LupeGirl8":2jm10k0m said:So I have to admit I made an account on this website primarily to get this question answered because it has been eating at me. I keep several reptiles, though no beardies, and have quite a lot of knowledge on reptiles both from studying and working with them. I've vaguely considered getting a beardie in the future, but have no immediate plans.
My question is: Why is high quality, grain-free, wet dog food considered a good protein source for blue tongue skinks (which have very similar dietary requirements to a bearded dragon) but not for bearded dragons? --<<<< there are two camps on this , the it's OK for Bluetongue Skinks (and other skinks) and the camp I'm in which is of the opinion that the offal from beef, lamb, chicken in these products is INAPPROPRIATE for skinks as a staple food (even if the keeper kids himself that it's mineral and vitamin enriched (ie pedigree enriched puppy food) and even if they mix in reptile grade vitamins and calcium and vegs and greens).
This is a topic that can result in arguments between keepers who do and those who think it's very poor husbandry and likely to result in long term health issues (fatty liver desease, obesity, gout, MBD, intestinal problems).
Sure in suburbia (here in Australia) BTS and other skinks (and I've seen eastern water dragons do this too) will frequently raid cat and dog food bowls , because they see an easy (all be highly risky) to access food source.
IMO a similar diet to a beardie (at the same age is most appropriate) ie mostly live insects + some greens and veg/fruit as a baby and growing juvenile or if you can't access quality insects a healthy diet of mixed repashy's vegie burger and Grub Pie along with multi vitamins.
Adults BTS I do the same as I do for the beardies - some daily live insects (I favour silkworms and crickets and garden snails as my insect staples for my 2 BTS (about 5 yr old) , mealworms and superworms are given as treats) , I add lean boiled beef or chicken mince occasionally, soft or hardboiled eggs as treats for my BTS, they love an raw chicken egg as a treat (messy -- outside treat) + the same greens and veg (and banana as a treat - my 2 BTS LOVE BANANA !!!).
I DO NOT USE CAT OR DOG FOOD for my skinks (or beardies) , BECAUSE these are the entirely wrong form of protein and fats, and I don't trust their safety wrt preservatives and substitutes of the proteins - you simply DO NOT KNOW what's in the can.
I know bearded dragons need less protein and more plant matter than skinks, but why can't that protein come from a high quality, grain-free dog food?
I'm deeply curious and it's been bugging me because I can't think of a good reason why it would work so well for skinks and not beardies.<<<< the keepers and breeders who advocate the use of cat and dog food for their skinks do this entirely for the cost savings and convenience , and are not doing their lizards any favours , and more often than not causing severe Illness (that shows up months after they have sold their baby skinks and even significantly shortening the longevity of these lizards), yeh ... you guessed it - not their problem right, and they claim the new owner must have done something wrong in their husbandry. IN SHORT - it doesn't work so well as claimed by the advocates.
BUT AGAIN this is a very contentious issue in the hobby.
LupeGirl8":1pbzoyzt said:So my intent was not to debate whether or not dog food is appropriate for a blue tongue skink (because that is a debate that has been hashed out in great detail elsewhere). I simply want to know is dog food as appropriate for a bearded dragon as it is for a blue tongue (whether or not it is actually appropriate). Is there any reason dog food would be worse or better for either of them? <<<< answer to that question is a definite NO , DEFINITELY NOT , no matter how upmarket the doggy food is claimed to be.
I will say that when I talk about dog food I mean 1) canned, 2) grain free, and 3) high quality dog food (the best on the market with human grade ingredients). Feeding a bluey poor quality wet dog food with grains or dry dog food is absolutely inappropriate. You are also supposed to only use dog foods made with lean meat (chicken, turkey, or rabbit). I will say that I have NEVER met a serious BTS keeper who did not think this kind of dog food was ok as a significant portion of the protein part of the diet (of course in addition to greens, veggies, and fruits). <<<< I've had internet run-ins with some here (in Australia) who claim they've been breeding BTS for decades and always use dog food who are so intrenched in this practice that they ridicule and personally attack anyone who challenges this.
I have also never heard of anyone's bluey dying a premature death or developing a serious issue from eating high quality, grain free dog food as part of their diet (and I discuss and keep in touch with many bluey keepers, almost none being breeders).<<<< I have , and it can only take 6 months on such a diet to do irrepairable damage , a good friend of mine learnt this the hard way with 3 juvenile BTS who were on a diet of pellets/dog & cat food (wet kind) that he bought from a local breeder at 6 months old, all dead from fatty liver disease before their 1st BD, despite his giving them a very good balanced diet and his excellent husbandry.
