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Which is the coolest pet you can think of right now? Most of us will have answers like ‘a dog’ or ‘a cat’, right? Well, today, we are not going to talk about any dogs or cats. Our special guest today is a reptile, a strange but amazing pet. Yes, we are going to talk about the very special and adorable species, the Chinese Water Dragon!
The Chinese water dragon is a semi-aquatic reptile dragon lizard, and as the name suggests, they are native to China. These Chinese Water dragon lizards are generally found in southeast Asia and hence are also known as Asian water dragons.
In some parts of Asia, they are also known as Thai water dragons or simply green water dragons. Nowadays, these dragon lizards are found everywhere around the globe.
If you are looking for a new pet, a reptile, to be more specific, a Chinese water dragon is a species you should definitely consider in your list. If you visit any pet store where they keep reptiles, then you will definitely find a bunch of Chinese water dragon lizards.
Today, in this article, we are going to see how the Chinese water dragon behaves like a pet, what care our dragon requires, and a few other things about the dragon’s habitat too. But before that, let us get to know our future pet a little bit more.
Basics Of Chinese Water Dragon
Chinese Water Dragon is probably the best-looking lizard you can ever own as a pet. These lizards are quite popular among reptile lovers in Asia as well as Europe. Primarily, the Chinese water dragon is found in forests as a wild species. However, once they began to gain popularity as pet lizards, they became one of the most demanding species in the pet trade.
These Chinese water dragon lizards are now being imported from their countries of origin like Thailand, southern China, Vietnam, and Cambodia to the European countries and America.
Whereas, due to massive popularity and demand, we have seen a rise in captive breeding of the Chinese water dragons. However, some owners still prefer wild Chinese Water Dragon over captive-bred lizards.
The natural habitat of the Chinese water dragon is usually a riverside forest. Being a semi-aquatic species, the Chinese water dragon spends most of its time swimming in water. They use their ability to swim as a defense mechanism as they jump from the trees directly into the water if any danger is sensed.
These adorable-looking dragon lizards usually grow to about 1 meter in length. They have a green pigmented skin which varies from light to dark shade of green, but sometimes they can be slightly purplish with an orange-colored belly. You will find diagonal green stripes on this lizard’s body, whereas its tail has alternate green and white stripes.
Their throat has some interesting colors like blue and purple, which makes them a lot cooler than ordinary lizards. However, this most attractive part of these dragons can be found in different color combinations or as a plain signal color too. But in any of the cases, the throat looks fabulous.
The lower or underside of the body looks whitish with an off-white or pale yellow color. Overall, all these attributes make the Chinese water dragon look amazing and adorable. Let us move ahead and see whether this species is something that you can keep as a pet or not.
Describing The Chinese Water Dragon Lizards
The scientific name of the Chinese water dragon is Physignathus cocincinus. They are a species of agamid lizard that is native to China and Southeast Asia like I said before.
These Chinese water dragon lizards can grow up to 1m or 3.3 feet in length, which is including their tails, and they can live up to 10 to 15 years of age which is not surprisingly long for a reptile.
Their color can be anything from dark to light green and an orange stomach with diagonal stripes, as I said. Adult males of this species have a bigger and more triangular head as compared to the females and they develop crests of sorts on their heads, neck, as well as tails and they, are also bigger in size in general than the females.
The tails of these Chinese water dragon lizards take up more than the two-third length of their entire body length. They use their tails as a weapon or to balance themselves or even for swimming.
The Chinese water dragon lizards have a tiny iridescent, photosensitive spot between their eyes that is called the pineal eye or parietal eye, or even the third eye colloquially. Such a thing is not uncommon in reptiles.
This pineal eye helps them thermoregulate their bodies by being able to sense the difference in light that assists them with basking under sunlight and seeking shelter after sunset. Because the Chinese water dragon lizards can sense light with the pineal eye, it also helps them avoid predators like birds and other animals.
It also helps them awaken from a deep sleep when they sense even a bit of change in the light above their heads. You can consider these Chinese water dragon lizards to be very docile and physically active.
Can You Keep A Chinese Water Dragon As A Pet?
Earlier, I mentioned that the Chinese water dragon is a wild species mostly found in the southeast Asian forests. Hence it is obvious to have this doubt whether you can really keep a wild Chinese water dragon as your pet.
The short answer is yes, you can keep a Chinese water dragon as a pet at home or in your indoor garden. There are two main reasons that will satisfy your doubts. The first one is that nowadays you have an option to get a captive bred water dragon as a pet instead of a wild one.
