How To Tell If A Bearded Dragon Is Dehydrated? | Dehydration In Bearded Dragons 2024

Bearded dragons are reptilians found in the dry and temperate areas of Australia. However, many households in our country have adopted these reptilians as pets. Since they come from diverse origins, it is necessary to understand how they function, and what they need to be healthy and happy. How to tell if a bearded dragon is dehydrated? Get to know this, and many other vitals right here!

Pet owners often worry if they would be able to care for their pets or not. It is natural since we all know what the usual pets are like, and these exotic creatures have different bodies, and their characteristics will always be unique. When you keep these bearded pets at home, you must know all about them to ensure that they grow healthy, and remain happy.

Bearded Dragon Water Requirements

Bearded dragons are programmed, or designed to survive in dry areas. These creatures can go for days without any water and they still remain active. However, how much water should they have on a daily basis? And in captivity, their requirements might change if the weather is different. A dehydrated pet can cause a lot of worries as it gets difficult to see them suffer.

So how much is acceptable and when does a bearded dragon become dehydrated? If your bearded dragon is having a little bit of water daily, it will not be dehydrated. However, if it goes for days without water, it may result in some prominent signs and bearded dragon behaviors.

How To Tell If The Pet Is Dehydrated

There are various ways to tell if your bearded dragon pet is dehydrated or not. You can check for the following signs to see if it is time to give them some water-rich vegetables and fruits to make them healthy again.

1. Skin Looks Loose And Dry

If you feel your bearded dragon regularly, you would notice that they have coarse skin and it moves with your hands. However, when the bearded dragon is dehydrated, the skin becomes easy to pinch, and when you pinch, it feels dry and stays in that position for some time. This indicates that the skin lacks moisture.

2. Sunken Eyes

Bearded dragons do not have popping eyes, even so, when they are dehydrated it will seem that their eyes are smaller and deeper in the skull. The bearded dragon will look as if it hasn’t slept well, and you may observe this as well because dehydration disturbs its sleeping cycle. The healthiest of bearded dragons can also become irate and awake for hours if their bodies are dehydrated.

3. Weakness And Laziness

If your bearded dragon is dehydrated, it will become weak and lazy. The lethargy from lack of water will also make it lose appetite. All these effects come as a domino effect from the lack of water! Bearded dragons will feel lethargic if they are not having enough water, and then they will eat less as well. This results in further weakness and it can be a dangerous state.

4. Constipation

The bowel movements in dragons stop as they do not consume water. As we mentioned earlier, when they don’t drink enough water, they stop eating also and this means that their bowel movements reduce significantly. We all need fiber and water to keep our bowel movements healthy. However, when there is no water in the system, the body becomes weak and since the food consumption drops, there is no bulk for the bowels to process!

Constipation can become a serious issue for bearded dragons because it can lead to impaction and drying of the intestines. Once this chronic stage starts, the dragons feel pain in their lower abdomen and gradually, they become immobile. The inability to move their hind limbs means that they will not even require more food and the situation will keep worsening until they become paralyzed. This stage then progresses into a state of depression and they can even die!

5. Missing Milestones

If your bearded dragon is dehydrated, it will not shed skin on time, will not lay eggs, or even show a desire to mate. When the water in their body systems is less, these dragons begin to miss the major milestones in their life. The skin becomes dry and flaky and will not shed as it normally does. On the contrary, dragons will become flaky and they will have patches of old and new skin. Also, find out Can Bearded Dragons Drink Tap Water.

What To Do If The Bearded Dragon Is Dehydrated

Pet owners must feed their dragon foods that have higher water content. You can even give them more water per day to ensure that they drink enough water and get hydrated so their skin begins to look normal and their activity levels also improve. When your bearded dragon consumes more water, it will feel energized and you can see them thrive.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much water should my pet dragon drink daily?

You can give your dragon around 20 to 30ml of water and leave it in the tank. This way, the pet can drink as much as it requires. Be sure to refill, or clean the water dish at least twice a day.

Will my dragon die if it doesn’t drink water one day?

Dragons can live normally if they miss out on consumption for a single day.

Conclusion

Bearded dragons can get dehydrated if they do not consume enough water. Watch out for the various indications that show that your bearded dragon pet has low water in the system. Take care of your pet by giving it enough vegetables and fruits that have a balanced water content.