Emergency Kit for Bearded Dragons

Are you prepared to meet your reptiles needs in an emergency?

Living in California, my fears are straightforward—earthquakes and wildfires. My neighborhood sits above a wilderness park, on hills of dry grass and wild sage. Hot winds are knocking over patio furniture and the dense plant life is putting my little suburbia at risk.

In 2018, a fire near my house made me question whether I could keep my pets safe in an actual crisis. Needless to say, I didn’t like my answer so I created an emergency plan that includes the medical supplies I’ll need, shelter, and space for a 60-pound dog, two full-grown male bearded dragons and a gang of hermit crabs.

Additionally, Norman was diagnosed with congestive heart failure including an enlarged heart, grade 3 heart murmur and chronic edema. Treatment requires that I keep my emergency kit stocked and current, and that includes overstocking his medications,

The purpose of this article is to get you thinking about the worst-case scenarios that are relevant to your region. The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional veterinarian advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your veterinarian with any questions you may have regarding the medical condition of your pet. Never disregard professional advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website!

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S H E L T E R

First things first, you need an escape route and safe shelter that will accommodate reptiles.
Really reflect on space, electricity (for heat sources) and access to food and water.

“Emergency Disaster Hotline: 1 800 227 4645

Provided by the American Humane Association, this number is your first point of call in earthquake or any disaster preparedness for your pets, what to do and where to go. They provide support and relief information.

FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency): Information for Pet Owners

If you evacuate your home, DO NOT LEAVE YOUR PETS BEHIND! The federal government now officially supports including pets in disaster plans. In 2000 The HSUS and FEMA signed an historic partnership agreement to encourage and assist people who want to safeguard their pets in a natural disaster. Before disaster hits, reach out to local officials—work with them to confirm that you will be allowed to evacuate with your pets.”

Make a first aid kit suited especially for your bearded dragon.

In the scenarios that haunt me, I have to stabilize a nasty injury before I can transport them to a vet. I scoured the internet for a list that keeps the nightmares at bay.

Immediate Emergency

-Store activated charcoal for poisonous ingestion
(Recommended dose for full-grown dragon: mix 1/4th of capsule with 5 mls of water and give them 1-3 mg/kg depending on their weight).¹Tracie Kretzschmar MS, ACSM, BLS. Bug-De-Lite, bug-de-lite.com/Consulting. Creator of PATS (Pogona Adenovirus Testing Society). Co-creator of Everythingreptile.net. Owner of Bug-de-Lite and moderator on beardeddragon.org forums
-Stop minor wounds from bleeding with styptic powder.
–Betadine is a topical disinfectant for minor scrapes and cuts.
–Chlorhexidine Wipes are a non-stinging antiseptic good for cleaning wounds and/or surfaces.
–Reptile eye rinse for minor obstructions or injuries to the eye (if the injury is serious, please seek veterinary attention).

Nutrition

-Use electrolyte powder for dehydrated animals (mix with 75% water).
-Revive nutrition in under-nourished bearded dragons and help stimulate appetite with supplements like bee pollen powder, Oxbow Carnivore Care, Oxbow Critical Care and/or Fluker’s Repta+Boost Insectivore & Carnivore High Amp Boost.
-Give probiotics like Bene-Bac Plus to reptiles under conditions that cause intestinal stress such as worming, surgery, boarding or antibiotic therapy.
-An additional feeder gut-loading supplement that naturally contains beta-carotene, color enhancing pigments and an ideal balance of all 9 Essential Amino Acids is Spirulina.

Treating Illness/Infection (Always Seek Veterinary Advice)

–Serrapeptase or silkworms can ease symptoms of a mild upper respiratory infection. It reduces and thins mucous, helping remove the bacterial infection from the lungs and relieves pain by inhibiting the bodies inflammatory responses so that tissues can actually regenerate.³Reptile Supplies, www.beardeddragon.co/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=399. This is meant to be supplemental on top of proper medical treatment.

-An F-10 nebulizer treatment in addition to antibiotic treatment is another option to discuss with your vet.

