Bearded dragons seem to be an active pet to have around, even though some reptiles have been known to be lazy. Being lazy is a common household term that can be used to describe the unwillingness to move or use of energy. Are bearded dragons lazy though?
Bearded dragons are not lazy, they are classified as active animals. However, there are times when a bearded dragon could be lazing about for a day or two. Nevertheless, if your bearded dragon is lazy all the time, then it could be an indication of health issues.
There is a difference between your bearded dragon being lazy and being lethargic. If it’s lazy, then there are things within your control to help your bearded dragon to regain its activeness.
However, if it’s lethargic, then it’s best advised to take your bearded dragon for a vet’s visit at the soonest availability as this may be lethal.
When Is It Okay for Bearded Dragons to Be Lazy?
Similar to humans, bearded dragons would also tend to be lazy from time to time. There are several instances when your bearded dragon would seem lazy and that is absolutely fine. Nonetheless, it’s crucial to make sure that your bearded dragon is indeed lazy and not lethargic.
Winter Season
The most common occurrence you would witness your bearded dragon lazing through the day is during the winter months. Although your bearded dragon is a domestic pet, its wild natured behavior is still very much intact.
Therefore, when the winter season arrives, your bearded dragon would slow down its movements. This is because, in the wild, bearded dragons would go into brumation to avoid the cold. Brumation is basically the cold-blooded version of hibernation.
So your pet bearded dragon would not be very active during this period. Hence, when winter has come and your bearded dragon seems to be lazing, don’t panic. This is normal seasonal behavior for them.
Dehydration
Bearded dragons need to be kept hydrated at all times for them to be at their best health. When your bearded dragon is dehydrated, it will lack the energy or mood to move about actively.
This would seem like your bearded dragon is lazy, but in fact, it’s not. Remember, bearded dragons are naturally active animals, thus if your bearded dragon appears lazy, one of the common reasons is dehydration.
Dehydration would cause your bearded dragon to appear tired or have a lack of energy. The best solution to dehydration is to immediately rehydrate your bearded dragon.
Dehydration is a common issue with bearded dragons in captivity. Consistent misting and bath in addition to regularly drinking dechlorinated water will help your bearded dragon to recover from it.
Lack of Heat
Bearded dragons are very sensitive to the temperature around them. For your bearded dragon to be able to perform its activities enthusiastically, it requires a high-temperature atmosphere.
If the temperature is not nominal for it, your bearded dragon would appear lazy. It is a common sight of bearded dragons being inactive in low-temperature surroundings. This is especially obvious during the cold season.
When the temperature of your bearded dragon’s surroundings is low, it would move less and appear less enthusiastic. In addition to that, your bearded dragon’s appetite would also reduce drastically if the temperature is low.
This also causes your bearded dragon to have less energy. Therefore, do pay close attention to the temperature of your bearded dragon’s enclosure.
The use of a thermometer is essential to provide your bearded dragon its optimum temperature. This would directly increase the mobility and energy of your bearded dragon.
Lack of UV Radiation
The importance of both UVA and UVB radiation to your bearded dragon cannot be stressed enough. UVA plays a major part in keeping your bearded dragon healthy, stimulated, and maintains its appetite.
Meanwhile, UVB assists your bearded dragon in breaking down and absorbing vitamin D3 and calcium from their daily diet. Nevertheless, if your bearded dragon lacks UV radiation in its enclosure, it would seem to be lazy.
This is because your bearded dragon might have an imbalanced appetite or lack of bone strength due to the reduced ability in absorbing calcium. Bearded dragons in the wild are often found in deserts, hence providing them with UV radiations directly from the sun.
However, captive bearded dragons are rarely receiving unfiltered direct sunlight. Thus, it is crucial for you to provide your bearded dragon with the UV rays it needs. The best way is through heat bulbs.
When Should You Be Worried of Your Lazy Bearded Dragon?
Even though there are times your bearded dragon could be lazy and it’s ok for it to be so. There are indeed small changes you could make to help your bearded dragon regain its activeness again. However, there are certain times when your bearded dragon being lazy relates to serious health issues.
In some instances, when your bearded dragon seems lazy, there could be an underlying problem that needs to be examined thoroughly. If proper action is not taken immediately, it could lead to your bearded dragon’s demise.
Impaction
Impaction happens when the ingested food has got caught in the digestive tracts of your bearded dragon. It occurs when your bearded dragon has swallowed a big portion of its meal. This has always been a major worry among bearded dragon owners.
Impaction is very dangerous for bearded dragons as it could lead up to choking. When a bearded dragon is suffering from impaction, it may seem to have stopped moving.
