Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I've had my beardie for about 6 months and she is about 8 months old. I have noticed her digging a lot lately and rubbing her face on almost anything she can. It almost looks like she is scratching. I have read that they can lay eggs without contact with a male. I was wondering if she is old enough to lay first, if so could these be signs that she is trying to lay, and if so what is the best thing to do. If she is in fact too young or not laying for some other reason what could be up with her?

She is a little young to lay eggs but it isn't impossible. Dragon wil scratch and dig for several reasons. Some just like to do it, the cage could be too small or it could be too hot and she is trying to escape from the heat by burrowing.

Check your temperatures, make sure the ambient temperatures are not over 85F. Use a temp gun or digital thermometer with probe to get accurate readings. If the temperature is too high, adjust accordingly.

If the cage is small (depending on her current size, an 8 month old dragon should be moved into it's adult sized cage, 4'x2'x2' minimum)then move her to a larger cage.

To ensure she isn't gravid, you should be able to feel eggs if you feel her stomach and sides (underneath the spine ridge) you should be able to feel the eggs. Don't squeeze to hard as you risk injuring the dragon or the eggs. If she does feel unusually heavy or you do feel lumps inside of her, then she is gravid. At this point you need to prepare an egg laying bin. A rubbermaid container that is deep enough to hold 12-16" of soil/vermiculate mix (untreated potting soil is fine) lightly moistened so it clumps up nicely and hold's its shape. The container should be roughtly 2 feet long by a foot wide or near those dimensions.

Once the egg laying bin is ready, place a clamp light on one end to heat the sand (or if the cage is large enough, you can put the container right into the dragons' c age, just put a ramp for the dragon to be able to climb in and out of.

If you can't feel any eggs and she doesn't look unusualy big around the middle, you can make the egg laying bin anyway. A small clutch may not be easily felt in a dragon. If no eggs are layed after a couple days or a week, and she is not eating take her to a vet immediately.

If she is eating fine and otherwise healthy looking and yuor temps are perfect, then most likely you have a dragon that loves to dig. If you don't have a good digging substrate (ie any that isnt' loose) you can always build a small 'playbox' for her. This you can fill with washed playsand, potting soil (untreated) or a mixture of the two. This way she can dig and enjoy it, without much an increase of her ingesting alot of sand or soil. However, if you see her licking or eating the sand, then remove it completely.
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PHLdyPayne

She is in a custom built cage that is 4'x2.5'x1.5' with a screen top and plexiglass front. The temps are good I keep a constant eye on that. The only thing is she only digs in the hot end of the cage. I don't know what thats about. The cooler side of the cage is about 75-80 degrees and she has a hide rock and a ledge that she can get under. She eats exceptionally well.(almost a little piggy) Maye she just likes to dig. I have her on a substrate of play sand, maybe I'll just add a little more to give her something to dig in.