Beardie won't eat fruits or vegetables

[maggie2311]

My baby bearded dragon, which I've had for almost a month, eats regularly (except when she was shedding) and poops regularly. BUT she never wants to eat vegetables or fruits. I offered her a ready made re-hydrated mix of veggies and she wouldn't eat it. I also tried hand feeding her some fruits, bananas,grapes and raisins, but she wouldn't eat them so I left them in her feeding dish and she still wouldn't eat them. What should I do ?

 

[HylianHealeys]

It's normal for young bearded dragons not to take much interest in fruits and vegetables. At that stage of life, bearded dragons' bodies are growing rapidly, so they crave sources of protein to facilitate this rapid growth. As they get older and the growth slows down, they switch from eating mostly insects to mostly vegetables for maintenance.

How often you offer insects depends on the age of your beardie:

• Hatchlings under 2 months: 2x daily
• Juveniles between 3-4 months: 1x daily
• Juveniles between 4-12 months: 4x weekly
• Subadults between 12-18 months: 3x weekly
• Subadults between 18-24 months: 2x weekly
• Adults: 1x weekly

More information on how often to feed insects here.

I also recommend reading this article: Feeder Insect Nutrition Facts for Reptile Keepers. This will help you determine what variety of feeder insects are healthiest for your bearded dragon, as well as give you a basic understanding of reptile nutrition.

That being said, it is good to still offer a nutritious, finely chopped salad to your baby daily or every other day to munch on if they're in the mood. Here's a list of safe vegetables and fruits to get you started: Fruits & Vegetables to Feed Your Bearded Dragon

 

[maggie2311]

Thanks for the advice. I also want to ask, are ready made bearded dragon diets good ?

 

[HylianHealeys]

Rarely, and it's a pain to read the ingredients list on the label — to say nothing of actually understanding it (I do this a lot for my blog haha). High quality pellets can make an okay occasional addition to salads, but if they're not moistened they can dehydrate your beardie, and generally the nutrition just isn't as good as it would be with a diet of raw veggies, insects, and occasional multivitamin.

 

[maggie2311]

I actually meant these kinds of diets

Don't worry I'm going to read the ingredients for you. It says it has: Sweet potato, carrots, red bell pepper, dried mealworms, savoy cabbage, zucchini, spinach, green peas, green bell pepper and chives
IN SUMMATION dried all natural stuff. So is it good?

 

[CooperDragon]

Those ingredients are pretty good on their own, but offering them dried may deprive them of some nutrients and definitely deprives them of valuable hydration. Since dragons get most of their hydration from their food, it's best to offer fresh veges and well hydrated/gutloaded bugs for the best results.

 

[HylianHealeys]

^^ Yes. CooperDragon beat me to it.

 

[maggie2311]

Those ingredients are pretty good on their own, but offering them dried may deprive them of some nutrients and definitely deprives them of valuable hydration. Since dragons get most of their hydration from their food, it's best to offer fresh veges and well hydrated/gutloaded bugs for the best results.

I offer them to her rehydrated like the instructions say

 

[HylianHealeys]

It's still not the best, but okay to use in a pinch.