Pet owners didn’t know much about bearded dragons when they were first brought into captivity. A few decades later, everything about bearded dragons seems to be available in the public domain. Still, there are several things that bearded dragon owners are learning on the way.
Among the things that many pet owners are yet to know is whether bearded dragons close their eyes to sleep? The truth is that beardies shut their eyes to sleep when the night sets in. Like humans, these calm and placid reptiles are diurnal, meaning they are active during the day and sleep at night.
However, beardies are highly sensitive to light and will open the eyes when they detect the slightest spec of light.
In some ways, bearded dragons have similar sleeping habits to humans. They sleep when darkness creeps in and usually lie down to slumber as we do.
However, they still have strange sleeping habits, some natural and others indicating an underlying problem. Keep reading to learn more about bearded dragon sleeping habits and behaviors.
Do Bearded Dragons Sleep With Their Eyes Open or Closed?
As aforementioned, bearded dragons will shut their eyes to sleep as soon as the light inside the cage is switched off.
Since they’re diurnal, bearded dragons need peaceful nighttime sleep to stay healthy and participate in routine activities such as feeding, basking, hunting, and exercising the next day.
Beardies fall asleep when it’s dark and wake up when the sun is up. This means that these scaly friends should sleep when their owners are sleeping.
However, they might need some extra sleeping hours than you do. Usually, bearded dragons need around 10-12 hours of uninterrupted nighttime sleep.
Some pet owners try to use a flashlight to determine whether these lizards sleep with their eyes open, only to be met by their stare.
Due to their sensitivity to light, bearded dragons open their eyes immediately if they detect any light. So, you must take our word that they sleep with closed eyes since there’s no way to prove it.
It’s crucial to ensure that the bearded dragon cage is dark during their sleeping hours. Even the slightest illumination will disrupt a bearded dragon’s sleep cycle.
How Do I Know That My Bearded Dragon Wants To Sleep?
There’s no definitive sign that your bearded dragon wants to sleep beside the fact that they have to sleep when it gets dark. However, if you have a fantastic relationship with your beardie, you might observe some behaviors that might indicate they are about to sleep.
First, your beardie will disappear into hiding spots and stay without resurfacing. Conversely, they might blink like they are trying to instruct you to switch off the lights. At times, they might get restless and start glass surfing the entire length of the glass walls.
You should check the temperature, power off the light bulbs, and let the beardies relish some nighttime sleep.
What Does It Mean When Bearded Dragons Close Their Eyes?
The most apparent reason for beardies to close their eyes is when they’re sleeping. However, bearded dragons may close their eyes on other occasions apart from sleeping at night.
Sometimes it might be a sign of discomfort, submission, presence of eye infection, or poor lighting.
In the animal kingdom, maintaining eye contact is often interpreted as being ready to fight and not being afraid. Many animals use body language, mostly their eyes, to clarify how they feel and what they want.
Our lizard friends are not an exception. They use body language to let the other animals know their feelings and intentions.
For instance, when beardies face a more prominent animal, they feel that intense eye contact sells them as being defiant and threatening. They usually move their eyes away or close them to avoid confrontations.
My Bearded Dragon Closes its Eyes When I Pet Him?
Contrary to popular belief, your beardie closing its eyes as you pet it is not a sign of being comfortable or happy. Countless videos on the web show bearded dragon closing eyes when being petted, and their owners seem to believe this is because the lizards love it.
However, this is further from the truth. Beardies close their eyes when being massaged because they feel uncomfortable.
They may want to tell you to stop, but because you’re bigger and are scared of you, they’ll close their eyes and wish you would leave them alone.
If you become adamant and continue petting them, they might start to turn black to make you understand that they feel aggrieved and uncomfortable.
Just because human beings close their eyes when massaged as a sign of fulfillment and enjoyment, this doesn’t mean that this concept also applies to beardies.
Should I Be Concerned If My Bearded Dragon Closes Its Eyes When I Hold It?
Your bearded dragon will only allow you to hold it if they completely trust you. However, lizards may get cold feet once you lift them off the ground. One sign that your beardie feels uncomfortable when holding it is closing its eyes as soon as it lands on your palm or thigh.
Bearded dragons closing their eyes when being held is worse than shutting them when they’re being petted.
This is because when lizards are off the ground, they don’t have a means of escaping this situation. Whoever is holding them has the power to do whatever they wish.
Bearded dragons can decide to slip off and avoid being petted when on the ground. However, this is impossible when they are several feet above the ground.
If your beardie closes its eyes immediately after you pick it up, it’s trying to signal you that it’s not comfortable. You should place it back into its cage carefully.
Insisting on holding bearded dragons even after showing displeasure can end badly for you. The lizards might snap and bite you or start producing scary hissing sounds.
Since beardies are calm, docile, and non-aggressive, you should try as much as possible to let things go their way. Don’t handle them if they seem uncomfortable.
Can Eye Infection Make My Bearded Dragon Close Its Eyes?
