It is important to learn about various signs that can help you understand if your Chinese water dragon is sick or unwell. If you notice any signs of disease, please take your Chinese water dragon to vet (this post is for guidance only). In this post, you will learn about Chinese water dragon diseases and alarming signs of sickness.
Common diseases in Chinese water dragons
- Metabolic bone disease/Nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism
- Internal parasitic or bacterial infection
- Vitamin/mineral deficiencies
- Stomatitis (mouth rot infection)
- Respiratory infection
- Snout banging (snout damage/rostral rubbing)
- Dystocia (egg binding)
- Injuries, broken bones or tail
- Skin infections
- Mites
- Weight loss
- Retained shed and spike damage
Signs of sickness in Chinese water dragons
- Lethargy, not moving around much
- Sleeping all the time
- Blisters or raised patches on the skin (might be filled with fluid)
- Vomiting
- Weight loss
- Blood in poop
- Runny and extra smelly poop for more than 2 days
- Sunken eyes
- Loss of appetite
- Wheezing, gaping, forced exhalation, clicking noises
- Bubbly mucus around eyes, nose or mouth
- Bloating
- Inability and straining to poop
- Soft bones, hanging jaw, mouth open, cramps, inability to lift itself up or walk
- Dragging limbs
- Swollen limbs
- Cheesy pus and redness around gums and mouth
1. Metabolic bone disease in Chinese water dragons
Metabolic bone disorder is a range of disorders caused by lack of vitamin D3 and/or calcium in the diet. Vitamin D3 is important to metabolize calcium in the diet.
To provide vitamin D3, you must have a UVB tube/bulb in the tank, that is positioned close enough to your Chinese water dragon. 6-10% UVB is often the best for your Chinese water dragon, depending on positioning. You can find a list of UVB tubes and distances here.
To provide with enough calcium, you must gut-load all feeder bugs and sprinkle them with calcium every 2-3 days. Make sure to offer only nutritious foods to live feeders, too. Also, don’t forget to offer staple greens and veggies or mix them with staples (10-15% of the diet).
Calcium to phosphorus ratio in the diet must be at least 2:1. Too much phosphorus can also lead to removal or calcium from the body. Over time, it can cause calcium deficiency. When getting supplements, make sure it’s pure calcium without phosphorus. In a multivitamin, there can be phosphorus, but at least in 2:1 ratio.
Nutritional secondary hyperparathyroidism is caused by too much phosphorus in the diet. Due to too much phosphorus, calcium levels drop, leading to deficiency.
Signs of a Metabolic bone disease are difficulty lifting the body, twitching or cramps, weak bones. You might also notice lethargy, deformed bones (crooked back, open jaw), swollen legs etc.
If you suspect MBD, please take your Chinese water dragon to the vet for blood testing, visual examination and treatment. This can be life-threatening and effects can also be irreversible.
You can also read a full diet guide for Chinese water dragons with useful tips, supplementing guide and foods lists here.
2. Internal parasites or bacteria in Chinese water dragons
Internal parasites in Chinese water dragons can lead to a chain of problems. They can lead to weight loss, damage to intestinal lining, stunted growth and even death.
A big range of internal parasites and bacteria include nematodes, protozoans, tapeworms, salmonella and more. When their load becomes too high, it turns to an infection.
Many imported Chinese water dragons carry internal parasites and need testing and worming. Make sure to test your new Chinese water dragon’s poop for internal parasites and only worm with your vet’s confirmation. Worming or antibiotics are quite harsh on the organism and can also wreck a healthy gut flora.
Signs of internal parasites are weight loss, runny or smelly poop, pooping blood, bloating, lethargy, no appetite (or normal appetite but no weight gain).
Even those Chinese water dragons that have lived in captivity can develop a higher parasitic load. This can be due to stress (leads to weakening of immune system), dirty living conditions and soaking in soiled water or cross-contamination. That’s why it’s important to quarantine every new animal separately for 2-3 months and test its feces.
While it’s going through treatment, please make sure to keep the cage clean at all times. Refresh the drinking water daily and soaking water more often than before.
3. Vitamin/mineral deficiencies in Chinese water dragons
If you feed your Chinese water dragon a variety of live feeder bugs and vegetables/greens, your Chinese water dragon is unlikely to suffer from a vitamin/mineral deficiency. Make sure to gut-load and supplements its foods regularly.
Some vitamins and minerals are more commonly found in vegetables and greens, such as beta-carotene. 10-15% of your Chinese water dragon’s diet should consist of veggies and greens (and some fruit). Deficiencies are often diagnosed with blood testing.
