to the erratic rain fall patterns that Australia experiences. I therefore put more emphasis on feeding suitable insects to my dragon while still feeding some vegetables occasionally. This view is against most people who feed their dragons up to 80% vegetables. Plant material would never make up such a large part of a wild bearded dragons diet. There are pellets on the market specially formulated for bearded dragons. These pellets are made for both juvenile and adult bearded dragons. There are dead insects which come in tins and have to be put in the fridge once opened. Tinned insects are expensive and messy but can make up a part of your dragons diet. Feed babies every day. Juveniles should be fed every 3-4 days and adults twice a week Bearded Dragons have high calcium requirements and the food they receive in captivity can be low in calcium and thus a good calcium supplement is required. This supplement usually comes in powder form. Dust insects and vegetables with this supplement once a day for juveniles and gravid females, and two to three times a week for adults.
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Chapter 4 Chow Time

Bearded Dragons and all other diurnal lizard species require a source of UVB in order for them to absorb the calcium, this can be provided by a UVB bulb or access to natural sunlight. I personally prefer feeding mealworms to my dragon. I have had success using mealworms as the sole diet for frogs, salamanders, leopard geckos and bearded dragons. This is not recommended by most but it has work for me for and the animals in my care have never had any of the problems. You should feed mealworms sparingly as they can be fattening. Giant mealworms are very high in fat and I have stopped feeding them to my dragon. Crickets make a good diet but I am inclined to believe that they are not the super food they are made out to be. Silkworms are a good food item as are certain species of cockroaches. There are other great feeder insects such as: wax worms, tebos, horn worms and soldier fly larvae. None of these insects are available in South Africa. Flying ants can be fed when available as long as you do not live in an area which uses pesticides. Bearded Dragons will eat newborn mice these are called pinkies in reptile keeper slang. Pinkies are an unnecessary food item. Your bearded dragon can live its whole life without being fed pinkies. Your Dragon will not develop any health problems from being denied this food item. In fact the reason a lot of people choose bearded dragons over snakes is because they do not want to deal with feeding their reptile rodents. Do not feed your dragon food meant for humans such as chicken breasts, mince and cubed beef.

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In this chapter I will briefly list some of the health problems that can effect your Bearded Dragon. Please note that I am not a vet and am simply outlining the medical conditions so that you may be aware of them. Your reptile vets advice should always override mine or any other writer or keeper who is not a vet. Take a reptile vets advice over a vet who does not specialize in reptiles. Should your bearded dragon experience any health problems please take it to a qualified reptile vet. Some problems you can sort out yourself such as external parasites and shedding problems. Gut Impactions Gut impactions usually occur when your bearded dragon ingests an excessive amount of substrate. The dragon will accidentally consume the substrate when catching feeder insects. Substrates such as fine sand can pass through your dragon in small quantities. A good idea is to hand feed your dragon with feeding forceps. If you are not squeamish or scared of being accidentally bitten just use your fingers. A dragon with a gut impaction will stop eating ,become very lethargic and you will be able to feel the impaction as a hard lump in its belly. Take your dragon to the vet who will either give oral laxatives or remove the impaction surgically.

Chapter 5 Health and Happiness

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Wounds and Injuries from Fights Treat minor scratches or bites with an anti bacterial cream. For more serious injuries take you dragon to the vet for stitches. Some very bad fighting injuries may require a limb or tail to be amputated. Anti biotics may be needed to stop secondary infection. Shedding Problems If your bearded dragon has shed skin which will not come off. Soak him/her in Luke warm water to soften the skin and then peel it off. There are products that help your bearded dragon shed, they come in liquid form and you spray your dragon before, during or after the shed to aid in the shedding process. External Parasites The only external parasite you will encounter while keeping bearded dragons are mites. Prevention is better than cure, make sure all new dragons that you buy are free of mites. Make sure any natural cage decorations are from sterile sources and do not contain mites. The most effective cure is to use an anti mite spray. Spray your dragon and its cage with the spray.

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Metabolic Bone Disease This is severe calcium deficiency caused by improper UVB lighting, insufficient calcium supplementation and an incorrect diet. This disease cause decalcification of the bones and leads to bone deformities and sometimes death. This illness is preventable if you give proper access to UVB lighting via UVB bulbs or natural sunlight, feeding your dragon with the correct diet and providing calcium and vitamin D3 supplements. Internal Parasites Feeder insects can harbour internal parasites such as pin worms. Take your dragon to the vet once a year to be dewormed. Fatty Liver Disease Fatty liver disease is caused by overfeeding. As your bearded dragon gains excessive weight he/she will start laying fat deposits on its liver. This condition is fatal if not treated. Fatty liver is treated with force feeding ( bearded dragons with fatty liver will not eat) and weight loss. Liver tonic may be prescribed by a vet. Fatty liver disease must be treated by a vet who will show you how to force feed your dragon and monitor your dragons progress.

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Chapter 5 The Next Generation

Bearded Dragons are here to stay. They are tame, reach a manageable size are easy to keep and are affordable. Other lizards are on the market but are either expensive such as frilled lizards, grow to large size like green iguanas or aggressive an example being tokay geckos. Other lizards which are more suitable such as water dragons of basilisks are not very popular, this could be due to the price of these lizards. Chameleons are popular but require far more care than beardies and do not tolerate handling well. Various gecko species like crested geckos, fat tailed geckos and the ever popular leopard geckos make good pets but due to their nocturnal nature hide most of the day, unlike bearded dragons which are active when their owners are. Monitor lizards are expensive to maintain and can be aggressive and difficult to handle. Bearded dragons are easy to breed and have dropped in price rapidly over the years and small scale breeding is not a huge money maker. I think that colour mutations will enter the market in the near future as breeders and pet shops can charge more for them. Bearded dragons will remain with us for many years to come.

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Final Thought
Keeping reptiles of any kind gives you an insight into aspects of nature and animal behavior that you will never receive from a dog or cat. A true reptile lover will soon find that the appeal of keeping a bearded dragon is that you can observe its behavior on a daily basis. Day to day interaction with your bearded dragon is a positive experience. Bearded dragons have proven that reptiles are not stupid, I have found they have the ability to learn through association. Keeping a bearded dragon is a truly satisfying experience.

Enjoy keeping your new reptilian pet The End

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