What should the dimensions of a tank be when housing one grown chinese water dragon?

Question

I'm getting a chinese water dragon and I need to know how large of a tank I am going to need to be getting. Should I get a smaller one when its is still small and then a larger one as it grows or just a large one to begin with? I have heard that a 100 gallon tank is good. How large is this in feet, or inches? Should it be taller or wider?

Answer 1

Water dragons are climbers, so you need more height than width.

I have just converted an Ikea wardrobe for mine and, although he is still small just now, it will be perfect when he is fully grown. This is the wardrobe I converted.

http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?topcategoryId=15597&catalogId=10103&storeId=12&productId=60846&langId=-1&categoryId=15857&chosenPartNumber=50090296

All I did was build the wardrobe, get these shelves:
http://www.ikea.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?topcategoryId=15597&catalogId=10103&storeId=12&productId=10942&langId=-1&categoryId=15857&chosenPartNumber=30014883
to be the front and bottom supports for the glass. Then went to a glazier and got runners and 6mm toughened glass. I drilled 70mm vent holes in the back and fitted plastic soffit vents (from any DIY store).

I'm in the UK but this cost me less that £200 all in (about $385). Much cheaper than if I'd bought one pre-made that size. It wasn't hard either as I'm a girl and useless at DIY lol but I managed fine, as everythings pre-cut and drilled. I just needed someone to help me lift it.

If you build your viv or buy it, if its wooden, make sure you seal ALL the edges with aquarium sealant. WDs like it humid and the humidity will eventually damage your wood if you don't do this.

An excellent caresheet is here:
http://www.triciaswaterdragon.com/dragoncr.htm

She says that you need it to be 6ft wide but I would say this is in an ideal situation - most of us don't have that space. I would say though - go as big as you can as they will use it.

Hope this helps :)

Answer 2

start with a smaller tank I keep mine in a 3' tall by 18" deep by18" wide glass tank but i am getting a larger one. An appropriate large tank will be expensive the one I am getting is going to be around $5000. water dragons can have a hard time finding there food in an enclosure too big when they are babies. Good luck, water dragons are really cool but they do require daily maintenance. Mine have never bit me once which is a change from all the monitors and snakes I keep. When it is fully grown it will need a 6'x6'x2' enclosure mine is a 6'x7'x2' Here is a site that shows the tank I am getting If you want you can look into purchasing one of these.
http://www.jworlds.net/tropicallandpool.html

Answer 3

Chinese Water Dragons can get as big as iguanas. They can grow to about 3 feet, and that's smaller than your tank. So no, the tank you are building will not house it forever.