Brumation Phases for Bearded Dragons

Unlike mammals, bearded dragons and other reptiles brumate. Brumation is a period of lowered body temperature and slowed metabolism that enables reptiles to survive cold weather and harsh environmental conditions. Bearded dragons in captivity may appear to be sleeping, but are actually just less active. It's unnecessary to brumate bearded dragons in captivity, and brumation can be a risky process, but lizards housed outside may need to brumate, and brumation can encourage breeding behavior. Bearded dragons housed indoors that have a cage near a window may sense environmental changes and begin brumating as the weather changes.

  1. Veterinary Exam

    • Prior to brumating your bearded dragon, take it to a reptile veterinarian to ensure it is healthy enough for brumation. A fecal exam is especially important because intestinal parasites can rob your lizard of vital nutrients during brumation. Bearded dragons under 1 year old should never be brumated.

    Before Brumation

    • In the wild, bearded dragons don't eat at all during brumation because food is not normally available. In captivity, bearded dragons may emerge periodically to eat if food is available. In both cases, however, they spend the weeks before brumation eating additional food to build up fat and nutritional stores. Feed your bearded dragon slightly more than usual and if it still seems hungry, give it more food. Be sure to dust food with a calcium supplement and provide your lizard with lots of access to natural sunlight or a UV bulb to prevent metabolic bone disease during brumation.

    Early Brumation

    • In the early stages of brumation, your bearded dragon will begin slowing down, showing less interest in food and spending more time on the cool side of its cage. If you want to encourage brumation, reduce the time your lizard is exposed to light by one hour every day until your bearded dragon is not exposed to light at all. Soak your bearded dragon in a lukewarm bath for 5 minutes each day while you are lessening the amount of light it is exposed to. When the lizard is no longer exposed to light at all, stop bathing it. If it remains dormant or lethargic, it has successfully entered brumation. If it appears to be trying to warm itself or looking for food, stop the process of brumation completely.

    Full Brumation

    • In the wild, bearded dragons can brumate for as long as six months. This is not safe for lizards in captivity. Give your bearded dragon six to eight weeks to brumate, then give it one more hour of light and heat every day until it has returned to its normal light cycle. Offer food as soon as you begin removing your bearded dragon from brumation.