Beardie smell?

[Heyimbrit]

I talked to someone at the store today who was telling me about how they had a bearded dragon but had to get rid of it because of the smell. They said they had repti carpet that was cleaned everyday as well as giving the dragon a bath daily. They compared the smell to ammonia. Any ideas why this could be?

 

[kingofnobbys]

I'd guess the smell was coming from the carpet used as a bedding never drying out properly and being full of bacteria that use urates as their food source.

My beardies don't have much of a smell about them at all, except when they soil themselves by crawling through their food or their poo - easily fixed by giving a bath or washing their underside down with a damp bit of scot-towel or a flannel.

Personally - I wouldn't use any substrate or bedding that will hold moisture as it will also provide perfect breeding ground for bacteria as well as increasing the humidity inside the enclosure..