–Medical tape is useful for holding bandages or other dressings to a wound.
-Use sterile gauze to cover and clean wounds.
-An eye dropper and/or a needleless syringe to administer water or medication.
-Use latex gloves for infection protection and to prevent the spread of bacteria.
-A towel because towels somehow always come in handy.
-A water bottle (for drinking or to be heated for warmth).
-Small plastic containers (for storage and/or temporary housing).
–Heating pads
–A harness

T R A V E L

Safely transporting your bearded dragon is going to be one of the most important elements of your emergency plan. Accordingly, you need something that travels easy, takes up little to no space and handles moderate to high temperatures.

For typical transportation with a bearded dragon I use a secure, small dog booster seat.

In the middle of a genuine crisis something small is going to be ideal for transportation. Consider how long you might actually be kept away from home because a bearded dragon can’t live in a plastic shoe box long term, but they can live in a tub or aquarium for a while.

Taking in to account ease of travel and space for my dragons and hermit crabs to move, I bought acrylic breeding tanks. Additionally, I’ve got a few spare aquariums to house them “long term” should it come to that. Plastic shoe boxes (with air hole modifications) and/or breeding boxes are great for transporting live insects or if need be, your dragon.

S T A B I L I T Y

In the event of a major earthquake similar to what we saw in Ridgecrest, California in 2019⁴ No fatalities or major injuries were reported after Friday night’s 7.1-magnitude earthquake, which jolted Ridgecrest in Kern County and an area from Sacramento to Mexico , you don’t want your enclosure to go crashing to the ground.

This wretched possibility haunts me so that each passing day I get closer to becoming my mother, doomsday prepping for the big one.

Here’s what I did:

1. I store them on an industrial rack from Costco (it was $60 in-store but I didn’t find it online). It’s sturdy and locked in place by the weight of three 4-foot long enclosures.
2. I secured earthquake straps into the wall studs.
3. I hung the light fixtures on the third level with a lamp stand and I drilled cup hooks into the wood of the other two.
4. The Crabitat is on the bottom because it’s the heaviest.
   (I’d like to store it up high when I’m able to have a ground floor reptile room someday).
5. The items hanging above my enclosures are properly secured to prevent them from falling off the wall.

*UPDATE: LOCAL EMERGENCY

On July 2nd 2019, another brush fire caught in the wilderness park behind my home, in the end it burned 220 acres. The sound of fire trucks and shouting neighbors woke me from a depression nap. Consequently, I looked out my bedroom window and saw red skies, black smoke and flames about 2000-yards from my house. Immediately, I kicked my emergency plan into gear and I was able to get my boys, dog and important items loaded up and into my car in under 20 minutes. Fortunately, firefighters were able to stop the fire from damaging any homes in the area!

⁵ Check out these great photos taken by a neighbor!

June 2020 Update:
I edited the section on rack stability to include the modifications I made when added a third tier to my industrial rack to accommodate my hermit crabs.

SHOP SMALL FOR YOUR EMERGENCY SUPPLIES

Shop at Bug-De-Lite. Owned and operated by Tracie Kretzschmar.
AND shop at Beardeddragon.co

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SOURCES

¹Tracie Kretzschmar MS, ACSM, BLS. Bug-De-Lite, bug-de-lite.com/Consulting. Creator of PATS (Pogona Adenovirus Testing Society). Co-creator of Everythingreptile.net. Owner of Bug-de-Lite and moderator on beardeddragon.org forums.
²Klingenberg, Roger J. “Reptiles Nematode Parasites Treatment.” Reptile Magazine, www.reptilesmagazine.com/Reptile-Health/Disease-Management/Reptiles-Nematode-Parasites-Treatment-Fenbendazole/.
³It can reduce and thins mucous to help remove the bacterial infection from the lungs and helps relieve pain by inhibiting the bodies inflammatory responses so that tissues can actually regenerate. Reptile Supplies, www.beardeddragon.co/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=399.
⁴The quake struck at 8:19 p.m. Friday and was centered 11 miles (18 kilometers) from Ridgecrest, the same area of the desert where a 6.4-magnitude temblor hit just a day earlier. “More quakes to come? 7.1 quake shakes Ridgecrest.” Bakersfield Now. Last modified July 5, 2019. https://bakersfieldnow.com/news/local/another-earthquake-has-hit-near-ridgecrest.
⁵ Check out these great photos taken by a neighbor! Toussaint, D. (2019, July 2). Sycamore Canyon Fire July 0219. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/dave.toussaint.5