4. Stomatitis (mouth rot) in Chinese water dragons
Stomatitis, or mouth rot, is an infection of the mouth and gums. Signs of mouth rot are cheesy secretion (pus) around the mouth, red gums, swelling, painful reaction to the touch.
Most often, Chinese water dragons get stomatitis when rubbing their snout against the walls or glass. This results in open wounds where bacteria find their way through. Weakened immune system can also lead to mouth rot.
If your Chinese water dragon has mouth rot, start washing its mouth with diluted Betadine (1:100 – mild brown solution) or scrub and applying antibiotic ointment (without any painkiller) once a day until the infection has cleared. Make sure temperatures are on the higher end to help with fighting off the infection.
Please also take your Chinese water dragon to the vet, as more advanced infection can spread into bloodstream, causing sepsis (blood poisoning). On top of that, it can lead to gum, tissue and even bone damage.
5. Respiratory infection in Chinese water dragons
Respiratory infection in Chinese water dragons is often caused by low tank temperatures, weakened immune system, constant high humidity levels or poor living conditions.
Signs of a respiratory infection include bubbly mucus around the mouth, eyes or nose, loss of appetite and puffy appearance. Lethargy, wheezing, gaping, clicking noises and sitting with an open mouth are signs of an advanced respiratory infection.
While Chinese water dragons require high humidity levels in the tank (75-80%), make sure to allow the cage to dry between misting sessions. 55-60% humidity levels between mistings is optimal.
You must do everything to avoid soggy conditions – in the wild, Chinese water dragons get a chance to get wet and dry out fully in the sun.
Very low temperatures for a prolonged period can also cause a respiratory infection. Make sure ambient temperatures are 81-87 F/27-30.5 C. Hot side basking temperatures must be 88-95 F/31-35 C, and cool side – 75 to 80 F/24-26.6 C.
Another important thing is to make sure soaking water is warm enough – 80-85 F/26.6-29.4 C. Low water temperature can cause a respiratory infection, and also lead to muscle cramping, and eventually drowning when you are not aware. If water is cold, please place the tub under a bulb or heat with a submersible water heater.
Make sure to check temperatures regularly with an infrared thermometer like this and other digital thermometers on each side of the enclosure.
To help your Chinese water dragon clear the infection, keep temperatures in the tank on the higher end. Review humidity levels and other living conditions. Also, take your dragon to the vet, as medication might be required.
6. Snout banging (snout damage/rostral rubbing) in Chinese water dragons
Most Chinese water dragons tend to bang their snout against the glass or even solid walls. That’s because they don’t seem to understand the concept of glass, or cannot see barriers. They can also run into the wall when scared, and hit it with their snout.
If you notice that your Chinese water dragon hits the glass or walls a lot, you need to help prevent that. To do this, add more plants around the sides, and add around 3-5 inches of a tape or similar on the outside bottom of the cage. If the cage is all-glass, cover 3 sides with a cloth or terrarium rock tile decorations like this.
Also, make sure to reduce any stress and house your Chinese water dragon in a cage that’s not too small for it. A single adult Chinese water dragon needs a cage that’s minimum 5 x 4 x 5 feet (long x deep x high).
Preventing snout banging is important, otherwise they can rub it raw, causing open wounds, leading to infection. It can also lead to irreversible jaw damage. If there’s an open wound, apply some antibiotic and take your dragon to the vet.
7. Dystocia (egg binding) in Chinese water dragons
Dystocia, or egg binding, is when a gravid female Chinese water dragon cannot lay all or some of her eggs. This can be caused by different reasons, including weak muscles or bones, lack of heat/UVB in the cage, calcium deficiency or lack of an egg laying site.
You must always prepare a lay box for your Chinese water dragon before she lays her eggs if she mated. But because Chinese water dragons can lay eggs without mating with a male, you must always have a nesting site during warmer months of the year for your female of over 2 years old.
If there’s no nesting site, she might not lay the eggs and wait to find the spot. In the wild, they are very vulnerable while laying eggs, so it has to a be a safe and quiet spot.
Providing a gravid Chinese water dragon with a good diet and calcium supplements is important, too. Sometimes, the egg might be deformed, so she won’t be able to pass it. Signs of dystocia include extreme lethargy, lack of movement, appetite loss, big round belly, digging.
If you suspect that your Chinese water dragon has not laid all the eggs, please take care to the vet as soon as possible to perform a physical examination and an X-Ray. In some cases, the egg will need to be surgically removed, or it can be life threatening.
