Bearded Dragon

Bearded dragon hatchlings should be fed two to three times daily. Crickets are a good first food for the hatchlings. Size of the crickets is critical. Hatchlings should be fed 1/4 inch crickets or smaller until they gain a little size. Feeding prey that is to large for the hatchling may result in what is known as hind leg extension (partial paralysis). If hind leg extension occurs the animal usually will die. Finely chopped vegetables and fruits should be offered twice weekly and consists of the same salad mixture as the adults.

Make sure a shallow water dish is available at all times. Adult bearded dragons may be fed once daily. Their diet should be varied and may consist of crickets, Madagascan hissing roaches, king mealworms (zophobas) and newborn mice. Vegetables and fruits should be offered twice weekly. The vegetables and fruits should be chopped up and mixed together as a salad. Fruits and vegetables may include kale, collards, carrots, mustard greens, apples and bananas. Vitamin and mineral supplements should be added to the salad mixture. All prey animals should be dusted with a high calcium supplement.

A basking light should be provided at one end of the cage. The temperature at the basking area should reach 90 degrees F. There should also be a cooler area in the cage around 75 degrees F. Young Beardies under 10 inches in length can be housed in a 20gal long aquarium. This will last them for a few months
Exposure to natural sunlight, whenever possible, is important. Make sure the enclosure you provide outside for your bearded dragon allows for good ventilation so that the animal is not overheated while being exposed to sunlight. You should also provide a shade area inside the enclosure. Ideally exposure to the sun should be three times weekly with a minimum of thirty minutes each exposure. Indoor enclosures should have a high quality full spectrum light. These full spectrum lights do not however, take the place of natural sunlight.

For baby to juvenile Bearded Dragons I prefer and recommend newspaper,
paper towels, or butcher paper. These choices are cheap, easy to clean and hold no health risks to your animal DO NOT use sand, shavings or any other loose substrate for baby to juvenile Beardies. They can be very clumsy eaters and they are also very curious and like to taste everything. Any kind of loose substrate holds serious health risks to your Beardie. If they eat a loose substrate they can become impacted, which is a blocking of the intestines, and die.
If you intend to house hatchlings together it is IMPORTANT to maintain their feeding schedules, as they will not hesitate to bite a hand or tail of a cage mate when hungry.

This care sheet is made up from what we have learned from research and keeping these animals. This does not mean that this is the "Beardie Law" and the only way to keep and care for them. You are the one that ultimately decides how to properly care for your pet. We recommend that you purchase a book on keeping Bearded Dragons.