Does a bearded dragon scares you or do you find them adorable?Bearded dragons belong to the genus Pogona and the family of Agamidae. They are lizards from the class of reptiles.The name ‘bearded dragon’ is referred to the lower portion of the throat, which changes to black color, and puff out when they are under stress or are threatened by something. There are six species of bearded dragon namely, Pogona barbata, Pogana henrylawsoni, Pogana microlepidota, Pogana minor, Pogona mitchell, and Pogana vitticeps. They have originated in Australia and their habitat also includes places like high range environments and semi-arid conditions such as shrublands, deserts and Eucalyptus woodlands. Bearded dragons inhabit trees that are considered semi-arboreal. They can run very fast and easily climb trees and bask at heights. They have broad, triangular-shaped heads, flat bodies, and scaly skin texture. They have a long tail, small front limbs, and strong back limbs. They feed on insects and some vegetables in moderation to remain healthy. The bearded dragons also vary in color. They use the beard for mating and to show aggression. Both the males and females have beards, but males display them more frequently, to display courtship rituals. Although they have strong jaws, they are not aggressive in nature unless they sense danger. They are common lizards that are kept in captivity by reptile lovers. It is also known to be a popular pet lizard species. You can own a bearded dragon, but before that, you must have proper knowledge about them. Go through this article and know amazing facts about your beardie.Learn more amazing and interesting facts about why do bearded dragons wave and are bearded dragons good pets here at Kidadl!How big do bearded dragons get when fully grown?The first step is if you consider having a pet bearded dragon, then must have knowledge about the bearded dragon size. If you have no idea about the factors that impact its size, that will lead to bad health of your beardie. These lizards have a quick growth in the first three months of life. After this early phase, the breaded dragons grow in size very slowly.In the next few months, they grow 1-2 in (2.54-5.08 cm) every month until their age is one year. The average bearded dragon size at the age of one year old is around 15-18 in (38-45 cm). In the second year of their life, further, they can grow another 1-2 in (2.54-5.08 cm), but this growth is very slow, and difficult to notice the change in length. Finally, once the growing age is over, a fully grown bearded dragon can be around 12-24 in (30.48-61 cm) in length, including the tail. They are acknowledged as an adult after the age of 18 months only. You need to remember that there is no hard and fast rule to predict how big your bearded dragon will get after two years of age.Let us know some factors impacting the size of bearded dragon lizards. The breed of the bearded dragon plays a role to determine its size. Gender also influences the size in some cases. Female bearded dragon typically grows about 16-19 in (40.64-48.26 cm) in length. They have a small head size and are mostly on the smaller end of the size range. Next is a balanced nutritious diet that helps in the good health of your beardie and also impacts its growth. The diet should not be fixed and must be changed according to its age. A bearded dragon’s size can also depend upon their surrounding environment or their housing. If the beardie does not have enough space for movement, it may lead to stunted growth. A 40 gal (151 l) tank is required for the juvenile bearded dragons but for adults, a 120 gal (454.2 l) tank is necessary. Also, the light inside the tank must be proper to keep the temperature warm inside. These reptiles cannot synthesize vitamin D if there is a deficiency of UVB lighting, causing metabolic bone disorder.Average Bearded Dragon Size At One Year OldAs we have read earlier that the most common species of a bearded dragon is the Pogona vitticeps.The average bearded dragon size at the age of one year old is around 15-18 in (38-45 cm). Well some of them will a smaller in the average size while some will have size growth of a few inches more. These beardie lizards are considered mature between the age of 12 months old and 18 months old.How does gender influence their size?The gender of the bearded dragons can be determined by observing their femoral pores, the bumpy ventral area of their tail, and also physical size. Also, bearded dragon species have the ability to change the color of their beard to black when they feel threatened or when under stress. As male species are more territorial, so they tend to use this ability often.Gender is one of the factors that do not influence the bearded dragon’s growth. Generally, in most mammals, the males are comparatively larger than the females. But this is not always true. Females can grow as much as males or even in some cases even more than males. The male bearded dragons have large and wide heads while the females have smaller heads. On the other hand, female species of bearded dragons have slightly broader bodies and a thicker tail base. If you get a male bearded dragon thinking that it will grow big in size as the age increases, then you may be wrong as the female can get as large as the male in comparison to length.Possible Causes For Slow GrowthThe adult bearded dragon size can vary from males, females, and baby bearded dragons. Although, there can be a few general factors that would influence the slow growth of your beardie lizards.Generally, the size growth of bearded dragons depends on the care you take of your lizard. Few possible factors affecting the growth of a beardie are, firstly, improper UVB lighting in the tank of your bearded dragon. In order to stay healthy bearded dragons requires the proper amount of UVA and UVB lighting. The deficiency of the right amount of UVB light leads to stunted growth, and thus they cannot attain their full size. It can also lead to the weakening of bones which can be fatal for them. Due to inadequate UVB lighting, bearded dragons cannot properly absorb the calcium present in their diet. This further makes them lose their appetite and become extremely lethargic without any reason.Secondly, your pet reptile needs the right proportion of food and diet. Their diet must be rich in protein insects. The baby bearded dragons must be fed with protein-rich food thrice a day for at least three months, to ensure that they grow properly until they become adult bearded dragons. Remember the insects that you give to your pet beardie as food, must be purchased from a reptile breeder, and ensure that those insects are free of any poison or insecticides, and other toxins. Such chemicals will cause severe health issues to your bearded dragon. The food must include