These lizards have never lived in a forest environment, and hence they adapt to our indoor environment with ease.
The other reason is the behavior of this species. The Chinese water dragon is said to have one of the best personalities among all other lizards or even most of the reptiles. They remain calm in most situations and do not attack. Also, they like to get handled more often, and they get more used to it over time.
Thus, the calm nature of these Chinese water dragon lizards makes them qualified to be kept as pets. But why did I say that these are the best reptile pets you can get? Well, let us find out about that too.
Chinese Water Dragon, Best Pet Lizard?
In the category of reptile pets, there are some of the great contestants like Russian tortoise, crested gecko, leopard gecko, or snakes like ball python and corn snake to compete with our adorable Chinese water dragon.
From all the above options, the Chinese water dragon still comes up as the best pet lizard. To justify my answer, I have divided the traits into 2 key factors. Therefore instead of comparing them with the rest of the reptiles, we will focus on the traits of water dragons. Let us take a look at these 2 factors.
1. Size
The Chinese water dragon reptile is generally 1 meter long, and most of the length is of its tail. Not being too long and not too small, this perfectly medium-sized water dragon is easy to handle as it won’t get injured due to an extra-long tail even though it uses its tail to fight predators.
Also, they are less likely to hurt you back. You can also easily fit their tanks at your home because they would not require them to be too large in size. Although, if you want to have a big tank for them, you can.
2. Handling
You will need to be slightly careful while handling these lizards as they have quite sharp claws. The reason for having sharp claws is that it’s a wild species, and it lives on trees for the major part of its life, therefore they need sharp claws to climb up the branches.
Also, the fact that this lizard does not drop the tail is worth appreciating. We all hate when lizards drop their tails, right? The Chinese water dragon is not always so calm. It is active enough that you will have to pay enough attention when they are taken out of their enclosure.
You should also pay attention to the things that the pet dragon eats when you take it out. Things like insects and worms from your backyard might affect them, and if they are already eating them, you cannot do anything to remedy that. If they feel any sort of unease with their health after eating such things, take them to the vet as soon as possible.
Things you should know before getting a Chinese Water Dragon
So now that you have decided that you want to get yourself a pet Chinese water dragon, there are certain things a new owner should be aware of. Yes, before getting one of these adorable and beautiful-looking water dragons, keep the following things in mind:
1. Be Ready With A Large Setup
As a new pet owner, you might think that these tiny, little water dragons won’t require much space. But as they grow, the small enclosure you built won’t work anymore. The Chinese water dragon can grow up to 1 meter. Most of it is the tail, but still, they require a lot of space to live.
The Chinese water dragon is a semi-aquatic animal, thus, they require both a water body and high branches or plants to climb on. Therefore you will need a tall enclosure to place things to climb (about 5-6 feet) and also a wide water area for the dragon to get into.
2. Avoid Using Transparent Glass
The Chinese water dragon is clearly not the smartest species alive. These water dragons do not understand or recognize the transparent glass. Therefore they smash their head into the glass directly or rub their nose on the glass.
This behavior can hurt their face, and thus it is advised not to use much glass for your aquarium or enclosure. Instead, you can have a small transparent window on one wall of the enclosure while keeping the other 3 walls closed and made up of something which is not transparent, like wood.
3. They Are Active!
When it comes to having a reptile as a pet, the Chinese water dragon is definitely not the calmest animal. If you expect that this water dragon will sit on your shoulder and chill for hours on your couch, then you should reconsider your decision once.
They will probably try to flee out of your hand sometimes, and that can leave you with cuts on your hand, and that’s because they have pretty sharp claws. Though this does not mean that they are difficult to handle. If they get comfortable with you, then you might not even experience your dragon slipping off your hands.
Moving on, now it’s time to build a close to home-like habitat for our new pet. Let us see how to build a proper enclosure for your Chinese water dragon.
How To Build A Enclosure For Chinese Water Dragon?
If you visit your nearest pet store where they keep reptiles, you will probably find captive-bred Chinese water dragons. These pets are bred numerous times which makes the type of care they require very easy to give.
Let’s break down the enclosure setup into 5 easy steps.
1. Enclosure Type
Starting with basics, the first thing you need to choose before building an enclosure setup is the kind of enclosure you will be using. The Chinese water dragon lizards are semi-arboreal lizards hence you will need a water body as well as a structure above the water tank.
