or glass tanks. Advantages of bare floors include easy cleanup, easy stool monitoring, a lack of hiding places for crickets, a minimal risk of impaction, and less intensive overall maintenance. Bare-floor enclosures are easy to empty of landscape structures and can be moved outside for washing with a garden hose and disinfecting. A disadvantage is that a bare floor requires regular wiping. As the dragon grows larger and messier, the bare tank becomes unattractive and tedious to clean. With larger animals, the hard, smooth floor surface can also lead to overgrown nails (unless trimmed) and bent toes.
Newspaper: This is the substrate most recommended for quarantine and treatment of sick animals. Newspaper is cheap, readily available, easy to replace, and well suited for examining feces. Many specialists recommend newspaper for initially raising babies because it allows monitoring of stools and eliminates any risks of impaction. The downsides are that newspaper is visually unattractive, and regular or daily replacement can be labor intensive. If used with adult dragons on a long-term basis, there is a risk of overgrown nails and bent toes. If you are going to use newspaper, print-free newspaper is the best option and is readily sourced locally or online.
Sand: There are many different types and colors of sand available. It is better to stay away from sand during the juvenile stage. Many breeders still use silica-based play sand but, in my opinion, scooping through sand to remove feces day after day leaves one thing at the very least: bacteria. Add in leftover bits of greens baking in the 100-degree basking area, and you get a bacteria-laden environment. And, let’s face it: no matter what kind of sand you use, it will stick to greens, veggies, and feeder insects. Intestinal impaction from sand ingested in this way is likely to occur. Additionally, there are instances of a bearded dragon’s eyes swelling from sand particles that have made their way in.Additionally, there are instances of a bearded dragon’s eyes swelling from sand particles that have made their way in. If you must use sand, the least harmful of those we tested was white Repti-Sand by Zoo Med. It will still stick to the greens somewhat, but because it is almost dust-free and the particles very fine, there were no issues with the dragons’ eyes swelling, as we’ve seen with other types. We also had no issues with impaction. I would still limit this sand to adult enclosures only. Logically, adults have larger intestines and thus a better chance of passing ingested particles.
Paper towels: We use “select-a-size” paper towels for all of our babies. It is easy to keep clean. To feed, we remove the towel and then replace it after pulling uneaten prey. It is a semi-alternative to No Substrate and keeps the baby environment very clean.
Reptile carpet: You can use reptile carpet as long as you change and wash it daily. Select a light color that the dragon will not mistake for food. We found that when bearded dragons are placed on dark carpets, they tend to dull in color; light gray seems to work well. Replace the carpet as soon as it the carpet loops start to loosen because the dragon’s nails can get snagged in the loops, and the dragon can do itself serious harm trying to get the entangled toe(s) free. Loss of toenails, or worse, can result.
Sandy soil: Mixes of sand and soil work well with bearded dragons in outdoor enclosures; in outdoor setups, natural soils make up the floors of most screen houses and greenhouses. As with sand-only substrates, spot cleaning is easy. Sandy soil must be replaced on a regular basis. A problem with soil is that it can make dragons’ colors appear browner and less colorful over time. Dust is also a problem.
Landscaping
Many new owners make the understandable error of not including climbing areas in their adult bearded dragons’ enclosures. This not only limits the space available for the dragons’ activity but also makes for dull displays.
Remember, in Australia, beardies are often seen on the tops of fenceposts and railings, and you can reproduce these perching sites in captivity for adult dragons. By adding large pieces of driftwood, cork bark, or imitation rocks, you’re providing your dragon with raised areas that make ideal basking sites; most hobbyists design their enclosures so that an elevated area is located under the basking light.
The down side of driftwood and cork is that feeder insects can wedge themselves into the natural cracks and lines or underneath, where the dragon cannot find them. They are also somewhat tedious to disinfect. We prefer low, flat rock-replica shelves and ledges, which are long enough for an adult dragon to stretch out on and are easy to clean.
Provide at least one raised site per enclosure, and maintain at least two-thirds of the floor surface as open space. Adult bearded dragons also enjoy shelters for sleeping at night or for brumation (shutting down) during the winter rest period. You can add suitable shelters when the time for brumation is approaching.
Plants
We have received many inquiries requesting suggestions for plants that are well suited for bearded dragon setups. Popular vivarium plants, such as pothos or Chinese evergreen, become quickly crushed, nipped, trashed, and dried out in a bearded dragon setup, and only a few plant species are tough enough to hold up to bearded dragon abuse indoors. Our top choices include ponytail palms (Beaucarnea recurvata) and snake plants (Sansevieria spp.), particularly the tougher ones with thick or cylindrical leaves that are better adapted to arid conditions.
With indoor setups, it is better to place plants in pots buried in the substrate rather than planting them directly into the substrate. This makes watering possible without wetting the entire setup and helps reduce water loss to the surrounding substrate. It also allows easy removal and replacement of plants as needed.
In terms of design, larger plants are best placed toward the back of the vivarium and smaller ones at midlevel to provide a sense of balance. Generally, placing plants at the base of landscape structures such as rocks or wood will have an attractive natural effect. Remember, though, that plants in an enclosure may look appealing to you, but they limit the dragons’ floor space and must be placed carefully (or not included in the enclosure at all).
Once you introduce plants, monitor your dragons closely. Destructive activities such as climbing (which can break branches and topple the plants over) and attempting to eat plants (which damages or destroys the plants) tend to occur early on as the dragons explore the new items in their space. Your observations should provide you with guidelines for plant placement and selection.
An elaborate setup requires more work to maintain and can cause a dragon, especially a young dragon, stress.
Enclosure Maintenance
It is important to monitor your bearded dragon daily to evaluate its attitude, condition, and health and to make sure that the enclosure is meeting your dragon’s needs. Bearded dragons are active lizards that eat large amounts of food and consequently defecate correspondingly large amounts. In short, they tend to be messy. For this reason, regularly maintaining the enclosure is a must. With adult dragons, this means regularly scooping fecal material from the substrate or, better yet, using a substrate that can be frequently changed, such as print-free newspaper or paper towels, which should be changed every day.
In addition, if you keep water in the enclosure, you should replace it at least every day—more frequently if the dragons soil the water or the container. Wash and disinfect the water container regularly with a 1:10 bleach-to-water solution (using regular-strength bleach) to remove accumulating bacterial slime and traces of feces;