freshly caught bug insects. They also require fresh or thawed frozen vegetables which helps them to grow to their full size. As your pet beardie grows in size and length, you can add more vegetables to their diet and decrease the number of insects.Thirdly, reptile regularly goes into brumation as the winter season approaches. Brumation is a state where the lizards become dormant. They conserve their energy, by sleeping more and eat less food. This is similar to the hibernation phase. However, if the bearded dragons go through brumation in captivity at a very young age, that can be a reason for concern. It is at the early age when the bearded dragon’s body grow and reach their full size to become an adult bearded dragon. If they spend this time to grow in resting or sleeping and avoid their diet, that can surely slow the growth in their body length.Lastly, you must take care of the health of your bearded dragon. If they catch any disease, that will impact their growth in size and length. A parasite in your bearded dragon’s body could be eating the important nutrients that it needs to grow and gain weight. The sick beardie may experience a loss in its appetite. If it stops intaking food then it will eventually grow weak and can also die.How fast do bearded dragons grow?If you are willing to adopt a bearded dragon you must cherish the baby beardie until it becomes a full-grown reptile. The owner must know how big in size will the bearded dragons get. It requires proper planning and knowledge to provide time, energy, and resources to take proper care of the baby bearded dragon until they are fully grown.Generally, the bearded dragons grow until the age of 12 months old. After that, they have stunted growth and they reach a size of 15-18 in (38-45 cm) in length. There are very few chances of the beardie to grow in length in the second year, as in an inch or two. You can expect your bearded dragon to grow almost 95% and are fully grown by 18 months old. Thus we can say that they have a rather slow growth rate similar to other reptile species.Bearded dragons have an average lifespan of 10 to 12 years. But, it grows at a fast rate only in the first six months, and then the growth rate reduces gradually. Hatchlings of the breaded dragon are only 3 in (7.62 cm) in size and 0.14 oz (4 g) in weight. Then in the next two months, the hatchlings grow around 8-11 in (20.32-27.94 cm) and their tail will also start growing. If the young ones are not growing at a proper rate then you must observe their eating habits, make changes in their diet and also check the light in the tank. In the early months, the young bearded dragons need a high amount of protein which is richly available in bugs and worms, instead of vegetables. The tank where they are kept should have a T5 UVB tube light, to keep the temperature warm. During the juvenile age, it is important that they are fed with proper nutritious food. Deficiency of proper nutrients shall lead to fatal diseases and a lack of further growth. There are many factors on which the bearded dragon’s size and rate of growth depend.How to tell if a bearded dragon is overweight?The weight of bearded dragons varies in different species. On average, an adult bearded dragon’s size is around 16-24 in (40-45 cm) and weight ranges between 13-17 ounces (380-510 g). If an adult bearded dragon is over 17 ounces (510 g) it is considered to be overweight. It is vital that your beardie have a healthy weight because being overweight can lead to prolapses, stunted growth, and organ failure.The common question for the new breeder of a bearded dragon is how to know if their beardie is overweight. We know fat accumulates in the bodies and it will result in a bulged belly that overextends beyond the side and increases the lateral size and weight. Although there is an exception for the female bearded dragons. An extended belly for the females means that she may have egg retention and requires surgical treatment. Even a thick tail is a sign of obesity for bearded dragons. If you want your underweight bearded dragon to transform into a healthy bearded dragon, then you should check their tank temperature. If the temperature inside is very high, the warm conditions will trigger its hunger and then it will eat more food than its regular diet. If you want your beardie to gain weight, then keep the basking spot between 95-100 F (35-37.7 C) for a full-grown adult bearded dragon.We must know how to shred the weight of a full-grown overweighed bearded dragon. You can feed your beardie with insects having less amount of protein and fat like crickets and hornworms. Physical movement and exercise are important in order to lose weight. The diet must have more leafy vegetables and fewer feeders. You can even take your bearded dragon for a nice walk.Why isn’t my bearded dragon growing or gaining weight?As we have learned earlier in this article, about the obesity of bearded dragons. let us now know why your pet lizard is not gaining weight or growing in size. If your bearded dragon has loose skin or wrinkled flat bodies, and the fat pads present on the back portion of its legs and skull are sunken too, then it is underweight.Even the ribs and spine will be seen over the skin. If your bearded dragon shows such symptoms, then it should be a matter of concern. Observe their appetite, if they are hunger but still not gaining weight, then they may have parasites inside their bodies that are eating their fats. They may also go into early brumation leading to sluggish appetite and hence gradually lose weight. They suffer from impaction, due to lack of eating. Their digestive system gets blocked due to insufficient food intake and incorrect substrate. You may also need to make changes in the diet of your beardie by replacing vegetables and insects. If adult bearded dragons are not gaining weight, they have the disorder of anorexia.There are some factors that can affect the growth of your bearded dragon. Inadequate exposure to UV lights leads to slow growth. An insufficient diet void of rich protein, nutrients, and essential minerals can lead to severe health problems and a lack of growth. During the brumation period, they avoid eating and hence reducing the physical growth rate. They spend most of their time sleeping in the hiding and conserving energy. Getting attached to diseases can also affect their growth and decreases the growth in size eventually. All bearded dragons are born tiny, fragile and they weigh only a few grams. With proper food and care, they can have a healthy lifespan and grow to their potential size. Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for how big do bearded dragons get, then why not take a look at baby bearded dragon diet or bearded dragon facts?
Does a bearded dragon scares you or do you find them adorable?
