Skinny Baby Bearded Dragons

Hey guys, recently I noticed that 2 of my 4 baby bearded dragons are smaller than the other 2 (even though they all eat almost the same amount of bugs with calcium + veggies in the pm after the two meals (around 11AM and around 4-5PM the bug meals). I keep them together for about 30mins-1h everyday in the sunlight to bask. They are 2 1/2 months.

^ the one up above and the one in the left. The other two from the center and from the right are bigger but they don't eat as much as the skinnier ones do. They eat but let's say 50-60 bugs?! When the skinnier ones do eat around 70-75. (based on the calculations I did today before posting this, I don't know exactly the amount before but still the skinnier ones eat more)

It's kinda the same with the adults. The female will eat more than the male but she's smaller than him and skinnier.

^ female in the right

I keep the babies in a 130x90x60 viv separated in 4 parts, one part for each, with JBL ReptilSpot HaloDym 28W 2650 K for heat and ReptiSun 10.0 + ReptiGlo 2.0 for UVB. I'm using JBL MicroCalcium and the bugs I'm feeding them with are Cinerea roaches.

I think that the two skinnier ones are females (according to the size of their mother). What you all think? I can get them 3 meals a day but the previous times I tried this they didn't even approach a single bug. One more thing, the skinnier ones seem moving weird sometimes like they are dumb (one of them sometimes try climbing on the wall and fall on his/her back and stay like that for few minutes then s/he gets on his/her feet and keep moving around. Also when they are running they look a bit weird (not moving as their bigger brothers). I don't think it is MBD as I watched videos on YouTube and they dont't really move like that BUT similiar SOMETIMES.

I can take a video of them moving if it is necessary.

Hi there.....while some dragons are just going to be bigger than their clutchmates, the strange walking is of concern. So yes, do post a video of them walking. And please post shots of the viv......are the measurements inches or cm ? What exact size are the bugs they are eating ?

BTW, the parents look to be in perfect condition visually, very good body structure.

AHBD":sf4i2rcx said:

Hi there.....while some dragons are just going to be bigger than their clutchmates, the strange walking is of concern. So yes, do post a video of them walking. And please post shots of the viv......are the measurements inches or cm ? What exact size are the bugs they are eating ?

BTW, the parents look to be in perfect condition visually, very good body structure.

Click to expand...

Hey there, thanks for replying. The measurements in cm, sorry, forgot to mention that.


I couldn't take a good video of the two skinnier ones strange walking because they don't always move like that. Like I said, sometimes they will move like that. Also, when they move strange they will craw their head on the ground for few seconds like it is too big for them to carry.

Here's a video of them moving but nothing strange, barely moving though (change of the environment):
https://youtu.be/rl6z2Y6R6Js

Also here are two photos of the size of the bugs, this one is the bigger I found in the box, most of them are smaller than this and few this size:

*compared to the smallest baby*

*compared to the biggest baby*

Ha, little buggas don't like to move on carpet as most beardies don't [ snags their nails ] If you try on wooden floor or linoleum they should move more....maybe throw a bug in front of them. The little bit when the one moved in the beginning showed normal movement. The bug size is just near the larger side of safe. Be sure to offer them bugs no larger than that just to be safe.

But they look very healthy, the smaller ones are not at all skinny, just a bit smaller like you see with siblings of most creatures. Gender would not really affect their size in most cases.

I got a video of one of the smaller ones eating, that's the weird movement. Does it look like MBD?

https://youtu.be/ACKuaUcNc2M

Iamakel":2q3xd3nb said:

I got a video of one of the smaller ones eating, that's the weird movement. Does it look like MBD?

https://youtu.be/ACKuaUcNc2M

Click to expand...

I don't think there are any real issues to worry about. You seem to have a good setup , I think it's just genetic differences (resulting in some have very fast metabolisms , other not so fast).

I suspect the little head roll I saw in the vid is because they tend to close their eats when they nail a bug (to protect the eyes from the bug and stuff around it.... he overshot and his nose and chin made his head roll and twist.... he'll grow out of that.