Bearded dragon beard puffing his beard up??

[Pumpkaboo]

I have a small beardie, a little older than a baby. I got him 2 days ago and have noticed that he does this thing where he seems to heave forward a little, or lift himself up, and puff out his neck for a second, and let it go back down, he does this a few times, then is seemingly fine. His poop looks healthy to me, the temperatures are fairly good, he’s energetic, and he can eat a lot of collard greens and crickets-he hasn’t puked or anything. He almost looks like a bird when he does this, any thoughts??? Should I be worried??? He also gapes when he basks-does this mean the temperatures are too hot? I don’t notice any panting or gurgling from him, so I don’t think it’s a respiratory problem, any thoughts??? I want to take him out of his terrarium and socialize him, but he seems a little wary of me, any tips?

 

[Drache613]

Moved by Moderator from General to Health

 

[CooperDragon]

Sometimes I see them do that after eating and consider it similar to burps. Other times they'll beard flare to loosen skin for a shed, or due to hormones, or for seemingly no reason. It's generally pretty normal behavior for them.