In addition to that, you would also notice it trying to drag its hind legs. This may seem like a lazy action from your bearded dragon at first but it is indeed an indication of a more severe problem it may be facing.
If you notice your bearded dragon seeming lazy and think it might be due to impaction, then immediately take it to a vet. Impaction can be fatal to bearded dragons if appropriate actions aren’t taken with urgency.
Parasites
Parasites living in bearded dragons are the number one enemy of their owners. If your bearded dragon is experiencing a parasite attack, it would automatically seem sick and lack movement.
Parasites would literally suck the energy out of your bearded dragon. Even though at the beginning it may seem like your bearded dragon is just being lazy, in due time you would come to realize that it’s actually sick.
As we are well aware, a sick bearded dragon would not move much and will seem lazy or inactive. Although parasite attacks on domesticated bearded dragons are not very common, the possibility of it happening is still there.
Usually, parasites tend to enter your bearded dragon and disrupt its system through tainted food or poor hygiene living conditions. If you suspect your bearded dragon is being lazy due to parasite infection, the best method to confirm it is by sending a stool sample to the vet.
Furthermore, a common indication of parasite infection in your bearded dragon would be an extremely smelly and runny poop that doesn’t contain urate. If you know your bearded dragon is under attack by parasites, immediately take it to a vet.
Stress
Bearded dragons in captivity are very susceptible to stress. Unfortunately, stress is also a very dangerous situation for your bearded dragon to be in.
When your bearded dragon is stressed, it will automatically be prone to remain in one position and move less. Sooner or later, this sign of laziness would lead to your bearded dragon becoming ill.
Hence, it is important to do everything in your power to avoid stress from affecting your bearded dragon.
Competition
Bearded dragons are lone rangers and very territorial. However, when more than one bearded dragon is placed in the same enclosure, the chances of a confrontation between the pets occurring is really high.
Like any other fight, there would always be a winner and a loser. When bearded dragons get into a fight, it won’t stop until one leaves or dies. As usual, the winning bearded dragon would conquer the territory and all the perks that come with it.
Unfortunately, for the losing bearded dragon, it would be suppressed to a small spot in the enclosure. In addition to that, a lost fight would also increase the stress level in your bearded dragon.
Limited to a small space and highly stressed, your bearded dragon would basically have very little movement if any. This may seem like your bearded dragon is being lazy, but it’s much more than what meets the eye.
With that said, please do not make the mistake of placing more than one bearded dragon in the same enclosure unless for specific reasons.
Can You Cause Your Bearded Dragons to Be Lazy?
There are several ways that you could unintentionally be causing your bearded dragon to become lazy. Believe it or not, there are several things that you as the owner may have done that have directly contributed to your bearded dragon becoming lazy.
Overfeeding
Who doesn’t enjoy a good munch? Like all of us, even your bearded dragon enjoys munching whenever snacks are served to it. It may seem fun to be able to constantly feed your bearded dragon snack, especially when there are guests around.
Rarely would your bearded dragon reject a meal. However, when your bearded dragon is overfed with food, it tends to become lazy. In addition to that, this also causes severe health complications for your bearded dragon. Hence, be careful not to overfeed your bearded dragon.
Hardiness
It is important to acknowledge that bearded dragons in the wild are hardy. This directly translates to bearded dragons having the ability to go a couple of weeks without food in the wild.
In the natural habitat of bearded dragons, food does not come easily. Even though captive bearded dragons are different from their wild ancestors, their anatomies are still pretty much the same.
Even after domestication, a bearded dragon’s body could easily go a few days without food. Therefore, if you feed your bearded dragon with proper meals on a daily basis, you might be overfeeding it.
It is recommended to attempt to skip a full day of meals for your bearded dragon every week to ensure you are not overfeeding it.
Lack of Fruits & Vegetables
Although the protein from live food is the most crucial ingredient in a bearded dragon’s diet, the inclusion of fruits and vegetables are equally important. Fruits and vegetables would help your bearded dragon absorb other nutrients that are needed by its body.
If your bearded dragon lacks greenery in its diet, it will be lacking the vitamins and minerals that come along with it. This would cause your bearded dragon to be less active.
In another sense, your bearded dragon would become lazy. Feeding your bearded dragon live protein on a daily basis would also lead to it falling sick.
Thus, be sure to include the necessary fruits and vegetables in your bearded dragon’s diet. A mixed diet with more greens to livestock would make the best diet for your bearded dragon.
Lack of Hunting
The biggest mistake many owners make that causes their bearded dragons to become lazy is feeding them immobile food. Although domesticated, the need to hunt is a crucial process in a bearded dragon’s daily life.
