Loves His Salad Too Much

[allusiontoanillusion]

Haku is about 4 months old now and for the past week he's been turning his nose up at his insects and eating mostly salad. He refuses to eat his crickets anymore so I've been offering him superworms for the moment just to get him to eat some protein while I wait for my hornworms to come in. I give him live insect feeds twice a day and usually he only eats one or two worms before scurrying off.

I'm not offering anything too exciting in his salad - just a mix of kale and dandelion greens. But he seems to heavily prefer it to his insects.

If I didn't know his exact age I'd just assume he was starting to transition to a more veggie-based diet. But I got him from a local pet store where the owner breeds the bearded dragons himself so I know he's only 4 months.

So any ideas on how I can encourage him to eat more insects?

 

[CooperDragon]

I would just continue offering both and let him choose what he wants. If he's in the mood for salads, that's great. I'd still make bugs available but if he prefers veges, maybe that's what he needs at the moment. Try adding some variety to the salad to ensure he's getting a wide variety of vitamins and nutrients. Adding things like chopped green beans, squash, bell pepper, and other veges to the mix will help to make it a well rounded meal. As long as he's still active, eating, and gaining weight (or at least remaining stable) I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[kingofnobbys]

You should be chuffed that he loves his greens and veg so young, I know I was . BUT VERY important for them to get lots of insect protein when young to grow big and strong and develop properly.

Peppa and Toothless were doing the same thing. I simpy rescheduled when the greens and veg were offered til after they had their last insect feed.

I give them their last insect meal about 5pm, and the lights go out at 9pm, so they have 4 hours to bask, and graze before bed time, and I've often seen them nibbling after lights out , or hunting crickets (midnight raiding).
My greens and veg stay in overnight and are replaced only if completely eaten or when the next batch of greens and veg go in. This works well with Peppa and Toothless.

 

[allusiontoanillusion]

I'm quite happy the little guy likes his vegetables. He goes especially crazy for kale but seems to be a big fan of carrot as well. I just want to make sure he's getting enough protein. My hornworms came in yesterday afternoon and he's been gobbling them up like a madman. I think I've found his new favorite snack. And I must say it's quite entertaining to watch given how big and squishy they are.

Thanks for the tip on rescheduling when the veggies are offered! I'll definitely start to implement that.