Bearded dragons join Humane Society’s list

The Whitman County Humane Society has some unusual pets for adoption. Twelve bearded dragon lizards arrived at the shelter in July and nine are now up for adoption, according to Brittany Wiltz, humane society director.

“We helped a local family who had too many pets,” Wiltz said.

The dragons, or “beardies,” weren’t in the best of condition, most of them underweight, and one had to be euthanized. Some are missing toes and tips of toes because of the close quarters they were living in, Wiltz said. Two have since been adopted.

The dragons are very social and like to be held, she said.

“They are really docile and very friendly,” she said.

Wiltz said families often purchase bearded dragons as a first pet for children because of their friendliness.

The dragons vary in length from six to 12 inches and live from six to nine years. Wiltz said that it’s difficult to tell a dragon’s age or gender, but she knows that there are younger dragons along with more mature beardies.

She said that although dragons make good pets, they need lots of attention. All of the dragons are used to being handled daily.

Besides tanks, the dragons require a day lamp and night lamp, rocks and perhaps a pool. Their diet consists of fruits and vegetables as well as at least two crickets a day, she said.

Beardies shed their skins and if they don’t have a pool, they must be misted with water every day to keep their skin moist to make shedding easier.

Wiltz said that the dragons can be expensive at the beginning, but once established aren’t very expensive to keep. They don’t need annual veterinarian checks or vaccinations. They are used to living with each other so could be adopted together or separately.

Wiltz cautioned that if someone adopts more than one dragon, that they may eventually need to be separated. Some beardies can become territorial over time. If a dragon begins “nodding” or bobbing its head consistently at the other beardies, it’s a sign that a separate tank is needed. Displays like this are aggressive and mean that the beardie is warning the other beardies that it does not like them on its turf.

Wiltz said because of limited reptile supplies, the dragons won’t come with tanks or supplies when adopted.

All of the dragons are now in foster homes. For more information call the Humane Society in Pullman.