Your Bearded Dragon Care Is COMPLETELY WRONG!

Today we're going to get a little controversial and discuss why I believe the way that we've been caring for our bearded dragons is completely wrong! Bearded dragons are a very common pet reptile, and so many of them end up with health problems like obesity which I personally believe is a result of a lot of misinformation surrounding how to properly care for these animals. In this video I'll share why I believe we are caring for them wrong, and how I think we can make improvements to our animals care and help them live a better life!

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Time Stamps:
00:00 - 00:56 - Intro
00:56 - 03:45 - Let's talk about bearded dragons
03:45 - 09:00 - Bearded dragons diet (it's all wrong)
09:00 - 10:48 - Picky eaters
10:48 - 13:29 - Exercise & activity
13:29 - 16:25 - Temperature (they're too cold!)
16:25 - 17:44 - Enclosure size
17:44 - 19:35 - They climb!
19:35 - 21:38 - Substrate
21:38 - 24:04 - Let's keep learning
24:04 - 25:16 - Outro

Reference articles:

#beardeddragon #beardeddragoncare #careguide

[EmmaLynneSampson]

I’ve received a few comments about the audio on this video with headphone users letting me know that the sound is only coming through the left headphone. So sorry about this!! I used an external microphone when filming this video and after looking into the issue and doing a few tests I realized I didn’t have my microphone plugged all the way in 🤦🏼‍♀️

[chelsegorn]

I had my beardie for 8.5 years, and I have something I learned to share: I put in a back wall with ledges in my tank and my beardie was like a kid in a candy store. He loved it much, and when I took him for a vet check, the vet said they hadn’t seen a beardie with such well developed back leg muscles before. It’s true, they really do love to climb.

[lemonlizard]

Hey there Emma, I really appreciate the video, but when looking into the study itself, it seems like there were a couple of variables that could change the diet requirements back to 70/30 or 80/20. Although the study came to the conclusion that a 60:40 ratio of bugs/veggies, it seems like they took that calculation based off of weight rather than volume. Since we feed our beardies based on volume, those ratios could shift a decent bit when applying it to the way we structure diets. The study was also recorded very shortly after the first rainfall, not allowing much time for veggies to grow in, and so, as a result, those seasonal changes also alters the animal's diet. The authors also noted that there was a recent boom in termite population, and since they're opportunistic eaters, they would naturally eat more termites, even if it is not the best for them. These small differences likely shifted the diet requirements a decent bit from what could be considered a good combination of a yearly diet (since a consistent diet that doesn't change ratios seasonally should take both winter and summer into account). Of course, a diet of 70/30 and 80/20 could still be off from what is best, but it likely is a bit closer than a diet of 40/60.

[danielballard]

Longtime Bearded Dragon keeper from central europe here and just stumbled over your Vid, Emma. My personal belief also based on my longterm experience is that the veggie / animal protein ratio needs to be more balanced but i do it rather like this: aways provide a bowl of fresh veggies (like plants that would always be available to them in the wild) but only feed twice a week animal protein (preferably dubia roaches).. this way if they get really hungry in between they can stuff themselves from the bow, but animal protein is strictly only given e.g. every wednesday and sunday (for adults! baby & juveniles need animal protein far more regularly for their growth).. mine are staying lean and agile and so far have been staying super healthy

[donnamcdermott]

I just got a baby beared dragon and I am trying to encourage her to trust all family members enough to roam around the living room freely when she wants to so shes getting some decent excerise and is still climbing and jumping and running around i don't want her to just live in her cage im hoping she will just see her enclosure as her burrow her home if she wants to be left alone and get some peace but she can come out and walk around as much as she likes also without the kids crowding her and making her scared shes getting there shes still only young 🥰

[HissNHer]

This is absolutely spot on. I feel like even if your animal doesn’t dig or use substrate it’s good to give them the option. It’s quite horrifying the amount of people who fall short on basic husbandry requirements such as enclosure size let alone temperatures.

[BBsBeasties]

Love this video!! So many important points made! I started feeding my BD 2-3 times a week a few years ago and it’s been fantastic! She eats every bite now and definitely seems way happier. And she’s also always preferred about a 110F basking spot over a lower temp, so I’m glad that was included!

[kristaduke]

I love your positivity in all your videos! I'm so glad you're back💕

[hannahtrent]

I got my bearded dragon as a baby in June 2019 and kept him on a zen-habitats mat for a while until I switched him to a bioactive setup after a test dig box. My boy loves to dig and has a burrow made to sleep in. The loose substrate was the best decision I've made for him and he enjoys taking chunks out of his cacti

[kaitlynwarren]

I really really hope someone out there is creating a diary of all their experiences and knowledge they’ve learned about reptiles while going through their life. It would be such a good read.

[tristan]

Exactly it's good to be open about new ways to care for our animals. I also agree that bearded dragons do need a good amount of space and enrichment to be happy and not board.

[TheBrewster]

Preach on the diet bit! I hate when people want to actually switch what the animal evolved to eat rather than just feed them less. Most notable with bearded dragons but I see it in other species as well. Tegus for example people push to feed mostly leafy greens as the plant base of their diet… in the wild they’re mostly eating fruit. “Leafy greens have less sugar so they won’t get fat”. No, if your lizard is getting fat just feed the lizard less, don’t change what it’s evolved to eat!

[cherylj]

Great, helpful video. I’ve been searching for this!

[kaitlynwarren]

I have been making a lot of these changes as well to my beardies care over the past 3-4 years and I have only noticed positive changes and I am really glad someone else has noticed that it’s not always good when dragons are over weight as well😅❤️thank you for bringing more awareness and information to the board!

[robertherman]

love what you have to say on this video. One thing you didn't really touch on while going over Diet and activity is enrichment. Yes, I think those three things need to be discussed together. I don't currently keep beardies, but something I do for my juvenile tegu is to let her hunt. I keep Crickets and Dubias in her enclosure nearly constantly. this allows her to hunt. When I started this I noticed a marked increase in her activity and she ate more of her vegetables almost from the beginning. something else I didn't hear you mention is that a basking spot can be ste higher in the enclosure. Putting a shelf or branch under to the basking light will allow for a higher temperature basking spot but a better thermal gradiant. As I said when I started this comment, I love what you had to say and am going to go check out your other videos.

[bluebug]

my beardie lives in a 4x2x2 but also free roams my room. I made my whole room beardie safe just for my lil guy. he has never pooped outside his cage which amazes me. i notice he is much more happier when he gets to run around in my room and bask as he needs!

[krittercandyexotics]

I've been taking a few days off a week for feeding for awhile now but didn't say anything in fear of judgement. It was truly what was best for us. She would get obese so easy- no matter how much I walked her, her being in a 4x2x2.5 with a ton of enrichment, her vet bill clean and healthy (besides weight), etc. We tried many different diets and the only thing that worked- taking food down to 3-4 days a week at a 50/50 mix of veg and bug. She's changed COMPLETELY for the better. She's like...kinda buff now 😂. She climbs EVERYTHING (why I added an extra 1/2 foot to height), burrows, plays. She's so entertaining now. Not just a spikey art piece anymore. I hope more people try this 60/40 thing and I'll maybe try a tad bit more bugs and less veg.

[lindad]

Pet stores are notorious for recommending incorrect care for many reptiles!

[avaogara]

good u addressing this.think lot of people don't do any research on their requirements n or husbandry etcetc
I don't own a beared dragon..but enjoy knowledge on them ..hope soon you do a video update on your ball pythons ❤❤❤

[ZoesZoo]

Lol YouTube's takeaway from the intro to this video was that I needed to see laptop ads 😂