Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have some babies, they are about a month old. It seems all of the ends of there tails are dropping off. Just the end part. It looks like it starts to dry up and then poof, a tiny part is gone. Is there a reason why? I have had babies before, and nothing like this has happened. This is the first from this one pair of male and female thou. Any ideas??? Thanks....

Most likely (really I'm sure) the tails are being bit by their cagemates. Even a nick in a babies tail seems to stay with them for life. I only house 3 babies at most to a bin and feed them a whole lot to keep it from happening. But of course I am not a breeder and the most babies I've ever had at one time was only 9.

OK, So, if i have 6 babies together then they can be nipping at each others tails? I thought i was feeding them enough? I guess i need to house less together and feed more? Would a bigger enclosure work better? I have had two other clutches and kept them like i am now, and none nipped others tails...Please, dont get me wrong,, i am not questioning you, i just want to understand better, so this doesnt happen anymore,and it stops. I feel bad about there tails..Here is my other thought...The parents of these babies, i bought from this one guy, who said she had great clutches and none were disformed, but he did have one baby come out with two heads. This is my first clutch from these parents, and there were three babies and were deformed and we had to (well,,you know There were some eggs that did not hatch, and i opened them up to look inside,, and i found a two headed baby that didnt live... so, one of my thoughts is...the parents might be related???????????????? Dont two headed babies come from inbreading? Or does it happen once in awhile, just because? Thanks for all your help.. Just trying to understand so my beardies are the best kept that i can do.

Your egg failure/deformity issue certainly sounds as if the parents are too closely related. Better to not get a breeding pair from one breeder. Most keep very poor records at best.

As far as the tails go I find it unlikely that could be a genetic problem. Especially since it is very common for babies to nip each others tails. I feed mine 3 times a day and leave extra crix and salad in between. But keep in mind I am not a breeder so my sample size is too small to draw a conclusion. Most likely you have hatched more babies than I have. I have never incubated more than a few from a clutch. I hatched out a deformed baby this year also (I could never kill a baby dragon, he's still here) that was supposedly from 2 unrelated parents. She also had a late stage egg failure too. 3 eggs, 1 deformed, 1 failure after 45 days, 1 hatched. I am highly skeptical that the parents are genetically unrelated enough. Another of my females (a rescue) had the same mate and hatched all (6) normal babies. Both females laid their eggs on the same day and were incubated together.

I took in a dragon that will be the mate this year for the deformed (Kaden) dragon's mom. We'll see how the results work out.

Thank you so much... Just to let you know, i have only hatched out 3 clutches so far. only 3 in one, 5 in the next and 9 in this one. So here is another thing, since you and I both think these parents probably are to closly related, and they have been together there whole lives, i can keep them together but dont incubate the eggs? I would hate to seperate them, since they have been together forever. I think they do have feelings, and seperating them would hurt me (and them).....How do you feel on this one? Thanks again for ALL your help.....

I agree with you. I wouldn't separate them if they were mine. Toby(my largest male) came with Taylor from the same breeder but they didn't get along so I separated them. Then a rescue, Simone, came and loved him so they live together and always will now. Simone and Toby had normal babies. Taylor was mated with Toby and at one point they lived as a trio. I am housing only pairs and singles here now . She has met her new mate but will not live with him until they both arise from brumation. If it works out they will live together always.

When the eggs are laid, I freeze them to make sure none will hatch at a landfill or something and then throw them away.

My plan this year is to hatch 2 of Taylor and her new mate's eggs. I need to be sure that it's not a genetic problem with Taylor alone. Then I may buy one to increase the genetic diversification in my troop. Plus keep any rescues that come my way. I am in the process of building 6 new enclosures in my usual style. There is actually nine of them now (old picture) there will be 15.

nice cages, u built these? very impressed with the design

Yes, I built and designed them. I have to give the Dachiu's credit for some of the ideas though.