Rokwell34
New member
I recently bought an adult dragon 2 days ago and trying to get him to eat veggies. He's ate 2 pieces of squash but just wants to eat live bugs
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Bearded dragon wont eat his greens
- Thread starter Rokwell34
- Start date
E.Shell
Active member
Having him for only two days, I wouldn't be too worried and if he's eating anything at all...good. They can refuse food altogether when they are stressed from moving, etc. and may take a while to settle in.
Mine will eat a few bites of squash, blueberries and other stuff, then refuse it like they think I'm trying to poison them or something. Next time, same thing...eat it greedily, then not want any more right then. With hard stuff like squash, be sure to cut it small enough to easily eat and digest. You might also try kale, collards, mustard greens and small amounts of sweet, non-citrus fruits. One thing you can do is cut the leafy stuff up into 1" pieces and mix in a little bit of diced fruit like watermelon or cantaloupe, loosely toss it into a bowl with a few crickets or dubia and let him pick through it for the bugs. He'll eventually get interested in plant matter, and as they age they can go more for veggies, but they'll almost always prefer live food.
Mine will eat a few bites of squash, blueberries and other stuff, then refuse it like they think I'm trying to poison them or something. Next time, same thing...eat it greedily, then not want any more right then. With hard stuff like squash, be sure to cut it small enough to easily eat and digest. You might also try kale, collards, mustard greens and small amounts of sweet, non-citrus fruits. One thing you can do is cut the leafy stuff up into 1" pieces and mix in a little bit of diced fruit like watermelon or cantaloupe, loosely toss it into a bowl with a few crickets or dubia and let him pick through it for the bugs. He'll eventually get interested in plant matter, and as they age they can go more for veggies, but they'll almost always prefer live food.
Rokwell34
New member
Thx for the info. I've chopped some collard greens and squash and only way that he's ate the 2 pieces is I put a small piece on a skewer and put it in front of him. What's a good place to get dubia roaches
E.Shell
Active member
Your lizard is likely not really comfortable enough yet to eat readily, but I suspect moving the food triggered a feeding response and he ate it without actually wanting it. Mine will do that occasionally...when they are undecided about a food item, I'll slip it into any slight opening in their mouth and they'll just sort of reflexively eat it.
I'd suggest being patient with him and see if he doesn't come around in a few days.
Review the care sheets and make sure there is a warm side that is warm enough and a cool place he can retreat to. If the BD is not warm enough, he will not want to eat.
If he is still slow to respond in a few days, I'd give him a warm bath. Not too warm, again, check the care sheets, and don't leave him unattended in the water. This 20-30 minute soak in an inch or so of water both hydrates them and usually triggers a bowel movement, which, in turn, makes more room above and might incline him to eat.
Compared to crickets, B. dubia roaches are a great food item. Easy to maintain and breed, quiet, low odor, easy to handle, don't go jumping away, easy to gut load, dragons love them.
There are members here that breed and sell feeders like B. dubia for reasonable prices. You should probably start your BD on 'mediums' or 'medium/smalls'. Recall the standard advice about food items that should fit between the bearded dragon's eyes to safely pass their digestive tract.
If you decide to get a colony going, dubia are easy to sustain. I started with a few hundred to feed four BDs and ended up giving away thousands of them, both an ongoing production surplus and as a bulk give away when I discovered I was allergic to them.
I'd suggest being patient with him and see if he doesn't come around in a few days.
Review the care sheets and make sure there is a warm side that is warm enough and a cool place he can retreat to. If the BD is not warm enough, he will not want to eat.
If he is still slow to respond in a few days, I'd give him a warm bath. Not too warm, again, check the care sheets, and don't leave him unattended in the water. This 20-30 minute soak in an inch or so of water both hydrates them and usually triggers a bowel movement, which, in turn, makes more room above and might incline him to eat.
Compared to crickets, B. dubia roaches are a great food item. Easy to maintain and breed, quiet, low odor, easy to handle, don't go jumping away, easy to gut load, dragons love them.
There are members here that breed and sell feeders like B. dubia for reasonable prices. You should probably start your BD on 'mediums' or 'medium/smalls'. Recall the standard advice about food items that should fit between the bearded dragon's eyes to safely pass their digestive tract.
If you decide to get a colony going, dubia are easy to sustain. I started with a few hundred to feed four BDs and ended up giving away thousands of them, both an ongoing production surplus and as a bulk give away when I discovered I was allergic to them.
Rokwell34
New member
The basking side is 88° it's under a 100w bulb. Is that okay? It's the same setup he's had for 3 yrs
Basand
New member
Don't quote me on this, as I am a ball python breeder not a dragon breeder, but I believe their hotspots need to be 95-100? Having proper heat is crucial to a cold blooded animal as it helps them to digest.
Firefly713
New member
You should def bump up the heat at his basking spot. As for getting him to eat greens, try some variety. It may just be you haven't hit on what he likes yet. If you gutload his roaches, he will be getting that nutrition anyway so don't worry. I blend veggies that I want my dragon to eat and freeze them in ice cube trays, you can then thaw a cube for your roaches as you need them. There's a YouTube vid on how to do it here(if the link works!): http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BlM9RaCBt_M
Rokwell34
New member
How do I bump the heat up and what veggies do u feed?
Firefly713
New member
I have a ceramic heat lamp, that does the trick. Gradient goes from around 105 basking spot to 80 on the cold side. So in the double bulb holder you'd have your basking spot light and the ceramic. I have the basking light and UV on a timer, ceramic is 24 hours. You prob already have this, but get yourself an infrared thermometer so you can check the temps all over. My guy likes his greens with a bit of heat, faves are arugula and watercress, mustard greens also. He goes insane over strawberries. Every so often he goes on a greens strike, so I give him a day or two of only greens and that usually gets him back to his usual sched of greens in the morning, roaches in the evening.
Rokwell34
New member
No I don't have the ceramic. So it stays on all the time? And do u leave the greens in all day or few moments, if he doesn't pounce on it, u take it out?
Firefly713
New member
Ceramic stays on all the time, and I feed greens in the morning and leave them there. Take them out after work, then a couple hours later it's roach time. If he's not eating his greens for a couple days, I'll skip the roaches to remind him. He's huge tho, would not do that with a baby dragon.