 |
 |
As with most species; including ourselves sleep is extremely important to our overall health. This is also very true with Bearded Dragons (and other
reptiles).
I get many emails and phone calls from worried reptile owners wondering whats wrong with their Bearded Dragon.
He/she won't eat well, looks lethargic, just overall isn't thriving well. One of the first questions I ask is "What time do you wake your dragon up and what
time do you put them to bed"?
Many times the responses surprise me. Getting your dragon up at 6:00 am and putting them to bed at midnight is unacceptable! You are
unintentionally harming your pet. After all they aren't the energizer bunny. It's no wonder the dragon isn't doing so well.
Bearded Dragons require10-12 hours of sleep at night. I know you are thinking.... If they are tired why don't they just fall asleep? In most cases they
simply can't. Their world is dictated by a light cycle and if their light is on it's telling their body they need to be awake. Not to mention the light simply
disturbs them making it impossible to sleep at all or properly and peacefully.
I know many of us lead very busy lives and you try to put your dragon on your schedule - but it really doesn't work and it rocks their health to the core.
If your schedule makes it impossible to give your dragons proper sleep and day time hours then a timer is in order. You can pick these up fairly cheaply
at any hardware or department store. This will eliminate alot of stress off your shoulders and your reptile as well!
Pogona Vitticeps (Bearded Dragons) require predictability and a schedule they can rely on. When they don't have this it puts so much stress on them.
When a dragon is stressed it allows opportunistic bacteria & parasites to thrive because the natural fauna in their bellies has gone down making it
impossible for your dragon to fight these things off... Hence they feel worse - then a trip to the vet is in order to get a fecal and medication! Voilà! You
have a vicious circle on your hands - not to mention money that didn't need to be spent. Is it worth it to keep your dragon up all hours of the night?
Give your reptile everything it needs - this includes a good nights sleep.
reptiles).
I get many emails and phone calls from worried reptile owners wondering whats wrong with their Bearded Dragon.
He/she won't eat well, looks lethargic, just overall isn't thriving well. One of the first questions I ask is "What time do you wake your dragon up and what
time do you put them to bed"?
Many times the responses surprise me. Getting your dragon up at 6:00 am and putting them to bed at midnight is unacceptable! You are
unintentionally harming your pet. After all they aren't the energizer bunny. It's no wonder the dragon isn't doing so well.
Bearded Dragons require10-12 hours of sleep at night. I know you are thinking.... If they are tired why don't they just fall asleep? In most cases they
simply can't. Their world is dictated by a light cycle and if their light is on it's telling their body they need to be awake. Not to mention the light simply
disturbs them making it impossible to sleep at all or properly and peacefully.
I know many of us lead very busy lives and you try to put your dragon on your schedule - but it really doesn't work and it rocks their health to the core.
If your schedule makes it impossible to give your dragons proper sleep and day time hours then a timer is in order. You can pick these up fairly cheaply
at any hardware or department store. This will eliminate alot of stress off your shoulders and your reptile as well!
Pogona Vitticeps (Bearded Dragons) require predictability and a schedule they can rely on. When they don't have this it puts so much stress on them.
When a dragon is stressed it allows opportunistic bacteria & parasites to thrive because the natural fauna in their bellies has gone down making it
impossible for your dragon to fight these things off... Hence they feel worse - then a trip to the vet is in order to get a fecal and medication! Voilà! You
have a vicious circle on your hands - not to mention money that didn't need to be spent. Is it worth it to keep your dragon up all hours of the night?
Give your reptile everything it needs - this includes a good nights sleep.
Written by: Robin Moniz 2007
 |  |  |  |  |  |  |