diff --git a/api/app/settings/common.py b/api/app/settings/common.py
index 43027a9c2da9..b27541e18c02 100644
--- a/api/app/settings/common.py
+++ b/api/app/settings/common.py
@@ -16,7 +16,7 @@
 import warnings
 from datetime import datetime, time, timedelta
 
-import dj_database_url  # type: ignore[import-untyped]
+import dj_database_url
 import django_stubs_ext
 import prometheus_client
 import pytz
@@ -168,7 +168,7 @@
 SITE_ID = 1
 
 db_conn_max_age = env.int("DJANGO_DB_CONN_MAX_AGE", 60)
-DJANGO_DB_CONN_MAX_AGE = None if db_conn_max_age == -1 else db_conn_max_age
+DJANGO_DB_CONN_MAX_AGE = 0 if db_conn_max_age == -1 else db_conn_max_age
 
 DATABASE_ROUTERS = ["app.routers.PrimaryReplicaRouter"]
 NUM_DB_REPLICAS = 0
@@ -261,14 +261,14 @@
 
 # Task processor database — OPTIONALLY SEPARATED
 TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_URL = env("TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_URL", default=None)
-TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_USER = env("TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_USER", default=None)
+TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_USER = env("TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_USER", default="")
 TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_PASSWORD = env(
     "TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_PASSWORD",
-    default=None,
+    default="",
 )
-TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_HOST = env("TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_HOST", default=None)
-TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_PORT = env("TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_PORT", default=None)
-TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_NAME = env("TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_NAME", default=None)
+TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_HOST = env("TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_HOST", default="")
+TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_PORT = env("TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_PORT", default="")
+TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_NAME = env("TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_NAME", default="")
 
 if TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_URL or TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_NAME:  # pragma: no cover
     if TASK_PROCESSOR_DATABASE_URL:
diff --git a/api/poetry.lock b/api/poetry.lock
index bdd5c7de9813..e0f6835f6a0b 100644
--- a/api/poetry.lock
+++ b/api/poetry.lock
@@ -1192,16 +1192,19 @@ files = [
 
 [[package]]
 name = "dj-database-url"
-version = "0.5.0"
+version = "3.0.1"
 description = "Use Database URLs in your Django Application."
 optional = false
 python-versions = "*"
 groups = ["main"]
 files = [
-    {file = "dj-database-url-0.5.0.tar.gz", hash = "sha256:4aeaeb1f573c74835b0686a2b46b85990571159ffc21aa57ecd4d1e1cb334163"},
-    {file = "dj_database_url-0.5.0-py2.py3-none-any.whl", hash = "sha256:851785365761ebe4994a921b433062309eb882fedd318e1b0fcecc607ed02da9"},
+    {file = "dj_database_url-3.0.1-py3-none-any.whl", hash = "sha256:43950018e1eeea486bf11136384aec0fe55b29fe6fd8a44553231b85661d9383"},
+    {file = "dj_database_url-3.0.1.tar.gz", hash = "sha256:8994961efb888fc6bf8c41550870c91f6f7691ca751888ebaa71442b7f84eff8"},
 ]
 
+[package.dependencies]
+Django = ">=4.2"
+
 [[package]]
 name = "django"
 version = "4.2.22"
@@ -1256,6 +1259,18 @@ django = ">=3.2"
 django-ipware = ">=3"
 setuptools = "*"
 
+[[package]]
+name = "django-cockroachdb"
+version = "4.2"
+description = "Django backend for CockroachDB"
+optional = false
+python-versions = ">=3.8"
+groups = ["main"]
+files = [
+    {file = "django-cockroachdb-4.2.tar.gz", hash = "sha256:f58d6fadf9b7e9d83309f842d0c8ea9b17d85405069f2b66982058a7ba3ba7d3"},
+    {file = "django_cockroachdb-4.2-py3-none-any.whl", hash = "sha256:04fb842d2462a10108552f56683d8fe0e99c60b85e35bd5ad08250251807868e"},
+]
+
 [[package]]
 name = "django-cors-headers"
 version = "3.5.0"
@@ -5404,4 +5419,4 @@ files = [
 [metadata]
 lock-version = "2.1"
 python-versions = ">3.11,<3.13"
-content-hash = "6d970c48da584e098b1bca7a97e4db1f98ae710a56d0e051437522dc0512f8d4"
+content-hash = "a2a6709fbd9d92160e6d9bbd9542ac9a1a2a0c944cb7d05f8ddd4cfba438bb63"
diff --git a/api/pyproject.toml b/api/pyproject.toml
index ce92f70de0ec..06165009484f 100644
--- a/api/pyproject.toml
+++ b/api/pyproject.toml
@@ -112,7 +112,7 @@ pyparsing = "~2.4.7"
 requests = "~2.32.4"
 six = "~1.16.0"
 whitenoise = "~6.0.0"
-dj-database-url = "~0.5.0"
+dj-database-url = "~3.0.1"
 drf-nested-routers = "~0.92.1"
 shortuuid = "~1.0.1"
 sendgrid-django = "~4.2.0"
@@ -166,6 +166,7 @@ tzdata = "^2024.1"
 djangorestframework-simplejwt = "^5.3.1"
 structlog = "^24.4.0"
 prometheus-client = "^0.21.1"
+django_cockroachdb = "~4.2"
 
 [tool.poetry.group.auth-controller]
 optional = true
diff --git a/docs/docs/deployment/hosting/kubernetes.md b/docs/docs/deployment/hosting/kubernetes.md
index 6a07f0396a52..b5c2a08aa953 100644
--- a/docs/docs/deployment/hosting/kubernetes.md
+++ b/docs/docs/deployment/hosting/kubernetes.md
@@ -385,8 +385,8 @@ The following table lists the configurable parameters of the chart and their def
 | `postgresqlUsername`                               |                                                                           | `postgres`                     |
 | `postgresqlPassword`                               |                                                                           | `flagsmith`                    |
 | `databaseExternal.enabled`                         | use an external database. Specify database URL, or all parts.             | `false`                        |
-| `databaseExternal.url`                             | See [schema](https://github.com/kennethreitz/dj-database-url#url-schema). |                                |
-| `databaseExternal.type`                            | Note: Only postgres supported by default images.                          | `postgres`                     |
+| `databaseExternal.url`                             | See [schema](https://github.com/jazzband/dj-database-url#url-schema). |                                |
+| `databaseExternal.type`                            | Note: Only Postgres is fully supported by default images. [Other databases](https://github.com/jazzband/dj-database-url#supported-databases) not guaranteed to work.                          | `postgres`                     |
 | `databaseExternal.port`                            |                                                                           | 5432                           |
 | `databaseExternal.database`                        | Name of the database within the server                                    |                                |
 | `databaseExternal.username`                        |                                                                           |                                |