Black beard on my 7 mo. old female beardie

[Kyrosthedragon]

Can anyone explain why my female beardie has a black beard I've checked above her slit and it only has one lump. I'm worried because i just ordered a boy for her to mate with and i dont want them to fight because of confusion in sex then it turns out that my 'she' is actually a 'he'.

 

[AHBD]

Hi there....yes, females have little beards, too and they can blacken them for various reasons, such as when throwing a hissy fit. :lol: Stress will cause them to do it, if she sees something outside that frightens her, or if it's a new place...seeing other dragons, being sick, etc. By the way, I'm sure you probably know, but she will need to be much bigger + heftier before you can safely breed her, but she is a cutie [ with an attitude ! ]

 

[Kyrosthedragon]

Thanks, I was planning on letting them stay together for a little while till they feel ready to mate.

 

[AHBD]

You will likely have a problem if you put them together. You'll definitely need a separate tank, the male ,even at 14 -15" can become quite aggressive and he CAN mate her at that age. Even if he doesn't, it may cause one of them [ and it can be either dragon at that age that dominates ! ] to perhaps become stressed and stop eating. You'll want your girl to reach a good size before you introduce them. Males [ not ALL, but some ] may stress the female by wanting to mate several times a day, chasing the female for hours, biting the neck, etc. Some males behave more gently, but you can't predict it and there can be some serious biting, by both dragons. Two tanks is the way to go.

 

[bunnyrut]

although females can mate at a young age you should NOT mate her until she is at LEAST 2 years old.
she will not be fully developed sexually until that age, and forcing her to mate sooner can cause irreversible damage.