Bearded Dragon Care
Everything you need to keep a bearded dragon healthy: biology, enclosure, heating, UVB, diet, health, handling and breeding.
- Level
- Beginner
- Study time
- ~7 hours
- Modules
- 5
- Lessons
- 37
- Assessment
- Module quizzes · graded certificate
- Version
- v1.0 · reviewed 2 November 2026
What you'll learn
- ✓Describe the bearded dragon's biology, natural history and behaviour, and what they mean for its care
- ✓Set up an enclosure with a hot basking zone, a proper thermal gradient, strong UVB and suitable enrichment
- ✓Feed a varied, correctly supplemented diet that shifts from insects towards greens with age
- ✓Read bearded dragon body language and recognise common health problems such as metabolic bone disease and yellow fungus disease
- ✓Handle a bearded dragon safely and keep useful husbandry records
- ✓Explain incubation, sex reversal, morph genetics and the responsibilities of breeding and ownership
About this course
A practical five-module guide to caring for the central bearded dragon (Pogona vitticeps), an Australian lizard and one of the most widely kept reptiles in the world.
The course is written by HWA, the Herpetological & Wildlife Academy.
You'll study the bearded dragon's biology, natural history and behaviour, enclosure setup, heating, thermostats, UVB lighting, substrate and enrichment, insects, greens, supplements and how the diet changes with age, body language, handling, shedding, brumation and common health problems, and finally breeding, incubation, genetics and responsible ownership, including UK law.
Every lesson is written in plain English with tables, diagrams and photos. Each module ends with a glossary and a multiple-choice quiz. When you've passed all five quizzes you receive a verifiable certificate of completion graded Pass, Merit or Distinction, based on your average quiz score.
This course is general education. It does not replace advice from a specialist reptile vet about an individual animal.
Cover photo: The head of a central bearded dragon. Photo: Virtual-Pano, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
Course content
5 modules · 37 lessons · ~7 hours study time
Module 1Understanding the Bearded Dragon7 lessons
- Introducing the bearded dragonThe species, where its name comes from and how it is classified.Free preview8 min
- Range, habitat and behaviourWhere central bearded dragons live, the habitats they use and how they behave.8 min
- Anatomy and thermoregulationThe beard, scales, third eye and other adaptations, and how dragons control their body temperature.8 min
- Growth, sexing and wild dietHow big they grow, how to tell males from females and what they eat in the wild.8 min
- Conservation and captivityConservation status, Australia's export controls and the bearded dragon in captivity.8 min
- Module 1 glossaryThe key terms from this module. Learn them and be able to explain each one in your own words.6 min
- Module 1 quizTest your understanding of Module 1: 10 multiple-choice questions. Pass mark 60%.10 min
Module 2Enclosure Setup and Environmental Requirements7 lessons
- The enclosureChoosing an enclosure of the right size and construction, and getting ventilation right.8 min
- Heating and temperatureHeat sources, thermostats, the thermal gradient, night-time temperatures and monitoring.8 min
- Humidity, lighting and UVBHumidity, visible light, UVB and vitamin D3, measuring UV Index and the photoperiod.8 min
- Substrate, basking areas and enrichmentChoosing a substrate, understanding impaction, and providing basking areas, hides and climbing structures.8 min
- Water, hygiene, housing and setting upWater, cleaning, bioactive set-ups, why dragons are best kept alone and preparing for arrival.8 min
- Module 2 glossaryThe key terms from this module. Learn them and be able to explain each one in your own words.6 min
- Module 2 quizTest your understanding of Module 2: 10 multiple-choice questions. Pass mark 60%.10 min
Module 3Nutrition and Feeding6 lessons
- Diet and feeder insectsThe natural diet, nutritional needs, feeder insects, prey size and gut loading.8 min
- Greens, foods to avoid and feeding routinesPlant foods, what not to feed, how often to feed at each life stage and how to offer food.8 min
- Supplements, MBD and hydrationCalcium, vitamin D3 and multivitamins, calcium-to-phosphorus balance, metabolic bone disease and water.8 min
- Body condition and feeding recordsRecognising overweight and underweight dragons, feeding during brumation and keeping records.8 min
- Module 3 glossaryThe key terms from this module. Learn them and be able to explain each one in your own words.6 min
- Module 3 quizTest your understanding of Module 3: 10 multiple-choice questions. Pass mark 60%.10 min
Module 4Health, Behaviour and Everyday Management8 lessons
- Behaviour and body languageNormal behaviour, head bobbing, arm waving, beard displays and glass surfing.8 min
- Handling and stressHandling safely and recognising and reducing stress.8 min
- Shedding and brumationHow shedding works, retained shed and seasonal brumation.8 min
- Bone disease, infections and parasitesMetabolic bone disease, adenovirus, yellow fungus disease and intestinal parasites.8 min
- Other common health problemsRespiratory infections, mouth rot, egg binding, dehydration and burns.8 min
- Health checks, quarantine and routineRecognising a healthy dragon, quarantine, a care routine, records and when to see a vet.8 min
- Module 4 glossaryThe key terms from this module. Learn them and be able to explain each one in your own words.6 min
- Module 4 quizTest your understanding of Module 4: 10 multiple-choice questions. Pass mark 60%.10 min
Module 5Breeding, Genetics and Responsible Ownership9 lessons
- Preparing to breedReproduction, sexing, maturity and preparing animals for breeding.8 min
- Courtship to egg collectionMating, ovulation, clutch size, the laying box, laying and collecting eggs.8 min
- Incubation and hatchingIncubating eggs, how genes and temperature decide sex, candling and hatching.8 min
- Hatchling careCaring for neonates and their first feeds.8 min
- Genetics and morphsHow recessive and incomplete dominant traits are inherited, and the common morphs.8 min
- Breeding for healthSilkbacks and welfare, selective breeding, inbreeding and reproductive problems.8 min
- Responsible ownershipPlacing hatchlings, transport, UK law and lifelong ownership.8 min
- Module 5 glossaryThe key terms from this module. Learn them and be able to explain each one in your own words.6 min
- Module 5 quizTest your understanding of Module 5: 10 multiple-choice questions. Pass mark 60%.10 min
Who this course is for
- New and prospective bearded dragon owners
- Keepers who want to check their set-up against current good practice
- Reptile shop staff who advise customers
Assessment & certificate
Each module ends with a quiz that is marked automatically: multiple-choice questions plus a written section where you explain what you've learned in your own words. You can take each quiz once and cannot retake it, and you'll see the correct answer to any question you got wrong.
When you've completed every module, you receive a certificate of completion with a unique verification code, graded on your average score across all the module quizzes:
- PassUp to 69%
- Merit70–79%
- Distinction80–100%
Everyone who completes every module receives a certificate.
This certificate confirms completion of an online, theory-based course and a passed online assessment. It is not an accredited qualification and does not certify practical competence.