Blueys are kinda the dogs of the reptile world in that they are opportunistic omnivores that will eat almost anything they can find or scavenge (people report them eating animal droppings in the wild, and I've seen mine try to eat poop before). Unfortunately since there has been no scientific studies on whether the proteins from lean mammal meat or insects are better for blueys or cause any health issues we can only go off the results of others at this point. <<< you've not looked hard enough , maybe you need to confer with an experience reptile vet..
Personally my bluey gets Nature's Instinct Limited Ingredient Rabbit dog food, superworms, canned insects, unseasoned cooked meat from my food, eggs (cooked and uncooked), and Reptilinks (raw rabbit, fruit, and greens) for the protein part of his diet.
kingofnobbys":3tfkghjz said:LupeGirl8":3tfkghjz said:So my intent was not to debate whether or not dog food is appropriate for a blue tongue skink (because that is a debate that has been hashed out in great detail elsewhere). I simply want to know is dog food as appropriate for a bearded dragon as it is for a blue tongue (whether or not it is actually appropriate). Is there any reason dog food would be worse or better for either of them? <<<< answer to that question is a definite NO , DEFINITELY NOT , no matter how upmarket the doggy food is claimed to be.
I will say that when I talk about dog food I mean 1) canned, 2) grain free, and 3) high quality dog food (the best on the market with human grade ingredients). Feeding a bluey poor quality wet dog food with grains or dry dog food is absolutely inappropriate. You are also supposed to only use dog foods made with lean meat (chicken, turkey, or rabbit). I will say that I have NEVER met a serious BTS keeper who did not think this kind of dog food was ok as a significant portion of the protein part of the diet (of course in addition to greens, veggies, and fruits). <<<< I've had internet run-ins with some here (in Australia) who claim they've been breeding BTS for decades and always use dog food who are so intrenched in this practice that they ridicule and personally attack anyone who challenges this.
I have also never heard of anyone's bluey dying a premature death or developing a serious issue from eating high quality, grain free dog food as part of their diet (and I discuss and keep in touch with many bluey keepers, almost none being breeders).<<<< I have , and it can only take 6 months on such a diet to do irrepairable damage , a good friend of mine learnt this the hard way with 3 juvenile BTS who were on a diet of pellets/dog & cat food (wet kind) that he bought from a local breeder at 6 months old, all dead from fatty liver disease before their 1st BD, despite his giving them a very good balanced diet and his excellent husbandry.
Blueys are kinda the dogs of the reptile world in that they are opportunistic omnivores that will eat almost anything they can find or scavenge (people report them eating animal droppings in the wild, and I've seen mine try to eat poop before). Unfortunately since there has been no scientific studies on whether the proteins from lean mammal meat or insects are better for blueys or cause any health issues we can only go off the results of others at this point. <<< you've not looked hard enough , maybe you need to confer with an experience reptile vet..
Personally my bluey gets Nature's Instinct Limited Ingredient Rabbit dog food, superworms, canned insects, unseasoned cooked meat from my food, eggs (cooked and uncooked), and Reptilinks (raw rabbit, fruit, and greens) for the protein part of his diet.
DaisyDragon123":1vxt3rhp said:I re-read your initial post as to why BDs could not used a high quality dog food as their protein source. You mentioned the below product, and I copied the nutruional breakdown below.
Nature’s Variety® Instinct® Rabbit Meal Formula Limited Ingredient Diet for dogs is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Nutrient Profiles for all life stages.
Calories
449 per cup
3,815 per kg
Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (min): 27.0%
Crude Fat (min): 16.5%
Crude Fiber (max): 3.0%
Moisture (max): 10.0%
Unless I Googled the wrong food, the fat content in this would be too high and not appropriate for a bearded dragon and given frequently would be detrimental to its health.
As posted previously, dog foods use protein sources that are not suitable as staples in a BD's diet, chicken, fish, turkey, egg and rabbit.
This is an interesting discussion and I would like to see a complete diet "in the can" that would satisfy the nutritional needs of a dragon from juvie to adult. Progress has been made with formulated gecko diets (Repashy brand) and dragon formulas are now appearing (Repashy Grub Pie--powdered black soldier fly larvae which can be made into a gel-like consistency..to name one of their products for BD).
