growth rate

[bluevanu]

I have a beardie that is about 2 years old. He was only about 6 weeks old according to the breeder when I got him. He is now about 16 inches long but seems that his body is kind of small. He eats like mad, has a uvb light approximately 12 inches from him and a black light for heat. Humidity is about 30% and day temp is about 90 and about 75 at night. Is it possible he is just a runt, or should he be full grown by now? He seems to be full grown length wise but not weight wise. Will post a recent pic when I get home today.

 

[RioReptiles]

I would say that is a perfectly normal size for an adult male. A lot of males tend to have thinner and smaller body types with big heads, they remind me of Quagmire, especially when they head bob. It's also a great size for breeding because the smaller body length helps them to be able to reach the female easier. I do have some bigger, longer males, but their body length isn't much more longer while the tail is a lot longer. None of my boys are as thick or fat as the females.

 

[diamc]

Moved here from General Discussion forum

Hi, welcome to the forum. If you could post a few pics of your beardie, that would be helpful. You mentioned that his UVB is about 12" from him, could you fill us in on the brand, type and age of the bulb? For a basking bulb, we recommend using a bright white bulb because it increases their activity level which in turn increases their appetite. It also helps prevent eye issues from the UVB because it helps their eyes dilate and constrict effectively.

What is the basking & cool side temp and what type of thermometer are you using? In order to digest properly, a basking temp of at least 95 degrees is needed.

How often are you dusting with calcium & vitamins? How many live feeders is he eating a wk and what greens are you feeding?

Sorry for all the questions, just trying to rule some things out to see if something might need a little twinking to possibly help him grow a little more.

 

[bluevanu]

I have a reptisun 10.0 bulb that get changed every 6 months. The hot side is around 92 and the cool side is about 85. He eats 2-3 pinkies (thawed) or a couple dozen gut loaded crickets. Don't like dusting crickets as Ernie won't eat them. However, I do not have a white incandescent light. Once I get a new cage for him, he will have several basking areas and several cool spots to choose from. Oh and I use an industrial digital thermometer.

 

[diamc]

Thanks for the info. Is the Repti-Sun 10.0 a strip fluorescent or coil/compact bulb? If it is the fluorescent bulb, it should actually be 6 to 8" from him in order to be beneficial. I really think you will notice a difference in him if you change from the black bulb to a bright white bulb instead and can even use a standard household light bulb. What wattage is the black bulb and what size tank is he in?

Did you mean that he gets 2 to 3 pinkies a wk or a couple dozen crickets a wk? I would recommend that you start using calcium with D3 but phosphorus-free and give him calcium 3 days a wk and vitamins 1 to 2 days a wk. The UVB and calcium work together so that could have something to do with why he really isn't filling out. You could even put the supplements in water, diluted 100% juice or in a little bit of baby food to make sure he is getting them. A little bit of squash, or applesauce baby food are very well liked and he should lick it right off his nose.

I would also suggest trying to get the temps up to about 100 or slightly higher, the 92 is a little too cool. He would be able to digest better which should also help his appetite. What are his favorite greens? Does the industrial digital thermometer have a probe on the end?

That's nice that you're going to be getting him a larger tank, what size did you decide on?

 

[bluevanu]

He gets 2-3 pinkies every couple days and crickets in between. The thermometer does have a probe and at his usual sitting spot it stays around 92. Its about 98 on top of his branch where he normally goes after eating. Anyway, I'm going to go with the 4x2x2 but will be built into the living room wall next to our iguana cage. We are going to be building our house sometime this year I hope and we are going to build several cages in the walls of the living room. I say several as I plan on getting a female beardie and a breeding pair of Chinese water dragons. I loved Watching my old water dragon jump into her pond to catch gold fish. Anyway, this is my first beardie but I have had and still have other herps.

 

[diamc]

Is the Repti-Sun 10.0 a strip fluorescent or coil/compact bulb? If it is the fluorescent bulb, it should actually be 6 to 8" from him in order to be beneficial. I really think you will notice a difference in him if you change from the black bulb to a bright white bulb instead and can even use a standard household light bulb. What wattage is the black bulb and what size tank is he in?

I would recommend that you start using calcium with D3 but phosphorus-free and give him calcium 3 days a wk and vitamins 1 to 2 days a wk. The UVB and calcium work together so that could have something to do with why he really isn't filling out. You could even put the supplements in water, diluted 100% juice or in a little bit of baby food to make sure he is getting them. A little bit of squash, or applesauce baby food are very well liked and he should lick it right off his nose.

What greens does he like to eat or aren't you feeding him any? An adult should be getting 80% greens and 20% protein. Feeding 2 to 3 pinkies every couple of days is giving him a large amount of protein and fat which could very well cause fatty liver disease in the near future. Pinkies aren't usually suggested to feed unless you're feeding a gravid female and even then, it should be done in moderation.

A 4x2x2 tank is a nice size. You weren't planning on housing the female & male beardie together, were you?

 

[Okiemavis]

One last thing to check for is internal parasites. They hog all the nutrition from your beardie and so even though he eats a lot, he doesn't grow the way he should.