baby bearded dragon still not growing......

[winfieldblue]

hi all my beardie still hasnt grown it is 4 months 1 week old and is only 6 inches long and weighs 10 grams. he has only grown 3/4 of an inch scince the day i got him. i have a reptisun 10.0 tube that is 6 - 8 inches away a basking light that gets to 101f it is 80 - 85f on the cool side. the first 3 and a half months he was only eating 5 crickets a day now he is eating a little bit of vegies and about 15 - 20 crix a day though he still hasnt grown he just finished shedding. i measure the temps with a infared temp gun. everything is right i cant understand why he is not growing i am getting really sick of this and im going to giv him away soon i dont want a stunted 12 inch long problem beardie he set up is right i cant think of anything im doing wrong everything is right what could it be? i need people who have a lot of experience with beardies to help me out. thanx.

 

[Gail]

If he is shedding then he is growing. Some grow slower then others, remember that they can grow for 2 years. Will he eat more crickets? I would guess thats the main problem is him not eating enough. Offer him bugs multiple times a day, if he is only eating a few at one time then letting him eat more often might help. Have you ever had a fecal done? If he has parasites then that can affect his appetite and growth.

You might also try to get his temp up to 110* F, babies like it a bit warmed then what you have it at. What about supplements? Are you dusting with calcium and vitamins?

 

[winfieldblue]

i offer crickets 2 - 3 times a day he will only eat once. he doesnt like the temp over 100f i watched him closely and hes favourite temp is about 95f which is a little south of the basking spot. i sometimes dust crickets with calcium bcoz he eats more if there undusted. i was thinking maybe it was the basking light scince its aboutg 35cm away. i havent had a fecal done yet so i guess that the last check mark to tick, he probably does have them because evrything esle seems to be right.

 

[ThyDemise]

if you havent already, you could also try roaches and/or pheonix worms. i have a couple beardies who turn their noses up to crickets most days but will go to town on dubias. a small beardie is still a beardie, no reason to just give it away cuz it didnt get as big as you hoped

 

[gini]

Shedding is a good thing, means he's growing.

Do you let him warm up good in the morning before trying to feed him? Just a thought, as mine won't eat for like 1- 1 1/2 hours after I turn the lights on.

 

[winfieldblue]

i dont live in america, down here in australia all we got are crickets, mealworms/supers and roaches. no phoenix worms or butterworms. waxworms are VERY hard to find i only know of 1 person and they dont always have them. we also have silkworms but they are seasonal so only 2 - 3 months in a year. its a bit funny scince bearded dragon are native to australia youd expect we have every possible feeder for a beardie but thats not the case. as for the beardie im pretty sure that most people who bought a beardie looked for a reptutable breeder that sells high colour beardies because that is what they wanted, and i think that if most people knew that the beardie they were going to buy was going to be a "problem" beardie they wouldve steered clear of it. anyway ill probably not end up giving it away scince i get attached to animals quickly but the thought is tempting.

 

[Drache613]

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