Keeping a pet bearded dragon has become very popular over the last couple of years due to there being so many popular videos on social media showing just how cute and quirky beardies can actually be.
With so many people being new to caring for a bearded dragon, we see a huge number of different questions being asked all the time and a number of people have been asking if bearded dragons can drink too much water recently.
Bearded dragons can consume too much water with this being a relatively common issue as many bearded dragons consume a large amount of their water intake in their food rather than actually drinking it.
This can result in your bearded dragon having too much water in it in some cases and potentially result in some serious health issues in the long term if this problem persists over a long period of time.
Due to the hydration levels of your pet bearded dragon being so important and an area that many people have issues with, we have decided to publish this dedicated article on the topic to try and help as many of our readers as possible.
Can Bearded Dragons Drink Too Much Water?
Although it is rare that a bearded dragon will drink too much water, they can commonly drink and eat too much water if you feed your pet beardie foods such as grapes or cucumber on a regular basis while also offering a drinking bowl of water.
The issue is that some beardies can enjoy drinking water from their water bowl but also love the tastes of some foods that are high in water, especially grapes.
This can result in your bearded dragon having too much water in its system due to not being able to detect the increase of water from the grapes until it is too late.
Thankfully, if this is only a rare occurrence, the only real issue that you can expect is the appearance of your pet bearded dragon choking on water when it next drinks from its water bowl.
It is rare that you will end up having any serious issues with your beardie drinking too much water if it only happens on occasion and if this is due to the addition of cucumber or graphs in your beardies diet, simply removing them is often a quick and easy fix.
If you are ever in doubt about the health of your pet bearded dragon then we would highly recommend that you take it to a veterinarian for a full check up as soon as possible to get some professional advice.
How Much Water Should A Bearded Dragon Drink A Day?
There is no set amount of water that a bearded dragon requires each day and the average bearded dragon’s water intake can vairy wildly over the course of a month for a number of reasons.
We often see people on social media quote the “10-30 ml of water per kilo of bearded dragon weight per day” figure but this is from a dated research paper and has been proven to be incorrect.
Although some bearded dragons may drink within this water range per day, the range is huge when you think about it offering a 200% increase from the lower bracket to the upper bracket.
Some bearded dragons will drink less than this where as some will drink more and both are considered health in certain situations.
For example, some bearded dragons drink less when they shed or are ready to brumate and some bearded dragons will eat many foods that are high in water and not drink much water at all.
With some bearded dragon diets, it can be considered totally normal for that bearded dragon with that particular diet to never drink water due to eating so much food that is high in water content.
This is why we recommend a check up with your vet if you are in doubt about your bearded dragon’s water intake as a quick health check will be able to give you an idea if your bearded dragon is over or under hydrated.
Can Bearded Dragons Throw Up From Drinking Too Much Water?
In some situations, if a bearded dragon has drank too much water or eaten too many foods that are high in water your beardie may start throwing up or blowing bubbles.
There are a number of other things that can cause this in your pet bearded dragon though so too much water is not the only issue.
As we covered in our article on bearded dragons eating grapes, various types of grapes are a very popular treat food for bearded dragons and due to how cheap they are and their availability, they are commonly used within a bearded dragons’ diet.
The issue is that they really should be used in moderation and in many bearded dragons’ diets, they should only be used as a part of one meal of the week. Anything more than this can cause issues with an increase in water and sugar in your bearded dragon’s diet and cause issues.
Both of these issues can cause your bearded dragon to throw up with other potential health conditions being less common and they are so easy to avoid so always plan out your bearded dragon’s diet correctly!
Alternative Methods To Hydrate A Bearded Dragon!
Some bearded dragons really don’t like to drink water and will prefer to get their water from their food with this being considered normal and natural in some beardies.
If you do have a bearded dragon that doesn’t like to drink its water intake then there are a number of suitable foods that you are able to use to get your beardie to drink its water intake instead.
In our opinion, the four best options are:-
- Cactus Pads
- Cucumber
- Grapes
- Strawberries
The actual water content of these foods are displayed below to give you an idea of just how good they can be as an alternate water source for your pet bearded dragon.
Just keep in mind that these foods are a double edged sword can they can easily lead to a bearded dragon having too much water in them if they are overfed to a beardie, especially one that drinks water from a water bowl without issue.
We feel that cactus pads are probably the best option as they tend to be easier to fit into a bearded dragon’s diet due to their macronutrient breakdown being much better for bearded dragons.
You can include cactus pads in some bearded dragon salad recipes too with minimal issues and our article going over how to make a bearded dragon salad goes into far more detail on this.
Our infographic below goes over how you can help to stop your bearded dragon by drinking too much water by limiting the water in your bearded dragons water bowl to try and get it to drink more water but some of these foods do need to be used in moderation.
Should You Leave Water In Bearded Dragon Tank?
The vast majority of bearded dragons should have constant access to fresh drinking water in their aquarium so you should leave some water in your bearded dragon’s tank if possible.
If your bearded dragon does have a tendency to drink too much water then you can limit the available drinking water in its water bowl, especially if it has a diet with lots of foods that are high in water in it.
We know that this can be a delicate balancing act but for the most part, a bearded dragon should always have access to clean drinking water.
