FOOD & WATER
Live food can consist of crickets, assorted types of comercially-raised worms and assorted types of commercial roaches. The reason I stress commercially-harvested live food is because of the abundance of chemicals used in real life. These are deadly to our pets! All live food when brought home should be placed in some kind of container and it also must be fed. This is what is called "gut loading" and everything your live food eats, your dragon will be eating also. So its important to make sure you give your new pet the best shot at good health.
The colors and health of your lizard depend on good heat, bright light and UV. Your lights should be on a cycle of about 10-12 hours on, in the summer and 8-10 hours in the winter. We prefer to have them simulate the outdoor environment as closely as possible. You can regulate the lights with a simple timer.
All cages or enclosures must have the heat bulb as well as a seperate UVB bulb. The UVB rays are very important as the dragon uses these rays to digest its food. These bulbs need to be replaced every 6-8 months even if still working, as the UVB rays diminish over time.
Make sure a shallow water dish is available at all times. Alot of dragon breeders don’t use water dishes at all. They insist that the dragons get enough moisture from the veggies and the crickets. But I believe that the water dish serves many different functions. First off, even in the desert, these creatures find water. Even if its just digging deap enough to find damp cooler sand. Mine not only play in the water, they use it to regulate their temperature, soften shedding skin, and many use the warm water as a bathroom. One of my females hates to be dirty and actually uses the water dish so much that her tank has a much larger dish than any of the others.
Vegetables should be offered at all times. The vegetables and fruits should be chopped up and mixed together as a salad. Fruits (on occasion) and vegetables may include ground legumes, corn meal, carrots, sweet potatoes, collard greens, mustard greens, broccoli, spinach, apples, oranges, cereals, rolled oats, kale, and most other leafy veggies. However, don’t give too much spinach because this veggie binds the calcuim. Vitamin and mineral supplements should be added to the salad mixture. All prey animals should be dusted with a high calcium supplement. Make sure that all live prey is removed before lights go out.
Most bearded dragons are healthy. They are a hardy lizard that can live ten or more years. Even with proper care your pet may become sick. It is important to find a reptile veterinarian before an illness occurs. I recomend that you take a fecal sample to your vet as soon as you get the impression that something is wrong.
