I've created a spoiled monster...

[milo0]

I'm having stubborn, spoiled beardie issues again with Milo. This time though, he's really done it. This is the beardie who basically flat out refuses to eat vegetables or fruit willingly, aside from the extremely rare moments where I can get him to eat some blueberries, sweet potato, or RARELY dandelion greens. I've tried every trick in the book but nothing helped, so I just gave up and began feeding the dubia roaches everything that he should be eating. That way, at least he'll get the nutrients from the veggies from them when he eats them. Except, there's our problem right there. Milo now refuses to eat dubia's, no matter what I do. This is about week 3 and he has barely eaten anything aside from his pellets, and a few bites of veggies I tricked him into eating. The only thing he wants to eat in this world is worms, whether it be waxworms, mealworms, silkworms, or hornworms. He had been on a silkworm diet for a few months when I hatched about 300 of them, so I thought he'd get his share of them then. Well, he went a few weeks without wanting to eat roaches, so I ordered him some hornworms just for fun and of course his appetite magically returned. But now, I've run out of worms and basically refuse to continue buying them on a regular basis due to the expense. I have an entire colony of dubia's that he needs to be eating, but he literally will not touch them. He's not even remotely interested in them anymore; he won't even LOOK at them. But if I bring out a worm, he lights up instantly and does anything in his power to get to it.
I've reached that point where now I'm actually worried, and quite frankly, pissed. Here's the thing- I'm moving in 3 weeks across the country, and my plan was to bring enough roaches to last me a few months in California before I go home to visit. Then I'll bring some back with me, or have them shipped out to me as needed. They are the only affordable feeder I can deal with as his staple feeder. I cannot afford to feed this guy silkworms every week for the rest of his life because the cost of just the food is enough to put me bankrupt within a year. I'm a college student, so these worms can only be meant as a treat for him. He gets fed a large variety of insects, but he needs to be eating dubia's as his staple feeder for my sake, otherwise I seriously worry what I'm going to do for his food. He doesn't eat anything to begin with, and now he's being impossible with his insects. And it's not that I don't mind feeding him silkworms, but I just cannot afford it every time he wants them. Plus, when school starts up for me, I won't have the time to care for them. They are a lot more maintenance than roaches are, which is why dubia's are preferable. Plus the fact that I have an unlimited amount of them in my colony outside that barely cost me anything to maintain. -_-

Guys, I know I post a ton about Milo's food issues but I'm genuinely concerned now. I have no idea what I'm supposed to do. It's been over 3 weeks since he's had a large insect meal (he last ate a few hornworms, and only has had a small handful of waxworms/mealworms during those 3 weeks) or any sort of meal at all really. What's he been doing is sleeping a lot (a bunch in his hide, but I removed it) I guess to conserve energy since he feels there's a lack of food apparently. He's out smarting me at this point. I had the whole thought process of, "he's not going to starve himself, eventually he'll cave" but he's not. He's making me want to cave instead. :/ I would bring him in to the vet, but I know there's nothing actually wrong with him. His poop is normal, and he WILL have no problem eating what he wants. I mean tonight, I put him in a bin with some roaches of all sizes, and he freaken jumped out of the bin and ran away 3 times. But I showed him a silkworm (no, one that he cannot have!) and his eyes immediately lit up and he tried everything to get to it. I know he feels fine, but he is just a stubborn brat who is honestly just making me want to curl up and cry at this point. I'm losing every battle... to a lizard.

What the heck do I do?

 

[AHBD]

Hi there....how big + how much does your spoiled monster weigh ? Do you have a pic of him ? I can only tell you the thing you need to hear....just let him wait until he is good + hungry and he will eat the dubia. Yes, he may pout + ignore them,but he WILL eat what he has available. Keep his cave out of his tank, and rather than put him in a separate bin, just drop dubia next to him in the tank. Over the years I've seen my dragons do the same thing with superworms + hornworms over crickets, but none ever starved themselves and eventually got their appetite back for the crix. Just wait it out....he won't die.

 

[PogoLover]

I know this is not much help, but he sounds just like a kid who has learned if they hold out long enough they will get what they want. I just got my beardie and he is being a pain in the behind about eating, but it is probably because he is stressed about moving to his new home. If you are offering food that you know that he has eaten in the past from the same colony that he has eaten from and nothing has changed, it sounds like he has you wrapped around his little toe (just like my daughter has me). The only way to fix it is to not give in . . . unless he does put himself on the edge of death by losing a lot of weight (and then it's probably time for the vet anyway). From everything I have read on this forum and elsewhere, beardies just don't starve themselves to death when there is food available like some other animals will. Is he shedding or is there any chance that he is going into brumation? I haven't been through either of those yet, but I know that both are associated with decreased appetite.

 

[PogoLover]

One more thing - you should search "spoiled monster" or "spoiled beardie" on this forum. A lot of people have the same situation - the dragon will only eat if he is hand fed, or if he is held while he eats his salads. I was unaware of exactly how smart these lizards are . . . but it sounds like they are master manipulators!!!

 

[milo0]

Yeah, I've done a ton of researching into spoiled beardies but the most common thing I read was just withholding food from them until they eat. He is nearing a month now and hasn't eaten anything besides a few baby mealworms and waxworms that I gave him when trying to trick him into eating vegetables. The other night, I tried dropping the worms from above to get him excited, which he did almost instantaneously. Then I tried dropping very small roach nymphs the same manner, to try to trick him... but he didn't fall for it. -_- I've tried everything I can possibly think of, but a month later and he's still holding out. I don't think he's lost too much weight, but he does appear a little more skinny. This doesn't shock me since he's eating little to nothing. I really don't know if I just should give in and somehow find a way to afford worms or if I should keep holding out. I mean, how long is too long to go without feeding them?