You can build a plywood enclosure for your new pet. But make sure the glass doors or acrylic panels are covered to prevent bashing the head of your dragon lizard into the glass. Make sure most of the structure is solid, just keep a little window to peep inside.
Another option you can choose is a PVC-type enclosure. The advantage of PVC enclosure over wooden one is that PVC type enclosure holds humidity a lot better than a wooden one. Chinese water dragons require a humid environment to live healthily, and the PVC type enclosures will take care of that. Also, these enclosures are waterproof and sealed enclosures.
2. Lighting And Heating
If you have recently brought a Chinese water dragon home, there are high chances that you may not consider light sources and heating of the enclosure at all. Water dragons are very particular about their habitat and do not make any compromises there.
Chinese water dragon lizards require 3 forms of light: heat, UVB, UVA. Out of which, UVA light is to provide natural bright light to your enclosure. The lack of proper lighting can lead to metabolic bone disease in water dragons, thus always maintaining proper lighting conditions.
Talking about heat, make sure they have different temperature zones available to choose from inside the enclosure. Ideally, there should be 3 different temperature zones, 105-120 degrees, 84-88 degrees, and a cooler region at 48-82 degrees. In any case, the temperature should not drop below 70 degrees.
3. Water And Humidity
Coming to the water and humidity-related needs of the Chinese water dragon, they can stay submerged inside the water for around 90 minutes. It is important to have a tub or tank filled with clean water inside the enclosure.
To keep the water clean, you can use a tank instilled with a filter. However, there is no such need if you can simply place a tub of water and change the water every day. The Chinese water dragon does not necessarily require a moving water source; thus, it is okay to place a simple tub instead of a tank.
Being a tropical animal, humidity is an important factor for Chinese water dragons. To control humidity, use a damp substrate. This will maintain a good amount of humidity in the air which will offer better comfort to your pet and will keep its skin healthy.
4. Substrate
For substrates, there are many options available in the market, but these two options make the most sense and you can choose one from them. ‘Rep to chip’ substrate holds humidity well and it costs less than the rest of the substrates. This substrate has a good evaporation rate, making it perfect for Chinese water dragons.
The other type of substrate is specifically for female water dragons. The ‘dirt/soil substrate’ is important for female water dragons to lay eggs. They require an area to make a nest for laying eggs which are best provided by dirt substrate. Avoid using sand as a substrate.
5. Decor
The decor is basically to replicate most natural things to provide your water dragon with a similar feel to nature. You can use cork bark, live plants, fake plants, ledges, and many more things. Decorate the enclosure as much as you want to bring it closer to the natural habitat of the Chinese water dragon.
Now that you know the basics about what the Chinese water dragon lizards are like and how they like their environment to be, it is time we moved onto other topics.
The Diet Of A Chinese Water Dragon
It is important that you know what a Chinese water dragon is going to eat before you bring it home. Reptiles have a lot of needs that should be fulfilled for them to live a healthy life. If you ignore any one of their requirements that I mentioned above, it is going to be very uncomfortable for them to be living with you.
When you bring a Chinese water dragon home, you have to take care of its diet too. One thing that should be noted is that the diet of a Chinese water dragon changes as it grows up. So if you feed it one sort of food when it is young and continue the same diet even after years, it would not be very healthy for your pet.
Young And Adult Chinese Water Dragons Have Different Requirements
If you bring home a very young water dragon, you have to feed it every day. This is an important thing to keep in mind because people might confuse the diet plans between a hatchling and an adult water dragon and only feed them every 2-3 days, which actually should be done with the adult water dragons.
If you feed a hatchling every 2-3 days, it’s going to starve very soon. You can feed your adult water dragon every day too but you should not leave the young hatchling without food for even a day. They need all the nutrients they can get at that young age.
If you are feeding an adult water dragon on a daily basis, do not feed them full meals, instead divide the portion into parts because if you start feeding them full meals every day, then they will become fat very easily. That can cause a very serious issue for their health because they don’t get fat on the outside but instead, their organs start gaining fat.
But you should also consider whether the water lizard seems healthy or not. If it looks frail then you should feed it as much as you can, but not too much obviously, to make it healthy once again. If your pet dragon is recovering from a disease, then it will require some extra food at that time as well.
