Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a question for you folks. I have a bearded dragon that will be two years of age this spring. For the last year or so I have been feeding him silkworms. Because he is obviously an adult my question is how many and how often am I supposed to feed him silkworms?

I have heard anything from 5-6 once a week to every other day. I am getting confused.

Thanks in advance for your help.

A beardie really needs a balanced diet, rather than one thing constantly. You should be alternating between crickets, mealworms/superworms, and silkworms so that he gets different nutrients everyday. This should also be in rotation to greens and leafy vegetables that are not high in oxylades. Oxylades restrict calcium by binding with the molecules, making them useless to animals. The more oxylades the animal takes in, the less acutal calcium they get. Spinach, Kale, Broccoli and Parsley are high in oxylades, so feed them very sparingly (as an occasional snack, not a staple). Fruits are good, but avoid high citrus content. Carrots should also be used occasionally, since too much can result in a condition called Vitamin-A toxicidity which is lethal. Lettuce is made up of primarily water, and as such should be a snack rather than a staple. Too much lettuce causes runny stools and lets nutrients pass through faster than normal.

Dandelion greens (store bought), collards, mustard greens, bok choy, turnip greens, escarole, and chicory should be used as a primary diet. Supplement with various "snack" foods like a small lettuce leaf, a parsley sprig, chopped broccoli, or a little shredded carrot now and then will make him happy (although you might want to bury the snack food IN your salad, mine got in the habit of picking out the snack foods rather than eating what he was supposed to, smart little guy!!!). I also sprinkle in beardie pellets and other diet-specific foods like dragon yummies as a little surprise for him (and to try and coax him into eating pellets as well).

A wide variety of other vegetables can also be offered to your Beardie. Butternut squash, Yellow squash, Spaghetti squash, Acorn squash, all other varieties of squash, Green beans, Parsnips, Sweet potato, and Snow peas are all good. Squashes will either have to be cooked or micro-waved before feeding them to your Beardie. This will soften them up and they can then be minced and eaten easier.

Hope this helps.

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Dl

It's hard to answer your question. Silkworms go from very small to almost 3". So obviously it depends on size. Also the proper amount of food depends on the size of the dragon. I generally give my adults some live food pretty much every day. Some will disagree with this so hear me out.

The best way to monitor your dragon is with a good weight scale. Since healthy adults can weigh anywhere from 300 - 600 grams. Your going to need to get a feel for what is a "good" weight for your dragon depending on it's length and body type.(just like people) Then I just feed them appropriately to maintain their weight while still giving a heathy varied diet.

So If one of mine is gaining weight or not eating most of their salad I cut back on the live food or skip a day. If you want me to pick a number I'd say 2 a day on average.

For adult dragons (and non breeding females) they should get about 10% of their daily food intake as insects. This can be one or two large silkworms daily, or more once or twice a week.

The main reason for cutting back on insects once dragons reach adult hood is to prevent them from getting too obese. Too much protein and fat during the adult years can lead to health problems, many stemming from being over weight, such as fatty liver disease. Hence why I recommend only 10% insects per day or one or two feedings of insects per week.

It is also good to add some variety with insects as well as greens. Silkworms are very healthy feeders compared to others available for dragons, but mixing them up with other insects helps ensure a balance diet. Silkworms are a little high on the fat side but not so high to move them down into the 'feed rarely' catagory as superworms and waxworms are. (waxworms are the worse by far). Giving your dragon a meal of superworms, crickets, butterworms, phoenix worms or roaches once a month for variety certainly will benefit your dragon overall.

Phoenix worms are a great new product who's only drawback is they are small, barely reaching 3/4 of an inch long, if that. For an adult dragon, probably need to feed half the jar to give it a decent fill. (jars typically have 100 worms each).
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PHLdyPayne