worried bout a beardie!

[April451]

worried bout a neglected beardie!

Im a bit worried about a bearded dragon that I heard was being neglected.
A friend had to give her to a friend of his because he had to move back home and his mother was terrified of all things reptile. This friend of his is the brother of his now ex-gf...making it an awkward situation. About a month ago he complained to me after visiting her and seeing that she was still very small, cold and was very unhappy about being handled. My friend can be a bit of an exaggerator, but I asked him to try and convince this guy to let him take her back and that I'd take her and look after her. He wouldn't let me take her - ego related I suppose lol.
I have had a bearded dragon in the past but he was fully grown when we brought him home so I don't know about the usual growth rate of young ones... but I'd say by now she's probably around maybe 5 months old? And this is only a guess by how long ago it was when he was showing me cute pictures of her on his phone. She was supposedly about 4 weeks when he bought her. Is anyone able to tell me how old she could be based on breeding seasons or something?
Anyways, today I saw a photo of her now, looking quite skinny and her body length is only as big as the width of a 17yo girls hand (if thats any indication )...
I'm really pissed off because a comment on this particular photo was " Its still alive? Lol" , as if its all a funny joke...

 

[Grogshla]

yeah that sucks april.
Unfortunately no real way to tell how old based on breeding seasons especially if it is young as it prob hasnt bred at all. They comment on the photo is sickening and I really feel your pain here.
Such a cruel thing when people don't take care of animals that depend on their owners.

 

[Bluetongue1]

You have done what you can being nice and it is evident that isn't going to alter things. Time to get tough and report it. Here is the link for the DENR list of who to report what to... Report an offence - Department of Environment and Natural Resources

Blue

 

[April451]

This is the image i have seen of the bearded dragon. Does it look unhealthy? Has its growth been stunted from insufficient food etc? Could it be that my friend was actually sold a pygmy or something! It would make me feel a bit better but it just looks unhappy to me :/
Apparently the sister of the guy who now has her (and her friend) are trying to look after it but without direct contact with them I just dont know if theyre doing the right things...

 

[Tobe404]

Pic didn't work. Try re-attaching it.

 

[Grogshla]

go to "go advanced" and then "manage attachments"
Pic should work then

 

[April451]

Thanks still dont really know what Im doing haha

 

[Grogshla]

It's hard to say with the dragon.
He seems slightly skinny but not dangerously. I think you could take much better care of this little champion.

 

[Justdragons]

Its hard, I have a few beardies and they are all really healthy.. one or two might be to healthy (cough fat from love cough) but i have one who is tiny and just doesnt want to eat, grow or socialize. I force feed her and she glares at me. never comes out to bask and just hates on life.. she is a good few months old and tiny, luckey now if she is 150mm from snout to tip.. I worry every day she will be dead.

sometimes things arnt ment to surive but because we control the environment we prolong the enevitable(sp)?? worth a shot to see maybe if you can offer to take the guy and see if you can help him??

good luck and good on ya for caring

Toby

 

[April451]

Im glad you dont think its too bad Grogshla and maybe the girls are doing the right thing and she is improving! But Im sure Id do a better job

"Fat from love" haha yeh thats what I think I would be like if I could take her. It was a bit like that with the bearded we used to have, lol. But atleast he spent a lot of time running around outside his enclosure getting some exercise
I get what you mean. Its still very sad and worrying all the time sucks! Hopefully your little one will get over it.
I offered to take her and I still don't really know why the guy wouldnt give her to me because he obviously didnt care about her... but anyways..

Thanks guys for ya help and advice! Apprecaite it

 

[moussaka]

It doesn't seem to be in dangerously bad shape, it still has some fat on its tail, but if it is 5 months old then it is looking pretty small for its age. It might not be from neglect though, some beardies are just kind of runty and slow-growing.

 

[Mroads75]

Hopefully you can get this beardie and give it what it needs......

 

[Bel03]

This thread gave me some hope. I have 2 beardies, a 8mnth old male & a 5mnth old female. My male is & has always been a brilliant feeder, he has grown an amazing amount. While his 'girlfriend' is about the same size as the pic above, she just doesnt seem to grow!! She eats, just not a great deal, she basks, & is active, but again, is just growing so slowly. I was worried about the size diff, but after reading the replies here, i guess she is just 'small built'

Oh & no they are not housed together.

 

[moussaka]

This thread gave me some hope. I have 2 beardies, a 8mnth old male & a 5mnth old female. My male is & has always been a brilliant feeder, he has grown an amazing amount. While his 'girlfriend' is about the same size as the pic above, she just doesnt seem to grow!! She eats, just not a great deal, she basks, & is active, but again, is just growing so slowly. I was worried about the size diff, but after reading the replies here, i guess she is just 'small built'

Oh & no they are not housed together.

Do keep an eye on the female though, my 'slow growing' beardie just dropped dead one day. I think it can sometimes be an indication of congenital problems?

 

[Bel03]

Do keep an eye on the female though, my 'slow growing' beardie just dropped dead one day. I think it can sometimes be an indication of congenital problems?

Im sorry for your loss. & yes i do keep a close watch on her, so far, besides the slow growth all seems well, she is very active, basks daily, loves having time outside, & has gone from a very cranky little physco to a calm little lady, she is forever waving at the fish in the tank on one side of her or at Muppet (my male) on the other side. She loves woodies, but only picks at her vegies. I have been feeding her silkworms as often as i can get my hands on them to try bulk her up a bit, & while she does love them, she just isnt growing anywhere near as quick as the male did.

Im in hospital at the moment, but am wondering if maybe i should take her to the vet for a check up just to see if there is an underlying problem......i would be so hurt to lose her, more so after putting so much time into her the past 5mnths.

 

[moussaka]

Im sorry for your loss. & yes i do keep a close watch on her, so far, besides the slow growth all seems well, she is very active, basks daily, loves having time outside, & has gone from a very cranky little physco to a calm little lady, she is forever waving at the fish in the tank on one side of her or at Muppet (my male) on the other side. She loves woodies, but only picks at her vegies. I have been feeding her silkworms as often as i can get my hands on them to try bulk her up a bit, & while she does love them, she just isnt growing anywhere near as quick as the male did.

Im in hospital at the moment, but am wondering if maybe i should take her to the vet for a check up just to see if there is an underlying problem......i would be so hurt to lose her, more so after putting so much time into her the past 5mnths.

She sounds like a great little dragon! As to getting her checked out, I don't know if she has a problem whether a check-up would detect it - but I don't have enough experience to have an opinion one way or the other, some of the more experienced keepers on here might know more.