I understand what you are asking and realize that there are different views on BTS dog food issue. For BDs, dog food, no matter how premium, should not make up their staple protein or even be regularly included.
You mentioned human-grade ingredients being used in the dog food. I would note that if chicken, turkey, tuna, etc., canned for humans is not considered a good protein source for dragons then neither will there be a suitable canned or meal formula for dogs.
The safer canned items would be crickets and grasshoppers. You can find these canned items, and others, at Zoomed or Exotic Nutrition (their websites list all canned feeders, many of which cannot be found at Petsmart). It is my understanding that they are canned alive and then cooked in the can. It seems that they are less processed. Just a thought.
LupeGirl8":1q43hvdo said:DaisyDragon123":1q43hvdo said:I re-read your initial post as to why BDs could not used a high quality dog food as their protein source. You mentioned the below product, and I copied the nutruional breakdown below.
Nature’s Variety® Instinct® Rabbit Meal Formula Limited Ingredient Diet for dogs is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Nutrient Profiles for all life stages.
Calories
449 per cup
3,815 per kg
Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (min): 27.0%
Crude Fat (min): 16.5%
Crude Fiber (max): 3.0%
Moisture (max): 10.0%
Unless I Googled the wrong food, the fat content in this would be too high and not appropriate for a bearded dragon and given frequently would be detrimental to its health.
As posted previously, dog foods use protein sources that are not suitable as staples in a BD's diet, chicken, fish, turkey, egg and rabbit.
This is an interesting discussion and I would like to see a complete diet "in the can" that would satisfy the nutritional needs of a dragon from juvie to adult. Progress has been made with formulated gecko diets (Repashy brand) and dragon formulas are now appearing (Repashy Grub Pie--powdered black soldier fly larvae which can be made into a gel-like consistency..to name one of their products for BD).
I understand what you are asking and realize that there are different views on BTS dog food issue. For BDs, dog food, no matter how premium, should not make up their staple protein or even be regularly included.
You mentioned human-grade ingredients being used in the dog food. I would note that if chicken, turkey, tuna, etc., canned for humans is not considered a good protein source for dragons then neither will there be a suitable canned or meal formula for dogs.
The safer canned items would be crickets and grasshoppers. You can find these canned items, and others, at Zoomed or Exotic Nutrition (their websites list all canned feeders, many of which cannot be found at Petsmart). It is my understanding that they are canned alive and then cooked in the can. It seems that they are less processed. Just a thought.
I think you might have looked at the dry food?
Here is a link to the wet food that I feed. Protein is 10% and fat is 4.5%. This puts both fat and protein at significantly lower than that of most feeder insects. I am not trying to argue that ALL dog food is acceptable for blue tongues, but MANY blue tongue keepers have been SOME kinds of premium, lean-meat dog food very successfully.
http://publications.rzsnsw.org.au/doi/pdf/10.7882/AZ.2006.009
I mentioned human grade ingredients simply as a counter to those insisting that dog food always uses sketchy ingredients and "you don't know what is in that can". Not to imply that anything ok for humans is ok for a bluey.
Having looked further into the dietary differences between blueys and BD I have reached the same conclusion. Blueys scavenge carrion a fair amount .... <<<< this is not the finding in your own citation - see, even for the very small sample of animals collected and killed and examined , the numbers do NOT infer carrion is a large part of BTS diet (2 from 49 one set , 4 from 70 the other).
I've never seen or heard of anyone who has observed a wild BTS eating carrion , and I live where BTS are very commonly encountered (they are indigenous here and seem to thrive in suburbia as well as in their native grasslands and bushland).
Never seen a wild BTS show any interest what so ever in a corpse of a dead animal, they are simply not equipped to rip a corpse apart , now large monitors like a Lace Monitor (also common here)) are perfectly capable of braking up / ripping apart carrion and have an impressive set of claws and teeth to do this and I have seen Lace Monitors tearing apart a dead kangaroo on the road side , small carrion they simply swallow whole.
and gut analyses have shown them to be more carnivorous than many people think with seeds and fruit seeming to be the only vegetation that was purposefully ingested. <<< I've seen wild BTS in vegetable and herb patched grazing on greens and flowers and seed pods (bean, peas etc) and they are also partial to the slugs and garden snails , insects and worms and grubs there they find there (hence they are often a welcome visitor to many a gardener's flower, veg and herb beds here (in Australia)) , I have also seen then tucking in wild fungus (mushrooms , and toadstools (they eat only the safe bits and seem to know what is safe) .
