My bearded dragon ate a wild lizard

Status
Not open for further replies.

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
The only real concern would be parasites. Your dragon should be able to digest and pass what she ate. Just keep an eye on her and make sure she has a bowel movement.

-Brandon
 

Hydrogod86

Member
Original Poster
claudiusx":1kha5yaz said:
The only real concern would be parasites. Your dragon should be able to digest and pass what she ate. Just keep an eye on her and make sure she has a bowel movement.

-Brandon

Her passing it was one of my concerns. Her next bowl movement, should i take that to a vet?
 

Claudiusx

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
No. It's really not anything to be too concerned with imo. Not something you should let happen ideally, but not worth being worried after the fact. If in a month or so you notice some loose stinky stools, then you can go get a fecal done.

Parasites would really be my only concern, and that will just take time to manifest if there were any commutable parasites in the lizard that was ate.

-Brandon
 
This post made me laugh so hard. I am sorry but that was quite an image. Your dragon must be fast and an excellent hunter.
 

Hydrogod86

Member
Original Poster
krba201076":3p4vnqt4 said:
This post made me laugh so hard. I am sorry but that was quite an image. Your dragon must be fast and an excellent hunter.
Lol It ran by her and she snagged it.
 

Ellentomologist

Hatchling Member
Hiya,

Yeah, as others have said, it's very unlikely to cause any issues for your BD. Some people actually feed "feeder lizards" (usually anoles) to their bearded dragons on purpose. Given that it's completely unnecessary, I personally frown on the practice for a multitude of reasons, but when it comes to the health of your dragon at this point, you're probably clear except for the increased risk of parasite load. If you start noticing symptoms of parasites, go to the vet, but otherwise just keep an eye out for said symptoms and you're all good. :D

A general commentary on the practice of using "Feeder Lizards" though... This is not directly related to the original post.

The main issue with feeding BDs "feeder lizards" is that they are an excellent vector for disease, even when bought from a supplier as opposed to being wild, as they are closer related to BDs and are more likely to suffer the same pathogens. Since feeder lizards are usually anoles, it's important to note that anoles are generally speaking wild caught despite the species being readily bred. The young are hard and costly to rear, so the industry catches them instead, which stresses the whole "parasite risk" I mentioned earlier. In addition to this, wild caught animals in this case can be a mix of moral right and wrong. For instance, in Texas the Green Anole is native and the Brown Anole is an invasive that is encroaching on it's range, causing behavioral and morphological changes to the native species. I would argue that in that case, gathering the invasive species from the region would be completely acceptable, while you're on more wobbly ground from a conservation stand point gathering the native species (though as far as I am aware the green anole still has a booming population). The final aspect to consider when feeding lizards is the aspect of animal cruelty, as feeding lizards is completely unnecessary for the proper diet of your pet bearded dragon. Furthermore feeder lizards are more likely to die in "ugly" manners to our pets compared to feeder insects. While I am not exactly in the "insects don't feel pain" group many people are, there is the reality the insect nervous systems are less complex.

On a final note, I don't actually know how nutritious feeder lizards are compared to insect?

Anyway, sorry for the semi-unrelated ramble, I just thought that since I was mentioning feeder lizards I might as well follow up with why they aren't commonly recommended for beardie owners. They're more often used for much larger species of predatory lizards, or occasionally very picky snakes.

I'm sure your dragons just find, an I too am impressed with her hunting prowess.
-Ellentomologist
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Members online

No members online now.

Latest resources

Latest posts

Latest profile posts

I miss you so much, Amaris 💔
What is a quick way to warm up a cold beardie? His heating element went out overnight and now he's very cold.
Pearl Girl wrote on moorelori1966's profile.
i feel so sad reading your about me 😢
Clapton is acclimating okay I think. He's quick as lightning so I'm not sure how much I should bring him out of his house yet. He's not at all interested in his salad though. I wonder if I should change what I'm giving him. Least he's eating his crickets.

Things to do:
Buy calcium powder
Material to raise surface for basking spot
Scenery decals for back of tank

Forum statistics

Threads
155,895
Messages
1,255,651
Members
75,964
Latest member
lil booshka
Top Bottom