Sharing your bed with a beloved bearded dragon may seem like the perfect way to spend as much time as possible. Besides, these pet lizards are fun to play and spend time with especially after becoming familiar with their owner.
This article answers the question “Can A Bearded Dragon Sleep In Your Bed?” by revealing the nuances of sharing a bed with the popular domesticated lizards overnight. We also look at potential problems that could arise from the seemingly convenient arrangement.
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Can A Bearded Dragon Sleep In Your Bed?
Bearded dragons should never share a bed with owners due to the various potentially harmful situations that could arise. Their specific heating and lighting requirements overnight can expose beardies to the risk of health problems when they spend time in non-temperature controlled bedrooms. Sanitation may be another problem as no owner wants to wake up to bearded dragon poop in bed.
Allowing domesticated lizards to sleep in your bed is a bad idea on many fronts. Not only could bearded lizards face multiple issues that can jeopardize their health and well-being but the owner’s comfort may be at risk too.
Bearded dragons are fun to play and spend time with but they are placed in specialized tanks and other housing types for a reason. Going against conventional wisdom may lead to avoidable consequences like death or injury. The demerits of sharing a bed are simply not worth it.
Top Reasons Why Owners Should Never Allow Bearded Dragons In Their Beds
Shall we dive into the main reasons why owners should not share their beds with bearded dragons under any circumstances?
Accidental Suffocation
Beardies are loved because of their docile and friendly nature which could tempt owners to want to share their beds. However, the practice can lead to a high risk of suffocation to death.
Since humans have little control over their actions while in Dreamland, there’ll always be the possibility of lying on top of the little domesticated pet and squishing it to death. This is even more probable among deep sleepers that seldom wake up in the middle of the night despite the prevailing conditions in their environment.
Can you imagine the feeling of suffocating and killing a beloved bearded dragon? The little guy’s death may take a heavy physical and psychological toll. Accidentally killing your favorite beardie could keep most people awake at night for the rest of their lives.
Falls
Aside from the fear of suffocation, there’ll always be a risk of falling from the bed. This can lead to painful physical injuries and even death in situations where the beardie lands awkwardly.
Additionally, injuries such as accidental elbows and kicks may also land the beardie in trouble overnight. Since those injuries typically occur at the blindside of the owner, the possibility of offering first aid could be minimal.
In situations where the beardie suffers cuts or other forms of injury that lead to bleeding, the risk of excessive blood loss can be high. The owner is likely to wake up to a dead lizard by morning.
Heat
Bearded dragons are cold-blooded creatures like most reptiles meaning specific heat requirements are non-negotiable. They thrive in temperatures ranging from 70 F to 75 F during the nighttime which may be problematic in the majority of human bedrooms.
This is why sleeping in specialized temperature-controlled tanks is recommended by vets and other experts. Many bedrooms are not regulated as much especially during winter when temperatures usually plummet at night.
Allowing bearded dragons to share your bed as an owner could lead to diseases and infections from unhealthy temperatures. Unlike mammals, cold-blooded animals do not gain heat from blankets, comforters, and other fabrics.
Blankets rather keep the heat out of their bodies and insulate the cold which explains why heating from a light source is non-negotiable in the bearded dragon’s sleeping environment. Living in bedrooms with temperature control is possible but it is no secret that most folks do not have that.
Owner Injuries and Sickness
Bearded dragons may be sweet little souls that seem like they cannot show aggression against their owners but not when their lives are at stake. They are likely to fight back when owners accidentally land on their bodies in the middle of the night.
The risk of scratches, bites, and other defensive actions against the owner is expected as the bearded dragon struggles for its life. The lizards have sharp nails that can sink deeply into the human skin resulting in severe damage and profuse bleeding.
Besides, the domesticated lizard’s sharp claws and teeth are strong enough to cause debilitating pain as the beardie fights back to wriggle itself away from the owner’s body. This is a pure survival instinct in all animals regardless of how they might feel about their owners.
