Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Im sure this question comes up alot, but im rather new to the forum and i like to see everyones opinions and ideas =)

I would like to kno what greens everyone feeds thier beardies? I feed mine : Curly Endive aka Chicory, Zucchini, Shredded Carrots, Dandelions (greens and flowers) and a little bit of Romaine.

Does anyone give them veggies....besides carrots and zucchini?

Also for insects and stuff i just got me some Dubia (orange spotted) Roaches from Blaberus.com im really tired of crickets. Also ive got some silkworms, goliath hornworms and i ordered some butter worms - side note - i was using phoenix worms and was notticing that they werent being properly digested ie; i was seeing whole PW's in thier scat. I remember seeing a post abt that here before... But i mostly have all those insects to add variety to thier diet...keep them happy.

I feed fresh greens everyday (even if they dont eat them everyday, they always get fresh ones in the morning) I give them a couple of insects every few days as well.

--Anthony

I feed mine Collard, Mustard, and Turnip greens, Dandelion and escarole as staples. In addition I feed Chicory, Carrot tops, Basil, Beet Greens, Romaine, and Arugula occaisionally for variety. All my salads have at least 4 greens rotated randomly.

I also put one or 2 vegs. on most days. I feed squash, zucchini, green beans, peppers, peas, prickly pear and very rarely carrots. (concern over Vitamin A)

One in a while I add a little friut. Their favorites are raspberries, mango, and apple, but I will also feed watermellon, papaya, or blackberries.

This is a great source of nutrition information.

http://www.beautifuldragons.503xtreme.com/Nutrition.html

For insects I feed Crickets, Silkworms, Hornworms (same as Goliath), Superworms (adults only) and will feed roaches when I buy them at a show. Funny you mentioned your observation with the Phoenix Worms. I have mentioned it here a few times before and everyone seems to think I'm nuts. lol. All my dragons have the same problem. Also a former poster here that I talk to directly tried them and had the same problem too. lol.

I feed salads and live food to all my dragons daily. I use a weight scale to manage their weight and decide how much live food to give each.

BTW!!! how do you use the scale system im curious, ive never heard anyone doing that. it sounds rational, i would like to kno how u do that...

Thanks!

Anthony

believe me i got that nutrition list printed out and handy at all times.

only thing ive noticed is that it says that endive is a good daily staple while chicory is not? ive seen Belgium Endive at the local produce store here (a Norman Bros) and when i asked them for curly endive they gave me chicory said its the same thing...

so im wondering if i should change the chicory to something else to feed daily. i like the sound of ur diet it seems very balanced to me. ill look into adding some other things for variety.

im always looking to improve thier diets!

I don't know why her list gives chicory black (feed occasionally) listing rather than a green (staple) listing. Personally I think it is an error as it is low in fat, and has a good CAH ratio. Her list is the best compiled and easiest to use overall list I have seen and it was designed just for bearded dragons, but, don't take it as gospel.

Chicory has a lot of variations. When you buy "Green Dandelion" or "Red Dandelion" or "Italian Dandelion" you are actually buying Chicory. I bought the seeds and grow it myself in the summer. The flowers from these Dandelions will be a blue Chicory flower. I also grow regular Dandelion.

I have tried Belgium Endive but none of my dragons would eat it at all and since it's more expensive I gave up on it.

As far as the weight scale diet, each of my full grown adults has a target weight range. Say it's a 20" male. I'd say 475-500 is pretty good depending on his build. I'm just going to use crix. as an example to make it easy. If his weight approaches 500 I cut back on the crix say to 5 a day. If he still gains I might only give him 2. If he gets towords the low end I might give him 8-10. Eventually you kinda get the feel for it. Keep in mind a good poop weighs about 20 grams.

It's harder with females this time of year. I have a very large female that lays very large clutches of eggs. 36 a few weeks ago with her weight loss after laying 160 grams. I never feed waxworms! But I have to get the weight and calcium back into her in 5 weeks for the next clutch so I feed her all the live food she will eat twice a day. Therefore, with adult females it only works 9 months.

Many dragons love to eat and I am way to soft to feed some every day and some every other day while they watch the others eat. This just seems to work for me. I feed the big female covertly her 2nd meal in the family room. lol.