Young beardie only eats greens

[any2117]

Hello! So, I finally got a bearded dragon. I tried to get an adult but the oldest I could find was a 3 1/2 month old... I've had him for 5 days and he didn't eat anything the first two days. Afterwards he's been eating only mustard leaves and some other greens and that's it. Ignores all insects except for one or two mealworms a day.
He seems active, basks all day, eyes open and doesnt seem to be shy or hiding at all.

Currently in a 20 gallon tank with 110 f on hot side and 86f on cold side. Using a 10.0 reptisun light and a 75w yellow light for basking.
Substrate is bare tile. Has pooped twice since I got him.

Is this healthy for him at all? I'm worried about lack of protein in his diet. I tried mixing commercial bearded dragon food with the greens but he eats very little of it.

What can I do? Or he's just stressed from the change?

 

[CooperDragon]

It's probably still just relocation stress. Keep offering what food you can. What are you using to measure the tank temps?

 

[destiny1998]

Hi. I wish my adults ate more salad Also meal worms are hard for them to digest and can cause impaction. Better feeders are crickets, Phoenix worms, butter worms, silk worms and dubia roaches ( depending where you are).

 

[any2117]

I'm using a digital thermomether with a probe for the temps

I live in a very small country, and feeders are really hard to find... I should be getting a few crickets next week but the others are impossible to get. I only have access to canned insects, mealworms, pinkies and the occasional cricket or superworm.... are mealworms really that bad? If that's so.... Then I have no idea what to do...

 

[destiny1998]

Maybe you can raise the crickets? Superworms will be good for when he's 16 inches. Pinkies are not good to feed them at all. Canned aren't really either. Babies need to be fed live feeders 2x to 3x a day.

 

[any2117]

I'll try and raise the crickets.... How many should I get to begin with? Considering I have to use them as food source as well... Will 200 of them do? I don't know if I can get more...

 

[destiny1998]

I really don't know how to raise crickets. I raise dubia. I would Google how to raise crickets. I wish I was of more help. Good luck

 

[any2117]

You've been great help anyway! thanks a lot! =)
I just hope nothing bad happens to my beardie because of the mealworms... the breeder told me he was feeding them on mealworms with no issues... Guess he just hasn't had issues so far...

 

[KarenInCA]

Some of the people here order crickets with good success on getting healthy ones. I dont have to order them, because we have a reptile store in our town. But hopefully someone here can give you info on where they shop online. There are some reputable online shops that appear to be a good price as well.

A baby beardie should be eating 80% protein (best live)...and 20% veggies. But I agree with what has already been pointed out, meal worms are not considered to be a good stable in their diets. Phoenix worms are also an excellent source of protein, and have a high calcium ratio...and they are small enough for your little guy to eat whole. Those too can be shipped to you. You don't need to refrigerate or feed them, although they will live the longest in 50-60 degree temps, and they will last in the cup they come in, for about 2-3 weeks before they start to become a solid black and then eventually turn in to a black soldier fly.

 

[CooperDragon]

I used premiumcrickets with very good results. I'd order 1,000 at a time and that lasted about a month. I'm not sure what their shipping range is though. Which country do you live in? There may be supplier that is closer who can get them to you more safely.

 

[Taterbug]

You may also have some luck at bait stores, they sometimes sell crickets for fishermen. You can use them as feeders or to help start a cricket colony.

There may be other feeder options in your country, including various species of tropical cockroaches, isopods and other bugs.

Since mealworms are what you have to work with now, make the best of them. Keep them well fed and with access to moisture. My superworms love lettuce. Try to offer the softest bodied ones that you can, and spread out the feedings rather than all at once to help minimize impaction risks. Make sure your husbandry is spot on, offer the dragon water orally (drip on its nose) and ensure that your humidity is not too low. Aim for around 30-40%. Impaction is a much higher risk at low temps in dehydrated animals.

 

[Tonja]

do not use crickets from bait shops due to the dangers of parasites and pesticides. If you can get some adult female crickets, they have 3 probes on the back end, one being black. The adult females are usually ready to lay eggs. Put them in a container where you have a temp of at least 85 degrees. Then put a bowl full of a safe dirt in the bowl and wet it enough so its not soppy wet but wet to the bottom of the container. Put a piece of screen over the top so they females can lay. Put it in with your crickets and the females will lay eggs in it. The eggs will look like tiny grains of rice. Don't disturb the bowl and after two weeks take it out and put it in a separate container where you will keep the dirt moist and a temperature of about 85 degrees. Within another 2 weeks or so you will start to see tiny tiny crickets emerge from the eggs. One female cricket can lay as many as 200 or more eggs at a time. I keep my breeding and feeder crickets in a 20 gallon tank with a heat pad. I rotate out the lay bowls every 2 weeks. Make sure you have water crystals or a wet sponge in the tank with the crickets and greens. In the nursery tank, after two weeks I take the bowl out and put the new one that has fresh laid eggs in. Clean the bowl the that I took out of the nursery tank and put it back into the breeder tank. I know this sounds confusing but there are some good videos on breeding crickets <its really easy, I now have hundreds and hundreds of baby crickets>. After these babies are old enough they will go into the 20 gallon tank as feeders. I wont have to buy anymore crickets once these are older and start laying their own eggs. I do not feed my large females or males as they will continue to breed and lay throughout their adult life cycle.

 

[any2117]

Thank you all for your help!
I managed to get around 200 crickets today... fed four to my dragon and he went nuts for them... guess that's all the hint I need. Hopefully I'll have my own colony soon. Thanks again to all of you! =)

 

[Taterbug]

Good luck growing your crickets!

 

[jarich]

I live in a very small country, and feeders are really hard to find... I should be getting a few crickets next week but the others are impossible to get. I only have access to canned insects, mealworms, pinkies and the occasional cricket or superworm.... are mealworms really that bad? If that's so.... Then I have no idea what to do...

Just curious, but what country are you from? We might be able to recommend different places to shop from for more variety.