Dragon healthy but very small for age?

[BrilliantEraser]

Hey everyone. It's been a year since I purchased Garrus from PetSmart (I know, I know). He's about 16 inches, from nose to tip of tail, but he's definitely rather lean. For the longest time, I fed him crickets and greens (mustard, collard, turnip), but recently switched over to superworms to see if that would help him gain more weight. The good news is that he eats WAY more supers than he ever did crickets (only ever just picked at crickets). However, he still just seems, well...small. Does anyone else have experience with PetSmart dragons (Sandfire Ranch)? Are they just small or slow growers?

Two months ago

Two days ago

He's a very active dragon, make no doubt! It also took me quite a while to get his tank conditions right, considering I used PetSmart's advice on enclosure/diet. Garrus was about six months old before I finally got everything under control, and he only just recently moved into his new custom enclosure. Any input is appreciated!

 

[SamusTheDragon]

How many crickets would you feed him? Supers should help put on some weight, but aslo waxworms are good for getting a dragon to gain. Waxworms should be fed in moderation though because they are high in fat.

 

[BrilliantEraser]

I'd feed him as many crickets as he'd eat, twice a day. Sometimes it was only 5 crickets a meal, sometimes up to 20. The crickets were never bigger than the space between his eyes. He now eats at least 10 medium-sized superworms a day. Considering superworms weigh considerably more than crickets, the amount of prey items he eats now is actually much higher. I give him one or two wax worms a day, as well.

 

[SamusTheDragon]

Hmm then he should be putting on the pounds fairly soon.

 

[randommonks]

My beardie, which I also got from Petsmart, has almost double in size since I got him 2 months today (6 inches to over 11 inches). He's the type to eat anything when he's hungry though (wasn't hard to convince him to eat greens since he attacked it himself while I'm at work), and made the transition from crickets to dubias very smoothly and has a very attractive beer gut. Hopefully yours will gain more now that you've found a food that he loves!

 

[BrilliantEraser]

Thanks for the encouraging words! Glad to know he's still got a chance to reach moster(ish) size. :lol:

 

[BrilliantEraser]

I think I may have the answer for why Garrus's growth is a bit stunted. He... is actually a she. And a gravid one at that, I believe! Her recent behavior completely matches that of other gravid beardies, and I can feel what I assume to be egg follicles on her side. Almost feels like a long-ish cluster of grapes. Oh dear.

A laybox will be going in the cage first thing tomorrow morning. Other than adding extra calcium to her diet and giving warm baths everyday, what else can I do to ease the egg-laying process along?

 

[Gail]

He/she doesn't really look like a gravid female. could you post pics of the underside of her tail near the vent area. Sit her on a flat surface and gently lifer her tail towards her back.
16" is on the small side of normal but nothing to be concerned with. Being female doesn't really have anything to do with adult size, it all depends on genetics. Not all dragons will grow to 18+ inches.

 

[BrilliantEraser]

I'll post a picture tomorrow. Garrus is sound asleep at the moment. It's always been a bit difficult for me to tell if he was a he. Or he was a she. If she was a she? Now I'm just getting myself confused.

Only one visible lump at the base of the tail, but I've always been holding out on hope that I was seeing things incorrectly, because Garrus also has slightly pronounced femoral pores. I've never been quite able to tell. Mostly wishful thinking that he was a he, because I didn't want to have to deal with eggs!

We've been having a pretty chilly start to the year, and only within the last two weeks or so have the temperatures been kicking up. Garrus's change in behavior matches that, so that's why I'm guessing gravid/ovulating. Most topics on the board have supported spring/summer weather change = gravid-ity. Since then, Garrus has been driving me CRAZY with digging, running laps, and generally preferring running his pants off to eating. I mean, seriously SPASTIC activity. Now he/she's calmed down a bit, but still not much of an appetite. Much more inclined to lay around. Has normal poops, but then appears to "strain" to go two or three times a day. Usually only passes small amount of urate at that point.

 

[BrilliantEraser]

Okay, here's the picture. Sorry it's a bit blurry (my camera has trouble focusing on anything it decides is a "close-up"), but I can only see one bump at the base of the tail. Unless I'm missing something?

 

[Gail]

Hmm, its hard to tell but female would be a good guess. Its she digging non stop? Usually when they get ready to lay they go off food and dig to the point of almost making their toes bleed.

 

[BrilliantEraser]

Yes, she's been digging/scratching EVERYTHING in her cage lately. The floors, the walls, her basking platform, E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G. She's also arm-waving a LOT. Every time she stops digging/scratching, she waves her arm three or four times. She even arm-waved at a superworm I dropped in her cage. :shock: Appetite has dropped off (won't chase food, will only eat food dropped directly in front of her).

 

[Gail]

Sounds like you need to get a lay box in there soon just in case. Last time I told someone their dragon could no way be gravid because it looked thin, she ended up laying eggs just a few days later.

 

[BrilliantEraser]

It seems that happens a lot with animals! Once there was a mare (horse) my friend got at an auction. "No way she's pregnant, at least. Too skinny."

Couple months later, perfectly healthy foal. :roll:

 

[BrilliantEraser]

Welp, it turns out Garrus is a male after all. The frantic behavior changes? Well apparently he's just... strange.

Still relatively small for his age, but he broke the 100g mark a little while ago

He's also gone through two full sheds barely two weeks apart. Has been DEMOLISHING his small Dubia nymphs (comes running as soon as he sees me getting his food bowl ready!), as well as keeping a healthy appetite for salad greens and veggies and fruits (we found miniature "champagne" grapes at Whole Foods the other day -- imagine his joy when he could fit an entire grape in his mouth!)

Only changes I've made were a one-week Albon treatment, followed a week later by two days of Panacur, and the change to Dubia roaches instead of crickets or super worms.

Looks like Garrus will most likely remain "miniature" in stature. But as long as he's healthy, I couldn't be happier!!

"Hello? Hello! My food bowl appears to be empty! Please correct this."