Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a baby dragon born 10/10/09 that will NOT grow. the babies I have that were born in the same clutch are 6 inches already, and the babies born10/30/09 were born bigger than it already. He seems to be eating fine, even shed once, but is still the size of a newborn dragon. Has anyone ever seen this before?????

Yes, they are called runts and no matter what you breed, there are always a few in each breeding season. They are perfectly wonderful, just will not grow up to be large dragons and should not be used for breeding. Some times they start out slow and wind up being full size, just start out slower. You have to see how it goes.
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www.moonstonedragons.com

I kept a red runt and a yellow runt for 8 months and they were healthy, but only 6 inches long. They had holdback or better color quality, and a practically gave them away. If they're worth holding on to see if they grow, go for it. Otherwise, just give them to somebody with the full knowledge of their "runtiness."

Jeff Crider
California Citrus Dragons

Yes, I agree. If they are worth holding to, go for it. Some people like the idea of a very small dragon as a pet.

If you think the quality is worth waiting on, so it. Here is a pic of a slow grower from last year who I am glad I kept. He is normal size now.

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www.moonstonedragons.com

Thanks for the advice! We are pretty new to this, this one came out of our 3rd clutch, so i was pretty concerned. That's what we were talking about, just hanging onto it until he's big enough to sell. I was just worried that it was sick or something. Good to know!

Well, there may be something wrong with them causing this, however if they are otherwise perfectly healthy, they are runts. If they are in community enclosures, some times the little ones are shy eaters or are dominated by larger ones, who sometimes prevent them from eating as much. You may want to separate them out and see if they start to grow.
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www.moonstonedragons.com

If he doesn't have a cage of his own, I suggest moving him to his own cage with the appropriate setup. Also, bring a fresh stool sample to a vet to check for parasites. A load of parasites can definitely slow growth. It wouldn't hurt to have him examined by a vet as well, to see if the lack of growth is hormonal in nature.
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PHLdyPayne

I just had that happen to me, last to hatch and still pee-wee
here she is with her brother....

Just a side point...never keep 2 that size together [ you probably just had it for the picture to compare sizes] the larger one can eat the smaller.

how rare are these 'little'(dwarf) dragons??

They are not rare at all. If you breed any animal, you get runts. Normally in nature they do not survive. Dwarf is not an accurate term for them, although there are people selling what are probably runts as dwarfs, with a price tag to match. Chances are if you bread a runt to a normal size animal, the offspring would be normal size. Dwarf traight takes many generations to fix. Netherland Dwarf rabbits are a perfect example. They breed small, however without proper culling, they will creep up again in size. If someone was selling you a dwarf, you want to see dwarf parents and grandparents. Animals that stay small are very desirable in the pet trade, and that is where runts, that are of course healthy, should find themselves.
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www.moonstonedragons.com

Very true, and thanks for info. I didn't think I could be that lucky in my first year
Chris K

Well if you wanted to work on a dwarf project, you would start by breeding unrelated runts. Again if they are healthy and normal in every other way, and just small, that is how you would start that program. If that is the case, let me know, I have what seems to be a killer red trans runt. I am keeping him to see how he progresses. He is about 9 inches and hatched out June 27th. He is small, but his body type is filling out to adult build, but has not grown much at all in months.
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www.moonstonedragons.com

Having seen an extreme dwarf in person, they are far from runts. Just as a 4'9" 80lb person isn't necessarily a dwarf, just a small person.

The one's with the true traits and proportions are probably worth the premium if the trait proves out.

IMHO

Jeff Crider
California Citrus Dragons

Are you saying the extreme dwarf had extreme dwarf parents and grandparents? My point is if there are generations of them, it is a trait, if it is a single dragon, it is a runt. Buyer be ware when it comes to "onesies".

runt is defined as:
1. an animal that is small or stunted as compared with others of its kind.

If you notice, the definition has no genetic reference or subtext.

My dragon is perfectly formed, healthy and proportional. He hatched June 27th and is just 10 inches. His mother is 850 g and dad is extreme red by german giant. No indication of any dwarf traits there. He is just a runt. I will however take $11,000 for him if someone wants him. :O) He would probably be a good start of a dwarf project. Based on the blood line, he is a runt, nothing more. I would be interested in the specific blood lines of the dwarf you referred to.

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www.moonstonedragons.com