Bearded Dragon Care

How to Find a Lost Bearded Dragon in Your House?

If you search the Internet, you will find several stories of people who have lost their precious beardies for days, or even months! Some bearded dragons are mischievous and love to explore their surroundings. At times, they may also escape if they feel hungry, or want a cozy resting area. 

When you have a lost bearded dragon in your house, check the floor first, as they’re ground-dwellers. Furthermore, they love warm and moist hidden spaces, so be sure to check them. 

To know more about finding a lost bearded dragon, read on. 

How Can I Find My Lost Bearded Dragon? 

Given below is a step-by-step guide that will assist you in finding your bearded dragon. 

Step 1: Check the Tank First

There have been times when the owners check all around the house but end up finding their beardies in the tanks!

So, ensure that you start off by checking the tank first. Here is what you need to do:

  1. First, check the tank’s corners to make sure that your beardie isn’t sitting there.
  2. Next, if the tank contains several decorative pieces, move them one by one, and check beneath or inside of them. Beardies love to hide in cozy areas! 

If you’re sure that your beardie isn’t in the tank, you need to start a proper search. 

Step 2: Check the Floors of Each Room

You may already know that bearded dragons are ground-dwellers. So, the chances of them climbing any furniture are extremely less. This makes it easier for you, as you need to start focusing only on the ground. 

  1. You need to check the floor of the room thoroughly where you keep your beardie.
  2. Get down to their level and use a flashlight to search the corners.
  3. Then, move to the other rooms and repeat the same. 
  4. Pay special attention to areas like the kitchen and bathroom. As they are warm and moist, your beardie may be attracted to them more than any other place.

Whenever you’re searching, ensure that you look through every possible place where your beardie can hide. Sometimes, you’ll find them in the least expected areas!

Step 3: Move Around Shoes, Boxes, Plants, and Other Items 

Just checking the floors and corners isn’t enough. If you have kept a lot of items in your house on the floor, your beardie can hide beneath or even behind them. So, you need to move them around and start looking. 

Here’s what you need to do:

  • Start off by checking all the shoes lying on the floor. They may sit inside. 
  • Next, check the insides of any empty boxes lying on the ground. Also, move them around as your beardie may hide behind them.
  • In the living room and bedroom – move the pillows, blankets, and throws and check the surrounding areas. 
  • If you have any plants in your house, check behind them as well. 

In conclusion, move around as many things in your house as possible and check near them.

Step 4: Check Hidden and Closed Spaces 

If you have any hidden and closed spaces in your house, now is the time to explore them to find your lost beardie. Some general hidden and closed spaces where your beardie may hide include:

  • The corners of the doors
  • Beneath the furniture like sofas, cupboards, couches, beds, tables, etc. 
  • Behind the wash basins, toilet seats, washing machines, and refrigerators.

While you’re searching for them, always keep your ears and eyes open for any clues like hissing noises, footprints, fecal remains, and many more.

Step 5: Create a Special Hotspot for Your Beardie 

Have you searched through all the areas of your house? Well, you can entice your bearded dragon to come out by itself by setting up a basking area for them. 

Here’s what you need to do:

  1. Take an empty shoe box or any other box and place it on the ground, preferably beneath a heat lamp
  2. Next, cut holes in three directions of the box. 
  3. Then, put moist napkins or paper towels in it.
  4. Finally, place the shoe box against the wall from the side with no holes. 
  5. You can put insects like mealworms and a water bowl inside the box too. 

This way, once your bearded dragon feels hungry and is also looking for a safe space, they’ll be attracted to come near this box. 

Step 6 (If Beardie Found): Hold Them Properly and Place Them in Tank 

Finding a beardie is a challenging task. So, if you have found one, ensure that you don’t scare them in a way that they run away from you and hide again. 

Sometimes, a bearded dragon may feel threatened if they’ve been hiding and you find them. Therefore, try to make them feel comfortable by following the below steps:

  1. Once found, talk to your beardie in a gentle and encouraging tone. Let them know you’re not a threat to them. 
  2. Next, hold them from behind and gently put them in their tank again. 
  3. Don’t pick up your beardie suddenly as they may get scared and attack you. 

How to Ensure That Your Bearded Dragon Doesn’t Get Lost Again?

If your bearded dragon has escaped once, there are chances that it might escape again. So, if you don’t want to go through all the torture of trying to find them, try out the below-mentioned ways. 

  • Start looking for any possible escape areas present in your beardie’s tank, like any open/loose vents, defective locks, etc. 
  • If you don’t have any locks, try getting a vivarium lock. It’ll help in securing the tank properly. 
  • Take out any tall decorations. Some beardies may climb on it and escape from the tank. 
  • Lastly, you can look for lid locks or well-secured tanks online too.

Final Thoughts

Some bearded dragons love to play mischief and wander here and there! So, if you have lost yours, try out the methods given above. 

Don’t forget to check every corner of your house. Often, your bearded dragon might be in a place you’d least expect them to be!

Chris

Chris is a reptile enthusiast, breeder, and blogger from the Milwaukee, WI area. After breeding hundreds of bearded dragons to supply local pet stores and owning many other types of reptiles, he is now focused on sharing knowledge to help owners properly care for their little reptiles friends.

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