Learning and understanding your Chinese water dragon’s behavior is very important. It can help create a bond, build trust and even understand when your pet dragon is not well. In this post, you will find a list of various Chinese water dragon behavior types, such as arm waving, digging, head bobbing, submerging, keeping an eye open, and what they mean.
#1: Why is my Chinese water dragon digging?
Chinese water dragons might be digging for few different reasons.
Often, gravid Chinese water dragons dig prior to laying eggs. Females dig quite a deep nest that is around 5 and up to 10 inches (13-25 cm) deep to lay the eggs. She will be looking for the nesting spot and digging there. Please note that even those female Chinese water dragons that did not mate can lay infertile eggs. Most mature at around 2 years of age.
Another reason your Chinese water dragon is digging might be because you have housed it in a very small enclosure and it wants to escape. This is especially true if its banging its snout on the doors/walls.
A baby Chinese water dragon can live in a smaller tank, that is around 36-46″ L, 12-18″ D, 24″ H (91-117 x 30-46 x 61 cm). Once your Chinese water dragon turns around 12 months old, you need to move it to an adult tank. This must be minimum 4x3x5 feet long (L x D x H). They are active lizards and need that space.
Another possible reason why your Chinese water dragon is digging is because it’s too hot. That is true if your dragon spends a lot of time soaking/swimming to cool down and avoids the basking area. Basking temperatures of 88-95 Fahrenheit (31-35 Celsius) are optimal, with cool spot temperatures of 75 to 80 Fahrenheit (24 to 26.6 C).
In general, most Chinese water dragons run into glass and damage their snout. If your Chinese water dragon is digging near the edges, especially around glass, then it’s trying to escape. Chinese water dragons don’t understand the concept of glass, or cannot see that there is a barrier.
To prevent that, add 4-6 inches or liner, ribbon or similar to the outside bottom of the cage so that your dragon knows there is a barrier. Also, add lots of plants to the front to avoid snout rubbing.
#2: Why is my Chinese water dragon hitting or jumping at glass?
Chinese water dragons tend to jump at glass because they don’t understand the concept of glass or want to escape. Glass hitting/jumping can also be caused if an enclosure is too small or temperatures too high.
Jumping and hitting glass should be dealt with straight away, because it can lead to bad consequences. Hitting glass will rub the snout raw, causing disfigured or broken jaw, and even an infection due to an open wound.
To minimize this behavior, make sure tank is large enough not only in height, but also length and depth. Cover the sides 3 sides of the cage (especially if glass) with a dark cloth, background stones like this or similar.
Add lots of plants near the sides and branches to climb. Also, cover 4-6″ of the outside bottom of the cage with a ribbon or similar, to let your dragon know there’s a barrier.
#3: Why does my Chinese water dragon keeps its mouth open?
If your Chinese water dragon keeps its mouth open a lot in a basking area, it could mean that it’d hot and trying to cool down. Opening the mouth helps release excess heat faster. If your Chinese water dragon is not doing this for too long, then there’s no need to worry.
However, please make sure to check temperatures with a handheld infrared thermometer like this to be sure. Make sure to place digital thermometers and have a thermostat, too. Also, make sure that humidity levels are optimal (65-80%) to prevent dehydration.
Another reason why your dragon is keeping its mouth open is because of a respiratory infection. If your Chinese water dragon is gaping a lot, breathing forcefully, being lethargic and not eating much – it could be suffering from a respiratory infection. Bubbles around the mouth and nose, popping sounds also indicate an infection.
These signs would mean an advanced infection, so please take your Chinese water dragon to a vet immediately. Keep temperatures on the high end for the time being to help fight off the infection.
Mouth rot, or stomatitis, can also make your Chinese water dragon keep its mouth open. Stomatitis is a mouth infection. Other signs of mouth rot are white secretions around the mouth, redness of the gums and tongue.
In Chinese water dragons, mouth rot is often caused by snout banging, which causes open wounds and a pathway for bacteria. Cleaning the mouth with diluted Betadine and applying an antibiotic cream should help resolve the issue. Please see the vet for diagnosis and advice.
#4: Why does my Chinese water dragon close one eye?
One the main reasons why a Chinese water dragon is closing one eye is because it’s scared. Many lizards, including Chinese water dragons, close one eye to not see you, because when they don’t see you, they feel safer.
The second reason why your Chinese water dragon is closing its eye is because of shedding. When shedding, loose skin might get stuck around eyes, making it difficult to open them. Make sure that the humidity levels are high (70-80%) and that there is a soaking tub on the bottom with fresh water.
If you are using loose substrate in the tank, it might get in your Chinese water dragon’s eyes. It can make your dragon close its eyes, but eyes can also get infected. Loose substrate, especially coco coir, mulch or soil, can cause this when sticking to your dragon.
To minimize this, cover it with large orchid bark chips to prevent sticking and dust. You can also wash your dragon’s eye with reptile drops like this to clean them and remove any debris.
However, if you can see any discharge from your Chinese water dragon’s eyes, nose or mouth, take it to the vet. This could be an infection. Wheezing, bubbles coming out of mouth or nose, popping noises can also indicate a respiratory infection.
What is more, your Chinese water dragon might be closing one or both eyes when lights are too strong. Make sure lights are positioned from top and not diagonally, which can damage eyes. There must be a shaded area where your dragon can hide from light and especially UVB.
#5: Chinese water dragon head bobbing and arm waving – reason and meaning
Both male and female Chinese water dragons can be exhibiting head bobbing and arm waving. These behaviors often mean aggression and display of dominance. In groups of Chinese water dragons, there will be a dragon that shows dominance, hence displaying these behaviors.
This can be a male displaying dominance in front of females, or even a female displaying dominance in front of other females and a male. This is especially true if there’s a size difference. Chinese water dragons can also display head bobbing, tail flicking and arm waving before mating.
In general, dominance display shouldn’t stress your dragons, but make sure they don’t fight. Unfortunately, the submissive dragons might become stressed, start eating less and not get a chance to bask etc.
To make sure no one gets stressed, their habitat should be large enough and each should have some basking space and a hide. You should also feed them one after another. To do this, you can take turns feeding or take them out and feed in a separate spot.
#6: Chinese water dragon sleeping in water
Chinese water dragons are good swimmers and can hold their breath underwater for around half an hour. Sometimes, Chinese water dragons decide to soak and even sit under water for this long, closing their eyes or even laying with their nose perking out. This scares many owners, who think that their dragon has drowned.
Submerging for long periods of time can be both normal, but also caused due to stress. Chinese water dragons can hide in water if they feel threatened or scared.
Make sure that the cage is in a quiet room and that other pets or kids don’t disturb your dragon. Include a shaded area and a hide in the cage, too.
While this can also be normal, you must take some precautionary steps to prevent drowning. First of all, make sure that the sides of the soaking tub are not smooth and that your dragon can come out. For that, you can add gravel on the bottom, branch to get on etc.
Another thing that you must remember is to keep water warm in the tub. If water temperatures drop low, your Chinese water dragon won’t be able to move and won’t be able to come out. Optimal water temperature is around 80-85 F/26.6-29.4 C.
Don’t let the water get cold during the day or even at night, as water dragons do sometimes decide to soak later in the day. To heat the water, you can use ceramic bulb in that area, or a submersible water heater like this that your dragon won’t be able to touch.
Thank you for reading this post on Chinese water dragon behavior. To read more on Chinese water dragon care, please see this resource page.