introducing another bearded dragon?

[woo]

okay so i purchased a bearded dragon from someone tht couldnt look after theres anymore, and at the time the dragon was quite ill.
now hes (assumed male) all better coz my familys been looking after him.
anyways, my brother got another bearded dragon, and this ones defiantly a female.
i introduced them, and my male climbed all over the female and kept licking her.
i was always fairly certain my beardie was a male, but not 100%
and this one iv got now im certain is female.
im so confused!
i havent housed them together yet, but
what will happen if we house them together, and they happen to be both females :S will they fight?
but just i need some general info, like whats with the licking? does this mean my assumed mail was dominating the female?

 

[Cris]

You should never house two bearded dragons together, ESPECIALLY if you're not sure if the sex of one or more.

First, bearded dragons are solitary creatures in the wild and do not enjoy the "company" of other dragons. Their first instinct is to claim their territory which can result in anything from displays of dominance (climbing on the other dragon) or downright fighting.

Second, a male being housed with a female will mate with her excessively. This will not only cause stress for her, but it could pose some real health problems. Not only that but I highly doubt that you're ready to deal with a gravid female, upwards of 30 eggs (bearded dragons retain sperm from their partner and can lay several times from just one encounter), fragile babies who will literally eat thousands of crickets every week and having to re-home those same babies when they're old enough.

It doesn't matter if they're both females, their instincts are just as strong as males and they can inflict just as strong of a bite to one another. The licking could be a sign of dominance, however, it's more likely that your male is simply scent checking her. Tasting is the way that bearded dragons learn about the world around them and it is perfectly normal in this situation.

My advice to you, as well as the advice of every other knowledgeable bearded dragon owner is to house your dragons separately and only allow them contact outside of their enclosures with direct supervision. Even housing them where they can see one another through the glass could cause displays of dominance and excessive stress. Every now and again you hear about dragons being housed together "happily," however it's far more common to hear of tails and toes being bitten off, one dragon laying on top of the others (this isn't the dragons being lovey dovey, it's a display of dominance in not letting the bottom dragon bask) and death. The risks are simply not worth the cost.