My new rescue, Bearded Lady, isn't skittish, but always exhibits stress marks and seems very cautious. When I lowered her into the bath today, she puffed up her little body (as expected) but also puffed out her beard quickly and repeatedly, which looked hilarious but I found it odd that my other beardo has never exhibited the same behavior. It definitely seems like frightened behavior but Google turns up nothing.... can anyone verify that this is a common beardo behavior?
I'd interpret it as a panic behavior. This can happen at first when they go into a bath. If she doesn't settle down within a few seconds I would discontinue baths for a while because they're not worth the added stress.