Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi guys,
I recently switched my 6 month old dragons (male and female) from carpet to sand. It's been about a week and neither one of them will eat any insects. I've been feeding them in a large bucket, but they just seem stressed. I've tried placing a clear plastic tub in the tank with them, so they're still in a familiar environment, but that doesn't help either. The male has been eating a little bit of his greens, but still not much. the female won't eat at all and has been digging constantly. Could she be looking for a place to lay eggs? Is there an adjustment period, should I just be patient and keep trying? My instinct is to switch back, but I don't want to stress them with another change if I don't need to. Thanks for any help you can give me.

when i used sand, *dont use it anymore* my dragons took some time getting used to the sand verses the carpet. they never stopped eating like yours are doing though. they may be a bit stressed. just keep offering food to your dragons, they will get hungry. try offering more salads and veggies than crickets for now.
sounds like your female may be ready to lay eggs. if shes not eating alot, or at all, and shes digging constantly is sounds like shes getting ready to lay. pick her up and feel her belly for small marble like lumps in her belly. if you feel lumps like marbles, those are eggs. easiest thing to do then is move her to a laying bin, a rubbermaid tub with plain soil and vermiculite works, or even peete moss works well. soak it with water and pack it down very tightly. you want about 12-16 inches of packed soil in the bin. your dragon will then dig a laying hole and lay her eggs. she may do it quick, it may take a couple of days. giving her a warm bath will relax her too. keep heat and uvb on her as usual too.

if they dont like the sand too much, use ceramic or porcelin tile. thats what i have switched too. you can buy boxes or 11 12inch by 12inch tile at home depot for 9 bucks. they will cut it to size for you too. its easy to clean and looks great. sand can cause impaction and eye problems in your dragon. hope this has helped

I would lose the sand and go with slate tile! Looks better and no need to worry about impaction. Maybe set up a lil sand box on one end for them to play in or whatever. Right now i use shelf liner for my new baby but soon he will be getting the slate! We also use slate for our leos and they seem to love it!
Just my opinion!
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Mike & Wendy

2.0.0 Siberian husky, Jackrussel/schitzu
0.0.1 Ball Python
1.0.1 Leopard Gecko
4.0.0 Beta's
3.1.0 Future Herper's

I would separate your male and female now, before she does become gravid, 6 months old is way way too young to breed your female. She should be at least 14 months old before being introduced to breed.

The fact neither is eating could simply be due to the change in their environment. They should get used to in within another week at the most. Make sure both are well hydrated and keep offering food, eventually they will eat it. And again I highly recommend housing them separately for many reasons. One or the other can be stressing the other, the male is at the age when he will start showing signs of wanting to mate. The female could become gravid at this early age but producing eggs are very stressful and hard on her body. She won't lay a big clutch and the extra strain will greatly slow down her own growth (all that energy used for egg production instead of feeding her own body's growth). Also, there is a higher risk of complications developing in the female, if bred too young, including egg binding. Best thing to do, is house her separately and just in case she is gravid, provide an egg laying box for her.
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PHLdyPayne