Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was just wondering, how old can bearded dragons be and still breed?
Thanks for the help.

For the optimum health of the dragons & the eggs, around 18 mths. old.
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God Bless, Beardie Dreams, & Peace!
Pogoniacs™

If you are asking how old are they when they stop producing eggs, it depends.

We have a 6 year old beardie who produced 80 eggs this year! (She is fat, healthy and happy.. not to mention very bossy!!).

Beardies have a finite number of eggs. If a dragon is bred heavily from the time that the become sexually active, say they lay 7-8 clutches a year, they will only last 3-4 years. If they lay smaller clutches or only 2-3 clutches a year they could last 5, 6, or 7 years. I'm sure there are accounts of them lasting longer than that.

The dragons also need to be in great condition. Our 6 year old was purchased 2 years ago as a "useless" breeder. She had produced one clutch for her previous owner and he decided to get rid of her because she wasn't producing. Of course, he only fed her pinkies (yeah, no crix, no veg). So that might have been the reason! Considering that she is laying clutches of 32-35 eggs for us now!

Beardies should really be retired if they show any signs of strain, if the births are too hard on them, or if they are just plain tired! It's up to the individual owner to gauge when to let the old girl rest.

I hope this has helped!
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Kelly Affonce
DeKeaff Exotics
www.dekeaffexotics.com
AIM: DekeaffGrrl