Lodging for the Chinese Water Dragons
If you want to build a special house for your little friend keep few
things in mind. The first thing that you have to do is speak to the
reptile owner. If you are buying the reptiles from a shop then talk to
the owner to know about its requirements. They will tell how to make an
extraordinary dwelling place just for your Chinese water dragon.
Chinese water dragons need large places to live. It is better if you
keep one dragon in one enclosure. Water dragons of same sex never get
along too well. They show hostile behavior towards each other and may
even end up fighting wit each other. An ideal enclosure is generally six
feet long and 3 feet deep. It has to be made up to a certain height. You
cannot whine about the costs involved because the boxes have to be
tailor made.
Choosing the substrate:
Reptiles like ingesting anything that they feel are eatable. You cannot
guard the reptiles at all times of the day. So sterilize the potting
soil. Don’t use chemicals. Try sphagnum moss instead. Cypress mulch,
paper and Astroturf can be used as substrate. The Chinese water dragons
love to climb. Provide branches in their shelter. Keep them in diagonal
and horizontal positions. Make them feel at home. Add live plants like
hibiscus, dracaena, etc.
Pools
The Chinese water dragons are pretty extravagant. If you take a keen
interest in reptiles then you will know that the water dragons cannot
live without water. Keep a tub full of water so that they can submerge
at least half of their bodies. Apply disinfectants to the water tub if
you notice them using the water tub as a toilet. (After al, where will
they excrete?) The Chinese water dragons are comfortable in a place that
has a humidity of 80%.
Light requirements:
A basking area in the pet-house is a must. The Chinese water dragons
have a peculiar habit of basking under the sun at particular times of
the day. You will find your pet extremely unhappy and melancholic if you
do not provide it with this facility. The temperature of the shelter is
generally kept near 30 degrees. Provide a temperature gradient. At night
you can drop the temperatures to around 24 degrees. Use under-tank heat
pads and heat tape wherever necessary. Natural unfiltered light works
best for the reptiles. But as an alternative you can also fix a UVB/UVA
light source in their dwelling place. Don’t forget to switch off the
light after every twelve hours.
If you think you do not have a good memory and you don’t remember things
too well then set a timer along with the light fixture. The timer will
automatically switch on and switch off the light. Check the wattage of
light before you install in your pet house. Higher wattages give higher
temperatures.
You can use ceramic bulbs as basking lamps. They get very hot. You will
not want your reptile to get roasted. Make sure they are put on a
thermostat or dimmer. Ceramic heaters can be used easily in the night
because they won’t disturb the reptiles (they don’t produce light).
The exact distance:
The Chinese water dragon shouldn’t be too far way from the light source.
To be precise, the light source should be just ten inches away from the
reptile. The distance is important because when the reptile basks under
it produces vitamin D3. It will not be able to absorb calcium if there
is no vitamin D3. Thus basking is one of their survival strategies. Do
not place any glass or plastic cup between the Chinese water dragon and
the light source.
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