Bearded Dragon FAQ: Feeding & Care Questions

Babies up to about 3 months eat insects once or twice a day, juveniles from 4 to 11 months once or twice a day, and adults two or three times a week. Fresh greens should be offered every day at every age. As dragons mature, greens rise from about 20% of the diet to about 80%. Our feeding chart and insect calculator give the number of insects per feeding for your dragon’s age.

Yes, but only as a treat. Fruit is high in sugar, which can cause loose stools, weight gain and dental problems over time. Small pieces of berries, mango, papaya or apple once or twice a week are fine for most adults, and babies need even less. Remove seeds and pits. Leafy greens such as collard, mustard and turnip greens should make up most of the plant part of the diet, with fruit as a small extra.

Good daily staples include collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, dandelion greens, endive and escarole. Add smaller amounts of squash, bell pepper and green beans for variety, chopped small enough to swallow easily. Rotate several greens through the week rather than feeding the same one every day. Use spinach, kale and beet greens only occasionally, because in large amounts they bind calcium or can affect the thyroid.

Adults can eat a few mealworms as an occasional extra, but they should not be a staple food. Mealworms are high in fat and have a tough outer shell that is harder to digest, especially for young dragons. Babies and juveniles should stick to crickets, dubia roaches or black soldier fly larvae no bigger than the space between their eyes. Superworms are also best kept for adults as a treat.

Common causes are a basking spot that is too cool, weak or old UVB, stress after a move, shedding, brumation, and illness such as parasites or impaction. Check the basking surface temperature with an infrared thermometer first, then review lighting and recent changes. If a baby or juvenile refuses food for more than a few days, or a dragon of any age is losing weight, see a reptile vet rather than waiting.

A healthy adult can go a couple of weeks without food, and much longer during brumation, because it has fat reserves in its tail and body. Babies and juveniles cannot go long without eating, because they are growing quickly and have little reserve. Weigh your dragon weekly on a kitchen scale whenever it stops eating. Steady weight loss is a reason to see a reptile vet, whatever the season.

Growing dragons usually get a light dusting of calcium at most insect feedings, which can mean daily for babies. Adults get calcium on their two or three insect days. Use plain calcium at most feedings, calcium with D3 about twice a week, and a multivitamin once or twice a week, because too much D3 or vitamin A can also cause harm. The schedule generator builds a plan for your feeding days.

Yes. UVB lets bearded dragons make vitamin D3 in their skin, and they need D3 to absorb calcium from food. Without enough UVB they can develop metabolic bone disease, which causes weak bones, deformities and tremors. Use a strong linear T5 high-output UVB tube (about 12%) covering about half the enclosure and overlapping the basking spot, and replace it as the maker recommends, usually every 12 months, because output fades before the light looks dim.

Metabolic bone disease (MBD) is a group of problems caused by too little calcium, vitamin D3 or UVB, or the wrong calcium balance in the diet. Signs include a soft or swollen jaw, bumpy or bent limbs, tremors, weakness and trouble walking or climbing. It is common in dragons kept without proper UVB. MBD needs diagnosis and treatment by a reptile vet; adding extra calcium powder at home is not enough to fix it.

Brumation is a winter slowdown similar to hibernation. Adult dragons may sleep for days or weeks at a time, eat very little and stay in a hide, usually in autumn or winter. Before you let a dragon brumate, a vet check is sensible to rule out illness, because a sick dragon can look similar. Keep normal lighting and water available, let your dragon choose its activity, and weigh it every couple of weeks.

A black beard is a signal. It can mean stress, feeling threatened by another pet or its own reflection, courtship behavior in males, or discomfort from temperatures that are too low or too high. It can also appear when a dragon is unwell. If the beard stays black for days along with poor appetite or lethargy, check the setup, remove possible stressors and consider a visit to a reptile vet.

Sitting with the mouth open, called gaping, is usually how dragons release excess heat while basking, and it is normal for short periods under the basking lamp. If your dragon gapes constantly, even on the cool side, the whole enclosure may be too hot. Gaping together with mucus, bubbles at the nose or wheezing can mean a respiratory infection, which needs treatment by a reptile vet.

Babies shed every few weeks as they grow quickly; adults shed a few times a year, usually in patches rather than in one piece. Help by keeping humidity in the normal range and offering an occasional lukewarm bath. Never pull off skin that is not ready to come away. Retained shed on toes or the tail tip can tighten and cut off circulation, so check those areas after every shed.

It is not recommended. Bearded dragons are solitary, and housing two together often leads to one dragon dominating the basking spot and food while the other becomes stressed and stunted. Fighting, bitten toes and tails, and unwanted breeding are also common. Two dragons that seem calm together may simply show stress in quiet ways. Each dragon should have its own enclosure with its own heat and UVB.

An adult bearded dragon needs at least 48 × 24 × 24 inches, often called a 4×2×2, which is about 120 gallons. Larger adults do even better in a 6×2×2. Babies can start in a 40-gallon breeder, but they outgrow it within a few months, so most keepers buy the adult size from the start. See our enclosure setup guide for layout, lighting and substrate.

Aim for a basking surface of about 95–110°F, hotter for babies and cooler for adults, a cool side of 75–85°F and nights of 65–75°F. Measure the basking surface with an infrared thermometer rather than the air near the bulb. Our temperature and humidity guide includes a checker that tells you exactly what to adjust if any reading is off.

Adults usually reach 16–24 inches from snout to tail tip and weigh about 380–510 grams, with some larger bloodlines exceeding 600 grams. Most reach adult length around 12 months and fill out by 18–24 months. With good care, bearded dragons usually live 7–12 years, and some live longer. See our bearded dragon size chart for month-by-month ranges.

Occasional lukewarm baths can help with shedding and constipation, but they are not a main source of water. Use water shallow enough that your dragon can stand with its head well above the surface, about elbow depth. Always supervise, keep baths short, and dry your dragon before returning it to the warm enclosure. Clean the tub afterward, since reptiles can carry Salmonella.