Get my BD 2 eat more??

Question

How do i get my bearded dragon to eat more crix...he is 6months old but not quite big enough to eat meal worms yet...i want to get him to eat more even though its winter and he obviously won't eat as much anyway..but he only ever eats like not even 10 crix a day ...one day he'll eat like 8 and the 2nd day he won't eat any

Answer 1

it is normal the way your bd is eating.they will eat what they need.as they get older they willnot eat as much as when they were younger.just make sure it is eating both crickets and fruit and veg

Answer 2

I hope you are not only feeding it crickets. give it veges as well, there is a large variety they can eat. Especially at ony 6 mnths, he needs more veges than crickets. peas, broccilli, carrot etc

Answer 3

Feeding/supplementation:

Bearded dragons are omnivorous and should feed on both vegetation and protein. Crickets, mealworms, superworms, and a salad mixture should be staple food sources. Never feed your dragon too large of a prey item. We suggest feeding prey 1/2 to 3/4 the size of the space between your dragons eyes.

Dragons require a variety of greens including collard greens, red leaf lettuce, green leaf lettuce, mustard greens, turnip greens, and dandelion greens. Stay away from iceberg lettuce, large amounts of kale, cabbage, or spinach. We also suggest a variety of vegetables such as carrots, squash, sweet potatoes, peas, corn, and fruits offered in small amounts. Other specialty additions can include cactus fruit, dandelion flowers, and hibiscus flowers. This salad mix can be offered daily using different combinations of ingredients.

When feeding crickets, make sure your source of crickets is clean. You may gutload your crickets with commercial cricket and/or we suggest offering your crickets fresh fruit, greens, and water. Remove all old food from your cricket container. Mold can be toxic to your lizards. We suggest using a moistened paper towel/sponge, citrus, or carrots to provide water for your crickets.

Whenever possible try and provide a variety of appropriate sized prey items for your dragon including super worms, silk worms, roaches, grasshoppers, preying mantis, and a variety of other bugs (not fireflies). However we strongly suggest not using bugs found outside, as they may have pesticides that can kill your dragon. Also, use waxworms in limited amounts, if at all. They contain little nutritional value, and although relished by the dragons, contain high amounts of fat.

You can also feed rep cal pellets to your dragons at a young age. The best method we have found to start dragons on the pellets is to moisten the pellets, and drop them like crickets onto a paper plate in front of the dragons. This will generally trigger a feeding response from the dragons. Generally they will only eat a couple of pellets in the beginning, but with patience and age they will start to feed heavily on the pellets. The pellets have less risk of parasites, associated with much live prey.

You can also feed pinky mice/rats to adult dragons; this is especially good for females during the breeding season.

We feed all of our hatchlings a minimum of three times a day to ensure optimum growth and health. As dragons get older, their appetite will decrease. For adult dragons, you can offer greens daily and crickets or worms 3-4 times per week. As dragons get older, you may decrease the amount of protein offered.

We suggest misting your dragons once a day, especially as hatchlings. Dragons will drink during spraying and may also be "trained" to drink and soak in a water dish inside the enclosure. They also enjoy an occasional warm (not hot) bath.

Supplementation:

There are many different and often contradictory opinions/views on supplementation. Calcium, D3, and vitamin supplementation are necessary for your dragons. However, supplementation will depend on what you feed your dragons, the bulbs you use, and how much natural sun they receive. Many sources recommend supplementing small dragons daily and decreasing to once or twice per week for adult dragons. But both too little and too much supplementation can lead to problems. Therefore, we recommend going over this with your vet to find a schedule that suits the specific needs of your dragon. We suggest you supplement your young dragons daily with a ratio of 1 part Rep-Cal Herptivite to 3 parts Rep-Cal calcium with Vitamin D3.

Diseases & Disorders:

Bearded dragons are one of the hardiest reptiles available in the pet trade, yet they still can succumb to numerous diseases and problems.

We are not veterinarians; please do not use this information as a replacement for taking your lizard to a vet. This information is meant to raise your awareness of signs and possible problems. If you notice that your lizard is ill, do not hesitate to make an appointment with a reptile specialist.

Several pointers to ensure optimal health for your lizard:

Follow all housing, heating/lighting, and feeding/supplementation requirements for your lizard.

Quarantine all new reptiles.

DO NOT HOUSE YOUR BEARDED DRAGON WITH ANY OTHER SPECIES OF REPTILE. Different reptiles come from many different environments requiring different needs in captivity. Even animals that come from similar environments can cause stress and pass parasites onto your dragon, costing the life of your lizard.

Do not house bearded dragons of different sizes together--this is a sure problem for the smaller dragons' health.

We recommend housing males separately. You may even need to prevent males from seeing each other across cages.

Keep your cages and food CLEAN! Clean and sift p**p often. Remove all old food.

Wash your hands before and after handling your lizard. Be sure to sanitize hands in between handling different reptile species. (Hand sanitizer is a good thing to have handy).

Calcium/vitamin deficiency:

This is a serious problem that can have permanent effects on the life of your bearded dragon. Too little D3 and calcium can lead to metabolic bone disease. Some early symptoms of this problem include the shaking, twitching, or stiffness of limbs (especially rear legs), separation of the mouth, and difficulty chewing food. If this problem is caught early enough, supplementation and exposure to natural sun can be good remedies. Calcium deficiency is often seen in older dragons, or under supplemented dragons. There is also the possibility of over supplementing your dragons, causing a myriad of problems all its own.

Answer 4

maybe u have an anorexic bearded dragon. or he.she has no apetite so it doesnt eat but that could reslt because its sick. maybe take it to the vet for a check up.

Answer 5

Let him eat as he wants, but make sure he is warm enough, without heat he cannot digest his food. Also many people don't know that Bearded Dragons need UV lighting, without it they will eventually die. But make sure his tank is warm enough and make sure he is not eating only crickets, they also need romaine and dandilion heads and other veggies, though I assume you already know that. :) anyways, if you have and are doing all of this then you dragon is eating as much as he needs.

I hope this helped!