Proper nutrition is a cornerstone of caring for your bearded dragon, ensuring a healthy and thriving life. As omnivores, their diet should be a balanced mix of insects and plants, mirroring their natural eating habits in the wild. Studies of wild adult bearded dragons in Australia reveal that they consume approximately 90% plants and only 10% prey items, whereas juveniles consume roughly equal amounts of each.
Understanding the Nutritional Needs of Bearded Dragons
Bearded dragons' dietary needs change as they grow. It's essential to adjust their diet accordingly to support their development and overall well-being.
Baby Bearded Dragons (Under 4 Months)
Baby bearded dragons require a diet rich in protein to fuel their rapid growth. They should be offered feeder insects one to two times daily. A good starting point is to offer 2-5 crickets per dragon for the first feeding.
Juvenile Bearded Dragons (4-18 Months)
As they grow, juvenile dragons need fewer insects, typically 3-4 times weekly. This encourages them to eat more greens, gradually transitioning them towards an adult diet. During this time your dragon will go from eating 20% veggies around 4 or 5 months old to 80% by the time they are 12 to 18 months. Every dragon is different, but this is the general time frame. So keep in mind that this is a gradual transition.
Adult Bearded Dragons (18+ Months)
Adult bearded dragons have different nutritional needs than juvenile dragons. Adult dragons can be fed everyday or every other day. Their diet should consist of 50% dark leafy greens, 20% grated or chopped vegetables, 25% animal matter and a maximum of 5% fruits.
Read also: Male Fertility and Diet
Crafting the Perfect Diet
To replicate their native diet, start by feeding a mix of leafy greens and fresh vegetables every day. Variety is key to providing a balanced diet, so avoid offering the same food items daily.
The Importance of Variety
Variety is important to provide them with a balanced diet, so make sure you aren't offering the same food items every day. A varied diet ensures that your bearded dragon receives a wide range of essential nutrients, vitamins, and minerals.
Leafy Greens and Vegetables: The Foundation of a Healthy Diet
What works well for many bearded dragon owners is to feed a salad based off a leafy green mix, such as a Spring Mix or a Field Green mix. Avoid Spinach based mixes. Add in a small amount of an item from the list below as a salad topping. Dandelion greens, Collard greens, Endive, Escarole, Mustard Greens, Squash (acorn, butternut, hubbard, scallop, spaghetti, summer), and Turnip greens.
Here is a list of the most common staple vegetables they can dine on daily: Kale, Asparagus (Raw), Butternut squash, Yellow squash, Acorn squash, Spaghetti squash, Butterworms, Celery, Peeled Cucumber, Yams (Raw), Turnip greens, Collard greens, Mustard greens, Zucchini (Raw), Okra (Raw), Radicchio, Bell Peppers (Raw), Cabbage (Raw), Artichoke Heart, Bok choy, Carrots, Endive, Pumpkins, Parsnips, Cooked Lentils, Chicory
Fruits: A Treat, Not a Staple
Other fruits and vegetables can be offered to a bearded dragon as treats, but it is important to keep these minimally to prevent obesity and digestive problems. Fruits should be limited in the diet, as they are high in sugar. A bearded dragon’s diet should be made up of approximately 10% fruit items. Citrus fruits are best to avoid due to high levels of sugar, citric acid and oxalic acid which can lead to toxicity.
Read also: Essential Diet for Young Beardies
Here are some fruits that are safe for Bearded Dragons to eat on a limited basis: Apples, Peaches, Strawberries, Apricot, Blackberries, Blueberries, Cranberries, Cherries, Chayote, Figs, Grapes, Grapefruit, Melons, Plum, Watermelon, Guava, Nectarine, Prunes, Raisins, Pears, Pineapple, Papaya, Mango.
Insects: Protein Powerhouses
As stated above, variety is important so make sure to mix it up a bit when choosing insects to feed your bearded dragon. For more information on the variety of feeder insects available, please click here. To prevent problems, never feed a bearded dragon prey that is larger than the distance between their eyes. Unless confined to a dish, it is important to remove uneaten live insects from your reptiles cage after a few hours.
Here are a number of little critters that your bearded will love to munch on that are healthy for them including: Crickets, Mealworms, Earthworms, Butterworms, Silkworms, Superworms, Cockroaches, Wax Worms, King Worms, Hornworms.
Dubia roaches are excellent feeders for bearded dragons. They're packed with protein, they're easy to keep, and they're available in a size small enough for your dragon to eat safely. Babies can be fed one feeding daily of buffalo worms or small super worms. Not to be confused with the standard meal worm (Tenebriomolitor). Dubia roaches of appropriate size are excellent feeders as well.
Gut Loading Insects
The best way to ensure your dragon is getting enough calcium is to “gut-load” all insects before feeding. Gut-loading is where insects are fed a diet high in calcium 24-72 hours prior to being fed to your dragon. These insect diets can be found at most pet stores. To Gut Load your crickets - We use our own recipe for Cricket Chow as a dry staple food… We also offer various greens, carrots and butternut squash to our crickets for moisture. It is very important to keep your feeders well maintained.
Read also: Diet and Supplements for Bearded Dragons
Remember to gut load any insects your dragon eats - meaning ideally, you'll feed your insects what you're not feeding your dragon that week so your pet gets the nutritional variety and value of whatever the insect has eaten.
Supplementation: Filling the Gaps
Even the best, most balanced, most varied diet is not going to perfectly meet a bearded dragon's needs. Bearded dragons need more a calcium and a multivitamin supplement. Supplementation should consist of dusting the crickets every third to fourth feeding with a phosphorous free calcium powder, like RepCal with D3. A good vitamin supplement such as Herptivite should be used only once a week. Failure to use the calcium regularly and overuse of the vitamins can cause problems. For optimal nutrition and to help prevent metabolic bone disease, dust insects with calcium powder. Put them in a baggie and shake it up before serving.
