Moving water?

[Deerkota]

So it's said that bearded dragons don't really recognize still water, and I'm pretty sure my baby is one of those.
But what if I were to attach an air pump in a way to cause some kind of water movement, does anyone know if they'd be able to recognize and drink from something like that?
I already have an air pump so I'll likely try this regardless, I'm just curious if anyone else has tried that or something similar.

 

[Heyimbrit]

I was wondering the same thing. My babies love drinking water but they don't recognize the water in the bowl. I have a desktop fountain that I was considering putting in the cage to try out. I'm really interested in what people say about this.

 

[diamc]

It's true, not many beardies drink from standing water dishes. One thing you want to keep in mind is the humidity level in the tank because if it is too high, it can cause an upper respiratory infection.

I have had good luck with putting a temporary water dish in and then using a toddler sized plastic medicine dropper to pick up water and slowly drip it into the dish while my beardie is watching. Takes a few times of showing this but then my beardies run over & start drinking from it on their own.

 

[Taterbug]

I tried building a pond/fountain and found it was (in my opinion) too loud. I stuck my head in the cage when it was on and decided I wouldn't want to be traped in a room with the noise so I didnt want to make my dragon have too. Having the pump outside the cage with an air stone made too many bubbles and ended up being a huge mess.

Maybe a small air-stone on a valve with the pump outside the cage might work but the bubbles/spray might also encourage evaporation and increase humidity. Certainly would want to make sure you have enough ventilation.

I'm considering setting up a dripper like folks use for chameleons and having it drip into a shallow dish. It would work similar to the medicine dropped idea but automatically.

Water sources can be tricky as they need to be easy to clean to avoid bacterial build up and designed in a way your pet can't climb in and get stuck and/or drown.

 

[BadCon]

I too have often contemplated a fountain, but as already mentioned, it can significantly impact humidity levels. Bearded Dragons needs relatively low humidity, so care must be taken to avoid this.

That said, chronic dehydration is perhaps a more serious concern, especially for those animals that are not given baths on a regular basis and do not eat their greens. For these situations I considered using a water dish with a small aquarium pump on a timer. For a short time during the day, perhaps several times a day, it would cycle and create a running water effect that might stimulate the dragon to drink.

 

[Jroid33]

My dragon will just dunk his face in the bath and drink constantly for like 30 seconds then he stops :lol:

 

[yeohameow]

I know that this is from a year or so ago, but if your still around:
Did you try the pump? How'd it go?