Beardie Getting Too Expensive!! Plz help!!

Hi guys,

So I've had my beardie for about 6 months now, and he/she eats mealworms, wax worms, crickets, dubias, and I usually switch off every week. The problem is that I will get 2 cups (50 count each) of either one of those insects at Petsmart or an Exotic Pet Shop, and it'll only last me a few days!!! I'm spending so much money every week, because I keep having to go back and buy more cups.
I've ordered online before, but it was so expensive too. I've also tried raising feeders myself, but that was too messy for me, and it also didn't work.
I'm really struggling to financially keep up with his feeding.
Please help me!!
Am I doing something wrong???
How is everyone able to afford to feed their dragons the proper amount, when the insects are just so expensive!! Even the cheapest insects out there, mealworms, still owuld cost me over $20 for 1,000! And they don't even give you 1,000!! It's a rip off!

I'm so upset and running out of money quick. Please someone help me figure out a way to feed my beardie on a budget

You need to smarten up and stop buying small qualities of insects from the local pet shop who will be charging you an arm and leg for the privilege.
Find the nearest online / mail-order insect breeder / supplier and order in enough suitable sized insects to meet your needs for 3 to 4 weeks ( make allowance for the growth of the dragon and growth of the insects when ordering ie ordered in 1/4 size crickets today , in 3 weeks they'll be 2/3 size to fully grown crickets and the dragon will like be able to take one or two sizes larger insects by then).

You will save a load of $ per month this way.

I have a 6 month old that eats roughly 5-10 dubias per day - they are the size of a smaller to medium roach --- I order 200 from www.dubiaroaches.com-- I also order at the same time butter worms and horn worms - cost about $50 w/ shipping - the roaches lasted about a month - but I am also feeding BSFL from here https://symtonbsf.com/ they are another staple feeder you can feed along w/ your roaches - they are small so order large if you get them - I also feed 1-3 super worms on top of the salad to get him to his salad bowl - the BSFL can be added on top of that salad and will also lure him to the glass bowl - the worms cannot get out of the bowl so use that and make sure you let him see you add these worms to the bowl - it will get him to eat his salad w/ all that hes eating he wont be eating everything else in large amounts - a container from Petsmart of super worms last me a couple of weeks -
Karrie

I have 5 dragons (3 adults 2 Littler ones) Each dragon usually eats 5-15 Dubias each day (younger ones are still growing so they get 10-15 and the youngest occasionally 20), So I order 1000 medium from Either Dubideli.com or Dubiaroaches.com That usually lasts me a while and it's small enough that the little ones can eat it, but there's also usually enough larger mediums that the adults won't mind. It usually costs about $30-$45 but it lasts me 3 months at least, With five dragons. I just placed an order from I think dubiaroaches.com for 500 smalls and 500 smalls. I think the total was $37 with tax?

Another thing is you should really take advantage of Reptile expos, If you're on the east coast and you have a repticon near you, then go to feedersource or anyone selling bugs in person, that will always be the cheapest price. Stock up on that when you need to. Usually from them I'll order 1000 superworms from them and dispersed between 4 dragons (youngest one is too small for them still) it usually lasts me about 3-5 months when feeding them only 3-6 a day. Buying 1000 superworms in person from feeedersource always costs $25 with tax (or none is you pay in cash) or $15 for 500. I got the 500 this time because I still had a bit of a colony going. Oh and there I also usually get 200 Tiny dubias for my 2 geckos. Which usually is $5-$8 from them.

Or, you could start looking around seeing if there's any local bug breeders near you, you can usually ask around if there's any local dubia/worm breeders in your area in Facebook groups or something like that. I Had a local breeder that was just down the road but they stopped doing it, so now I have one local breeder who's about 20 minutes away from me and they have the best overall prices because you don't really need to pay for shipping. Only thing with them is that they can go out of stock more often.

I can understand how annoying the prices of bugs are, But its best to have a good plan of attack and to be smart about where you're buying from, who has the best food for the best price, and who your dragon likes to eat from the most.

I hope this helped.

One other consideration is that this isn't going to last forever. At 6 months, they're still growing and need that glut of bugs, but as adults, the ratio of bugs to veg. switches and things get a lot more manageable. There's also brumation, which drops feeding costs to near 0 for several months. Dubias will last a long time with minimal attention, so you can buy them in bulk as others have mentioned. I still have dubias I bought from 3 months ago that my guys haven't finished off because they've both been sleeping until just recently. Now that they're up again, it costs me around $5 a week for veg. and around $35 every 3rd week for the roaches and hornworms that I get from an independent reptile store. I could probably do better online, but I want to support the local folks because they really seem to care about their herps, gut-load their bugs with good stuff, and take in rescues that would otherwise end up suffering.

I now have 2 beardies. Both beardies are just under 2 years old

My local pet store does a deal for in (pound sterling as I'm in the UK). £7.25 for 4 tubs. I also have an 18 gallon tub at home in which I breed my own cockroaches with.

I feed the roaches on dog biscuits which I put in the blender and add calci powder too, using water crystals aswell. The tubs plus roaches will last me approx 2 weeks.

If you want some pics of the tub I use I can do that for you.

Yes, bug prices during those growing months can really break the bank... I've been grousing to my DH about the expense, too; it's one of those hidden-in-plain-sight facts about dragon keeping that many folks (including me) failed to notice when we did our initial do-I-want-a-dragon research! But it IS a temporary thing; eventually, you'll be able to transition mostly to a more affordable salad main diet.

I completely agree with the advice you've gotten thus far, especially the advice to go mail order. Pet stores are priced for convenience, not budget, and should be a fallback if you need something quickly. But decide on your choice of feeder and start doing some price comparison online. Dubias are by far the best feeder and will last you the longest when purchased in bulk, but they ARE more expensive than other feeders, that's for sure. And right now, speaking only from my experience, there seems to be a shortage of the 3/4" size (which is the size just right for my 7 month old dragon) and/or companies don't seem to ship in early January due to holidays or temperatures. YMMV.

Good luck!

I hear you. My kai was an eating machine from 3 months to 6 months, at one point I spent about $300 in 1 month on roaches for him. I also did not realize exactly how much these guys could eat. Because of his voracious appetite Kai grew FAST. He was putting on 50 grams a week at one point, and is now 400 grams and 19” long at 7 months old. At about 6 months old for him his growth spurt ended. While he is still growing and eating, it is not nearly as much as before. And now he prefers his greens over bugs. While they can be crazy expensive to keep up with at times, it doesn’t last forever and they do slow down.

I agree with the above. Local chain stores should be your last resort. I order BSFL from Symton. 1,000 large for about $20 shipping included. Gobi is the same age as your beardie. He will go through 50 a day or so. Maybe consider focusing narrowing how many staples you feed? Mealworms are questionable because of the tough chitin and crickets I feel are inferior nutritionally. I do dubias and BSFL.

Whoever suggested Reptile Expos are right on the money. Not only can you pick stuff up for cheaper without shipping costs, but it can also put you in touch with local breeders. I found a local guy at an expo who sells dubias and I pay $5 per 100 smalls with no shipping costs picked right up at his house.