When you give your pet dragon food, it might eat some of it and leave the rest, it is essential that you feed it one whole meal but if it’s not eating it completely, feed it in portions at regular intervals. It is essential that their hunger is quenched whenever they feel hungry because that will help them recover and gain weight faster.
What Are The Chinese Water Dragons Known To Eat?
When you bring home a Chinese water dragon, you should know in advance what kind of food they are going to eat, it is something very basic yet very important because that very thing is going to decide whether they live a healthy life or not.
The Chinese water dragon can eat all kinds of food. Their diet can include things like feeder fishes like the goldfish, crickets, worms, grasshoppers, locusts, mice, earthworms, cockroaches, and a lot more. If your pet dragon is still young, you should refrain from feeding it mice, and even with adult water dragons, only feed them small mice.
The Chinese water dragons have a huge appetite, and they get hungry often. If you have a hatchling at home, it would be best to feed it with small crickets and locusts because these things can go into their mouths pretty easily, and they do not cause any kind of discomfort to them.
It also gives you the added benefit of watching how they eat their food because, for some of you folks, it would be a very interesting thing to watch; the Chinese water dragons are a very interesting species.
Are There Any Issues With Feeding Worms To Chinese Water Dragons?
If you have decided that you are going to give worms to your Chinese water dragon as a meal, you should give it a pause and think about it. That is because worms can cause certain issues to these pet dragons and that would not be good. So what you can do is feed them worms in small quantities and with time intervals between them.
The reason that you should not feed the pet dragons worms regularly is that worms have an indigestible exoskeleton which is going to cause some kind of illness to the Chinese water dragons. If you feed them worms in large quantities then they are very susceptible to getting impaction.
Impaction is when a part of the digestive system becomes impacted, that is, some sort of thing getting logged in a body passage or cavity. So if you are feeding worms regularly to your pet, it can become a serious issue because of it.
Although, it’s not as if you should stop feeding them worms completely. Worms do have a lot of nutritious value in them, but they are to be fed in moderation. Worms have a high concentration of phosphorus, but they are low in calcium. You should feed your pets more insects and give them worms only when necessary or more like, as treats.
If you keep feeding them the same diet, they are going to get bored with it. You should think about mixing things up a bit and give them a variety of foods every day that will keep their interest.
Another thing you can do is give them food at different times of the day. If you can do that, it will be good for your pet dragon. Just remember not to give them too many worms and not to keep their diet monotonous.
Can You Give Vegetables And Fruits To These Little Dragons?
There are opinions that the Chinese water dragon lizards should also be given a fruit or vegetable diet. Should you do that though? Well, people who say that are correct, but their diet should not consist of vegetables or fruits entirely.
The total amount of vegetarian food in the diet of Chinese water dragon should not exceed 10%-15% of their whole diet. But things aren’t always that simple, are they? Out of all the people who own a Chinese water dragon, only a select few try to feed vegetables to their pets.
The reason behind that is most Chinese water dragons just refuse to eat any kind of vegetables. But if you think it is necessary for them to eat it for some reason or the other, what you can do is hold the piece of vegetable in front of their nose and wiggle it until they eat it.
When you do that, the pet dragons think it is a living thing and obviously try to eat it. It will take them some time to learn that vegetables are food too but once they do learn it, you can stop wiggling it in front of their noses because they will eat them of their own free will.
Coming to the type of fruits or vegetables that you can feed these dragons, there are a lot of things that are good for their health. These things include yellow squash, parsnips, lettuce, spinach, kale, collards, broccoli, green beans, carrots, sweet potato, etc.
Just keep in mind that you have to be careful with the amount of vegetables or fruits you give them because they are not humans, they cannot survive just on a vegetarian diet alone. They need their meat.
Can You Feed Your Lizards With Worms Or Insects From Your Garden Or Backyard?
A lot of people ask whether it will be okay to feed their Chinese water dragon with worms that they collect or catch in their gardens or backyards. The answer to that question will depend on the type of garden or backyard you have.
If the soil of your backyard has been sprinkled with pesticides, then the worms would have definitely consumed that and if you feed these worms to your Chinese water dragon then that could prove to be a fatal mistake.
There is also the issue of when you take your pet dragon out for a walk in the backyard and it starts eating worms or insects on its own. I don’t think there is anything you can do about that. So the simple thing to do would be to take your pet to a vet.
If your Chinese water dragon eats insects and worms from your backyard, taking it to a vet for regular checkups would be a good idea. There is another reason behind that except for the pesticides that your pet might have consumed. You never know when a parasite might have made a home inside your pet, so regular checkups would be a good idea.
