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Water Dragon Care

CHOOSING YOUR WATER DRAGON

Asian water dragons, also known as the green water dragon or Chinese water dragon, can make beautiful pets but they have specific care needs that must be met for them to thrive. Once they are used to your presence, they are generally tame and easily handled. While they occasionally fight among themselves or compete for superiority with cage mates, they are rarely aggressive toward human keepers. If frightened, they might give you an open-mouthed threat, which they rarely follow through on, or a light tail whip when picked up. If scared, they may turn dark or try to hide behind a plant or in their water, and they may still dash away.

COMMON HEALTH PROBLEMS

  • Metabolic bone disease/Nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism

  • Internal parasitic or bacterial infection

  • Vitamin/mineral deficiencies

  • Stomatitis (mouth rot infection)

  • Respiratory infection

  • Snout banging (snout damage/rostral rubbing)

  • Dystocia (egg binding)

  • Injuries, broken bones, or tail

  • Skin infections

  • Mites

  • Weight loss

  • Retained shed and spike damage

HOUSING

Asian water dragons are arboreal lizards, meaning they climb and like to be up high.

An ideal enclosure for one or more adult dragons should measure 6 feet tall, 3 to 4 feet deep and 4 to 6 feet long.

Keep in mind that water dragons don't seem to understand glass and often end up rubbing their snouts on glass walls, often permanently damaging their noses and lower jaws.

A good alternative is to find a large screen enclosure instead.

If the enclosure is large, damage from snout rubbing seems to be less of a problem. You can also try taping a visual barrier (such as paper or cardboard) around the outside bottom of the enclosure, so the water dragons can't see through. This reportedly can curb snout rubbing as well.

Natural, unfiltered sunlight is the very best lighting for water dragons and most other herps. Unfortunately, many people who own water dragons cannot provide natural sunlight at all. If you can, do so, especially if you can build an outdoor wire cage with plants and foliage for shelter, shade, and security. Never put a glass tank that contains a dragon - whether it's indoors or outside - in direct sunlight, as this could cause severe overheating and death.

LIGHTING

Incandescent basking lights can maintain proper cage temperatures, and their heat combined with misting can also help maintain humidity. Water dragons are diurnal lizards, meaning they are active during the day and sleep at night. The lights, therefore, need to go off at night. For this reason, a lightless heat source, such as a ceramic heat emitter for day and night heating might also prove beneficial. We recommend using a thermostat or rheostat control to safely maintain the needed temperature range. Daytime temperatures should range from 84 to 88°F, with a basking area of 95-100°F. Nighttime temperatures should range from 75 to 80°F. It's a good idea to have at least two digital thermometers in the cage, one in the cool side and one in the warm side of the enclosure. Improper temperature ranges can lead to a water dragon with a weakened immune system and inadequate digestion of nutrients due to slower metabolism.

Provide ultraviolet-B light (UVB) in the form of fluorescent or mercury vapor lighting such as Zoo med’s Reptisun 10.0 or Power sun Mercury Vapor bulbs. UVB is necessary for a dragon to absorb calcium and build strong healthy bones. Without proper UVB lighting, water dragons often develop nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism (also known as metabolic bone disease), which causes their bones to soften, bend and break easily. It can also lead to tremors, seizures, and death if action isn't taken to reverse the deficiency.

Your water dragon should have light during normal seasonal daylight hours. Use a timer to create a day/night cycle; it turns the lights on at 7 a.m. and turns them off near sunset, perhaps 7 p.m.

FEEDING

Water dragons eat a variety of live food items ranging from crickets, mealworms, king mealworms, waxworms, earthworms, grasshoppers, butter worms, locusts, feeder fish, pinkies and fuzzies. These should be dusted with Zoo Med Rep Cal (calcium supplement) daily except for once a week when you should use Zoo Med Reptivite. Make sure you use a supplement such as Zoo Med Reptivite which contains true vitamin A and not just beta-carotene to prevent problems with the eyes, mouth, and breathing.

 

Whole prey items, such as pinkies, fuzzies and feeder fish, are an important component of a juvenile-to-adult water dragon's diet. These items are high in calcium and other nutrients, and if offered to the dragon two or three times a week will help maintain a good bone structure.

 

Water dragons eat some fruits and vegetables. Offer finely shredded green leafy vegetables (kale, romaine, mustard greens, squash) and small chunks of fruit that have been dusted with Zoo Med Repcal (without D3) three times a week.

 

Water dragons can become picky eaters and may refuse to eat when they become bored with their food. This happens most often when an owner only feeds perhaps two types of food items most of the time. One way to combat boredom is to vary the diet by offering crickets one day, mealworms the next, earthworms the day after that, and so on.

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