What Exactly Do Bearded Dragons Eat?

In the absence of proper nutrition, bearded dragons can suffer from a range of problems, including obesity and metabolic bone disease (MBD) whereby they are unable to absorb suitable calcium from their diet. This can lead to weaker bones, swollen joints or, in extreme cases, malformed skeletons or paralysis.

Fortunately we know a lot about bearded dragon diets so it is possible to provide exactly what your beardie needs by following a few simple rules.

First, bearded dragons are omnivores, meaning they eat both meat and plants. In captivity this generally means a combination of live insects and an assortment of vegetables. Leafy vegetables offer arguably the best source of plant-based nutrition, though this can be supplemented in moderation with fruits, herbs and a number of wild and garden plants.

What is perhaps most interesting in terms of a bearded dragon’s diet is that it changes over the lifetime of the lizard. What I mean by that is while the main constituents of the diet remain stable, the ratio of insects to plant matter changes as a bearded dragon matures.

Baby Bearded Dragon:

Bearded dragons can grow surprisingly quickly under optimum conditions, and in order to do this they require plenty of protein.

This comes in the form of live insects (“livefood”) such as crickets and locusts. It is recommended that roughly 80% of a baby bearded dragon’s diet consists of these live insects.

The remaining 20% should be made up of nutritious plant matter (see below for a full list).

Adult Bearded Dragon:

As bearded dragons mature these ratios reverse; the proportion of insects in the diet drops while the amount of plant matter increases. Adult bearded dragons should be fed a diet comprising 80% plant matter with just 20% live insects.

It is advisable that no matter what the age of your bearded dragon a bowl of water and another of vegetables should be present at all times, and both should be changed at least once a day to keep them fresh, especially in the hot surroundings of a bearded dragon vivarium.

The Importance of Variety:

Experts recommend that bearded dragons – like all exotic pets – should be fed a highly varied diet consisting of a range of foodstuffs. Rather than purely feeding crickets or roaches to your beardie, for example, it is wise to offer an assortment of other options over time.

Additionally, you should aim to avoid always providing the same types of plant matter, and should instead vary the diet, offering a wide assortment of plants.

In this way you can feel confident that the range of foods offered will enable your bearded dragon to absorb all the necessary vitamins and minerals. Remember: variety is key.

Like most animals, bearded dragons have foods which they prefer to others. These preferences can differ between lizards but mean that some foods will be eaten far more readily than others.

When feeding your bearded dragon, therefore, it can be a smart idea to chop up the plant material into small pieces and then “mix it up” to provide a “salad”.

In doing so you will make it more difficult for your lizard to pick out only the choice items, while leaving others behind. This process further helps to ensure that your pet receives a balanced nutritional diet.

Types of Food:

Now that we understand the basic concepts of feeding bearded dragons we can move on to a more detailed study of the types of plants and insects which can make up your bearded dragon’s diet.

Before we discuss the various acceptable food items however, it pays to mention that great thought should be given to environmental toxins, such as pesticides and insecticides. These toxins can lead to problems in captive lizards.

As a result, you should aim to feed only insects bred specially for the pet trade (no wild caught insects) and you should take care to thoroughly wash all plant material before feeding.

Crickets-

• Crickets ideally should not remain in the little tub you bought them in. Instead, they should be released into a separate tank with food and water.

• Freely available from most pet stores

• Cheap and easy to care for

• Very active which encourages interest from bearded dragons

Locusts-

• As with crickets, locusts tend to do well in a larger tank with appropriate diet.

• Only smaller locusts are suitable for beardies as experts recommend feeding prey no larger than your beardies head

• Easier to handle than crickets, so less chance of escape

• Can be rather more expensive than crickets or dubias.

Mealworms-

• Less nutritious due to their thick exoskeleton, therefore should only be fed as a treat and in moderation

• Very easy to care for and breed

• Can be kept in the fridge, but to extend the lifespan you may release them into a plastic tupperware container with small holes drilled in for ventilation

• When feeding, use a bowl to prevent them from burrowing into substrate

Waxworms-

• Highly nutritious and soft-bodied - a real treat for beardies

• Very short lifespan, Many waxworms morph into adult moths rapidly.

• Can be a little fiddly to handle as they are so soft

• Also use a bowl when feeding to prevent escapes

• In reality, waxworms normally begin pupating a matter of weeks after purchase, and there is little that can be done to prevent this. Instead, I would recommend buying waxworms as an occasional treat, and aiming to feed the entire pot to your bearded dragon within a week or two of purchase.

Vegetables- Vegetables are a critical part of your beardies diet plan, therefore they should be fed and replaced daily to keep them fresh and full of nutrition. The following vegetables have all been tried and tested by bearded dragon owners and can be considered safe for them to eat:

• Afalfa

• Asparagus

• Bell Peppers

• Beet Leaves

• Broccoli

• Brussel Sprouts

• Butternut Squash

• Cabbage

• Carrots

• Cauliflower

• Celery

• Cucumber

• Green Beans

• Kale

• Mushrooms

• Mustard Greens

• Parsnips

• Pease

• Pumpkin

• Sweet Potato

• Swiss Chard

• Yams

• Zucchini

A handy tip for increasing the nutritional value of plant matter is to “dust” it with dietary supplements, much like one can with insects.

Take note that not all bearded dragons take well to this as it can change the overall taste of the food.

Try experimenting with a number of different powders, and the volume provided, until you can find a compromise that your bearded dragon is willing to accept.

Fruits- Many bearded dragon articles talk about a combination of “fruits and vegetables”, however a number of vets have pointed to the higher sugar content in fruit, and how many bearded dragons in captivity end up suffering from obesity.

As a result it is now felt that fruits, while important, should only represent a small portion of your bearded dragon’s diet, and that lower-calorie vegetables should make up the majority of the plant matter in their diet. The following fruits can be considered safe to feed your beardie:

• Apples

• Apricot

• Banana

• Blackberries

• Blueberries

• Cherries

• Cranberries

• Figs

• Grapes

• Grapefruit

• Guava

• Kiwi

• Mango

• Melon

• Nectarines

• Papaya

• Peaches

• Pears

• Plum

• Pomegranate

• Raisins

• Raspberries

• Starfruit

• Strawberries

• Tomatoes

What Can’t I Feed My Bearded Dragon?

While the above foods are all proven to be safe and nutritious for your beardie’s diet, there will always be keepers who are keen to experiment with different foods. Therefore it is important to know what you should never feed to your dragon. Always try to avoid any chunks of meat, scraps of your dinner, chocolate, chips, non-water beverages, avocado, lettuce, onion, and rhubarb.