BEARDED DRAGON WONT EAT / GROW

[tylerczak]

Hi I have 2 bearded dragons that I got around the same time / size. One I rescued from a woman I feel that had no idea what she was doing (he had blue stained feet from the colored poisonous sand he was living on) and the other i got from one of my local breeders. I got the blue stained foot one about 2 weeks before getting my other and he didn’t eat that much which i thought was pretty normal for a bearded dragon (I’ve had beardies for about 10 years now) . They were relatively the same size when I got them both and haven’t had any problems housing them in the same tank. Now my blue stained foot one is barely growing 2 grams while my one from the breeder has doubled in weight. I have no idea what to do! I feed them separately all the time and he won’t eat and have them in seperate tanks now even and he still won’t eat more then 1-3 crickets or 1 meal worm a day! Somebody help! What do i do? ( and yes i use calicum) (and yes they have the exact same lighting / tank it wouldn’t make sense why he would be stunted in growth due to light while she growing rapidly with the same exact light / tank ) ( THEY ARE IN SEPERATE TANKS NOW THAT IS NOT THE ISSUE !!!!!)

 

[VenusAndSaturn]

Actually it makes perfect since that the other isn't growing, after all you housed them together which is a BIG no no.
They are solitary animals, they do not belong together in a small tank, even a 8x2x2 foot enclosure wouldnt be enough. Separate them or one will get hurt, die or never thrive.

https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Please add pictures of the two beardies, their lights, supplements, the tank everything. And list what you feed them, how old they are, and how many times a day you feed them and when you dust their feeders.

 

[tylerczak]

Actually it makes perfect since that the other isn't growing, after all you housed them together which is a BIG no no.
They are solitary animals, they do not belong together in a small tank, even a 8x2x2 foot enclosure wouldnt be enough. Separate them or one will get hurt, die or never thrive.

https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Please add pictures of the two beardies, their lights, supplements, the tank everything. And list what you feed them, how old they are, and how many times a day you feed them and when you dust their feeders.

@VenusAndSaturn Like I said they are in seperate tanks now if you read.. same exact lighting / tank just seperate. They are both in 40 gallon tanks also that’s the perfect size for an adult beardie let alone juveniles ?

 

[EllenD]

This is an easy one to answer for you completely: YOU NEED TO SEPARATE THEM IMMEDIATELY, THEY BOTH MUST HAVE THEIR OWN ENCLOSURE/TANK, LIGHTS, ETC. AND YOU MUST EITHER STACK THEIR INDIVIDUAL TANKS ON TOP OF EACH OTHER SO THEY CANNOT SEE EACH OTHER ANY MORE, OR BETTER YET, YOU MUST KEEP THEIR TANKS IN COMPLETELY SEPARATE ROOMS FROM NOW ON...

This is probably the most common problem that we see, as well as the most common result of the problem. Bearded Dragons are naturally, in their indigenous environment of the Australian Desert, totally and completely SOLITARY ANIMALS...The only time you will ever see 2 wild dragons together is when a male and female come together to mate, then they immediately separate, that's it. The female lays her eggs and leaves, the babies hatch and separate. They live alone, all the time, and when we as their captive owners force them to live with another dragon (AND NOT EVEN IN THE VAST DESERT, BUT RATHER IN A TINY TANK) we cause them enormous amounts of intense stress, every second of every day.

The typical outcome of housing 2 or more dragons together is that at least one of the dragons ends up extremely stunted in size, lethargic, emaciated, dehydrated, and eventually they usually die of a condition such as calcium deficiency, starvation, dehydration, etc. So often times you will get one dragon (the dominant dragon) who thrives, and one dragon (the submissive dragon) who dies...It's also not uncommon at all for both (or all) dragons to end up this way.

The problem is convincing people that this is the issue, because from our outward vision, if the 2 dragons aren't being "aggressive" with each other or hurting each other, then there isn't a problem (which WILL HAPPEN some day, it may be today, tomorrow, next year, or 4 years from now, but it WILL HAPPEN, suddenly and traumatically, one bite to the skull and that's it). The truth is that your dragons are being terribly stressed every second of every day, and you as a person cannot see it. They don't talk, so we can't see it. But there is a power-struggle over the best Basking Spots with the strongest UVB and UVA light, the best live insects, the best greens and veggies, the best spots regarding temperatures, etc. Everything, everything is a power struggle. This is resulting in such stress that their appetites are decreasing, they end up not basking properly or getting anywhere near enough proper UVB/UVA/UVC light, they are literally afraid to live properly.

Unfortunately this will not ever stop unless you separate them immediately and get them each their own tank/enclosure, their own UVB and bright-white colored Basking Bulbs, Basking Spot/Platform, carpeting, everything. They each need their own, entire tank set-up ASAP. If you don't separate them now, they will not grow, they will be stunted and emaciated, and this is going to end either in a horrible, violent act of aggression, which typically kills one or both of them in a horrible way, or one or both of them eventually develop severe MBD and the paralysis that comes along with it, and they will eventually die from this, but they will be much longer, drawn-out, painful deaths.

If you do your research on here and other forums you should find the same answer, I've probably answered this question with exactly the same situation and problems presented in the OP's first post around 200 times, no joke. Because pet shops and breeders both refuse to tell people that they cannot keep 2 or more bearded dragons in the same tank this happens every day. It's a shame that they are only interested in selling 2 or more dragons instead of just one that would be healthy, they know that if they tell the customer that they cannot keep 2 or more dragons together that most customers will then only buy one dragon because they don't want to pay for 2 complete set-ups, or they can't afford to. It's terrible. And we become the bearers of bad news...