Feeding Whole Preys To Your Chinese Water Dragon
There are many water dragon owners out there who feed their water dragons with mammals of small size regularly whereas other owners don’t really do that. It can be a good idea for some dragons but not all.
The Chinese water dragons that you keep as pets do not need so much energy that a small mammal would provide them. It already gets enough food and energy from the other things you feed it.
If you absolutely want to feed small mammals to your pet, you should do it very less often because feeding it to them regularly will result in them getting fat. Although, if your pet has been sick and is recovering from an illness, feeding it mammals can be a good idea because they help them recover faster.
What Is Gut Loading?
Gut loading is an essential thing when it comes to feeding your pet Chinese water lizard. You should feed healthy vegetables like carrots and salad to the insect that you are going to give to your pet.
That is because if the insect is healthy, then it will carry all the vitamins that it consumed from the vegetables to your pet’s stomach. This will help your pet in consuming those vitamins without directly eating vegetables. It is the same principle as eating a healthy lamb or chicken’s meat.
It is important to feed the insects with vegetables because the insects that you might get from the pet store might not be healthy enough or might not contain these vitamins.
Supplements For Your Pet Dragon
There are a lot of supplements available in the market for feeding reptiles. Although it would be good that you only stuck to calcium to powder it on the insects that you will feed your Chinese water dragon.
When the calcium is combined with the UVB light, it prevents your pet from getting any metabolic bone disease. Metabolic bone diseases are a very serious problem, and it is also one of the most common issues that reptiles in captivity go through. Although, you should keep in mind that it can be solved easily.
You will only need to give UVB light to your pet, and it will be good. When you are getting a calcium supplement, make sure it is a good one, if not the very best. Calcium supplements for reptiles are very cheap, so you would not have to worry about its price.
Other types of supplements that you can use are multivitamin powder. Although, you should not use it more than once or twice a month. These multivitamins will provide all the vitamins that your Chinese water dragon needs and will keep it in a very healthy condition.
Water Requirements
As I mentioned above, with the living conditions of the Chinese water dragons, you should have enough water in their enclosures at all times. They need a lot of water because they not only drink it, but they also like to swim in it.
You will need to remember to clean the water on a regular basis because these dragons tend to defecate in the water. Feeding them water might be a bit tricky because they often only see water that is moving.
Health Issues In Chinese Water Dragons
Now that you know about how you should feed your Chinese water dragon, let us move on to the health issues that they might get. There are a few health issues that are very common in a lot of these lizards. These issues are:
Mouth Rotting
Mouth rotting is one of the most common health issues in the Chinese water dragons. The rotting of the mouth can happen due to an untreated or poorly treated infection or injury. The water dragons are known to rub or bang their heads on the walls of the enclosure they live in.
That is also the reason why you should not keep the walls of their enclosures transparent and make the inner walls smooth. This habit of theirs can lead to them getting injuries on their mouths and hence mouth rot happening. It is easy to identify this issue, you only need to look out for swelling or ulcers around the mouth or nose region.
Metabolic Bone Diseases
I have already mentioned that metabolic bone diseases can get very serious in the water dragons. So much so that it can even become fatal. It can happen due to a lack of calcium in the dragon’s diet or even inadequate exposure to UVB light.
Parasites And Skin Infections
The Chinese water dragons can get skin infections on the outer layer of their bodies if their enclosure is not maintained or cleaned properly. As I mentioned already, the inner walls of the enclosure should be smooth and not rough.
Parasites are also an issue that can happen inside their bodies. If these issues happen, you should take your pet to the vet and get the issue diagnosed.
Dystocia
The female Chinese water dragons lay eggs sometimes even without having mated with any male. Sometimes, these eggs can get stuck in their bodies and cause them problems. If such a case arises, take them to the vet as soon as possible and seek professional help because it can create serious health issues for your pet.
Parthenogenesis In The Chinese Water Dragons
As I just mentioned, the female Chinese water dragons sometimes lay eggs even when they have not mated with a male. This ability is called parthenogenesis which is basically the ability to reproduce asexually.
The species can reproduce normally as well but they have parthenogenesis as an ability too. Via parthenogenesis, the females can produce viable offsprings, you can even call this a virgin birth. The Chinese water dragons are some of the only known species that have this ability.
