The 10 Best Bearded Dragon Toys And Activities

Have you ever heard of bearded dragon toys? No? Me neither until last week. A friend of mine, who is also in love with bearded dragons, told me that he bought some toys for his dragon now and that he is doing a little bit of playing and training with his dragon.

Since I´ve never heard of beardies playing with toys, I was very curious what kind of toys bearded dragons actually use. With “use” I mean actually playing, or doing something with it.

Since I am running this website here, I am always up for something new, I am always up for some experiments so I can share my new impressions with you guys, my readers. Besides that I also got two beardies and of course I want to entertain them.

I think that bearded dragons really need something to do. They need a little bit of exercise. Not only for their physical health (most bearded dragons definitely get too fat in a terrarium because of overfeeding) but also for their mental health.

Out in the wild they are doing stuff the whole day, like hunting or keeping other dragons away from their territory. What do they do in a terrarium? Right! Almost nothing.

Here is a list for you of the 10 best toys and activities for bearded dragons. Hope you enjoy!

No. 1 – Get a ball for your bearded dragon

I know it sounds simple and somehow unbelievable. Bearded dragons playing with balls? Well sounds like someone thinks that beardies are dogs, right? Well, maybe they aren´t that different from dogs as we thought, lol.

In fact most bearded dragons really play with a ball. Do they enjoy it? I do not know, I don´t speak dragon language, but the dragon in the video below seems to enjoy showing the ball who´s the boss.

So you see, dragons seem to like playing with balls, which is great. It is not only a great physical exercise for beardies, it also keeps them busy, which prevents them from getting depressed from sitting bored in the tank all day.

No. 2 – Buy or build a swing or a hammock for your bearded dragon

Come on, who does not love swings? All humans on earth love swings and it seems like many animals also do. The bearded dragon is no exception here. They love to climb on it or just lie on it, looking around judging everybody, haha.

This is also a good physical exercise for your bearded dragon. Due to the fact that the swing moves when your dragon climbs on it a lot of different muscles will be activated and trained. It is a better exercise for them then just climbing on a rock.

If you want to buy a swing, you should make sure that it is made of good and save material. Swings of bad quality could hurt your bearded dragon. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of swings you could buy, which are made for bearded dragons. If you do not want to build a swing yourself, you could also do something similar with a hammock for your bearded dragon.

Have a look at the article below where I have reviewed one of the best bearded dragon hammocks and explain what fun stuff you could do for your dragon with a hammock.

Why you must have a bearded dragon hammock!

No. 3 – Get a bearded dragon leash

I was sceptical when it comes to leashes for bearded dragons. I was always afraid that my dragons might not like the leash and hurt themselfes when I put on the leash.

However there is no need to worry about that. My dragons got used to see the leash a couple of days and then I could put it on without any problems.

Just think about the possibilities here. You can take your bearded dragon for a walk, which is a great physical and mental exercise for your dragon. It prevents depression and the sunlight is sooo good for your bearded dragon.

You can even let your bearded dragon hunt wild insects as long as you visit the vet regularly. Please make sure that the grass where your dragon hunts was not treated with pesticide.

The dragon leash is really one of my favorite bearded dragon toy/ activity. Besides that you can get a leash for your beardie for just a few bucks. Have a look at this article, where I show you one of the best leashes for not even $10! Click here!

No. 4 – Get long tweezers

Yeah I know, most of you guys probably don´t need tweezers or don´t want tweezers, since you enjoy feeding your bearded dragons without that stuff.

However it is not really about the feeding. Tweezers are awesome to play chase with your bearded dragon. Simply grab a cricket or a dubia or something like that and show it to your dragon. Of course, as you already know, your dragon most probably will freak out and try to catch the food.

Let your dragon run, climb and jump and you will have a healthy bearded dragon. This is a great exercise for your bearded dragon, because you simulate nature here. In the wild bearded dragon hunt their food all day.

Further this is not only good for your bearded dragon. I bet you are also going to have a lot of fun playing with your bearded dragon.

Note: Please make sure that you don´t overdo it here. Play chase for your bearded dragon, but do not do it too long as it could be too much for your dragon at some point.

No. 5 – Food in a package

Have you ever left your bearded dragon together with a transparent box full of crickets on the floor? If not, you should definitely try it out. Your dragon will hunt the box like crazy to get the food inside.

It is the same as letting your dragon hunt food with tweezers, but just for lazy people, haha.

No. 6 – Get a mirror

Sounds weird, but is one of the best and most natural things you can do for your bearded dragon. Place a mirror near the tank of your bearded dragon, so that the dragon can see its own reflection.

Observe your dragon. It will start to bobb its head or it will do the bearded dragon wave. That´s because the beardie thinks that there is an intruder. Bearded dragons are territorial and they want to scare away potential competitors, or they even show submissiveness by waving.

I would not place the mirror near your tank all day. Maybe 15 minutes each day, so your bearded dragon is busy, but does not get stressed out. The rest of the day you can just cover the mirror with something like a towel for example.

This also works with two bearded dragons in two separate tanks. If you place the tanks so that the bearded dragons can see each other, you will see their awesome territorial behavior. Just don´t place them too near to each other.

Need a bearded dragon tank? Get a complete, cheap and ready tank here!

No. 7 – Swimming

You might not believe it, but bearded dragons are great swimmers and they love it! Have a look at this video below of a german guy who lets their dragons swim in his pond.

Awesome, isn´t it?

You can let your dragon swimm in your pool if you just use normal water. You can also fill your bathtub with water and let it swim in there. Or you use a clothes hamper for that, as long as it has no holes it should work. If you have a pond, that probably would be the best! Let it swim in your pond

Please make sure that you always keep an eye on your beardies while they swim. They are good swimmers and most probably nothing bad will happen, but you never know.

No. 8 – Build caves for your dragon

I have found a great substrate for bearded dragons which is not dangerous and awesome for creating an extremely good looking bearded dragon habitat.

You can find my article on this substrate here.

With this substrate you can form hills and even caves in your bearded dragon tank. This way your bearded dragon can explore its habitat and it can even dig its own caves and tunnels.

The great thing about this substrate is, that it is very cheap, it is very easy to clean and you can remodel it over and over again. So you can create a completely new habitat for your bearded dragon without spending over and over again.

This way your bearded dragon can explore and does not get too bored in its tank. However do not change the habitat too often in a short period of time. That could stress your dragon. You could do it every 3 months for example

No. 9 – Climbing on your body

Most probably you are doing it already anyway, but it is definitely worth mentioning it in this list. Letting you bearded dragon climb on your body is not only fun for you, it is also a good exercise for your beardie. Just make sure, that you do not overdo it here. I know, I could also do that all day, but we really should give our dragons a rest from time to time, lol.

No. 10 – Get out in the rain

If you live in a warm country you can also get outside with your bearded dragon when it rains and look how it reacts to rain. Have a look at the video below.

The dragon in the video went for the balcony when it started to rain. It was not forced to do that. By the movements it makes you can clearly see, that it trys to swim a little bit.
It is definitely having a good time and it is not distracted at all.

Always make sure that your bearded dragon likes it. It could also be distracted by the rain and try to get away. Just keep an eye on your beardie and you will be fine.

 

So that´s it guys, this is my top ten list of the best bearded dragon toys and actvities.

What do you do with your bearded dragon? Do you take it outside or let it climb on your body?

Did you actually try out something after reading this list? Let´s talk about it in the comments below! Just leave a comment and I will get back to you!

Have fun with your bearded dragons!

All the best,

Pierre