8. Injuries, broken bone or tail in Chinese water dragons
If your Chinese water dragon falls from a higher structure, it might break its digits or tail. Same can happen if you accidentally trap its digit or tail between the doors, or grab it by the tail. Chinese water dragons hate being restrained, so doing this can make their tail break.
Lost toes, tail tip or digits won’t grow back. It the tail is broken, it might or might not regenerate a little, but not fully. It will also look different.
If your Chinese water dragon has broken the limb or tail, or lost a nail or finger, take it to the vet. The main thing is to keep disinfecting the wound to prevent an infection. If there’s pus, a vet will perform an incision to remove it and flush the wound. Antibiotics might be required in some cases.
9. Chinese water dragons turning brown or dark brown
If your Chinese water dragon is turning brown or dark brown, it could be a sign that it’s stressed, cold or sick. Most Chinese water dragons that are going through stressful situation due to external or internal conditions turn darker in colors, often brown.
However, this can also be normal if for example, your dragon is brown in the morning. They turn darker in color to absorb more heat, especially after the night. If your dragon’s coloration goes back to normal after warming up, it should be fine as long as everything else seems good.
10. Skin infection in Chinese water dragons
Chinese water dragons might develop skin infections due to very humid cage conditions, retained shed, unsanitary living conditions, poor cage ventilation or weakened immunity.
If you notice any blisters on your Chinese water dragon, it’s probably an infection. Most blisters/bumps might be yellowish in color. You might also notice dark brownish patches that will be raised and sometimes filled with fluid.
Make sure let the tank dry out between misting sessions – allow humidity levels to drop to 50-60% before misting again. Ventilation is also a key – without it, the air in the cage will become stagnant.
Skin infections might be fungal or bacterial, so will require a different type of treatments and creams. That’s why it’s important to take your Chinese water dragon to the vet. Without treatment, infection will spread into bloodstream and can cause serious complications or even death.
While waiting for the vet appointment, you can soak your Chinese water dragon in a diluted solution of Betadine (1:100, should make a caramel brown color soak). Soak for 20 minutes at a time. Betadine is anti-bacterial, anti-viral and anti-fungal.
11. Mites in Chinese water dragons
If you notice any small blackish dots crawling on your Chinese water dragon, those might be mites. Mites will suck on your Chinese water dragon’s blood and cause is stress and discomfort. They tend to hide between crevices around the tail, head and legs.
To treat mites, you will need to remove everything in the tank and disinfect it. Get rid of any substrate and take it out of the house, or it can cause reinfection.
You can even keep your dragon in a simpler setup while you are treating for mites. On top of that, you can use a mite killing spray for reptiles, such as this Provent-a-mite.
12. Chinese water dragon losing weight
If your Chinese water dragon is losing weight, that could be caused by few different reasons. First of all, is your Chinese water dragon eating normally?
If you Chinese water dragon is eating normally but not gaining or even losing weight, it could be suffering from an internal parasitic or a bacterial infection. Other signs will include smelly or runny poop, blood in poop, lethargy, sunken eyes. Take your Chinese water dragon and its poop to the vet if you notice those symptoms.
Another reason of weight loss, especially if your dragon is not eating, are low tank temperatures. Without optimal temperatures, your Chinese water dragon won’t have an appetite, and won’t be able to digest food properly. Constipation and not pooping is also a sign. You can read about ideal heating in this post.
Other illnesses might also cause your dragon not to eat due to pain or slow metabolism (metabolic deficiencies, stomatitis, infections etc). Digestive tract organ issues or failure (stomach, liver etc.) or even kidneys can also lead to a rapid decline of health. Please take your Chinese water dragon if you notice alarming symptoms.
13. Retained shed and spike damage
If your Chinese water dragon is having problems shedding, you should help with removing old skin. In general, you should allow your Chinese water dragon around a week to shed before you try to help with stuck skin.
Don’t pull any skin before that, as you can cause bleeding, pain and infection. Sometimes, there might be even layers of old retained skin that will look like patches. Please be patient and continue applying shed aid and soaking to remove old skin.
Stuck shed can prevent blood supply to various spots, causing their rot. Lost spikes, tail tip or even toes will not grow back.
To help with retained shed, you need to keep humidity levels optimal – 75-80% is optimal. Your dragon is also likely to soak more, and you could soak it in warm water too for 10-15 minutes.
Make sure water is around 80-85 F (27-29 C). If there are problems with shedding, you can use reptile shed aid spray like this. You can even use for baby oil on their spikes, toes or tail tip.
You can read all about shedding problems and tips for Chinese water dragons here.