Spent my entire life (near 60 yrs) living in wild bluetongue skink territory and have frequently seen and interacted with wild BTS.
"
BDs on the other hand are strict insectivores with vegetation playing a much bigger role in their diet.
Thank you for your thoughtful response.
kingofnobbys":3p4cbgpm said:LupeGirl8":3p4cbgpm said:DaisyDragon123":3p4cbgpm said:I re-read your initial post as to why BDs could not used a high quality dog food as their protein source. You mentioned the below product, and I copied the nutruional breakdown below.
Nature’s Variety® Instinct® Rabbit Meal Formula Limited Ingredient Diet for dogs is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Nutrient Profiles for all life stages.
Calories
449 per cup
3,815 per kg
Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (min): 27.0%
Crude Fat (min): 16.5%
Crude Fiber (max): 3.0%
Moisture (max): 10.0%
Unless I Googled the wrong food, the fat content in this would be too high and not appropriate for a bearded dragon and given frequently would be detrimental to its health.
As posted previously, dog foods use protein sources that are not suitable as staples in a BD's diet, chicken, fish, turkey, egg and rabbit.
This is an interesting discussion and I would like to see a complete diet "in the can" that would satisfy the nutritional needs of a dragon from juvie to adult. Progress has been made with formulated gecko diets (Repashy brand) and dragon formulas are now appearing (Repashy Grub Pie--powdered black soldier fly larvae which can be made into a gel-like consistency..to name one of their products for BD).
I understand what you are asking and realize that there are different views on BTS dog food issue. For BDs, dog food, no matter how premium, should not make up their staple protein or even be regularly included.
You mentioned human-grade ingredients being used in the dog food. I would note that if chicken, turkey, tuna, etc., canned for humans is not considered a good protein source for dragons then neither will there be a suitable canned or meal formula for dogs.
The safer canned items would be crickets and grasshoppers. You can find these canned items, and others, at Zoomed or Exotic Nutrition (their websites list all canned feeders, many of which cannot be found at Petsmart). It is my understanding that they are canned alive and then cooked in the can. It seems that they are less processed. Just a thought.
I think you might have looked at the dry food?
Here is a link to the wet food that I feed. Protein is 10% and fat is 4.5%. This puts both fat and protein at significantly lower than that of most feeder insects. I am not trying to argue that ALL dog food is acceptable for blue tongues, but MANY blue tongue keepers have been SOME kinds of premium, lean-meat dog food very successfully.
http://publications.rzsnsw.org.au/doi/pdf/10.7882/AZ.2006.009
I mentioned human grade ingredients simply as a counter to those insisting that dog food always uses sketchy ingredients and "you don't know what is in that can". Not to imply that anything ok for humans is ok for a bluey.
Having looked further into the dietary differences between blueys and BD I have reached the same conclusion. Blueys scavenge carrion a fair amount .... <<<< this is not the finding in your own citation - see, even for the very small sample of animals collected and killed and examined , the numbers do NOT infer carrion is a large part of BTS diet (2 from 49 one set , 4 from 70 the other).
I've never seen or heard of anyone who has observed a wild BTS eating carrion , and I live where BTS are very commonly encountered (they are indigenous here and seem to thrive in suburbia as well as in their native grasslands and bushland).
Never seen a wild BTS show any interest what so ever in a corpse of a dead animal, they are simply not equipped to rip a corpse apart , now large monitors like a Lace Monitor (also common here)) are perfectly capable of braking up / ripping apart carrion and have an impressive set of claws and teeth to do this and I have seen Lace Monitors tearing apart a dead kangaroo on the road side , small carrion they simply swallow whole.
and gut analyses have shown them to be more carnivorous than many people think with seeds and fruit seeming to be the only vegetation that was purposefully ingested. <<< I've seen wild BTS in vegetable and herb patched grazing on greens and flowers and seed pods (bean, peas etc) and they are also partial to the slugs and garden snails , insects and worms and grubs there they find there (hence they are often a welcome visitor to many a gardener's flower, veg and herb beds here (in Australia)) , I have also seen then tucking in wild fungus (mushrooms , and toadstools (they eat only the safe bits and seem to know what is safe) .
