Opinion

[Beardiefam]

So I have two baby beardies I bought from the petsmart. They were caged together and looked to seem like they have a huge bond which is why we bought both. They still seem like they have a bond. They are caged together in a 40Gallon tank. I get a lot of comments saying they shouldn’t be caged together and then a lot of them saying it’s okay just don’t feed them together. Do you think I should separate them or just keep feeding them separately ? TIA

 

[PodunkKhaleesi]

Yeah, you definitely want to separate the them, especially since you don’t know the sex.
Scenario one: you have two males. As they mature they’ll become highly territorial and fights are extremely likely. Permanent injury and even death can be the result.
Scenario two: you have a male and female. When they reach puberty the female will be under ongoing stress from the male constantly trying to mate with her. And if a female mates too young there are numerous health issues that can result. And if they’re brother and sister...not a clutch of eggs any breeder aspires to produce.
Scenario three: two females. This is the only scenario in which two dragons can cohabitate. But even in this instance, you would need to watch for signs of dominance and intimidation like a hawk: one dragon sitting on top of the other while basking, one dragon always hiding, one dragon too intimidated by the other to eat, one dragon growing at a much healthier clip. If you don’t know what to look for, you may wind up with one dragon in a constant state of stress. I’ve met a lot of respected breeders that house multiple female dragons together without issue, but the circumstances are incredibly specific (cages much larger than the average pet owner’s, multiple basking spots so there isn’t a competition for resources, fed separately, etc.). So while two adult females being housed together isn’t completely unheard of, the circumstances needed for it to be successful seem to require an advanced level of setup and behavioral observation, and there’s still no guarantee that just because they’re two females they won’t fight or engage in bullying.
The good news is that because beardies are solitary by nature, there’s no downside to separating them. In captivity their social personality is the result of interactions with their humans. If both your dragons are given lots of love, attention, and a large enclosure, they’ll never be lonely in their own cages.

 

[Savora]

I'm sorry, but there hasn't been one post on this website in which two dragons cohabbed had a healthy life. Most of the time it's an owner looking for help because one of their dragons is sickly, skinny, and unhealthy, while their other one is thriving; and they can't understand because they're in the same enclosure.

It's not a coincidence.

Actually, recently there was a post from an owner who couldn't find out why there was a big wound on the side of their beardie's head one day. It was because the dragon it was cohabbed with got a good bite in.

However, beardies are a joy to have when not housed together! They might not like other dragons, but get a special bond with their owner. Make sure you read this forum's care sheet at https://www.beardeddragon.org/articles/caresheet/ to make sure that each of your beardie's separate tanks have quality UVB lights and such.

 

[Savora]

Hahaha, oops. I was perusing more through this website and found a post in which one beardie was skinny and the other beardie was thriving. I thought to myself, "Hey, cool, I can link this post to that other post in which a user was asking about cohabiting dragons." But then I realized it was the same user posting the same thread.

I'm really sorry about your dragon that isn't eating. Your predicament isn't uncommon, though, so you have a possible solution here.

I do have a lot of hope that he will be more comfortable eating if he had his own enclosure. Also, keep trying to syringe-feed the critical care after they're separated. AND make sure they have quality UVB lights--they need tons of UVB rays, being a desert species, and not getting enough UVB rays will zap their appetite away.