In most cases, the bearded dragon could still end up dying from suffocation despite the attempts to survive. The owner typically wakes up with severe injuries which can lead to damaging infections when proper treatment is not sought.
Unfortunately, the chances of the beardie surviving are also pretty minimal despite the defensive actions. The owner does not only have to suffer physical pain but the emotional trauma of suffocating a beloved beardie to death may linger on the mind for a significant period.
Besides, bearded dragons carry numerous infections and diseases which could be easily transmitted to the owner during bites and scratches. Salmonella is a common bacteria humans may contract from beardie bites and scratches.
The affected person might be hospitalized and treated for days in a medical facility because the symptoms could be life-threatening. The bites and scratches can be extremely deep resulting in the need for stitches and other evasive medical procedures.
Sanitation Issues
Could you imagine waking up to a turd or two in your bed in the morning after spending the night with a bearded dragon? These pet lizards poop everywhere including where they sleep because they do not respond to litter training.
Sharing a bed comes with the risk of waking up to poop in several areas which may necessitate changing the sheets every night. Contact with their poop can also be a source of salmonella and other disease-causing organisms.
Besides, bearded dragon poop stinks badly which can disrupt the ability to sleep after a hard day’s work. The risk of the owner making physical contact with the fecal matter may be high which is disgusting in itself.
How A Bearded Dragon Can Sleep In Your Bed Safely
Allowing pet bearded dragons to sleep in your bed is not recommended due to the several reasons stipulated above. But, here are a few ways owners may enjoy bed-sharing with minimal risks of causing injury to the beardie or themselves.
Take Them Back To Their Tanks After Falling Asleep
Bearded dragons can spend some time in their owner’s bed each night around their regular sleeping time. However, the beardie should be returned to its tank immediately after falling asleep in a gentle manner that does not cause sleep disturbance.
Since you could accidentally fall asleep beside the beardie, they should be returned to their tanks immediately after they drift off. This could eliminate the risk of suffocating the beardie to death in the middle of the night after falling deeply asleep.
Raised Cat Beds
Owners that insist on sharing beds with their bearded dragons despite the dangers may place raised cat beds at one end of their beds. The beardie is then put in the cat bed overnight which minimizes the fear of suffocation to death.
Even if the beardie poops in the middle of the night, only the cat bed gets soiled and not the owner’s bed. This guarantees the highest sanitation standards by eliminating physical contact between the owner’s body and the poop.
Laying blankets at the top of the bed could block direct light from the beardie’s eyes leading to minimal sleep disruptions at night.
Can You Cuddle With A Bearded Dragon?
Bearded dragons are docile and friendly pet lizards that love cuddling their owners and even strangers. Many folks cuddle with their pets during TV watching, reading, or other leisurely activities while others spend time together in bed before returning the beardies to their enclosures.
However, owners should always wash their hands and other body parts thoroughly after handling bearded dragons. Do not allow them to kiss your lips because of the increased risk of salmonella and other serious infections.
Can Bearded Dragons Be Clingy?
Bearded dragons are some of the most clingy exotic pets. Not only do they love cuddling their owners but even strangers receive a positive reception. They are seldom hostile to even folks they do not know so do not be surprised to see them cuddling other household pets like cats and dogs.
Conclusion: Can A Bearded Dragon Sleep In Your Bed?
Bearded dragons are fun lizards that create lasting bonds with their owners’ thanks to their natural docile nature. However, allowing them to sleep in their owner’s beds can lead to several risks including injury and death.
Their owners could accidentally lie on the lizards in the middle of the night causing death via suffocation. The dying beardie is likely to fight back to sustain its life by biting and scratching the owner with its sharp teeth and claws.
This may lead to severe bodily injury that could require extensive medical attention and even stitches. The owner can also be at an increased risk of salmonella and other potentially life-threatening infections from the bites and scratches.