Best Overall Diet

[SlimNelson]

Hey guys. New member here. =D

I've had three bearded dragons for a little over a month now. They are all adults which were previously owned by a friend.

I'm just curious on what the best diet is for an adult bearded dragon, with money taken into consideration as well.

My current diet probably isn't very complex, I've just made sure that everything I feed them is pretty much safe according to the Internet. It consists of mainly green beans, asparagus, and thawed out crickets which I keep in freezer, I also mix in some celery and raspberries too. I understand my mix is supposed to be 80% veggies/fruits and 20% insects but I usually go about 60%/40% instead. They really enjoy eating insects and they're stool is solid so seems healthy. Also, the only reason the crickets are kept in the freezer is because I ordered 1000 online and they all ended up dying.

The reason I ask for a good daily diet is because all the websites I find just list safe and unsafe foods, they don't really go into detail with a good daily diet which covers all the daily needed nutrients. So I'm just curious on what others have as a good diet that they've stuck with for awhile that they feed on a daily basis.

And lastly, one of my dragons has MBD. He's had it since I've owned him. Is there anything special that I should feed him?

Thanks guys.

 

[CooperDragon]

Welcome to the forum! The 80% vegetable diet is about right for an adult, but variety and a well balanced diet is best. I suggest providing live bugs (crickets, dubia roaches, silk worms, etc) because they can be gut loaded with healthy vegetables and hydrated which is helpful for your dragons. It's also healthy to get them to hunt down their food a bit. If you've had trouble keeping the crickets alive, it may be worthwhile to start a roach colony. They are much easier to keep in the long term. As far as veges go, I like to provide 2-3 items in each salad and I rotate what's in the salad depending on what's fresh at the store. I use this list as a guide http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html If you want to try and calculate the balance of nutrients, you can try out a new calculator that one of the members, Taterbug, created. https://sites.google.com/site/thelizardmadness/interactive-food-guide

As long as you have proper UVB lighting, your dragon with MBD should be OK if you're dusting the crickets with calcium and are providing some calcium rich veges such as collard greens.

 

[Taterbug]

Hah, thanks for the plug cooper!

I go by the same method as him, go for fresh stuff and try not to go too heavily on any one item. Mix it up and feed your insects well, mine get the same veggies as the dragon. You can also supplement your salads with dust as well, read the labeling or get something veggie specific like Repashy super veggie. The more variety you can offer the more likely you are to get a balanced diet for them.

Arcadia also has a pretty good book about nutriton that's worth a read, at the least its a condensed summary about the role nutrients/vitamins play in the body and over health. I don't quite agree with some of the insect analysis they cite, but oh well nothing is perfect! http://www.arcadia-reptile.com/reptile-care-books they also have one about MDB but I've not read it so I can't speak to it.

 

[SlimNelson]

I think the crickets died because of where I ordered them from, most arrived dead and the alive ones had plenty of food. I'm not going to waste them though, considering the dragons don't mind if they are dead anyway. I'll definitely look into a roach colony too, that sounds like a big money saver. I got meal worms on the way in the mail currently and I hope to get a little breeding going with them as well.

All your information is great guys. I appreciate it.

Although, and maybe I should have been more specific because I understand mostly what to feed them and what not, I read up on a lot of stuff. As far as the topic though, I was hoping more to get precise meals that others tend to feed their dragons.

For example, lately, I have been feeding them the following...

• Green beans
• Asparagus
• Dead Crickets
• Super worms

Before that, I was feeding them...

• Green beans
• Asparagus
• Raspberries
• Celery
• Live Crickets
• Meal worms

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Best Overall Diet
Preview: Re: Best Overall Diet
I think the crickets died because of where I ordered them from, most arrived dead and the alive ones had plenty of food. I'm not going to waste them though, considering the dragons don't mind if they are dead anyway. I'll definitely look into a roach colony too, that sounds like a big money saver. I got meal worms on the way in the mail currently and I hope to get a little breeding going with them as well.

All your information is great guys. I appreciate it.

Although, and maybe I should have been more specific because I understand mostly what to feed them and what not, I read up on a lot of stuff. As far as the topic though, I was hoping more to get precise meals that others tend to feed their dragons.

For example, lately, I have been feeding them the following...

Green beans
Asparagus
Dead Crickets
Super worms


Before that, I was feeding them...

Green beans
Asparagus
Raspberries
Celery
Live Crickets
Meal worms


What has been your guys' daily meals for your dragons lately?

 

[keith167]

I mix these items for my guys:
I like Dubias, Crickets, Phoenix Worms and Silk Worms, of appropriate size for protein.
Then for greens I use: Collard Greens, Dandelion Greens, Squash and Butternut Squash, Zucchini and Chard...
I would give the guy with MBD liquid calcium daily. Drache613 is a moderator on here. She also has an online store which sells high quality calcium cheap...

 

[Rampagingraptor]

I mix these items for my guys:
I like Dubias, Crickets, Phoenix Worms and Silk Worms, of appropriate size for protein.
Then for greens I use: Collard Greens, Dandelion Greens, Squash and Butternut Squash, Zucchini and Chard...
I would give the guy with MBD liquid calcium daily. Drache613 is a moderator on here. She also has an online store which sells high quality calcium cheap...

This thread is 10 months old, fyi. Gotta pay attention to that.

 

[SlimNelson]

I mix these items for my guys:
I like Dubias, Crickets, Phoenix Worms and Silk Worms, of appropriate size for protein.
Then for greens I use: Collard Greens, Dandelion Greens, Squash and Butternut Squash, Zucchini and Chard...
I would give the guy with MBD liquid calcium daily. Drache613 is a moderator on here. She also has an online store which sells high quality calcium cheap...

This thread is 10 months old, fyi. Gotta pay attention to that.

It's all good. I'm still here! lol.

I've looked into Dubia roaches, Phoenix worms and Silk worms but they are quite spendy so I stick to crickets. Crickets are still quite spendy for me too even... I used to buy 1000 at a time on Amazon every now and again for 20 bucks but just recently, they went up to 25 bucks. Pisses me off... lol, for damn crickets. Forced me to stick to mainly mealworms, they are fatty but half the price and they still get their live insect protein.

Thanks for that info on liquid calcium too, I'll check it out.

 

[HKzForDayz]

Mealworms really arent that great for bearded dragons,and should only be fed on occasion.

 

[SlimNelson]

Mealworms really arent that great for bearded dragons,and should only be fed on occasion.

Yeah. No ****.