What Should You Not Put In a Bearded Dragon Tank?

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Bearded dragons, just like other animals, often require specific habitat conditions for healthy living and thriving.

As such, being cold-blooded animals, they usually require a unique atmosphere that would ideally simulate their desert-like natural habitats for optimal survival chances in a vivarium setting.

Therefore, just like other animals, they would require the appropriate space size, décor, temperature and lighting settings, beddings, among other essentials, to facilitate safe and healthy growth.

A bearded dragon’s layer should thus always strive to fulfill some if not all of the following specifications to guarantee the animal a peaceful existence.

 

Sufficient space

 

Bearded dragons are land-dwelling animals and, as such, are always accustomed to free movement and explorations of their habitats. Therefore, the beardies’ tanks should always come in appropriate sizes, preferably one that would comfortably house the animal to its full-grown length of about 2 feet while allowing for free turning and locomotion within the terrarium.

 

Appropriate lighting, heating, and humidity elements

 

These cold-blooded animals and natives of the desert climate usually require fairly adequate heat to maintain good health. As such, their tanks should always have temperatures between 75-85 degrees Fahrenheit during the day and 65-75 degrees Fahrenheit at night. You should also dedicate a basking spot inside the tank between 100-115 degrees Fahrenheit, much warmer than other parts of the tank.

The beardie’s tank should also have access to 12 hours of constant sunlight. You can supplement the light requirement by using UVA/UVB bulbs daily. This facilitates improved calcium processing by the bearded dragons.

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Finally, the humidity inside the tank should also be between 35-40%, as this is nearly similar to their desert habitat humidity. This will require setting up some ventilation systems in the tank.

 

Flooring options

 

This is always an important consideration as it would determine the health and comfort of the animal while also emulating a lifelike environment for habitation. There are two broad options to this, and they entail loose particle and non-particle substrates.

Use the former when keeping more mature and adult bearded dragons. They often prompt the manifestation of ailments like impaction, which could be fatal to the younger dragons.

These substrates include sand, gravel, and wood shavings, among others. The non-particle flooring with reptile carpets, newspapers, paper towels, among others, are usually most recommended. Indeed, they have no negative implications on a beardie’s health/life.

 

Additional decorations

 

The bearded dragon’s tank should also have some of the following major furniture to facilitate healthy living in the vivarium. They include:

 

Plants

These are encouraged as they complement the artificial environment by emulating a natural habitat. These could be natural or plastic plants. However, be cautious when opting for natural plants to ensure they are safe for the dragons on ingestion.

 

Hide boxes

These are also essential as the beardies love hidden/dark areas where they can hide from the heat and cool down. They should also be fairly large to accommodate the dragon for more comfort and security.

 

Basking and climbing structures

These animals often love basking in the heat or occasionally climbing on platforms. Therefore, the tank should have structures such as sizable rocks, tree branches/logs. You can even add hammocks for several vital purposes like receiving adequate heat and lighting.

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