Have you ever thought about owning a bearded dragon?
Ever since I brought in Solaris (my bearded dragon) into my life, I have learned so much about bearded dragon care. A lot of the information I learned has been a combination of speaking with other bearded dragon owners, the Reddit thread /r/BeardedDragons/, and YouTube videos.
The “best” lesson I learned from my research was training my bearded dragon to be potty trained.
Introduction to Potty Training Your Bearded Dragon
Whenever my fiance or I tell others that Solaris is potty trained, we always get the strangest looks. Potty-trained bearded dragons are considered weird because walking a dog or having a litter box for a cat is normal in pet-ownership; the idea of teaching your dragon to use the restroom outside of their tank is considered ‘impossible’.
However, if there’s any takeaway that I can give you off the bat, it’s that with a lot of care, patience, and dedication, it’s possible to train almost any domestic animal. They may not be as receptive or as consistent as teaching a dog a trick, but from what I’ve learned from the internet, animals are smart, and if they do pick up on patterns and repetition. I’ve heard crazy stories of people teaching their goldfish to swim through hoops, so if that’s possible, I’m not sure what isn’t.
Now, back on potty training, my baby bearded dragon, Sol.
Here’s Sol watching “Baking without a Recipe” during bath time.
How I heard about potty training a bearded dragon
Before we brought Solaris into our home, I spoke to my niece about her bearded dragon Luna. My niece had Luna for a few years and was the closest person to me to talk to about bearded dragon ownership. Some of the things she shared with me were things like purchasing a dragon from a Reptile Expo or certain foods that could severely hurt bearded dragons. Still, the piece of information I found most interesting was hearing how Luna was partially potty trained to use the bathroom, in the bathroom. Specifically, she had gotten Luna accustomed to handling her bodily needs in the bathtub.
When I got back home, that’s when I started to do even more research on potty training.
My go-to source for anything I’m not knowledgeable about is YouTube, so I searched for all kinds of bearded dragon videos. I watched videos about how to properly set up bearded dragon enclosures, the best types of bearded dragon diets, and other videos of bearded dragon owners sharing their experiences with the world about the good, the bad, and the interesting of bearded dragon companionship.
Getting your bearded dragon used to bathing
When we brought Solaris into our home, we got him used to the concept of frequent bathing. When we got him, he was about a month old, so we fed him daily, and we fed him lots, which meant that we also bathed him daily.
We would prepare his water to be warm and fill it up until it reached his elbows, then after that, it was just a waiting game. Sometimes we’d use a clean toothbrush and brush his scales; other times, we would splash water at him and see if that would encourage him to swim around (and it sometimes did!). We would also encourage him to drink some water by letting a few droplets fall on his mouth.
Eventually, he would use the bathroom, and then it was just a matter of taking him out, emptying the contents of the dirty bathwater into the toilet, and then giving him a rinse before wrapping him in a towel to take him back to his tank.
Learn the signs of when your dragon needs to go
Since we bathed Solaris every day, we initially did not know when Sol needed to use the restroom. We just assumed that since we fed him so much food, that food would need to go somewhere, you know?
However, with time, we learned that when Solaris needed to use the restroom, he could start to pace back and forth on the front of his tank. If we paid him no mind, he’d then get into scratching at the glass to make more noise and get our attention, and if we continued to ignore him, his final sign would be his beard (the scales on his throat) would get darker.
Now I’m not saying that every bearded dragon will display these signs or that these signs only mean that your bearded dragon needs to use the restroom. However, Solaris has found that this communication method has worked for the three of us, and we have a good success rate when it comes to making sure we get him where he needs to go on time.
My advice, pay attention to your bearded dragon. Each one has a different personality and an other way of communicating.
Be prepared for “accidents”
Potty training a bearded dragon is not a 100% guaranteed way to make sure you never have to clean the tank. You can’t expect always to be there when your bearded dragon needs to go to the restroom, nor can you expect your dragon to be still able to communicate with you effectively when he needs to go. We’ve all been in situations that when our tummies rumble, we gots to go.
When Solaris has needed to go, and neither of us were available, he’d go in his water bowl. We’ve gotten him used to the concept of using the restroom in a body of water, so there are times he’ll associate the bathroom with water and do it in the large water bowl we’ve provided for him.
Other times I’ve found that he’s had accidents in the front of the tank. Since he tends to pace in the front of his tank when he needs to go, that’s where he’ll go. I have a small removable flooring at the front of his tank for quick and easy cleanup for when that happens.
And for any other instances, having a wad of tissues ready to pick up the mess and a laundry machine to clean up any sheets or clothes is necessary. Just make sure you do it quickly cause bearded dragons don’t poop out rainbows and sunshine. It’s smelly and gross.
Would I recommend potty training your bearded dragon?
A hundred times yes!
Not only is it a fun random fact that I can sprinkle into a conversation whenever I talk about my bearded dragon that is sure to turn heads, but it’s also handy. I love the fact that while I do clean Solarius’ tank often, I don’t need to “spot clean” it due to ensuring that his business stays in the bathroom and not in his tank.
I also think that potty training my bearded dragon has given Solarius and us another way to bond. If we didn’t potty train Solaris, we wouldn’t have had so many fun moments of just messing around with him in the bath, nor would we be able to understand him when he’s freaking out inside of his enclosure. Potty training has given the three of us a way to bond and communicate.
Will there be accidents? Yes. But if you don’t potty train your bearded dragon, there will be accidents regardless, so I don’t see the problem with trying.
Can you do it with a bearded dragon of any age? I imagine that it’s quickest with a baby bearded dragon, but with that being said, I know of a TikToker who has taught her bearded dragon “Mochi” a lot more than potty training, and she got him when he was two!
Do You have a bearded dragon?
If you have a bearded dragon, please tweet at me pictures or cute short stories of your beardies; I’d love to see them! If you don’t have a bearded dragon, let me know what critter you have in your home.
