How to Teach a Bearded Dragon to Drink from a Water Bowl

Co-authored by Anthony Menendez

Last Updated: November 25, 2024 Approved

Bearded dragons are lovely pets, but they can be very difficult when it comes to drinking. That's because they don't generally recognize standing water as something that will quench their thirst. However, they can learn to drink from water bowls if you can show them that the water is drinkable.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Using Flavor as a Lure

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1
Place a water bowl in the cage. You can buy a water bowl from your local pet store or make one yourself. Bearded dragons sometimes like to take baths in their water bowls, so make sure that it’s large enough for that.
- The water bowl should have sides that are low enough for the bearded dragon to be able to get into and out of the water dish.
- If making your own bowl, you can use the plastic container from a frozen dinner, which is the perfect size.
2
Add juice to the bowl. Once you’ve filled the bowl with water, add something that will entice the dragon to drink from it. Good choices are natural fruit juices, such as apple or pear juice. Add just enough juice to flavor the water and make it tasty.
- Make sure the juice is 100% juice and doesn’t have added sugars or artificial ingredients.
- You can experiment with different juices if the dragon doesn’t seem to like your first choice.
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3
Repeat the process until your dragon drinks. The sweet smell of the juice should lure the dragon to the water bowl. If it doesn’t, you can try adding a bit more juice to make the smell stronger.
- Make sure to replace the water and juice regularly, as dragons may defecate into the water even if they haven’t drunk from it.
- Replace with a juice and water mixture after cleaning the water dish if the dragon still hasn’t drank from it.
4
Replace the juice and water mixture with water. Once the dragon has realized that it can satisfy its thirst with the bowl, it will know to go there when it’s thirsty. From now on you can fill the bowl up with only water.
- Keep an eye on your dragon to make sure that it is in fact drinking.
- Bearded dragons don’t need very much water, so it may be hard to catch them drinking.
- A bearded dragon's water dish needs to be cleaned everyday, since they will often defecate in their bowls.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Misting the Water Bowl

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1
Give your dragon a water bowl. Water bowls are available from local pet stores and reptile shops. You can also make one yourself from a recycled plastic container, if you want. Fill the water bowl with water up to the dragon's elbow height.
- Bearded dragons often like to bathe in their water bowls. Make sure the sides are low enough that the dragon can get in and out of it.
- Frozen dinner containers make great water bowls for bearded dragons.
2
Fill a spray bottle with water. This can be any kind of plastic spray bottle. Fill it up with water that is room temperature. It should not be hot or cold to the touch.^{[1]
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- Make sure the water bottle is completely clean and doesn’t have residue from anything else, such as cleaning solutions. This can be dangerous for the dragon.
3
Spray the mist on the dragon’s bowl. Reach into the cage and spray a mist directly over the bowl. This will create a sort of rain effect. The dragon will see that it is raining into a pool.^{[2]
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- Humidity is important for the dragon for proper shedding, especially in the winter.
- Use the mist function on the spray bottle, rather than the narrow stream.
4
Repeat until the dragon will drink on its own. Do this each day until you have noticed the dragon drinking water on its own. Once the dragon understands that the water bowl is for drinking, it will now go there without you needing to spray water on it.^{[3]
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- Bearded dragons may defecate in their water bowls, so it's very important to clean their bowls everyday so they don't get sick.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Giving the Dragon a Bath

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1
Make sure your water bowl is the right size. This is extremely important. If the dragon’s water bowl is not big enough, it will not recognize the bowl as something that it can bathe in. Make sure the bowl is full of fresh, clean water.^{[4]
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- A dish from a frozen dinner is the perfect size for a bearded dragon to bathe in. It's also easy for the dragon to get in and out of.
- You can buy special reptile water bowls at your local pet store.
- Fill the bowl with water up to the dragons elbows.
2
Pick up your dragon. To pick up your dragon, place your hand under its abdomen and simply scoop it up. Curve your fingers around its abdomen so that it feels secure.^{[5]
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- Be gentle and move slowly, remembering that you’re much larger than your dragon.
3
Place the dragon in the bowl. Slowly place the dragon into the bowl of water. It should be willing to lie in the water and enjoy the feeling of getting a bath.^{[6]
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- Make sure the water is not hot or cold to the touch If it’s too hot, the dragon will try to get out the water.
- You can put a piece of cloth on the bottom of the bowl for traction. This can comfort dragons who are uneasy about baths.
4
Sprinkle water on the dragon if necessary. Your dragon may still not understand that the bath water is also for drinking. Splash a little bit of water from the pool onto its nose and head. The dragon may drink some of this water if it’s thirsty.^{[7]
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- Repeat this step if necessary. Ideally, the dragon will see the water being splashed from the bowl and will associate the moving water with the pool.
5
Clean your dragon if necessary. If your dragon is dirty or has feces on its body, let the dragon soak for 10-15 minutes and then scrub it gently with a soft bristled tooth brush.^{[8]
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- Dry the dragon off thoroughly after the bath.
- Clean the water bowl very well each day. Many dragons will defecate in standing water, and drinking from this dirty water can be bad for their health.

Expert Q&A

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Can bearded dragons drink from a bowl?

Anthony Menendez
Reptile Expert & Animal Sanctuary
Anthony Menendez is a Reptile Expert and Founder of Shadow's Reptiles. Anthony founded Shadow's Reptiles in 2018, starting as a small tortoise breeder in Miami, Florida. He quickly gained traction on social media and started taking in mistreated and unwanted reptiles. Shadow's sanctuary has turned into a haven for more than just reptiles and has taken in a variety of birds, amphibians, invertebrates, and mammals like prairie dogs, sugar gliders, lemurs and more. Anthony also does educational shows for schools and children’s birthday parties to spread love and awareness for animals.

Anthony Menendez

Reptile Expert & Animal Sanctuary

Expert Answer

Definitely! If your bearded dragon doesn't seem interested in drinking from the bowl, get some type of container and pierce a tiny, needle-sized hole into it that'll drip a little bit of water into their water bowl. This creates ripples and movement in their water, which attracts them to the water and gives them a higher chance of trying to drink from the bowl.

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If you suspect that your dragon isn’t getting water, flick some onto its face and see if it drinks. If it does and seems thirsty, it might not be drinking from the bowl on its own.

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You can use a dropper to water your beardie, just drop a drop of water at a time on his head and he will lick it off of his face.
Try using a reptile-specific water bowl. Reptile bowls will prevent the bowl from tipping over if he/she puts their hands on it.

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