Are you a new bearded dragon owner?
Do you want to make sure your beardy loves you?
Then it’s essential to know how to create a loving bond with your bearded dragon.
To bond with your bearded dragon, you need to build an association between you and your scent with positive, safe, and fun experiences. These can take many forms, but they can include handling, bathing, feeding, calming, playing, and spending time with your pet.
Read on for more details on our six favorite ways to bond with your beardy.
Table of Contents
6 Ways To Bond With Your Bearded Dragon
There are many ways to make friends with your bearded dragon.
These are our top 6 choices for how to build a connection with your bearded dragon.
#1 Handling
Bearded dragons do not mind handling, although they may not trust you at first.
The more you handle a beardie, the more it trusts you.
It gathers your scent and recognizes each time.
Make sure you handle your beardy the correct way to keep it safe and build trust.
And if you’re not sure what the correct way is, we’ve written a guide to picking up bearded dragons that can help you.
If you don’t have time to read the guide, follow this short version.
- Move your hand closer slowly from in front of the reptile’s face.
- Scoop the bearded dragon up from under its belly.
- Keep all the lizard’s limbs and tail supported.
- Use one or two hands as needed to support and hold the beardy in place.
- When putting it down, make sure it’s in contact with the ground before removing your hand.
Note: Bearded dragons have a “third eye” of sorts on the top of their heads.
This eye can see changes in light levels.
This is for protection when a predator sneaks up from behind or flies overhead.
If you pick it up from behind, the beardy may become stressed and think you’re a predator.
We have a great post on the bearded dragon third eye covering the topic from top to bottom if you want to learn more.
#2 Give It A Bath
Bearded dragons enjoy baths.
It helps their skin, cleans them of bacteria, and helps them stay hydrated.
It’s also a great way to get your bearded dragon to feel comfortable around you.
Having your pet associate your scent with positive experiences such as bathing builds its affection towards you.
If you’re new to keeping these reptiles, we have a guide on bathing bearded dragons to help you out and the basics steps below.
- Fill the tub with warm water up to shoulder height on your beardy.
- Gently put him in and let him adjust to the water.
- Clean him by pouring water gently on his back, splashing his belly, and gently brushing as needed.
- Play in the water and spend time with him to give him an opportunity to drink more water.
- Take out your beardy, pat dry with a towel, and put him in the enclosure to bask.
- Clean up the tub after you’re done.
Warning! Bearded dragons aren’t to drink a lot of water or get their eyes wet.
This is why you MUST make sure the water level isn’t above the beardy’s shoulder.
#3 Feed It By Hand
When you feed your bearded dragon, it’s essential to let it eat as much as it can in a 10-15 minute time frame.
This is also a time for bonding.
To build associations with food (yay!) and you (double yay!), feed your pet by hand.
This will make the reptile more excited to see/smell you over time.
Feeding by hand is easiest to do on vegetation meals.
The food doesn’t squirm, bite, or jump.
Feed live insects by hand, but some may think this is gross.
Some roaches may bite at you if you’re not careful.
And if you’re not sure what insects to use, we have a great post on the best insects to feed bearded dragons that you’ll find very helpful.
You don’t have to do this the entire meal, but a little bit may help build the bridge for bonding, especially with baby bearded dragons.
Warning! Please keep your fingers back; adult bearded dragons can bite (although it doesn’t hurt much or at all in most cases).
So that you’re prepared for a bite, read our post on what to do if a bearded dragon bites you, and you’ll be ready if it does happen.
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#4 Calm Down Your Bearded Dragon
If you notice your bearded dragon is stressed, this is an excellent opportunity for bonding.
Start by calming your pet down.
There are several ways to calm your dragon down, and we’ve written a post going into detail teaching you how to calm down a bearded dragon.
When calming your beardy, it’s now associating you and your scent as a safe influence on its environment.
#5 Play And Explore
Take your dragon out and let it roam around different areas (safely).
Find appropriate toys and props for it to interact with.
If you’re not sure what to use for a toy, we’ve written a post and reviewed several great toy options for your bearded dragon if you want to give it a quick look.
During this time, make sure it knows you’re there.
This way, it associates safety & fun with you.
Over time, it may even change its color as a way to communicate with you when it wants to play and explore.
#6 Be Patient And Be There
None of this happens in one day or even a week, but consistently connecting with your beardy can build those bonding associations over time.
Make sure you do these strategies as often as possible, especially with younger bearded dragons.
how to get your bearded dragon to like you
If you’re looking to make friends with your bearded dragon and want it to like you, we’ve got some tips that might help!
First things first, take it slow and don’t rush things. Start by just hanging out near its home without touching it. Then, try feeding it by hand to show that you’re a friend who brings tasty treats. Speak to it in a calm voice to get it used to your sound.
Once it’s comfortable, you can start holding it gently for short periods. But remember to pay attention to your bearded dragon’s body language and be respectful of its boundaries. Make sure its home is cozy and safe, and do things it likes, like letting it bask in the warmth.
Just be patient because becoming buddies takes time.
And if you ever notice that it seems unhappy or sick, don’t hesitate to talk to a vet who knows about reptiles!
How Do Bearded Dragons Show Affection?
Bearded dragons show affection in sometimes unusual ways.
In most cases, affection is mainly shown through trust.
If you see these behaviors, your bearded dragon may like you.
- Relaxing on you
- Climbing onto your hand to be handled
- Licking your hand (gets your smell)
Bearded dragons are pretty unique among lizards because they bond quickly and do actively show affection.
Most other lizards tolerate your bond rather than embracing it.
If these types of behaviors interest you, we have written on nearly all of them.
Two of the behaviors pet owners frequently ask about are why their bearded dragon often keeps their eyes closed and what licking from a bearded dragon means, so we’ve linked to them here if you want to learn more about those behaviors.
Can Bearded Dragons Recognize Their Owners?
Yes! Bearded dragons are intelligent creatures.
The primary way they remember things is through their sense of smell.
Like many other reptiles, bearded dragons smell by collecting air molecules on their tongue when they “lick” the air.
Bearded dragons are known to love the smell of their owners and get excited when they come near after you’ve spent a lot of time bonding with them.
Here’s a post on how smart bearded dragons are if you’re interested in learning more.
Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed learning about bonding with your bearded dragon.
It all comes down to associating your presence with fun, safe, and positive experiences.
Good luck becoming friends with your beardy!
