Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi all,

I know that dragons tend to mature and grow individually at different rates, but I was just wondering if anyone had noticed a correlation between specific morphs and growth rates. I have a male Sandfire mix and a female German Giant mix (she was sold to me as a sexed male, but I think otherwise), both approximately the same age. I purchased Ozzie (female) first, then brought home Dunkin (male). Ozzie greatly surpassed Dunkin sizewise, and I attributed it to her German Giant blood, yet today I was giving them both baths and I realized that Dunkin had significantly caught up to Ozzie's size. Now, to be fair, Dunkin came from an ignorant and neglectful prior home: they had never given him live crickets, fresh greens, a UVB light, a heat source other than a heat rock, he wouldnt fully open his eyes when I rescued him...the evil list goes on and on. His size now could be (and should be) due to him getting the proper care that he so desperately needed, yet Ozzie did not come from an abusive home, and she is not growing at such an impressive rate. Is this due to the individuality of dragons, or their morphology, or neither? Thanks for your input!
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1.1 Beardies:

Ozzie--GG X
Dunkin--Sandfire X

2.0 Cornsnakes:

Chester--anery stripe motley
Ducky--bloodred

2.2 Other Pets:

Simon, Cooper--chihuahuas
Cleo--DSH cat
Piper--cockatiel

In most of my experience, a beardies growth rate depends mostly on their care and genetics. So technically the morph could dictate growth just a little, but it really depends on the individual. I have had many german giants that get huge, but they mostly get large faster than the others, then when they top out they stop growing for the most part. The normal individuals usually grow to similar sizes as germans, but not as fast.
Then there have been other dragons, like a Hypo/Snow I had several years ago, who was just a freak, he wasn't too large, a bit fat but not very long, then when he bred, to any female, all of his babies would be very large at young ages and get long and lanky, then after being 1 year old, would spend the next year bulking out.

And I am sure that most of the clearnailed hypo owners have noticed that they all have similar body structures and growth rates. That could be evidence that there is something related to the morph and its growth rate, but again there are always exceptions.

Phil