elongated couple - very different growth rates

[shidiwen]

hi guys,

i want to ask for your opinion about my elongated couple:
a larger male and a smaller female. their growth rates are very different. while the larger male eats daily and is growing very fast, we only see the smaller female eating rarely, and usually she waits until we offer a some fruity treats. both of them seem very healthy, active and despite the rather cold temperatures at the moment especially the female one is walking around a lot, climbing on the shelters and so on.

Here are pics of the growth lines as well as overall pics:

Male (larger):

Female (smaller):

as you can see, the male's growth lines are much larger, growing much faster and the female's are barely visible as such.

is it just a difference in their own preference or should i worry and limit the male's feeding / encourage the female's?

food contains all kinds of seasonal mixed leafy greens (whatever the markets offer fresh) some hay at times, mushrooms and the occasional fruity treat.

thanks for your opinions and advice from beijing

 

[pdrobber]

can you put her in a separate enclosure that is fully functional and see if she starts to "come out of her shell"? It could be that the male's presence and personality are too much for her and she is being bullied. Sure he might not be biting and chasing her to the point that she stays in the corner, but a head bob and his strut around the enclosure could be enough to do it...

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very nice pics btw.

 

[shidiwen]

she doesn't seem scared, she often follows him to the same shelter, even though there are several available and he also doesn't really display much interest in her generally. when she eats, she does it regardless of where he is at that time, could be eating too right next to her or could be in the other end of the enclosure.

i was actually more worried about his growth which seems extremely fast to me...

trying another enclosure now would be touch because of the generally low temps, in summer, when the normal room temp is higher i can and will try that. thanks for the hint!

 

[tortuga_please]

Are they getting any supplements?

 

[shidiwen]

yes, we dust their food with calcium / vitamin powder every other day. they both seem healthy in their behavior, active, they are not afraid of us or each other, i am really more concerned about their very fast and very slow growth speed (especially compared to one another). i would have expected the smaller one to grow faster...