Monitoring Growth Without A Scale

Status
Not open for further replies.

Lizard of Light

Hatchling Member
Beardie name(s)
Ardbert
We had a nice little USPS package scale that worked well for taking my Chihuahua's weight as she was growing up, but it's sadly gone MIA for months now so I am short of a scientific method of tracking my baby's growth.

So far, I've just been going off how much he's eating and how much he's filling out each day (definitely filled out quite a bit since I got him over 2 weeks ago) but his length has been about the same as last week so I'm just wondering if my tracking his fat pads is alright as a subjective means of monitoring growth or if there are better methods?

Presently, they changes I've noticed are:

1) shoulder pads being further out and more prominent (they were plastered against his neck when he first arrived

2) His jowls started appearing last week and seem to growing a bit at a time each day.

3) Head cushions are starting to pad out a bit.

4) Cheeks appear to be rounding out because I'm seeing more color.

5) Chest is easily visible now compared to 2 weeks ago; he's showing a lot of creamsicle there

6) Starting to notice more cushioning at the neck, a little under the arms, and near the base of the tail.

Do these sound like good progress for a 13 week old beardie?
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
You can get a kitchen food scale from Walmart-- one that weighs in grams
Karrie
 

Lizard of Light

Hatchling Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Ardbert
KarrieRee":2qwag1x0 said:
You can get a kitchen food scale from Walmart-- one that weighs in grams
Karrie

Yeah, the whole reason I made this topic is because I can't get one right away. :(

So that's why I'm asking if there's a decent subjective way of observing until I can get one.
 

KarrieRee

BD.org Sicko
Beardie name(s)
Hiccup he is 6 and Blaze is 4
An answer to your above post I would say yes as long as he's filling out and not losing weight
Karrie
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
You can take photos that will show growth over time. Also as mentioned look for arms developing some muscle mass, thick looking tail, especially along the base. Fat pads filled in at the top of the head rather than sunken looking. Those are all signs of good health and growth to keep an eye out for.
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Measuring the length is another sure fire way to track growth. Even if you don't have a tape measure or ruler, just get something, and make a mark on it at the length your dragon is. And then in 2 weeks or so, mark it again with your dragons new length.

-Brandon
 

Lizard of Light

Hatchling Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Ardbert
I thought I had mentioned his length somewhere, but clearly not in this topic, oops! :lol:

I forgot to take his measurement when he first arrived, but I know on September 9th, he was 11 in (28 cm) per his listing and he is current 12 in now. What should his growth rate be at this age? He is almost 14 weeks old now as of this post.
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
As long as he is growing that is all that matters :)
Some dragons grow really quick, and some are more of a drawn out process.

The speed isn't what matters, what matters is that he is healthy, and being fed a healthy diet :)

You can get a dragon to almost full grown adult size by 6 months if you feed it enough. IMO, not the healthiest way of going about things.

-Brandon
 

Lizard of Light

Hatchling Member
Original Poster
Beardie name(s)
Ardbert
Claudiusx":1wq4zoy1 said:
As long as he is growing that is all that matters :)
Some dragons grow really quick, and some are more of a drawn out process.

The speed isn't what matters, what matters is that he is healthy, and being fed a healthy diet :)

You can get a dragon to almost full grown adult size by 6 months if you feed it enough. IMO, not the healthiest way of going about things.

-Brandon

Yeah, I've read that maturing faster isn't very good for dragons, which makes sense since early puberty in humans isn't good in the long run for the kid. I notice Ardie consistently eats about 20-30 large phoenix worms (with a few medium to large silkworms thrown in, and maybe some sprigs of greens) entirely on his own, which seems to be the lower end of how much babies eat. But he seems perfectly active and is pooping almost daily (twice daily is the average now, lol!) so he's probably eating as much as he needs if he always stops when he's full.
 

saraho

Hatchling Member
Charlie's first owner got him as a little guy. She had him in her first grade classroom and needed a simple way to show his progress to her students. They used a frisbee. She flipped it over and put him in it, as he grew it was very easy to see his progress. I took measurements when he came to me but I don't have a scale yet -- Charlie is my education animal at work, so the library would have to pay for it.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Members online

Still Needs Help

Latest resources

Latest posts

Latest profile posts

I miss you so much, Amaris 💔
What is a quick way to warm up a cold beardie? His heating element went out overnight and now he's very cold.
Pearl Girl wrote on moorelori1966's profile.
i feel so sad reading your about me 😢
Clapton is acclimating okay I think. He's quick as lightning so I'm not sure how much I should bring him out of his house yet. He's not at all interested in his salad though. I wonder if I should change what I'm giving him. Least he's eating his crickets.

Things to do:
Buy calcium powder
Material to raise surface for basking spot
Scenery decals for back of tank

Forum statistics

Threads
155,897
Messages
1,255,669
Members
75,965
Latest member
williamyoung
Top Bottom