Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have an adult female beardie, I want to try putting a diiferent lizard with her but Im not sure what would get along with a bearded dragon. Any Suggestions???? I was thinking something like a Blue Tongue Skink.

Different species carry different "natural" bacteria/parisitic loads that may be toxic to the other kind. Heat, humidity, and food requirements are also different enought to make it impractical--besides being dangerous and stupid.

Some pet shops do this--but they only want to keep the animal alive until it sells--they do not care about the general health of the animals.

DM

beardies can often be quite agressive and territorial. Putting another species in with one would be begging for all kinds of problems! Trust me when I say your beardie is perfectly happy BY ITSELF.

If you truly want the best for all your lizards, give them each their own enclosure so you can make sure they get their individual needs met. Forcing them to live together is stressful and unnatural.
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Amanda
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2.0 bearded dragons (Ocho / Domo-kun)

0.1 kingsnake (Rio)
0.0.1 tarantula (Otto)
1.0 ferret (Playstation)
1.0 cat (Wally)
0.1 dog (Tima)

this is not a flame but just a comment to help those new to forums.

it is always best to do a quick search before posting a question to see if it has been covered recently as this topic has been. on KS this can be rather convaluded. you need to pick a topic and then hit reply to message. when the new window opens click search. Dont ask why its so bass ackward but thats how it's done. Its also a good idea to read through at least the first page of the forum to see if the info is there.

now onto the answer...
BTS need a 50% humidity and wood substrate. BDs can not have wood and live in an arid enviornment. They also have vastly different diets and that's just for starters.

here's a general answer

Mixing Species in One Enclosure?

Someone will say, "Well, there are lizards, geckos, turtles, frogs, and snakes all living together in the wild - why can't I put them all in my tank?" There is no way for a little gecko to climb a tall branch and blend in with leaves to get away from a hungry predator in a small artificial enclosure. The bigger predator will eat the little one. The biggest, most aggressive species in the tank will be the lone survivor. Even if they don’t kill each other the stress levels will be high enough to make them sick.

Another good reason for not mixing species outside of the obvious (one thinking the other is a snack) is bacteria and parasites. What is naturally found in one species and excreted out can pass to the other species and be deadly. Coccidia is thought to be a natural parasite (in minimal amounts) in a bearded dragon and that the dragons own gut fauna controls it and keeps a balance; until a dragon gets stressed or some other illness allows that to bloom and get out of control. Another species may walk in the feces or consume something that walked in it and have no bacteria to combat it. Coccidia will then multiply quickly, in turn infecting the bearded dragon with an overload of parasites the other species excrete out.

The environmental and nutritional needs May also vary greatly, what one thrives in, could be harmful to the other. Animals may come from different environments (countries, climates, temperatures etc). Climates can even vary greatly, even for animals from the same region. A Uro requires a 115°F -130°F degree basking site. That would dehydrate and cook a dragon in no time. There Brumation temps can also be substantially different.

Last but not least, is that they might be active during different hours diurnal/nocturnal.

Having said that, ADVANCED keepers do mix species but in VERY LARGE envionments not cages. This, only after researching all the variables followed by CLOSE supervision.

good luck and dont be afraid to ask questions, it's the only way to learn.
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Bennett

Home of the Florida Orange
www.beardiedragon.com

I really don't want to be rude here, but please, control your urge to experiment. After all, we're talking about living creatures...

who knows how theyll react. The female may not like the presence of the blue tongue and may attack it. Also thats a great way to help parasites infect your animals.
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sincerely,
Jonathan D. de Kluyver
JDDK Reptiles
Quality Reptiles and Amphibianswww.jddkreptiles.com

Hi, I have been coming to this forum for a long time now and everytime this topic comes up, which is a lot, the first thing anybody says is no. Now I am not saying that its ok to just mix species, but I think this topic should not be turned down so quickly. It is possible to mix bearded dragons with other species, but I would do a lot of research to find out which ones, and dont knock mixing species because dragons can be aggressive, but I would keep a close eye on the dragon, if you have owned the dragon for more than a couple of years you will be able to tell when it has had enough of the other lizard. They say that the highest form of herpetoculture is to be able to create large complex vivarium systems with different species. But I do not reccomend begginers mixing species, only after you have worked with the species for a decent amount of years. Just in case anybody asks I myself have not mixed species, this is just my opinion.

Daniel Martin
Kryptic Morphs