Bearded Dragon Habitat

We are glad your interested in adopting a new Bearded Dragon into your home.  Now let’s make sure his new home is a happy place.

To start out with you will need an enclosure or cage for your Bearded Dragon’s home. An adult Bearded Dragon needs a 55-60 gallon aquarium while hatchlings may only need a 10-15 gallon aquarium. Once you have your aquarium you will need to fill it with substrate. Substrate to fill the bottom of the environment can consist of paper cuttings, astroturf or indoor and outdoor carpet. This video does a great job showing one way to set up a Bearded Dragon Habitat.

Your Bearded Dragons will also need some furniture for their environment. Bearded Dragons like to have a place to hide such as an empty flower pot, a cardboard box or another type of enclosure made specifically for reptiles. Branches work well for your them to bask and climb on. Make sure that your branches are sturdy and do not have any sap on them. Also find some smooth rocks for your Bearded Dragons to groom their toenails on.

You may want to add some plants to provide shade and humidity for your Bearded Dragon. Choose plants that are nontoxic and have not been treated with pesticides. Thoroughly wash your plants multiple times before adding it to your Bearded Dragon’s home. Plants not only provide moisture in the air and a place to get away from heat lamps they can also provide a sense of security and a place to hide.

It is important to keep your Bearded Dragon’s home at a temperature of 78-88° F. To do this you may need to use both a primary and secondary heat source. A primary heat source keeps the temperature constant most of the time while a secondary heat source keeps a certain area warm during the night when the heat lamps are turned off. You may not need a secondary heat source if the temperature in your home is warm enough that the inside temperate never reaches below 78°. For the primary heat source you should use a few incandescent lights of different types. You should provide your Bearded Dragon visible white light throughout it’s environment. If your Bearded Dragon does not get regular sunlight in a safe place outside you should provide Ultraviolet lights as well.