Leafy Green Vegetables to Feed Your Bearded Dragon

Grownup bearded dragons need a variety of darkish, leafy greens to eat daily. Together with some crickets and completely different bugs, these greens current the dietary nutritional vitamins and minerals they need to preserve sturdy and healthful.

What Darkish, Leafy Greens You Can Feed Your Bearded Dragon

Bearded dragons should eat a variety of completely completely different darkish, leafy inexperienced greens. Completely completely different greens have completely completely different vitamin and calcium contents. By mixing up what you give your lizard, you’ll make sure you’re feeding him a balanced weight reduction program.

The overwhelming majority of the greens that you simply simply provide should have a greater calcium to phosphorous ratio, to cease and correct metabolic bone sickness. Completely different greens embrace:

• Endive (escarole) (has a 1.9:1 calcium to phos. ratio)
• Radicchio

• Chicory (has a 2.1:1 calcium to phos. ratio)
• Spring Mix (romaine, oak leaf lettuce, endive, chicory)
• Carrot Tops

Greens that embody low portions of oxalates and bind calcium must be supplied in small portions and by no means excluded absolutely from the load loss program:

• Mustard Greens (incorporates 7.7 mg of oxalates per 100 g of greens)
• Watercress (incorporates 10 mg of oxalates per 100 g of greens, has a 2:1 calcium to phos. ratio)
• Kale (incorporates 13 mg of oxalates per 100 g of greens, has a 2.4:1 calcium to phos. ratio)

• Dandelion Greens (incorporates 24.6 mg of oxalates per 100 g of greens, has a 2.8:1 calcium to phos. ratio)
• Escarole (incorporates 31 mg of oxalates per 100 g of greens)

Greens that embody extreme portions of oxalates and bind calcium should solely be supplied on a unusual occasion and in very small portions (if the least bit). Some people advocate avoiding all of them collectively:

• Swiss Chard (incorporates 645 mg of oxalates per 100 g of greens, has a 1.1:1 calcium to phos. ratio)
• Spinach (incorporates 600-750 mg of oxalates per 100 g of greens, has a 2:1 calcium to phos. ratio)
• Beet Greens (incorporates 610 mg of oxalates per 100 g of greens, has a 3:1 calcium to phos. ratio)
• Parsley (incorporates 100 mg of oxalates per 100 g of greens, has a 2.4:1 calcium to phos. ratio)
• Collard Greens (incorporates 74 mg of oxalates per 100 g of greens, has a 14.5:1 calcium to phos. ratio)

Romaine, iceberg, pink, and inexperienced lettuces should solely be supplied in small portions (certain, spring mix incorporates a number of of those). They’re primarily fabricated from water and are largely devoid of dietary value. Then once more, in case your beardie is dehydrated or doesn’t have entry to water for some trigger, it is good to feed these lettuces. 

What to Do If Your Bearded Dragon Is not going to Eat These Greens

Many bearded dragons develop preferences for certain greens and alter into picky when it comes time to eat. They may solely want what is just not good for them, nevertheless that doesn’t indicate that’s all they should be fed. When dealing with a finicky eater, proceed to produce a variety of greens mixed up as a salad. In case your beardie normally eats bugs with no points, try together with them to the salad to get his consideration. If that doesn’t work, you may too try together with small portions of pink fruits harking back to pink raspberries or strawberries as “sprinkles” on prime of the salad. The pink color normally attracts his consideration to his salad and can entice him to eat. 

Some people have had luck with together with in some colored bearded dragon pelleted meals from the pet retailer. 

What Else Your Bearded Dragon Must Eat

Together with a variety of greens, your bearded dragon should get a great deal of gut-loaded crickets and completely different bugs, some fruits, and greens harking back to squash and bell peppers.

Bearded dragon pellets mustn’t advisable as a staple meals nevertheless are okay to produce alongside the greens and completely different meals which could be further pure than pellets.

Together with a lightweight dusting of calcium powder to your dragon’s salad a few situations per week may also be a very good suggestion to make sure he is getting adequate portions of the mandatory mineral.