Is my beardie underweight?

[anie-and-matilda]

I have a 6 month old female beardie named Matilda who I suspect is underweight. Here is a picture of her:

I’ve seen other six-month-olds and they look a lot larger than Tilly. If she is underweight, what could I do to help her gain weight? At this point in her life is it too late to help her? What supplements or vitamins should I get her?

 

[Claudiusx]

Hi there,

How long have you had Tilly?
Can you post a picture of Tilly's tank?

What does Tilly's daily diet look like?

Yes, Tilly is extremely small for her age. If I were to guess from simply looking at pictures I'd say Tilly appears to be around 2 months old.
A lack of growth is almost always attributed to improper husbandry and diet. So if we can go over that with you, we can make whatever corrections are needed and get Tilly back on track.

-Brandon

 

[anie-and-matilda]

Hi there,

How long have you had Tilly?
Can you post a picture of Tilly's tank?

What does Tilly's daily diet look like?

Yes, Tilly is extremely small for her age. If I were to guess from simply looking at pictures I'd say Tilly appears to be around 2 months old.
A lack of growth is almost always attributed to improper husbandry and diet. So if we can go over that with you, we can make whatever corrections are needed and get Tilly back on track.

-Brandon

Here’s her cage:



I’ve had her since April 16th. Her diet mainly consists of Dubia roaches and I give her veggies almost every other day. She tends to pick at them but she devours the roaches. Could it be I need a greater quantity of roaches or a bigger size?

 

[Claudiusx]

Hi there, thanks for the update.
I noticed the stick on thermometer on the glass. Is that your only thermometer? Do you have a way to measure the basking surface temperature such as a digital with probe end thermometer?

The basking surface temp is the most important temperature so knowing that is crucial.
If temps aren't proper, she won't be digesting her food properly.
How many Dubia is she eating per day?

What uvb light are you using? Is it a long tube or a compact coil bulb?

-Brandon

 

[anie-and-matilda]

Hi there, thanks for the update.
I noticed the stick on thermometer on the glass. Is that your only thermometer? Do you have a way to measure the basking surface temperature such as a digital with probe end thermometer?

The basking surface temp is the most important temperature so knowing that is crucial.
If temps aren't proper, she won't be digesting her food properly.
How many Dubia is she eating per day?

What uvb light are you using? Is it a long tube or a compact coil bulb?

-Brandon

There is another thermometer with a probe that isn’t pictured. Her basking area varies between 95-110 degrees farenheit during the day at night it doesn’t get any lower then 72 degrees farenheit. I feed her maybe about 20 5/8 dubias a day. The uvb bulb im using is a tube from Zilla. I’m aware that Zilla is not the best brand but we plan on getting her one from zoo-med soon.

 

[KarrieRee]

There is another thermometer with a probe that isn’t pictured. Her basking area varies between 95-110 degrees farenheit during the day at night it doesn’t get any lower then 72 degrees farenheit. I feed her maybe about 20 5/8 dubias a day. The uvb bulb im using is a tube from Zilla. I’m aware that Zilla is not the best brand but we plan on getting her one from zoo-med soon.

If the Zilla is a 18" fixture please get a Reptisun 10.0 T 8 leave the cover off the fixture when you change the bulb out and place inside the tank w/a distance of 6-8 inches directly above the basking decor piece -- GE 15 ft. Cable Ties, Hook and Loop Spool, Black-10375 - The Home Depot
this stuff works great its like a Velcro strap cut into strips and wrap around the fixture --- T 8's need to go inside the tank they are not strong enough to go thru screen

 

[anie-and-matilda]

If the Zilla is a 18" fixture please get a Reptisun 10.0 T 8 leave the cover off the fixture when you change the bulb out and place inside the tank w/a distance of 6-8 inches directly above the basking decor piece -- GE 15 ft. Cable Ties, Hook and Loop Spool, Black-10375 - The Home Depot
this stuff works great its like a Velcro strap cut into strips and wrap around the fixture --- T 8's need to go inside the tank they are not strong enough to go thru screen

Okay I will do that!!

 

[AHBD]

Just to add to all the good info, it's great that she has a good appetite ! You probably just need to feed her more or move up in size of the dubia , but do so safely. Can you post a pic to show the size of the dubias you feed her ? Tilly looks to be about 9-10 " long by my estimate, is that about right ? If so, that's the size of a 3 month old but she can catch up , she may not turn out to be a really large dragon but can still achieve a decent size and she can lead a long, healthy life.

 

[anie-and-matilda]

Just to add to all the good info, it's great that she has a good appetite ! You probably just need to feed her more or move up in size of the dubia , but do so safely. Can you post a pic to show the size of the dubias you feed her ? Tilly looks to be about 9-10 " long by my estimate, is that about right ? If so, that's the size of a 3 month old but she can catch up , she may not turn out to be a really large dragon but can still achieve a decent size and she can lead a long, healthy life.

You are correct! She is about 9 inches. The dubias I have been giving her are about the size of a dime in diameter (from top to bottom) but I just ordered her some bigger ones about the size of a quarter. Will her being small now affect her bones and such as she gets older??

 

[AHBD]

It won't necessarily affect her bones at all, she still has a lot of growth + development to go through. Get the recommended uvb bulb ASAP though, to insure proper metabolizing of calcium. Oh, and the dime sized dubias were probably the better size at this point but she might do O.K with the next size up. How many of the smaller ones was she eating daily ?

 

[anie-and-matilda]

It won't necessarily affect her bones at all, she still has a lot of growth + development to go through. Get the recommended uvb bulb ASAP though, to insure proper metabolizing of calcium. Oh, and the dime sized dubias were probably the better size at this point but she might do O.K with the next size up. How many of the smaller ones was she eating daily ?

Maybe about 15-20 on a normal day. Should I feed her more?

 

[AHBD]

Maybe just a few more per feeding of the smaller sized ones.

 

[anie-and-matilda]

Maybe just a few more per feeding of the smaller sized ones.

Okay will do!! Thanks so much!

 

[AHBD]

You're welcome !