How to get my dragon to drink water

[opi]

My girl is 18 months, she is pretty healthy by most standards. However, I'm still trying to figure out how to keep her hydrated.

She will not touch the water in her tank, she hates baths, so the last thing her mind when she is in the bath is to take a drink. If I'm lucky she will eat her wet veggies when I first give them to her. I give her some fluids every few days with a feeding tube. I know it's nuts.... and I know, she is a dessert animal....but in her latest vet test, her urate levels were a bit high so, I want to make sure she is getting enough fluids.

Any suggestions, how do you get your dragons to drink water?

Thanks,

Opi

 

[Rozen]

I find that dripping water on there nose really helps. They love to lick it off!

 

[Embee]

She will not touch the water in her tank, she hates baths, so the last thing her mind when she is in the bath is to take a drink.

Many beardies do not drink, so no worries. This is precisely the reason it is so important to bathe them however, I realize that there is a certain amount of "tough love" that goes along with this. :roll: Beardies take in most of their water at the vent (where they poop), so a good 15-20 minute soak, 2-4 times per week in baby warm water is really all they need to remain properly hydrated. Well, that and proper tank temps.

One trick I've learned recently is to have beardie out of the enclosure for a few minutes BEFORE putting her into the bath. If she's directly out of her enclosure, going from the desert heat to the bath can seem jarring and she tries to bolt. However, if she's had a moment on my shoulder or looking out the window, she cools some, and then tends to calm in the bath as it's nice and warm and soothing.

As Rozen mentioned, a good supplemental hydrating technique is to put some drops on the nose or mist beardie lightly on the head, and she may take a drop or two that way, in addition to the bathing.

Hope this helps to reassure you!

The best,
Em

 

[opi]

I've tried waiting her nose, yes, that sometimes does the trick ( It depends on her mood).

Good suggestiong to take her out of her tank before placing her in her bath. I've never tried that, it makes sense to me. I will give that a try.

Thanks,

Opi

 

[GoFast]

I just splash the water a bit with my finger and E starts licking the water. I think he likes to chase the bubbles honestly. :lol:

Also, it is said that bearded dragons won't drink from still water in the wild so by splashing the water it gives it the effect of running water instead

 

[Roseman]

Both of our dragons will not drink water, but they will drink cranberry juice. They started by eating pellets soaked in the juice, with some of the juice in the feeding bowl.

 

[killjoy7]

My Topi doesn't 'drink' at all - but enjoys his bath. I do try to make sure that he eats freshly cut (and moist) slices of apple or squash/zucchini, before they dry out, which helps keep him hydrated naturally.

 

[sweetiepie9]

We go the bathing route, as out of the five we have, 3 will drink off their noses, the other 2 won't. So 15-20 daily for the juvies and every other day for the 2 adults. They also get salad that's wet and eat it right away. Also lots of squash. I've never managed to get any of our dragons to drink out of any type of still water. They don't have water in their tanks, but if they're shedding, they'll get extra misting during the day as well as a bath. Baths are good. My youngest male, Rubio, spends the whole 15 min bath blackbearding. So just keep at it. Keeping dragons hydrated is very important and will add years to their lives. So I'll stick to the bathes & water licking to make sure they're hydrated enough.

 

[Venom508]

i spray mine till its wet he loves it closes his eyes and all try spraying or misting they prefer to drink that way

 

[crazyerick]

My boy loves a good drink after a bath. I let the hand shower run very slowly with cold water in front of his mouth and he drinks away.