1yo beardie still hates veg

[daughterofMyou]

I got Bandit in August 2017. He was sold too-young, around 8 weeks, and kept too close to a UV bulb so had keratitis (snow blindness). While semi-blind he stopped eating altogether, but I nursed him back into eating crickets and phoenix worms. He refused to eat greens and vegetables, however, always spitting them out or shaking/slapping them away.

Recently his bug-appetite declined and he began straining to poop. After several vet trips, he's on a recovery liquid diet (Emerald Intensive Care Herbivore) and has regained a taste for phoenix worms. The vet told me that I have to get him interested in greens and vegetables, because a carnivore diet can lead to problems with liver and heart later on. She didn't give me advice on how to do this, though.

I have scoured the internet for tips and tricks. Slotting greens into his mouth while he's gaping, putting his worms in a bowl of greens (he just picks the bugs out), mixing sweet-smelling fruits into the salad - nothing works. Bandit is the most stubborn dragon I know, to the point where he stress-poops whenever I attempt to wedge food into his mouth. I've tried watercress, rocket, spring/collard greens, apple, apricot, pear, grapes, blueberries, strawberries, green/string beans, buckskin squash, and butternut squash. There's probably more that I'm forgetting.

If anyone has good advice on getting him to eat greens and vegetables, please, I would love to hear it. I'm so frustrated and desperate at this point. How do I make him understand that greens aren't poison?!

 

[CooperDragon]

It can be tough to migrate them to a vegetarian diet if they aren't used to it. These guys can be quite stubborn. Keep being patient and offering as much variety as you can, it can take time. I've had really good luck cutting squash into worm shapes and hand feeding those. Providing some movement to the veges with your fingers can help too.

 

[daughterofMyou]

It can be tough to migrate them to a vegetarian diet if they aren't used to it. These guys can be quite stubborn. Keep being patient and offering as much variety as you can, it can take time. I've had really good luck cutting squash into worm shapes and hand feeding those. Providing some movement to the veges with your fingers can help too.

Thanks for the advice. I'm having some luck getting sweet potato and apple into him, by cutting the slices like thin wedges so I can sorta 'post' them between his lips until he starts chewing. It's not yet voluntary on his part, and he still shakes me off after two slices or so, but in the end he's ingesting them. Hopefully he'll learn to eat them by himself.