Hydration: Providing Fresh Water
All living things need water to survive, and bearded dragons are no exception. Your bearded dragon should have free access to a shallow bowl of fresh clean water every day. Dragons vary on their water intake; some drink daily, others may not drink for days or weeks if they are aggressive feeders and getting the needed moisture through their diet.
Bearded dragons obtain most of their moisture through fruits and vegetables, but it’s important to make sure they have water available as well. Always keep a water bowl in your dragon’s cage, but observe whether your dragon actually drinks out of it. Beardies tend to urinate or leave solids in their bowl, so change their water frequently. After each feeding, remove any drowned insects from the bowl as well. If your dragon does not drink from the water bowl, you can spray a mist of water into the cage once or twice a day.
Feeding Schedule and Environment
A baby bearded dragon should be fed at least 2-3 times a day for optimal growth. Feed the hatchling 1-2 hours after the lights have come on to give them a chance to warm up. The last feeding of the day should be a couple of hours before the lights go off to give the dragons time to digest their meal.
Creating the Ideal Habitat
Raising a healthy baby bearded dragon is easy as long as their basic needs are met. With some planning and a little reading, you can make your dragons life as healthy and as stress free as possible and find it a rewarding experience. A baby bearded dragon should be raised in a small enclosure for optimal growth, no larger than a 40gal breeder. This way they do not have far to look for their food. Basking under a light is the natural way that dragons receive heat. Not only do they receive heat from above, but the light also warms the rock, creating heat for their belly, which aids in digestion. The other side of the tank must stay cooler, around 80-85 degrees. This provides your dragon with a suitable environment and allows them to regulate their body temperature.
Lighting and Temperature
Basking under a light is the natural way that dragons receive heat. Not only do they receive heat from above, but the light also warms the rock, creating heat for their belly, which aids in digestion. The other side of the tank must stay cooler, around 80-85 degrees. This provides your dragon with a suitable environment and allows them to regulate their body temperature. Ideally a full spectrum UVB light such as ReptiSun or Repti-Glo or our choice, Arcadia, fluorescent tube bulb should be suspended over the cage. The UVB bulb should be within 6-10 inches of the basking area, so they can absorb the UVB to assist in manufacturing their vitamin D3 for bone formation.
Bearded dragons are ectotherms and control their body heat, and subsequently their metabolism, through their environment. They require heat and UVB lighting to metabolize Vitamin D3 which is essential for their bone health. UVB bulbs should be replaced every 6 months, even if the light itself is still working. UVB levels will deteriorate over time. Heat from a heat emitting bulb or ceramic heat emitter (CHE) should be provided in a basking area on the “hot side” of the tank with the ability to retreat to a cooler side. A good place to start is 76°F (24°C) on the cool side to 86°F (30°C) on the warm side, with a basking area ranging from 90°-100°F (32°-37.7°C).
Maintaining a Stress-Free Environment
It is VERY IMPORTANT to keep your new baby’s environment as stress-free as possible for the first few months. Keep a regular schedule for feeding and watering. Put your lights on a timer to keep daylight hours consistent. Supplement appropriately with RepCal… and once weekly with Herptivite. Feed only gut-loaded crickets/prey items as they are more nutritious. Avoid excessive handling when they are very young. Maintain a temperature gradient of 105-110 (hot) to 80-85 (cool). Maintain humidity levels around 35%-55%. Keep it simple for the first few months. Make sure their cage is not placed in overly noisy area.
Addressing Picky Eaters
What can you do if your bearded dragon just doesn't seem to want to eat their greens and vegetables? Whatever you do, don't give up! Some bearded dragons are picky and it takes patience to get them to try new things. Let them get hungry - make sure your bearded dragon is hungry and use some tough love. If your bearded dragon is always filling up on insects, they won't be hungry enough to try that "boring salad" that is no fun to hunt and chase. Cut back on the number or frequency of insects you are feeding.
Foods to Avoid
To prevent problems, never feed a bearded dragon prey that is larger than the distance between their eyes. Make sure all insects and pieces of fruit and veggies are no bigger than the space between your dragon’s eyes. Bearded dragons should not eat wild insects as they can have diseases or parasites that could hurt or kill your dragon.
Things that could hurt or possibly kill your baby bearded dragon: Lightening Bugs - There have been many reports of Bearded Dragons dying after being fed lightening bugs. These should be avoided. Pebbles - If using sand, you MUST sift it through a screen to remove any of the larger pebbles. Too large of a prey item - Appropriate sized meal worms and crickets are a must for hatchlings. Crickets should be NO LONGER than the width of their mouth. And if feeding worms - mini or small should be used.
Common Concerns and Solutions
After receiving your dragon, it is not uncommon for them not to eat immediately. The stress from transporting and inspecting its new environment may put eating on the ‘back burner’ for a day or so. Allow your dragon to adjust to its new home for 3-4 hours, then offer it a few crickets and some chopped greens in a shallow bowl or lid. If your dragon does not eat the few crickets by the end of the first day, remove the crickets and offer them some water. Try covering the sides and front of the dragon’s enclosure partially with copy paper to eliminate environmental stress. The next day, wait until mid-day to offer it crickets again. Not seeing any food items for a 1/2 day and becoming more comfortable in their new home, will hopefully stimulate their appetite.
Appetite changes are quite common in adult bearded dragons.