 

[PogoLover]

Yeah, I've done a ton of researching into spoiled beardies but the most common thing I read was just withholding food from them until they eat. He is nearing a month now and hasn't eaten anything besides a few baby mealworms and waxworms that I gave him when trying to trick him into eating vegetables. The other night, I tried dropping the worms from above to get him excited, which he did almost instantaneously. Then I tried dropping very small roach nymphs the same manner, to try to trick him... but he didn't fall for it. -_- I've tried everything I can possibly think of, but a month later and he's still holding out. I don't think he's lost too much weight, but he does appear a little more skinny. This doesn't shock me since he's eating little to nothing. I really don't know if I just should give in and somehow find a way to afford worms or if I should keep holding out. I mean, how long is too long to go without feeding them?

Mine is a baby and I am taking him to the vet on Monday to ask that question. I have been feeding him a mix of Carnivore Care and baby food squash, because was losing weight. It fattened him back up but he still won't eat regular food - no crickets, no dubia, no greens. He just started eating less and less until he stopped completely - and that's when I started giving him the mix out of an eyedropper. He eats that just fine! So, mine is spoiled now too. If I find out anything at the vet, I will post.

 

[milo0]

Yeah, I've done a ton of researching into spoiled beardies but the most common thing I read was just withholding food from them until they eat. He is nearing a month now and hasn't eaten anything besides a few baby mealworms and waxworms that I gave him when trying to trick him into eating vegetables. The other night, I tried dropping the worms from above to get him excited, which he did almost instantaneously. Then I tried dropping very small roach nymphs the same manner, to try to trick him... but he didn't fall for it. -_- I've tried everything I can possibly think of, but a month later and he's still holding out. I don't think he's lost too much weight, but he does appear a little more skinny. This doesn't shock me since he's eating little to nothing. I really don't know if I just should give in and somehow find a way to afford worms or if I should keep holding out. I mean, how long is too long to go without feeding them?

Mine is a baby and I am taking him to the vet on Monday to ask that question. I have been feeding him a mix of Carnivore Care and baby food squash, because was losing weight. It fattened him back up but he still won't eat regular food - no crickets, no dubia, no greens. He just started eating less and less until he stopped completely - and that's when I started giving him the mix out of an eyedropper. He eats that just fine! So, mine is spoiled now too. If I find out anything at the vet, I will post.

Yikes, you guy sounds like a younger, mini version of Milo haha. He has been picky from the beginning and just has gotten worse over time, so I understand your frustration. So when you feed him the Carnivore Care stuff, he willing eats it? Like, you just drop it on his nose and he will lap it up? Milo will do that occasionally with water, but otherwise he doesn't. At one point, I was making him smoothies with his greens and some fruits, but he didn't touch it. I've tried every trick in the book to get him to eat, but the only way I have any luck is when I basically force him to eat it. :/

I did get him some green bean baby food tonight but struggled getting him to eat it. I was using a small spoon to try and wedge his mouth open and slightly pour it in. I definitely managed to get him to eat some, but not a whole lot. But some is better than none I guess. I'm going to try a syringe tomorrow and see if I have any luck with that. If this is the only way to get him to eat his veggies then I don't mind doing it. He didn't particularly enjoy it but hey... he had it coming haha.

As far as feeding him protein goes, I just don't know what else to try. I was using that Meat Pie stuff my reptile store recommended, and they said most reptiles go crazy for it. It basically substitutes protein, but I just wanted to see if he even ate it. He had one small bite of it but never ate it again... -_-. I even bought him these small pellets that were a carnivore diet, and he never touched it either. I feel like buying anymore products would just go to waste as they're currently doing. He still looks like a pretty healthy weight so I'm not super worried, but I do feel like he has lost a little bit. Definitely let me know how things go with your beardie, and how long you decide to hold out. I think I'm going to get a stool sample tested to make sure there's not an actual reason for him acting this way, but I'm fairly positive he's just being a brat lol.

 

[milo0]

I think his hunger might finally be starting to set in. Yesterday, he ate about 2-3 pieces of collard greens that I had cut into long strips to resemble worms. He's very interested in anything that is long and slow moving, and rarely I can trick him into eating things like asparagus, green beans, squash, etc, as long as it's cut long ways and I make it look like it's crawling lol. He does eye the vegetables when I make them move like a worm, but he hasn't really eaten them yet aside from the small pieces he ate by himself when I wasn't looking. He is still on roach strike and doesn't seem interested in them at all, which sucks because I have way too many currently. I guess I'll continue to withhold food from him and hope he finally breaks this strike. I'm unsure if I should feed him any large meals though for next week. I'm moving to California, and he'll be joining me during a 20+ hours trip. I'm sure he will sleep most of the way, but I would feel bad if he was hungry. >: I mean, a month is a long time to go without having a large meal. Not sure if I should continue holding out or just give him a little food before the trip.

 

[AHBD]

That's great that his appetite seems to be returning. You should definitely feed him right up until the day before your trip....the day before just a light meal, but other than that there's no reason to with hold his food.

 

[milo0]

That's great that his appetite seems to be returning. You should definitely feed him right up until the day before your trip....the day before just a light meal, but other than that there's no reason to with hold his food.

Well, I wanted to continue with holding food until he began eating his veggies and roaches again, but I wasn't sure if making him go hungry for that long of a trip would be wise. I mean, he'll probably sleep most of the way there anyways. I was thinking once I arrived, I could feed him a few worms and if there's anywhere local, maybe get him some silkworms or hornworms since it's been a while. I feel like I'm close to getting him to eat his veggies though so part of me wants to continue making him hungry... >.<

 

[AHBD]

Oh yes, I see what you mean and agree that it's best to continue to try to get him eating his veggies.