Question about beardies weight, size and age!

[Nathan1995]

Hi, I have had a beardie for about a month and a half now and she is most definitely a baby/juvenile.
Today I finally got in contact with the previous owner who I believe hatched her, he could not remember at all when he hatched her.
I have no idea whether this beardie is female or male, or how old they are!

She only weighs 36g, and is 9 and 1/2 inches long from mouth to tail.
I was wondering if there was any way to see how old she was? I was guessing around 4 months old, but I have seen other dragons at 14 inches at 4 months and I'm just very confused!

The size brings me to one of my worries. The whole time I've had her, she has not shed once. She only shed the slightest amount around her mouth for 1 day and that's been it. Is she growing at all?

She has a 36" x 24" x 24" enclosure, basking spot is 107F, warm side is 100F and the cool side 80F (this drops to 65F in the night).
I'm currently using a ReptiGLO 10.0 and am aware of the issues this causes and will be getting a ReptiSUN as soon as possible.
She is kept on repti carpet and fed daily greens with 3 meals of crickets a day, dusted once.
She is bathed a few times a week and played with a few times a day.

This is a picture of my little girl/boy - I feel seeing my beardie will help with any answers.

What am I doing wrong? I can't tell much of a noticeable size increase the whole time I've owned her.
Thanks, Nathan.

 

[Nathan1995]

Anyone? Sorry I'm just concerned this could be a serious health issue!

 

[CaptainVimes]

Hi,
Roughly how many crickets is she getting in each feed?

What does her poop and urate look like and smell like?

I'm wondering whether parasites are stunting her growth? Are you able to send in a faecal sample, to a reptile qualified vet?

She's a gorgeous colour!

 

[Nathan1995]

Thank you Captain Vimes, she is isnt she? Will her colours change atall as she sheds? Sorry I'm unknown to that absic bit of knowledge haha.
Her poop and urate is wet, but not runny, still solid. Urate is pure white. My closest vet is over an hour away, how do I go about sending a faecal sample in?
For a month I've been feeding her 8 crickets in each feeding, all gutloaded. But this week I tried feeding her as much as she would eat in 10 minutes, and she had around 30, but then she doesn't want to eat the rest of the day.
I don't think she's been to the vet in her life!

 

[Bwalter]

having parasites could stunt her growth. I found that out with my girl, once the pin worms were gone she had a big growth spurt.

 

[Dementeddogz]

Beautifuldragons sells pancur, which is what most vets will prescribe and is easily administered if pins are an issue.

http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Panacurliquid.html


All dragons grow at different rates but i would expect to see more then one shed, and at 4 months old atleast 12-14" would be ideal....assuming she is 4 months.... Temps seem fine, how close is she able to get to her uvb or basking light? She should definitely be eating more then 8 crickets in a feeding. Mix it up with an alternative food source and see what results you get or take a preemptive strike and treat her with a dose of pancur

 

[Anna82]

Hi my beardie Dragon I just measured her and she is 12inches long from tip of nose to tail can anyone give me an estimate of age?t

 

[Nathan1995]

Beautifuldragons sells pancur, which is what most vets will prescribe and is easily administered if pins are an issue.

http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Panacurliquid.html


All dragons grow at different rates but i would expect to see more then one shed, and at 4 months old atleast 12-14" would be ideal....assuming she is 4 months.... Temps seem fine, how close is she able to get to her uvb or basking light? She should definitely be eating more then 8 crickets in a feeding. Mix it up with an alternative food source and see what results you get or take a preemptive strike and treat her with a dose of pancur

Yeah she's getting about 25 in a feeding now, as I started giving her as many as she wants in 10 minutes. I'll look into this pancur, thankyou for the recommendation.
I was just wondering. I came back from being away all weekend (my brother and mum took care of baby while I was away) and I've noticed her tail is slightly... greyed.. lighter? Compared to the rest of her body. Could this be pre shed? Thanks

 

[Dementeddogz]

Yeah she's getting about 25 in a feeding now, as I started giving her as many as she wants in 10 minutes. I'll look into this pancur, thankyou for the recommendation.
I was just wondering. I came back from being away all weekend (my brother and mum took care of baby while I was away) and I've noticed her tail is slightly... greyed.. lighter? Compared to the rest of her body. Could this be pre shed? Thanks

25 is much better then 8. Yes its possible shes going into shed, some dragons tend to drop in appetite, and change in mood when going into shed too. As long as its not yellow, discolored, or looks like tail rot you should be fine

 

[bdalton]

I would guess she's about 3-4 months. Parasites definetly stunt growth, I'm in the process of treating my girl for coccidia and pinworms and she is 6 months old, not quite 12", about 11 1/2-11 3/4, and 105 grams. She is small for her age, and since starting the treatment she hasn't eaten anything, but still managed to gain weight! My vet charges 22$ for a fecal, but a lot of times they won't do a fecal if they have never seen the dragon. I would just call around! Reptile vets around me charge anywhere from 46-90$ a visit, and anywhere from 20-80 for a fecal, so its worth it to call around, but you always want to make sure it's a qualified, recommended hero vet.
Good luck to you and your baby

 

[bdalton]

Well even though these vets ARE heroes sometimes, I meant HERP vet