Pygmy? Or beardie? Help :(

[Chlomur]

Hi guys, I've had Sunny here since October and despite having his tank set up perfectly, getting plenty of baths, water and calcium and having a great appetite, I've noticed he is growing very slowly. He is full of energy and very mild-tempered. I've never even seen him blacken his beard more than just having one faint stripe of grey under his chin. Loves cuddles.
It is my understanding from the pet shop I bought him in that he is the runt of the litter, he is missing the tip of his tail I was told by the pet shop it was bitten off by one of the other beardies when they were babies. I was also told when I got him in October that he was 12 weeks old but I believe he may of been younger.
I've noticed more and more he looks more similar to a pygmy dragon but I cannot tell for sure, it would explain alot about his size and calmness if he was a pygmy dragon. Can anyone tell?
He is 4 inches excluding his tail and 7 inches including his tail.

He seems very happy and content and I take very good care of him, please don't think I might be a bad owner because of his small size

I've included pictures. Starting with the most recent and then the last 2 pictures are from the day I got him and you can see how absolutely tiny he was, definitely smaller than a 12 week old.

 

[HoomanSlave]

How much does he weigh? What UVB light are you using?
You can contact the pet shop and ask them what species of beardie they sell. If you bought him at Petsmart/Petco/another chain store he's probably a normal beardie but might be stunted from incorrect UVB.

 

[Chlomur]

How much does he weigh? What UVB light are you using?
You can contact the pet shop and ask them what species of beardie they sell. If you bought him at Petsmart/Petco/another chain store he's probably a normal beardie but might be stunted from incorrect UVB.

I am in work (nightshifts) so dont have a pic but its the Repti-Sun 10.0 UVB, regarded as one of the best as far as I know. I don't know his current weight as I am in Ireland and the closest vets to me is closed (very small town local one) and the next closest is over 20km away when we arent allowed to go further than 5km from our homes. He is booked to be seen when our lockdown is over I'm just impatiently worrying.

 

[TinySmaugOfficial]

Hi guys, I've had Sunny here since October and despite having his tank set up perfectly, getting plenty of baths, water and calcium and having a great appetite, I've noticed he is growing very slowly. He is full of energy and very mild-tempered. I've never even seen him blacken his beard more than just having one faint stripe of grey under his chin. Loves cuddles.
It is my understanding from the pet shop I bought him in that he is the runt of the litter, he is missing the tip of his tail I was told by the pet shop it was bitten off by one of the other beardies when they were babies. I was also told when I got him in October that he was 12 weeks old but I believe he may of been younger.
I've noticed more and more he looks more similar to a pygmy dragon but I cannot tell for sure, it would explain alot about his size and calmness if he was a pygmy dragon. Can anyone tell?
He is 4 inches excluding his tail and 7 inches including his tail.

He seems very happy and content and I take very good care of him, please don't think I might be a bad owner because of his small size

I've included pictures. Starting with the most recent and then the last 2 pictures are from the day I got him and you can see how absolutely tiny he was, definitely smaller than a 12 week old.

Wow, he’s smaller then Smaug and he’s only 2mths! (This is an old photo he’s bigger now)

 

[HoomanSlave]

I am in work (nightshifts) so dont have a pic but its the Repti-Sun 10.0 UVB, regarded as one of the best as far as I know. I don't know his current weight as I am in Ireland and the closest vets to me is closed (very small town local one) and the next closest is over 20km away when we arent allowed to go further than 5km from our homes. He is booked to be seen when our lockdown is over I'm just impatiently worrying.

If you have a kitchen scale (or just a bathroom scale) you can get his weight. Maybe he's just one of the smaller breeds, like a Rankin's dragon?

 

[Chlomur]

Wow, he’s smaller then Smaug and he’s only 2mths! (This is an old photo he’s bigger now)

Omg Smaug is adorable

 

[Chlomur]

If you have a kitchen scale (or just a bathroom scale) you can get his weight. Maybe he's just one of the smaller breeds, like a Rankin's dragon?

