Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have had my male beardie for about a year now and in all that time i have had him i've never seen him head bob or arm wave!! will i ever see this behaviour? and what could be the reason for him never doing it?? He does open his mouth a lot, even ehen hes been out the cage for 5 to 10 mins so i know hes not doing it cause he is hot! has anyone ever heard of this? he is 375grams and 16 inches long and very healthy with a good colour and sheds regular...

males dont arm wave. arm waving is a submissive behavior used by females. head bobing is part of courtship and is used to tell other dragons that he is the dominant male in his group. These behaviors are usually only seen when beardies are in groups. If you get a female for your beardie he will most likly begin head bobing.
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sincerely,
Jonathan D. de Kluyver
JDDK Reptiles
Quality Reptiles and Amphibianswww.jddkreptiles.com

It is a submissive behavior & males who feel threatened by a female (usually a larger female) or another male,, will indeed arm wave. As the others stated, it is a communication & if there aren't any other beardies to "talk" to, then why would they do it?

As far as the gaping, what are the cage temps? Basking "surface" temps? It can take some time for them to cool down, especially if the temps are too high. That all depends on what "room" temps you are talking about too. If he is gaping in his cage at 110 and you take him out in a room that is 85, it will take some time. Now, if the room is 70, he will cool off much quicker.
Hydration plays a big roll in thermo regulating too.

Also,, they sometimes take a gasp for air when they are shedding & their "nose plugs" are still in. (the shed within their nostrils) The first time I saw this, I was freaking out. I thought she had a respiratory infection for sure.

I hope this helps.
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Joel R

Coming some day.
www.SpikesAndScales.com

The surface temp is about 110 and because i also have a pair of collareds my room temps are about 80, believe me i sweat like a pig most nights but in summer its nearly impossible.. But i think you guys have resloved that wee question for me...

Thanx again..

I would love to get neo a lady friend but my food bill would go through the roof...lol

As would your electric bill. lol Mine has doubled with a baby rack.
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Joel R

Coming some day.
www.SpikesAndScales.com

"If you get a female for your beardie he will most likly begin head bobing."

Which is NOT recommended unless you have done a lot of research on breeding beardies, and have the experience and finances to do it properly.

In other words, don't go buy a female just because you want to see him bob his head.
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Amanda
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2.0 bearded dragons (Ocho / Domo-kun)

0.1 kingsnake (Rio)
0.0.1 tarantula (Otto)
1.0 ferret (Playstation)
1.0 cat (Wally)
0.1 dog (Tima)

Do you have other beardies or just the one. Beardies typically bob and wave when around their species. If there aren't any other dragons around then its really not that unusual.