Sometimes, the eye-closing behavior doesn’t always mean that you’re doing something that the lizard isn’t enjoying. It could indicate that your bearded dragon is ailing from an eye infection.
If you love paying close attention to your bearded dragon, you might notice when it’s closing its eyes unexpectedly.
Beardies may close their eyes often, even when not held or petted when ailing from eye infections. Any unusual closing of the eyes when the lizard sits in the cage may indicate an eye infection.
You might notice tears, pus, or discharge around bearded dragon eyes when the infection becomes severe. Conversely, the condition might worsen and make the beardie opening its eyes impossible.
If you suspect your lizard has an eye infection, it’s highly recommended that you take it to the reptile vet for a checkup. Failure to do so, you might witness your scaly friend loses its sight completely.
Can Wrong Lighting Lead to Bearded Dragons Closing Their Eyes?
Bearded dragons require specialized UVA and UVB light bulbs for visibility. Unfortunately, the market is filled with lots of inappropriate bulbs for dragons. Some of these lamps can cause extensive damage to bearded dragon eyes.
If you’re not using proper bearded dragon lights in their terrariums, they might feel irritated by the lamps and keep closing their eyes. You must know the most appropriate light lamps for your bearded dragon before shopping.
Ensure that the lamps installed in a bearded dragon enclosure don’t cause discomfort or irritation to the eyes.
If you notice that beardies are closing their eyes more often, especially when you switch the lights on and off, you should check on your lighting.
Avoid manufacturers with a reputation for producing low-quality and poor reptile lighting bulbs.
Bearded Dragons Closing Their Eyes When Basking
It’s normal for beardies to shut their eyes when relishing the warm heat rays in the basking area. However, no one knows precisely what this means.
The bearded dragon may be enjoying having its body warmed up after a cold night, or it could be a sign that the lizard is genuinely relaxing.
Bearded dragons may close their eyes when basking because the UVB light bulb is too close. There have been several cases of beardies becoming blind because the light is too close to the bearded dragon or too powerful.
When a bearded dragon shuts its eyes when basking and doesn’t seem to be perfectly relaxed, you’ll need to install the light and heat bulb further from the basking area.
Furthermore, you must ascertain that the lizard only closes its eyes at the basking spot. Closing its eyes in another place in the enclosure may indicate another problem.
Why Is My Bearded Dragon Closing One Eye?
Apart from your bearded dragon closing both eyes, you may also notice it closing one of its eyes frequently. As expected, you will be concerned and curious as to know why your bearded dragon is behaving this way.
Although it’s not something to worry about, it might be a sign of an underlying condition if it keeps happening. Below are reasons bearded dragons close one eye leaving the other open:
Dehydration
Coming from the hot and dry Australian deserts, bearded dragons are not great drinkers, and they often find themselves becoming dehydrated.
When your lizard is thirsty, it will start to display cues such as opening one eye and closing the other. It will also show other symptoms such as lethargy, sunken eyes, and difficulties in shedding.
Infection or ailment
A beardie may close one of its eyes if the inner eye or the socket is infected. Usually, beardies may suffer from viral and bacterial infections in one eye, leaving them with no other option but to use the healthy one.
When you see a beardie closing one eye, inspect to see whether the eye is producing tears or discharge. Also, check whether there is swelling around the eye socket.
Parasites
Another reason why your bearded dragon may be closing one eye is the presence of parasites. Ticks and mites are the common parasites found around the bearded dragon’s eyes and ears.
If these organisms surround one of the bearded dragon’s eyes, it will feel uncomfortable and may keep closing the most infested eye, leaving the healthy one open.
Small items in the eye
Substrate particles may get inside one of the bearded dragon’s eyes, making it shut the eye, trying to get them out.
Conversely, sharp branches, toys, and décor can scratch or puncture the bearded dragon’s eye. Bearded dragons avoid exposing the injured eye to light and use one eye to see.
Response to a stimuli
Beardies are also quick to respond to stimuli. Like the army snipers close one eye to get a better focus, bearded dragons can also close one eye to focus on a particular object better.
This usually happens when they have to hunt live insects in the cage. Closing one eye gives beardies improved focus and allows them to pounce on the prey before it escapes.
Disastrous shedding
Although shedding should be seamless, it’s not always the case for bearded dragons. At times the shed may get stuck around the eyes forcing the beardie to close the eye until shedding is complete.
The lizards may also try to rub the stuck skin against rough surfaces, injuring the eye. Once scratched, bearded dragons will try to keep the affected eye shut most of the time.
Final Verdict
At this point, you now understand that bearded dragons sleep with their eyes closed. However, this will be hard to prove since beardies are highly sensitive to light.
If you try shining a phone light or flashlight on them when sleeping, they will open their eyes immediately.
However, bearded dragons don’t only close their eyes when sleeping. There are other instances when you might catch your lizard with its eyes closed.
Sometimes it’s normal for the beardie to close its eyes, while sometimes, it’s a sign that things are not okay.
Whether you’re worried about whether your dragon sleeps with its eyes shut or want to know why it stays with one eye open, we hope we’ve provided the information you’re seeking in this article.