If one dragon is worse-off than the other, then that dragon must be left in the current tank, as they can't take the added "Relocation Stress" of moving to a new tank. If you can find a second tank of adequate size (at least a 40 gallon breeder tank) on Craigslist, along with additional light fixtures that's one way to go, but if money is a problem, then we usually suggest going to Walmart, Big Lots, etc. and buying a large, clear plastic tub, at least a 60 Litre one (depending on age/length/size of the dragon you're moving), they are pretty cheap, and then spending the bulk of your money on the best UVB tube and tube fixture you can afford.

Ensuring that both these dragons have a strong, adequate UVB tube and tube fixture is going to be the most important factor here, because they are already stunted in size and suffering from a severe Calcium Deficiency, and without a very strong UVb tube, preferably a T5 strenth 10.0 or higher UVB tube, they will not be able to absorb or process any of the calcium or other nutrition that they eat or ingest in supplements, and they will not start to grow again, nor will any of the damage be reversed. You can buy a 22" Reptisun 10.0 T5HO UVB tube on Amazon.com for around $24, and the cheapest 24" T5-rated tube fixture with a metal reflector inside it that I've seen is also on Amazon.com, it's costs around $28. So you can buy one of the best UVb tubes available for a bearded dragon, along with a fixture for it on Amazon.com for around $50 total. Also, if you go the plastic tub route as a temporary enclosure, you can simply buy a cheap, aluminum reflector Clamp Lamp at any Walmart, in the aisle that has the extension cords and wiring/electrical supplies. They have 3 different sizes of aluminum Clamp Lamps, a 4", a 6" or 8", and a 10", and the middle size is perfect and costs about $6. You can then just attach the Clamp Lamp to the top edge of the plastic tube, and you can put the long tube UVB and the tube fixture across the top of the plastic tub, right alongside the clamp lamp that holds the bright-white colored Basking Bulb, which you can simply just buy a 100 watt Halogen Indoor Flood Bulb for, at any Tractor Supply, Walmart, Lowes, Home Depot, etc. You need to set the plastic tub up with a Hot Side and a Cool Side, just like you would a regular tank, and it will work very well.

 

[EllenD]

Actually it makes perfect since that the other isn't growing, after all you housed them together which is a BIG no no.
They are solitary animals, they do not belong together in a small tank, even a 8x2x2 foot enclosure wouldnt be enough. Separate them or one will get hurt, die or never thrive.

https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Please add pictures of the two beardies, their lights, supplements, the tank everything. And list what you feed them, how old they are, and how many times a day you feed them and when you dust their feeders.

@VenusAndSaturn Like I said they are in seperate tanks now if you read.. same exact lighting / tank just seperate. They are both in 40 gallon tanks also that’s the perfect size for an adult beardie let alone juveniles ?

To answer this question, NO, a 40 Gallon Breeder tank is not the "perfect size" for an adult dragon at all. It's fine for a Juvenile Dragon though, but sometime between a year and a year and a half, when they finally reach full growth, they need an enclosure that is at a minimum 4'x2'x2'. That's the standard size enclosure for an adult dragon of a year to a year and a half at the oldest.

 

[tylerczak]

Actually it makes perfect since that the other isn't growing, after all you housed them together which is a BIG no no.
They are solitary animals, they do not belong together in a small tank, even a 8x2x2 foot enclosure wouldnt be enough. Separate them or one will get hurt, die or never thrive.

https://www.beardeddragon.org/useruploads/ Please add pictures of the two beardies, their lights, supplements, the tank everything. And list what you feed them, how old they are, and how many times a day you feed them and when you dust their feeders.

@VenusAndSaturn Like I said they are in seperate tanks now if you read.. same exact lighting / tank just seperate. They are both in 40 gallon tanks also that’s the perfect size for an adult beardie let alone juveniles ?

To answer this question, NO, a 40 Gallon Breeder tank is not the "perfect size" for an adult dragon at all. It's fine for a Juvenile Dragon though, but sometime between a year and a year and a half, when they finally reach full growth, they need an enclosure that is at a minimum 4'x2'x2'. That's the standard size enclosure for an adult dragon of a year to a year and a half at the oldest.

Like i said they are in SEPERATE TANKS ( i am using the other beardie as an example of how his growth is stunted)

 

[EllenD]

Okay, I gotcha...How long have they been separated now? And how old is the stunted one now?

The amount of growth he'll eventually end up with is going to depend on how old he was when they were first housed together, how long they were housed together, how long they've been separated, and how old he is now. As I said, they do about 90% or more of their total growth and development from hatching to a year old, so that is going to determine how stunted he will end up.

If he's still not eating properly and is still lethargic, then it's either #1) They haven't been separated for that long and he's still feeling stressed, #2) They are in the same room and he can either still see the other dragon, or even just smelling and hearing the other dragon is causing him to continue to be very stressed and scared (I've seen this many times, and the only solution is moving the other, dominant dragon into a completely different room), or the UVB light you have for him is either inadequate for a bearded dragon to begin with, obstructed by something like a mesh lid or a clear plastic safety cover (if it's a long UVB tube in a tube fixture), the UVB light is too far away from him and his Basking Spot, the UVB light is too old and needs to be replaced, or a combination of all of these things...Also, what are the temperatures of the 3 temperature zones inside his tank, and what type of thermometer do you use to measure them?