Spent my entire life (near 60 yrs) living in wild bluetongue skink territory and have frequently seen and interacted with wild BTS.
"
BDs on the other hand are strict insectivores with vegetation playing a much bigger role in their diet.
Thank you for your thoughtful response.
The study cited doesn't support the use of dog or cat food as a staple food / protein source for BTS, in fact the advice my reptile vet gave me was not to use these foods, and to limit the non-insect protein as it had in his experience resulted in many very sick BTS.
LupeGirl8":2qrvbmr6 said:kingofnobbys":2qrvbmr6 said:LupeGirl8":2qrvbmr6 said:DaisyDragon123":2qrvbmr6 said:I re-read your initial post as to why BDs could not used a high quality dog food as their protein source. You mentioned the below product, and I copied the nutruional breakdown below.
Nature’s Variety® Instinct® Rabbit Meal Formula Limited Ingredient Diet for dogs is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Nutrient Profiles for all life stages.
Calories
449 per cup
3,815 per kg
Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (min): 27.0%
Crude Fat (min): 16.5%
Crude Fiber (max): 3.0%
Moisture (max): 10.0%
Unless I Googled the wrong food, the fat content in this would be too high and not appropriate for a bearded dragon and given frequently would be detrimental to its health.
As posted previously, dog foods use protein sources that are not suitable as staples in a BD's diet, chicken, fish, turkey, egg and rabbit.
This is an interesting discussion and I would like to see a complete diet "in the can" that would satisfy the nutritional needs of a dragon from juvie to adult. Progress has been made with formulated gecko diets (Repashy brand) and dragon formulas are now appearing (Repashy Grub Pie--powdered black soldier fly larvae which can be made into a gel-like consistency..to name one of their products for BD).
I understand what you are asking and realize that there are different views on BTS dog food issue. For BDs, dog food, no matter how premium, should not make up their staple protein or even be regularly included.
You mentioned human-grade ingredients being used in the dog food. I would note that if chicken, turkey, tuna, etc., canned for humans is not considered a good protein source for dragons then neither will there be a suitable canned or meal formula for dogs.
The safer canned items would be crickets and grasshoppers. You can find these canned items, and others, at Zoomed or Exotic Nutrition (their websites list all canned feeders, many of which cannot be found at Petsmart). It is my understanding that they are canned alive and then cooked in the can. It seems that they are less processed. Just a thought.
I think you might have looked at the dry food?
Here is a link to the wet food that I feed. Protein is 10% and fat is 4.5%. This puts both fat and protein at significantly lower than that of most feeder insects. I am not trying to argue that ALL dog food is acceptable for blue tongues, but MANY blue tongue keepers have been SOME kinds of premium, lean-meat dog food very successfully.
http://publications.rzsnsw.org.au/doi/pdf/10.7882/AZ.2006.009
I mentioned human grade ingredients simply as a counter to those insisting that dog food always uses sketchy ingredients and "you don't know what is in that can". Not to imply that anything ok for humans is ok for a bluey.
Having looked further into the dietary differences between blueys and BD I have reached the same conclusion. Blueys scavenge carrion a fair amount .... <<<< this is not the finding in your own citation - see, even for the very small sample of animals collected and killed and examined , the numbers do NOT infer carrion is a large part of BTS diet (2 from 49 one set , 4 from 70 the other).
I've never seen or heard of anyone who has observed a wild BTS eating carrion , and I live where BTS are very commonly encountered (they are indigenous here and seem to thrive in suburbia as well as in their native grasslands and bushland).
Never seen a wild BTS show any interest what so ever in a corpse of a dead animal, they are simply not equipped to rip a corpse apart , now large monitors like a Lace Monitor (also common here)) are perfectly capable of braking up / ripping apart carrion and have an impressive set of claws and teeth to do this and I have seen Lace Monitors tearing apart a dead kangaroo on the road side , small carrion they simply swallow whole.
and gut analyses have shown them to be more carnivorous than many people think with seeds and fruit seeming to be the only vegetation that was purposefully ingested. <<< I've seen wild BTS in vegetable and herb patched grazing on greens and flowers and seed pods (bean, peas etc) and they are also partial to the slugs and garden snails , insects and worms and grubs there they find there (hence they are often a welcome visitor to many a gardener's flower, veg and herb beds here (in Australia)) , I have also seen then tucking in wild fungus (mushrooms , and toadstools (they eat only the safe bits and seem to know what is safe) .
