Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm toying with the idea of getting another dragon, but there are a lot of things to consider. Right now I'm just collecting my thoughts to see if it's practical.

I already have a 2.5 year old male who I love. The thing is, I have zero interest in breeding lizards, I only want them as pets. So with that in mind, if I got another lizard, which sex should I get? I would be keeping them in seperate cages, but probably in the same room. If I got a male, would they be overstressed as competitors? If I got a female, would they be overstressed wanting to mate? Is there any way I'd ever be able to have them out together in the same room and maintain the peace, or should I make it so they can't see each other and have them out at seperate times?

I just kind of want to know what are the options, if there are any. This is obviously a big deciding factor.
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1.0 bearded dragon (gold X yellow flame)
0.1 california kingsnake (evil)
1.0 ferret (runt)
1.0 cat (cornish rex)
0.1 dog (mutt)

As long as you keep them in separate cages, you shouldn't have any problems. And if you do, you could always put something between the cages to obstruct their view. I wouldn't let them "play" together outside of the cage either. It doesn't take a lot of time for dragons to breed. And if you buy another male, they could easily do damage to each other before you're able to separate them.

After you fall in love with Beardies, it’s hard to just have one. Just don’t project your feelings onto the Beardie. They are content living the life of solitude. If you do decide to get another Beardie here’s a few things to keep in mind:

Only house animals of the same size together. Always be aware of how they interact together as one may intimidate the other causing stress and weight loss as well as the possibility of violent altercations. Separate any animals that do not get along together, immediately.

No matter how friendly they may seem, never house two males together. Males are territorial and will bite and hurt each other at best. At worst, one or both will end up dead.

Two females usually get along but there are no guarantees. Keep a close eye on them to make sure that one is not intimidating the other.

Housing a male and females together is more complex. Most of the time they will get along fine but sometimes the male may become too overbearing or may intimidate the female. This is especially true during the off season when the female does not want to breed and the male does. The male can also be quite rough and hurt the female physically if she can’t get away (which she can’t in a cage). This is very stressful for BOTH the female and the male. She won’t be left alone to eat or bask with an excited male that wants to breed. If you have a male and a female you should have two cages so you can separate them when necessary.

Another aspect of housing a male and a female together is that they will mate sooner or later. There will be eggs, and later babies. If you don’t want babies, don’t house them together. You may think that if you don’t want babies, just don’t incubate the eggs. Well, it is not that easy… it is very hard on the female to get pregnant over and over again (and she will, if she is kept with a male). A female can lay up to 8 clutches of eggs after only one breeding – and that is hard on her little body. She needs a lot of extra care during this time (extra vitamins, extra calcium, egg laying box etc) so I wouldn’t recommend breeding too often – for the females sake!
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Bennett

www.beardiedragon.com

I have no intention of housing them together, I know that much. I completely plan on keeping them in seperate enclosures. My main concern is if I should keep them seperate at all times and have a barrier so they can't see each other. From the sounds of it, that's look like the way to go.
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1.0 bearded dragon (gold X yellow flame)
0.1 california kingsnake (evil)
1.0 ferret (runt)
1.0 cat (cornish rex)
0.1 dog (mutt)

If it's a male and femal, yes seperate all the time so they cannot see each other would in my opinion be best.

>>I have no intention of housing them together, I know that much. I completely plan on keeping them in seperate enclosures. My main concern is if I should keep them seperate at all times and have a barrier so they can't see each other. From the sounds of it, that's look like the way to go.
>>-----
>>1.0 bearded dragon (gold X yellow flame)
>>0.1 california kingsnake (evil)
>>1.0 ferret (runt)
>>1.0 cat (cornish rex)
>>0.1 dog (mutt)
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Bennett

www.beardiedragon.com

Yeah that's pretty much the impression I get. Sorry my last post was kinda short, I was rushed. When I get home later today I want to pick your brain for more info. I respect your opinion a lot, and you're also one of the breeders I was contemplating getting my next dragon from, you have such gorgeous animals!

More later, thanks again.
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1.0 bearded dragon (gold X yellow flame)
0.1 california kingsnake (evil)
1.0 ferret (runt)
1.0 cat (cornish rex)
0.1 dog (mutt)

glad to see your doing your homework first, always glad to help.
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Bennett

www.beardiedragon.com

Ok, I'm home from work now so I have a little more time to collect my thoughts.

I guess I'm leaning towards getting a female if I do get another dragon. I'll probably keep her in another part of the living room where my male wouldn't be able to see her all the time. However, if I take her out into the living room for quality time, and he sees her through the glass occasionally, is that going to cause unwanted stress? If they even just catch a glimpse of each other once in a while? That's really my main concern. If I get another lizard I would like to be able to give them both quality time and I don't want them getting stressed, but obviously it's going to be a bit of a hassle if I have to prevent eye contact at all times. Also, if later down the road I get them stackable cages, would they be able to sense each other being that close, even if they don't usually see each other?

And lastly, I've heard rumors, and they could be just that, but I've heard that some female reptiles should be bred for their own health. Is that true? If I get a female and have no plans on ever breeding her, will she be ok, healthwise? I don't know why, it just sounds kind of silly in my head.
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1.0 bearded dragon (gold X yellow flame)
0.1 california kingsnake (evil)
1.0 ferret (runt)
1.0 cat (cornish rex)
0.1 dog (mutt)

Don’t know how good Beardies eye sight is but I can tell you this. I have several rows of Beardies about 3 ft across from each other. For the most part they all ignore each other. Every so often one of my adult males will have a fit and try to get out and get across the aisle, but it’s rare. When feeding time comes along they all get impatient and wait by the glass or by the bowl patiently for their meals. EXCEPT for roach time. Once I start feeding one cage they all go nuts standing at the glass pounding and scratching. All of them get going its like a riot. I suppose if one dragon reacted to the other you could put some paper or cloth in front of the cage to block their views.

I recommend males to people who are not planning on breeding. Yes they can get a prolapse but generally speaking their are fewer health risks with a male. Even with out a male, it is my understanding that females can lay infertile eggs stressing their systems, not to mention the possibility of becoming egg bound.

The first two Beardies I had were both males. They lived separately and were fine until they saw each other. Then the larger one would puff up and bob. He eventually got used to things and there was never a problem after that.
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Bennett

www.beardiedragon.com

Ok, so I wasn't just imagining things! I don't know a lot about bearded dragon reproductive systems, so it seemed wierd that a female could get eggbound without being bred.

This is all good information to know. I just have to weight it all out and think really hard about it before I do this. I'm like, "You don't need another pet, you don't need another pet, OMG look how beautiful that orange one is! Ok maybe just one more. NO! YES!"
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1.0 bearded dragon (gold X yellow flame)
0.1 california kingsnake (evil)
1.0 ferret (runt)
1.0 cat (cornish rex)
0.1 dog (mutt)