aggressive male

[mrosol]

I have a pair of mated beardies that i got from someone who was moving. The female had produced a couple of clutches. We've had them over a year and she hasn't become pregnant even though we see them mating. Recently the male has turned aggressive toward the female, biting her tail. What should i do?

 

[diamc]

You need to separate them immediately before a serious injury or death occurs. What size tank are they in? If it's big enough and you don't have another tank available yet, you can put a sturdy divider up between them. When breeding, they should only be together long enough to breed, then returned to their own tanks. It's also possible that she is holding the eggs because he is in with her so that could cause her to become egg bound which can certainly kill a female. How old are each of them?

 

[mrosol]

I'm not exactly sure how old they are, we got them from someone who had raised them. I think they're about 3 or 4. We've had them about a year and a half. They have a nice cage, about 3' X 4.5' but I'll just put the male into a 55-gal tank tonight. Thanks.

 

[Twobeardieguy]

Let us know how everything goes.

 

[mrosol]

Thanks - the male is in a new cage now. What I don't understand is why the orignal owner kept them together, and why they seemed to do well for so long? And a book I have suggests that they can be kept together most of the year, separating them for only a few months in the Fall. What experience do you have?

 

[Twobeardieguy]

Thanks - the male is in a new cage now. What I don't understand is why the orignal owner kept them together, and why they seemed to do well for so long? And a book I have suggests that they can be kept together most of the year, separating them for only a few months in the Fall. What experience do you have?

Most people do not know how to properly care for dragons. Also most books are out of date. The best is just to keep them apart because they can turn on each other at anytime. When most books where written that was the care that everyone knew. Now with all of these new breeds and line crossing it seems that the behavior got worse. They usually get territorial later in life. While others do it almost immediately. Some people have better results then others. It is thought by separating them before breeding season most dragons will be ok. Yes in breeding season they do get more dominant and territorially then other. As said better to be safe then sorry. I have been a keeper/breeder for 20+ years. And still do tons of research. Any more questions just ask.