# Keeping/raising Eastern Water Dragon questions



## mudgudgeon (Dec 31, 2010)

Hi All,

I will soon have some baby Eastern Water Dragons

I have some questions,

what is needed to keep them indoors? I have an empty aquarium I can use, what else is needed. ie light? heater? water? plants?

Where in Sydney can I purchase lights, thermostats etc?

what is suitable food for them? I can source live crickets and worms fairly easily, what else can I use

any comments, suggestions appreciated

cheers

David.


----------



## AaronR (Dec 31, 2010)

Hi, you need to have trhe relevant license to hold EWD's having said this if you want to look after them for a month or so nothing i can say or do will change that but as hatchies I would provide them water and land not a deep water bowl until they are a couple of weeks old. feed them crickets woodies snails as long as you dont use snail bait etc, but also offer them some greens (lettuce, pea etc) they will deficate in the water so either clean it regularly or purchase a good filter, avoid harsd food like carrot and also avacardo. dog food is also good for hatchies.
For the set up they like to have branches etc above the water level so they dive straight in if they want to.
Also be aware they are bloody good actors as in play dead very very well I hope this helps but please realise what you are doing will be illegal


----------



## mudgudgeon (Dec 31, 2010)

Thanks Aaron.

what is required to get a license? What dept provides licenses?

---------- Post added 01-Jan-11 at 08:42 PM ----------

Ok, I found the info about licenses etc. Anyone else have comments, suggestions?


----------



## hurcorh (Jan 2, 2011)

alrighty, for the enclosure, make sure there is always a supply of clean fresh water that you change regularly. they mainly poo in the water so make sure it is always changed. heating, i use a ceramic heater with a thermostat. lighting. u need a 5 rating uva uvb light which helps in bone development and digestion. u can get from most pet shops. plants is not a big issue. dont try live plants, the water dragons have nice claws haha. dust crickets in calcium powder from the pet shop which helps in bone development. make sure there are branches etc. might i suggest a book called 'Keeping Australian Water Dragons' which you should be able to get at reptile shops. has everything you need to know about everything you could think of. it is really worth buying.


----------



## mudgudgeon (Jan 2, 2011)

cheers, thanks for the suggestions. will try and get a copy of the book you mention


----------



## hingey242 (Jan 3, 2011)

i would take the calcium powder suggestion very seriously as they are very common to get the bone disease and there spine and tail end up being at 90 degree angles this happened to my first two water dragons and it doesnt look nice and affects the way they swim run everything have plenty of uv light for them


----------



## hornet (Jan 3, 2011)

Remember then mature they will need a very large enclosure, an outdoor pit is preferable but indoors a large enclosure at least 3mx2m long will house an adult or 2, remember these are large active lizards that can get up to 1m in length. People should think very carefully before getting a water dragon as most people would not be able to adequately house an adult


----------



## lizardjasper (Jan 3, 2011)

If you plan on keeping them into adulthood, you need to contact your local APS and get a license. You only need one license to keep however many reptiles, and it costs around $50-$60 for five years. You can fill in a form online too, I think. Just look up APS for your state. You will need a decent sized tank for a few hatchies, with a UVB/UVA light and basking light. Water dragons are messy little tackers so make sure you are able to clean the enclosure regularly. They need calcium supplement of some kind about 3 times a week. I recommend liquid calcium, which you can give them in an eye dropper. They need a range of live foods, and as they mature, a range of live and vegetable matter. They're fussy eaters, but I've found meal worms to be a favourite. Just make sure the worms aren't too big, as they can eat out through your lizards stomach. You can always cut them in half before feeding.
Water dragons are extremely shy at first, and require a lot of patience and handling if they're ever to be tame-ish. Remember that these guys always retain quite a lot of "wild" in them even if you can call them tame. Keeping these guys is a lot harder than keeping beardies or blue tongues, you'll need a lot of commitment and love if you're going to help them survive into adulthood, and years after that too.


----------



## gillsy (Jan 3, 2011)

lizardjasper said:


> They're fussy eaters, but I've found meal worms to be a favourite. Just make sure the worms aren't too big, as they can eat out through your lizards stomach. QUOTE]
> 
> Ignore this comment, it's not true. Old wives tail... if not provide proof.


----------



## lizardjasper (Jan 5, 2011)

gillsy said:


> Ignore this comment, it's not true. Old wives tail... if not provide proof.


 

I've never seen it happen but would rather be safe than sorry.


----------

