They don't eat when I'm watching?

[pumpkinman]

So I've had my 2 dragons a month today. One is thriving more than the other. Eating better etc.
Both hardly ever eat when I am watching. I usually have to leave the room. Is this normal?

 

[deh05001]

How old are both of your dragons? If they are are very young you shouldn't worry. I have 2 young dragons that both used to love to eye me whenever I was in the room. They would be interested by the crickets but then when they were about the get them they would look up at me and the cricket would get away. After about a month of getting used to their enclosure and to me, they stopped doing this.

Are they being housed in the same tank? If they are, this is why one of them is thriving and the other isn't. If housed together you should separate them as soon as possible.

Also could you list what you have in your enclosure, as well as temperatures and your lighting/UVB sources, as these could be factors attributing to your problem.

 

[pumpkinman]

They are 3 and 4 months old. Separate vivs. Viv set up is bang on.

 

[deh05001]

How do they respond to you with handling and when you pick them up? They probably are just nervous and see you as a threat while you're in their watching them, enough of a threat to deter them from the food. I guess just keep trying to bond with them and offer them some treats when you put your hands in the viv. Maybe as time goes on they will just get used to you and be more comfortable. You can put a piece of used clothing in the viv so they get used to your smell and this could ease some tension. Minimize noise and fast movements while they're eating so maybe they'll be a little calmer. Other than that I have no idea other than to just wait it out and hope this is just a phase!

 

[furmanbr]

One of mine does the same thing. I have two beardies in separate vivs of course. They are 17 months now. I have had them since they were just under 4 weeks. When they were babies I fed them dubias and crickets in a separate feeding tank so as not to confuse them as babies. when they reached about 10 months old one of them stopped eating the dubias and crickets and would only eat the greens I left in the viv. I figured I would try leaving the dubias in the tank and maybe he would like that better. I got a dog bowl from the pet store that isnt tip-able and put a few dubias. As soon as I left the room I could hear him munching. When I came back in he stopped eating. Ever since I have been putting feeders in the bowl in his viv and he happily eats whatever I give him. I still feed my princess of a girl in a separate feeding tank where she chases down the feeders.

 

[ziggy23]

One of my dragons won't eat their salad if someone is watching. it's so funny. She'll be eating and you glance over there and she will freeze mid-bite and pretend she wasn't doing anything.

 

[valcash]

One of mine used to do this but got over it