This process happens when an unfertilized egg goes through a duplication process and becomes a diploid cell. If the genetics of the female don’t have a huge amount of deleterious recessive mutations, the offspring produced would be viable.
The studies that have been done on the Chinese water dragons show that this can totally happen and the offsprings that are produced through this process are very identical to the female who birthed them.
Parthenogenesis is also seen in many other reptiles like garter snakes, common boas, etc. Although, this ability is more common in invertebrates like insects and worms.
The Mating Process
The males of the water dragons get mature after they have become 5 years old. Female water dragons mature at 4 years of age and can start laying eggs soon after that. The females can produce up to 2 clutches of eggs in a year.
The reproduction process usually occurs during spring before the weather gets warm but is not completely hot. Sometimes, if there are 2 males pursuing one female, then they fight for dominance by fighting in circles and biting at each other’s necks for up to 10 minutes.
The males try to win over the females by displaying their physical abilities by bobbing their heads and latching onto the crest of the head of the females. Afterward, when the females are laying their eggs, they burrow themselves several inches into the ground.
After burrowing themselves, they lay a clutch of eggs that contain 6 to 18 eggs that hatch after 60 to 75 days. The sex of the offsprings are determined by the temperature of where the nest is made.
Hatchlings Of The Water Dragons
When the hatchlings hatch, their body size is an inch wide and 5 to 6 inches long. The water dragons are completely developed and independent right from their births. They stay near their nests for a while and then go away.
They steer away from the general male population of water dragons in the initial days after their birth. The growth process of the water dragons is the fastest in the first year in which they grow up to 7 to 8 inches in length every month.
Some Interesting Facts About Chinese Water Dragons
As I have mentioned before, the Chinese water dragons usually eat insects and worms but they also prefer to eat fishes and small rodents from time to time as well. When I say birds and rodents, I mean it for the dragons that live in the wild, not the pet dragons.
The natural habitat of these dragons is near creeks, rivers, and lakes. Basically anywhere near a water body. The predators of the Chinese water dragons are snakes, some kinds of birds, and sometimes even mammals.
These lizards eat an omnivore diet so you can feed them both vegetarian and non-vegetarian diets. They live a very solitary lifestyle and do not mingle with other water dragons much unless it is for mating and spend most of their time on trees or in the water.
The average clutch size of a Chinese water dragon is 12. The top speed of a Chinese water dragon can be up to 30mph which is not surprising for a reptile at all. If the water dragons feel threatened by anything near them, they can submerge themselves for up to 90 minutes underwater.
The water dragons can sometimes even run on just two legs and hence are called bipedal runners. They can also stand completely still on their hind legs so that they blend into the background.
The water dragons also have the ability to regenerate their tails and their natural lifespan is between 10 to 20 years but they can live longer than that if kept in captivity.
The male and female Chinese water dragons can get quite aggressive sometimes and will bob their heads or puff up their throats and wave their arms at one another to try to intimidate them.
The water dragons can live in groups of a male and several females and they establish their territories. The larger communities can be made up of 230 to 250 water dragons.
Conclusion
The Chinese water dragon lizards are a very beautiful species that would be great as pets. They are found in Southeast Asia and can be up to 3.3 feet long. They eat insects, worms, mice, etc as in their diet.
The natural habitat of these lizards are in a forest near a water body. When you bring them home as pets, you need to take great care of their living arrangements and enclosures and try to keep it as big as possible with oblique walls.
You should ensure that they are comfortable in their homes and never have anything to worry about. You should provide them with proper food and a diet that should include enough vitamins and calcium for them to be healthy.
You can feed them insects, worms, and small mammals but nothing in large quantities and keep mixing their food so that it does not get monotonous because if it does, then they will get bored with it very soon.
You need to remember that they have different needs at different times of their lives, If you feel like they are getting unhealthy or contracting an illness or parasites have taken an infestation in them or if they have any issues like dystocia or mouth rotting, take them to the vet immediately.
The Chinese water dragons can reproduce both sexually and asexually. It takes them up to 4 years to mature for females and 5 years for males. They grow fastest in their first year after birth.
Chinese water dragons are reptiles that are meant to be in the wild. If you really want a pet, you should adopt a dog or cat that has been abandoned. But if you are going to strip away a creature from its natural home, it would be bad.
Humans have already done a lot of harm to the environment and taking the Chinese water dragons away from their homes will just bother them and nature more. All in all, the Chinese water dragons are reptiles that are made to just enhance the beauty of nature.
