Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello!

I have 2 bearded dragons. ive had them both for abt a year or so now i bought them already as adults cuz i was looking for a breeding pair. they are very very richly and nicely colored, high reds, and high yellows on the femals and the male is very orangy and milky white. ill post some pics up soon for all u guys to see!

they are in a 30 gallon tank i feed them thier greens (wide selection of it) and they're crickets and worms abt 2 or 3 times a week. ive been wanting them to get to breed but i just cant seem to make it work. could it be the tank is to small for them? not enough sand? (its abt 3 or 4 inches of sand)

Can anyone help me out i would really like to get bredding them !!!!

And im going to try and start and breeding my two Kenyan Sand Boas!!!! but thats another story!!!

Anthony - Thanks!

well the cage is definately too small. a single dragon needs a 4 foot long cage, 2 feet wide. height around 18 inches is good. make sure basking spots are good, around 105 for adults. cool end of cages around 70-75.

they will breed when they breed. not much to do to "help" them except give them the space they need.
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Beach Beardies

2.4. bearded dragons
1.0. Turquoise x Sunburst Veiled Chameleon
1.1. Sugar Gliders
0.2. Felines *queen athena and missy*

For 2 Dragons to be housed together, the minimum tank size should be 6 feet long by 2 feet wide. Both your dragons are under stress having to share such a small place.

I don't believe in housing a male and female together unless it is a room size enclosure at least. More than likely the female will eventually be injured (often severely) and at best case senario she will be highly stressed. Dragons don't live together in the wild and certainly not in small places.

It's a little early in the season for breeding. If they were separated then the males get real "worked up" when they see a female and seems like they would breed anytime of year. Then you can put them together and breeding happens pretty much right away. In the wild they breed in the spring and early summer so that the babies have the best chance of survival.

I've breed dragons for a couple of years now. The only time they breed is when the female wants it. just like humans...lol.

What I do is when they wake from brumation, I have them eat alot for two reasons. One, to make up for "lost time" during bruming. Two, to get ready for breeding. I've had 100% success putting them together right after breeding. Load your female up with calcium and/or pinkie mice.

You'll want to seperate them if you want babies. First of all you want them to actually get a full amount of time they need for brumation. Second of all, if you keep them seperate, when you do put them together (and i suggest doing it outside of the cage) they will connect immediately.
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a free range dragon is a happy dragon

The biggest problem I see in your setup is the cage size. It is far too small for even a single adult dragon. Two dragons should be housed in a cage at least 5'x2' in floor dimensions and bigger is always better.

Second, how old are the dragons? If they were adults when you bought them a year ago, their age can easily fall between 2-10 years old. If the dragons are over 5 years old now, they are pretty much past their breeding prime and breeding wouldn't be a good ideal to start at this age, especially if the female was bred during her prime.

Third, are you sure you have a male and female? If both are female, that could be why they are not breeding, for obvious reasons. If both are male (though I don't think likely as sexually mature males would have fought each other to death by now in a cage that size) same reason why they have not bred.

Lastly, though not always necessary, some dragons won't breed unless brumated. Basically they need to go through a cooling period for 2-4 months before ready to breed. This cooling period helps 'ripen' reproductive cells (ie eggs and sperm). Cooling is done by lowering the day and night temps gradually over a space of about 2-4 weeks as well as decreasing daylight lengths. Once you reach night time temps of about 65F and daytime highs of about 75F and day length of 10 hours, leave temps/light at these ranges for 2-4 months. The dragons should sleep nearly constantly during this time though it is normal if they come out and bask for a few hours every once in awhile. Don't offer any food during the cooling time but have fresh water available.

After the 2-4 month period, reverse the process by slowly increasing temperatures and daylight lengths over a 2-4 week period till temps are back to normal. Offer food regularly once temperatures are normal and they are up and active again.

During brumation there should be very little weight loss, maybe 20-80g depending on how long they are down. Some stay down for more than 4 months but typically 1-3 months is normal.

Once they have fully warmed up and had a week or two to eat normally, introduce the male and female on neutral ground or in a large tank together. It is better to just put the male in with the female for short periods of time or till you witness copulation a few times, then separate them again. A couple of matings is more than enough for the female to lay several clutches each season.
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PHLdyPayne