Dragons are creatures with nearly unlimited life spans. They can survive for long periods of time, and no one has found a dragon that has died of old age. Adolescence is usually marked by the growth of a hatchling's wings, although not all breeds of dragons grow wings and some breeds have other traits that indicate the beginning of maturation. Once they hit adolescence, hatchlings change quickly, maturing to their full forms in only 2 years.

Dragons don't communicate with each other verbally, but they will growl to scare off predators and frighten prey. Young dragons will emit an extremely high-pitched squeal when they are frightened. To communicate, they use telepathy with each other and to speak to other creatures.

Pygmy dragons are the smallest breed of true dragons, being the size of a small cat. They are often found around concentrated populations of dragons, relying on their larger brethren to ward away potential predators and to leave generous scraps. As such, the majority of a pygmy's diet is scavenged, though they do hunt songbirds and small mammals when the pickings are slim. Due to their tiny size, pygmies do not breed with other varieties of dragons, but select mates within their breed.

Shoulder Drake is sure that her place in the world is to lie across the shoulders of Draketeeth, but that spot is usually occupied by a purple hatchling named My Little Valentine. When Draketeeth is around Shoulder Drake is usually not far away. The pygmy can be spotted lurking in bushes, peeking around rocks and clinging in low tree branches, waiting for the moment when the hatchling leaves Draketeeth's shoulders to play. As soon as the purple's feet touch the ground the pygmy claims the choice place across her owner's shoulders.