Reptile & Amphibian Forums

WhatUp guys. I was wondering if anybody has any info on why there is such a size difference? I believe their from the same clutch. The little guy likes his greens, but he's not big on the crickets. He eats them, but not like his bigger counterpart. When I mist them to give them water the little ALWAYS drinks, and alot. The other guy will most of the time, but not always. Their basking temp is @ 100- 110, and I keep an infared heat light on them at night, but its about a foot and a half higher (and weaker, lower wattage) than it is during the day. Maybe even two feet higher. I feed them twice a day, sometimes they eat, sometimes they dont. I spray them twice a day for drinking purposes and have a fresh water dish in there also. And of course their daily greens, whether they eat them or not. (collard, mustard, and turnip) I have them on CareFresh bedding, and yes, I am watching to make sure they dont eat it, and I havent observed it yet. I also put the bedding in a "small critter" plastic container( the one with the ventilation holes all around) to get rid of all the dust, cause that stuff can be dusty. Sorry this is so long, just wanted to make sure everything was good. Any feedback would be awesome. Thanks for reading guys.

Raymond

Hard to say could be a lot of reasons.. typically i have found when dragons from the same clutch are smaller and less agressive eaters, it is because for whatever reason they are being dominated or don't feel comfortable. Dragons almost always thrive better physcially when kept alone.

It could also be that the more aggressive eater eats all the crix before the smaller one gets around to it. The small one may be too busy watching you or the other dragon eat.. and by the time it decides to eat, they are all gone. Dragons can be real quirky like that.

If you separate the smaller dragon into it's own tank, most likely it will perk up and become a more aggresive eater and do well within a few weeks.

Not always the case.. could be weak genes, parasites, who knows.. check the small ones stool.. if it looks normal, separate it into a tank by itself. That does the trick a lot of times. Also make sure the crix aren't hiding under the carefresh.. if they hide and the dragons can't find them, then they won't eat.

brandon
-----
Dragons by Nature

You could also take one out while the other is eating, and visa versa. Until they get their share of food.
-----
~Julie~
1.0 Southern Alligator Lizard
2.0 Christmas Toad
2.3 Pacific Tree Frog
1.0 White Tree Frog
0.2 Bearded Dragon
1.0 Patterdale Terrier