Spent my entire life (near 60 yrs) living in wild bluetongue skink territory and have frequently seen and interacted with wild BTS.
"
BDs on the other hand are strict insectivores with vegetation playing a much bigger role in their diet.
Thank you for your thoughtful response.
The study cited doesn't support the use of dog or cat food as a staple food / protein source for BTS, in fact the advice my reptile vet gave me was not to use these foods, and to limit the non-insect protein as it had in his experience resulted in many very sick BTS.
The study was only meant to prove that blueys DO consume vertebrate matter in the wild (even if it isn't common) and that protein (whether insect or vertebrate) makes up a much larger portion of their diet than a lot of people think. As the study found they mostly consumed seeds, fruits and flowers (you also mentioned that they consume seed pods and flowers) with very little of the diet being made up from other vegetation such as greens. Again, anecdotal personal evidence does not invalidate a peer reviewed scientific study. <<< true .... note however the very small sample size used in the study.
However you very tellingly did not respond to any of the other points in my argument. Such as the fact that the food I feed (10% protein, 4.5% fat) has significantly less protein and fat than all commonly used feeder insects, therefore invalidating the argument that it could cause fatty liver disease. Or the fact that organ meat AND crickets are both high in purines, so there is no reason that a diet partially containing organ meat would be any more of a gout risk than one of the most popular feeder insects on the market.
<<< regarding purines
purines are important for primary two reasons:
(1) as building blocks for DNA (the primary genetic material in our cells) and
(2) as substances that could be broken down to form uric acid and potentially increase the risk of gout.
•Medium-purine foods:
◦Meat and poultry
◦Crab, lobster, oysters, and shrimp
◦Vegetables:
◦Asparagus
◦Cauliflower
◦Spinach
◦Mushrooms
◦Green peas
◦Beans, peas, and lentils
◦Oats and oatmeal
◦Wheat germ and bran
•High-purine foods:
◦Anchovies, sardines, scallops, and mussels
◦Tuna, codfish, herring, and haddock
◦Wild game meats, like goose and duck
◦Organ meats, such as brains, heart, kidney, liver, and sweetbreads
◦Gravies and sauces made with meat
◦Yeast extracts taken in the form of a supplement
I've studied biochemistry (to 3rd year university level as an elective subject) and in no way regard myself or claim myself to be an expert regarding biochemistry, that said, I think you'll find that the fats found in insects are quiet different to those in non-insect sources. (It will be very time consuming to go to my biochem textbooks and confirm this and detail the differences).
Perhaps someone who is more knowledgeable will chime in and comment on this difference.
Is simplistic to simply compare % fat , % protein in the different food sources without looking at the actual chemistry of the fats and proteins as insect sourced fats and proteins will be metabolised differently to poultry sourced fats and proteins and again different to those sourced from mammalian sources.
IMO it is important to try to provide similar foods as the reptile will utilise in the wild.
I am certainly not arguing that ALL dog food is appropriate to be used as a significant portion of a bluey's diet or that ANY dog food should make up the entirety of their diet. I am simply pointing out that SOME dog food (namely that which is grain free, does not contain preservatives known to be harmful to reptiles, and is made from lean meat sources that are low in fat) can be utilized as a protein source (in addition to insect sources) for blueys without causing health issues. Perhaps your vet has seen a lot of blueys that were fed dry food or wet food that was not grain free, not free from harmful preservatives, and made with fattier meats like beef.
I've gotten what I need from this forum and research elsewhere, namely that even the lean, grain free, high quality dog food would be less appropriate for a BD than a BTS because beardies are much more herbivorously inclined and strict insectivores (with regards to protein) rather than insectivore/scavenger like BTS.
DaisyDragon123":19zjj25q said:I wanted to mention that BD are not strict insectivores. They will consume mice and other smaller lizards.
It seems that this discussion has morphed into can BTS and BD used canned dog food as their only protein source, rather than as a part of a variety of protein sources.
From reading OP's first post, the question seems to be can canned dog food be a part of a BD diet, like it is for BTS. The OP is not feeding canned dog food only but as a part of a varied diet. He details his BTS diet closer to the bottom of top post.
If you use the highest quality canned dog food, I see no reason why it can't be included as an occasional treat for BD, just be sure it's ingredients are okay which may require more research than it is worth. <<<< I agree , only as treat or in an emergency situation and certainly not as a mainstay / staple .
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