Reptile & Amphibian Forums

If I plan on breeding two dragons from seperate cages, Do you wake them from brumation with heat so they will both be ready to breed at the same time? Someone said you only have about 2 weeks to get the first clutch fertile. Is this how it's done? How long do you let brumation go on for? Am I even on the right track or do I try to one cage? Someone said keeping them seperate to breed them works better. Anyone have experience with all this? Info is always good.
Thanks

For one thing, keeping them separate is always best, and usually you will put the female in to the males cage. You should supervise, as some males can seriously injure a female, grabbing, biting and shaking. They do that to mate, but should not sling the female throughout the cage and against the walls and objects in the cage. Also, do not breed a female after only 2 weeks out of brumation...give her time to feed heavily, make sure her weight is good and this could be at least 3-4 weeks.

at least 250 grams right?

For a female, at LEAST 350...preferably higher. Some people say 400 which is better yet, but dragon sizes vary, some are adult size at 16-17",[ this size are the only ones that would be expected to weigh 350,any much larger should have a higher weight] but most are in the 18-21" range. If you look at websites [ such as Carolina Designer Dragons,Rainbow b.d's, and Rockinar dragonz, you will see sizes of their breeders and get a good idea of proper sizes...although I believe that some are actually a little over-weight, it's better for a female to be chunky, not skinny. All 3 of those breeders have dragons from my lines BTW [ I couldn't resist the plug ].

carolina designer dragons had alot of good info. What's that Angie Husk says no kiss the dragon on rockinar dragonz?

LOL !! Melanie and I are good buddies and I always told her that her site was one of the best for info on beardie care...then I jokingly told her that the only thing she left out is to advise people not to kiss the dragons, as cute as they are it's unsanitary and I have people tell me all the time that they kiss their dragons. So she added that at the bottom just to appease me, and for a laugh.

I suggest females should be at least 350g or more, especially if they are over 16" in length. I personally wouldn't breed a male or female who is less than 16" but that is my preference. Unless the dragon is a hybrid Inland/Lawson's dragon, which will be smaller than a typical Inland Bearded dragon.

The female should also be at least 15 months old, 18 months or older being better.

Males should weight about the same as the female and be about the same length as well...they can be younger to start, 12 months is a good minimum (they often reach sexual maturity younger than 12 months...hence why its always best to separate males and females when they are 6 months at the latest...to avoid any unwanted breeding.)

Brumation can last anywhere between 2-4 months on average... Sometimes dragons will enter brumation without any effort on your part (ie no lowering of temperatures or shortening daylight lengths) others need to have their temperatures and daylight lengths reduced slowly over 2 weeks to stimulate them to brumate. TO get them out of brumation, just increase temperatures and daylight till you reach normal ranges.

If you start reducing temps, it is recommended you stop feeding about a week before reducing temperatures...to ensure all food is digested and 'passed' before temperatures are reduced.

Once temperatures and light is returned to normal and your dragon wakes up, offer plenty of food to your females, including dusting insects with calcium. Males can be offered food as well but they don't need as heavy a feeding. However males often refuse to eat at all while actively breeding and pursuing females, or just knowing there are receptive females in the area, so definitely good to get them eating once they are out of brumation. Do this for about 2 weeks.

You can introduce females into the male's cage, or the other way around. Observe their interaction. If the female runs away from the male and refuses to let him mount, then she's not ready. Separate and try again in 3-7 days. It is also possible to introduce both in neutral territory, like a sectioned off area of a room or large 'pen' or even a kid's pool (with no water) this way there is more room for the female to get away if she's not in the mood, or the male can get away if the female is particularly aggressive. Or, on the off chance you have a incorrectly sexed female. At all times you should be supervising.

If the female is receptive, she will let the male mount, usually laying still and lifting her tail to make it easier for him to line up his vent with hers.

There are plenty of videos on bearded dragon mating on youtube, so it would be a great idea to check them out ahead of time. This way you can see mating behavior and better prepare yourself to know when to separate once you introduce your dragons.
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PHLdyPayne

Forum Princess

thanks for the info. I tried searching threads and will spend end up with dead ends or junk info
Thanks