Question about stunted/small beardies...

[namrufmot]

I adopted a stunted beardie for my classroom last year. He was (or so they said) two years old, he weighed 129g, and from nose to butt measured only 8". Apparently all he ever ate was crickets and never had UVB.

Last year we stuffed him like mad, slapped him in UVB lights (I even had kids take him out to bask in the sun at recess for some natural UVB!). Now he is 275g and is about 8 3/4" long. We have him in a sweet 55g tank that is perfect for a beardie his size.

Now, god forbid, if anything happens to Ramses I'd like to get a similar sized beardie. Are there smaller breeds out there? A monster beardie wouldnt fit in my 55g tank!

 

[midmichicer]

55 Gallons are 48x12 correct? I don't know of any small breeds of bearded dragons. You might want to look into something like a leopard gecko or something like that. A 40 Breeder is 36x18 and that is the min for an adult bearded dragon.

 

[Deemac6]

A 55 gallon is fine for an adult beardie.

 

[midmichicer]

A 55 gallon is fine for an adult beardie.

So my 21" beardie is going to have enough room to turn around in 12" of space? Don't think so...

 

[Deemac6]

I don't know the dimensions I remember people saying on here 55 was fine personally I would never use a min. Tank and I have my dragon in a 120.

 

[midmichicer]

Have mine in a XL Critter. 48x24x18.

 

[Deemac6]

So a 120 gallon.

Also I agree you should look into a gecko or something.

 

[Rud3Bwoy]

speaking of size

will a 41" x 23" x 18" do for a single adult berdie?

 

[midmichicer]

speaking of size

will a 41" x 23" x 18" do for a single adult berdie?

Yes

 

[ziggy23]

55 Gallons are 48x12 correct? I don't know of any small breeds of bearded dragons. You might want to look into something like a leopard gecko or something like that. A 40 Breeder is 36x18 and that is the min for an adult bearded dragon.

leos are nocturnal. So it would be a boring classroom pet for the kids.

 

[namrufmot]

Trust me the 55g tank is a HUGE tank for Ramses - since he's stunted. Percentage wise, the tank is wider for him than a normal sized beardie in a 40g breeder.

 

[Kidster96]

Everyone is suggesting get a leopard gecko... have we forgotten about rankin dragons? I think they only get to 10-14 inches.

 

[Deemac6]

Which according to those measurements would be to big for a 55 gallon. If it can't turn around comfortably it shouldn't be housed in it. I had my dragon in a 40 breeder, she is only 17 and I found I didn't like how hard it was for her to turn around comfortably so I upgraded to a 120.

 

[Kidster96]

I don't see how a 55gal won't be enough for a rankins dragon.

 

[namrufmot]

Where can you get rankinds from? my local pet store can't get them :/