Hunting doesn’t just get your bearded dragon meals, it also ensures your bearded dragon is always on its foot and actively moving about. The need to hunt is very important for your bearded dragon’s health.
Unknowingly, in the intention to help your bearded dragon with its food, you might have been feeding dead insects or even food that no longer requires your bearded dragon to hunt. In the long term, your bearded dragon could even lose its hunting abilities.
Without the need to hunt, your bearded dragon would also start becoming lazy as the food is served directly to it. As a result, it will routinely become less energetic.
Why Is It Bad for Bearded Dragons to be Lazy?
Being lazy once in a while is all good, but being lazy all the time is bad for health. This statement is also accurate for bearded dragons. If your bearded dragon is lazy, then it will start leading to complications in its health.
Becoming Overweight
A lazy bearded dragon will start becoming bigger and heavier. This is mainly due to the bearded dragon not moving and the food it consumes doesn’t get converted and burned as energy.
Instead, the energy gets stored in your bearded dragon’s body as fats. As the bearded dragon increases in size, its ability to maneuver around would decrease. In addition to that, your bearded dragon would also avoid climbing.
All this would lead to many different types of health issues in addition to the build-up of stress. On top of that, your bearded dragon being heavy in weight and size will also reduce its lifespan. Sad but true…
Fatty Liver
Fatty liver is a serious health condition in bearded dragons. The significance of your bearded dragon experiencing fatty liver is made much worse by the fact that it is not curable.
Meaning if your bearded dragon is hit with fatty liver, there is no coming out of it. Fatty liver is caused by several reasons. The most common of that is laziness.
When your bearded dragon is lazy, the fat that is built up in its liver will tend to cause the liver to shut down if proper care is not taken. Liver failure in bearded dragons is very dangerous as it could lead to fatality.
How To Avoid Your Bearded Dragon From Becoming Lazy?
It is common for bearded dragons to get lazy in captivity as everything is given to them and there is no need for them to work hard for anything. However, there are a number of ways you could interfere in your bearded dragon’s laziness and make a difference in its life.
Out of Cage Walks
The easiest way to help your bearded dragon overcome its laziness is by taking it for a walk. An out of cage walk would be a great way to get your bearded dragon to become active again.
In contrast to the small space in its enclosure, your bearded dragon now has a vast space to explore outside its captive spot.
Let It Hunt Food
Food should not come too easily to bearded dragons even if they’re your pet. Bearded dragons enjoy hunting and being kept in an enclosed place domestically, hunting is the major activity your bearded dragon can still easily participate in.
If you were to remove this activity from your bearded dragon’s routine, be prepared for it to become lazy. Even if you realize your bearded dragon facing difficulties in hunting, allow them to attempt it.
Hunting takes up a lot of your bearded dragon’s energy. Hence, it is crucial to allow your bearded dragon to hunt its food from time to time.
Feed Appropriate Food
As previously mentioned, when feeding your bearded dragon, it’s important to ensure that the amount served is appropriate. Other than that, you should also feed them the right type of food.
Overfeeding is amongst the biggest cause of bearded dragons getting lazy. Furthermore, the right combination of livestock with fruits and vegetables makes a big difference to your bearded dragon’s energy.
Proper Enclosure
The need for a proper enclosure for your pet bearded dragon is very important. Having inappropriate settings in your bearded dragon’s captivity could cause them to become lazy.
The most important settings that your unopposed attention should be given to are the heat, UV radiation, lighting, and temperature of the enclosure. If any of these lacks, it could directly affect your bearded dragon’s movements and mood, leading to it becoming lazy.
Hence, be sure to optimize all the aforementioned settings in and around your bearded dragon’s enclosure. This will make a huge difference to how active or lazy your bearded dragon is.
Conclusion
Bearded dragons are not naturally lazy. They are active animals even though they have commonly been mistaken to be lazy.
Bearded dragons are active in the wild and this natural characteristic is transferred on even if they are held under captivity and domesticated. There are instances when a bearded dragon can be lazy and it is absolutely alright to allow it to be so.
In contrast, there are some instances whereby your bearded dragon’s laziness is an indication of a much serious underlying health issue that needs to be looked at immediately. In some cases, you might be the cause behind your bearded dragon’s laziness.
If that’s the case, then interventions should be carried out to halt that. Laziness in bearded dragons could lead to different types of health complications.
A bearded dragon is at its best and healthiest when it’s active. Try not to contribute to your bearded dragon’s laziness but instead, do want you can to keep it active as much as you can.
