Hi - We are first time reptile owners so any help is much appreciated! Our male bearded dragon is 1 1/2 years old. We have had him for four months. We picked him because he was friendly and liked being handled, and when we take him out he seems happy enough -he will sit on our chests or knees, he will run around a little, and will sit on the window sill when we place him there. We give him a bath once a week - which he seems relaxed in. But when we put him back in his enclosure after being out he will hide in his cave for the entire next day. Is this normal behavior or are we doing something wrong? This has been discouraging us from taking him out so now it is down to only twice a week or so.
It could be stress but if he is acting normally and exploring a bit while he is out, perhaps he just wants to be in a more secure/enclosed spot for a while. From your description it sounds like being out isn't causing him stress so my guess is that it's coincidental. You might consider building a hide for him outside of his enclosure (As well as a basking spot) and see how he reacts to that.