will my beardies die if they dont eat greens?

[joelgriz8124]

i have two bearded dragons, one is about 6 months old and one is about 5.5 months old. both of them show no interest at all in their greens. i put wax worms and mealworms in their salad, but they just pick out the worms.

their salad consists of collards, mustard and kale. i also put carrots bell peppers and pealed grapes and apples on occasion . all of these ar cut appropriately. ive tried dicing them so they r no bigger than their head and ive also minced them and all the in-between.

the only way they eat greens is if i physically put them in their mouth while they r already chewing a feeder.
idk what to do im worried.

also one of my beardies will only eat maby 5 cricket in her feeding then all she wants is meal worms. she dosnt even eat a good amount of them maby 10 a day and maby 6 crickets. im worried about her, but she seems to be maintaining her weight. i just heard meal worms arent good for them and im so confused on what to do.

someone please help me i absolutely love my beardies and ide be crushed if i lost them. (their living conditions are perfect im very anal about it being the perfect temp on both sides. they have the proper uvb. both r well hydrated they get baths every other day)

 

[techdave]

1. I recomend finding another feeder(dubia roaches) and ditching the mealworms. They have a herd shell, not good for any age beardie, especially not younger ones.

2. It's perfectly normal for younger beardies to not be very interested in veggies.As they get older they will eat more greens then feeders, but right now it's very important that they get lots of protein. Just keep offering them, just like you're doing. Also, gutload your feeders with stuff that is good for your beardie, such as butternut squash, and they will get nutrients that way.

 

[joelgriz8124]

1. I recomend finding another feeder(dubia roaches) and ditching the mealworms. They have a herd shell, not good for any age beardie, especially not younger ones.

2. It's perfectly normal for younger beardies to not be very interested in veggies.As they get older they will eat more greens then feeders, but right now it's very important that they get lots of protein. Just keep offering them, just like you're doing. Also, gutload your feeders with stuff that is good for your beardie, such as butternut squash, and they will get nutrients that way.

I do gutload my crix and feed them veggies and fruit. I also dust them once a week. Any idead where I can get my hads on those roaches ?

 

[izz]

Umm beardies can have mealies,the best one are the ones that have freshly molted their skin,coz they don't have the hard shell and if you can feed superworms to your beardie you can feed mealies,coz superworms have hard shells,don't they???

 

[joelgriz8124]

Thank you for your reply btw. I appreciate it a ton.

 

[techdave]

For mealworms, they aren't good for a beardie beacuse of the really hard chitin. If they are freshly molted I don't think that a problem, but then they don't have the best nutrients.

For superworms, they should only be fed when the beardie is 16nches long or a year old. This is to accomodate for a kink in their intestinal track. They do have a hard shell, but it's not as hard as the mealies, or they're better nutritionally. One of those two justifies it.

For dusting, they should be dusted 5 times a week with calcium, and 2 times a week with multivitamin.

For where to get dubias, check out http://theroachranch.com/index.html . Or if you're close to my area, I can sell you some. I need to thin out my colony.

 

[BeardieN00b]

As stated previously, youngins are gunna go for the crix/worms more than veggies. I always feed the crix sweet potatoes collards and butternut squash and i coat it with some vitamins. This way alteast if he doesent want veggies hes still getting the nutrients because the feeders are eating it. Dont fret. Theyll come around eventually.

 

[Slave2Scarlett]

Mealworms and Supers are definitely not good for any dragon under 16"... Phoenix Worms/ Reptiworms are also good staples as far as live food... www.reptiworms.com Wax worms are high in fat and should only be fed as a treat.. As far as getting them to eat their salads I've found the best way is to offer greens first thing in the morning before any live food is offered.. Usually if they are hungry enough they will eat their greens.. Make sure u leave the greens in the viv for the remainder of the day and take out before bedtime.. That way if they get hungry during the day they may snack on it.. Hope this helps