Yeah I will buy a kitchen scales tomorrow and weigh him, thank you! Hopefully he is, I know hes a translucent morph with maybe some hypo in him (he has clear nails but he isnt faded like a hypo, confusing) and its starting to seem to me like he is a Rankins or Pygmy, he gets everything he needs and is supposed to have so I am just absolutely so confused as to why he is so small. When I bought him, I was just going to buy a normal bearded dragon as the shop was doing a big bundle deal of the beardie, tank, uvb etc etc for €350 and when I seen Sunny in the kind of fancier section and fell in love with him (seeing he was missing some tail made me really wanna take him home and love him), the pet shop worker said those dragons are usually €350 on their own but because he was deformed he would give him to me in the big bundle deal instead. I must ring the shop and see does he remember what he sold me! I just needed to get him out of there!

 

[Smithy]

Hi guys, I've had Sunny here since October and despite having his tank set up perfectly, getting plenty of baths, water and calcium and having a great appetite, I've noticed he is growing very slowly. He is full of energy and very mild-tempered. I've never even seen him blacken his beard more than just having one faint stripe of grey under his chin. Loves cuddles.
It is my understanding from the pet shop I bought him in that he is the runt of the litter, he is missing the tip of his tail I was told by the pet shop it was bitten off by one of the other beardies when they were babies. I was also told when I got him in October that he was 12 weeks old but I believe he may of been younger.
I've noticed more and more he looks more similar to a pygmy dragon but I cannot tell for sure, it would explain alot about his size and calmness if he was a pygmy dragon. Can anyone tell?
He is 4 inches excluding his tail and 7 inches including his tail.

He seems very happy and content and I take very good care of him, please don't think I might be a bad owner because of his small size

I've included pictures. Starting with the most recent and then the last 2 pictures are from the day I got him and you can see how absolutely tiny he was, definitely smaller than a 12 week old.

I own breed and keep Pogona Minor Minor DBearded Dragons. Calked Western Australian Dwarf Bearded Dragons. (Pogona Minor) yes, he does look much like a Pogona Minor. The classification for Pygmy Dragons don't exist in Australian text books so don't worry, yes he is a beautiful Bearded Dragon. They are prolific here in Western Australia and unlike their central Australian and Eastern cousins, don't grow much more than 28cm. Fully grown.

 

[TinySmaugOfficial]

I own breed and keep Pogona Minor Minor DBearded Dragons. Calked Western Australian Dwarf Bearded Dragons. (Pogona Minor) yes, he does look much like a Pogona Minor. The classification for Pygmy Dragons don't exist in Australian text books so don't worry, yes he is a beautiful Bearded Dragon. They are prolific here in Western Australia and unlike their central Australian and Eastern cousins, don't grow much more than 28cm. Fully grown. View attachment 25211View attachment 25212

Aww! So cute and little!

 

[Chlomur]

I own breed and keep Pogona Minor Minor DBearded Dragons. Calked Western Australian Dwarf Bearded Dragons. (Pogona Minor) yes, he does look much like a Pogona Minor. The classification for Pygmy Dragons don't exist in Australian text books so don't worry, yes he is a beautiful Bearded Dragon. They are prolific here in Western Australia and unlike their central Australian and Eastern cousins, don't grow much more than 28cm. Fully grown. View attachment 25211View attachment 25212

Sunny being a Pogona Minor makes so much sense, thank you! I was really worrying! And thank you for saying he's beautiful, he's flattered and Im glad it means Im doing good hahaha

 

[Smithy]

Sunny being a Pogona Minor makes so much sense, thank you! I was really worrying! And thank you for saying he's beautiful, he's flattered and Im glad it means Im doing good hahaha

I often get throw backs to similar Dwarf Pogona Minor Species, as there is a large gene pool. I think that Pogona Dragons on the borders with neighbouring subspecies have genetic crossovers. Here in my breeding scene, other sub species may appear in some pups. An example I can give you is my breeding pair are very different in appearance, Ely looks like a Mitchelli and Ebony is a Minor, but some pups appear as Lawson black soil Dragons. Who are somewhat dull in appearance lacking the vibrant colours and markings of the Male. The mistake I made was a selection of a wanna be Female, from their last season. Thinking that Star would be a girl, as he looks like her, but he's really dark and has a female looking snout and beard. After six months he developed hemipenes.
In all successive litters there has been a runt, but I think its not a runt at all, as all the eggs are the same size but the Beardies all appear eith quite remarkable differences. I think again, like yours, a throwback. Here's a picture of my Star. And his parents.