If you’ve ever sat and stared at a bearded dragon, you know they aren't exactly the most high-octane athletes of the animal kingdom. They spend a lot of time just... sitting. But the second a dubia roach skitters across the enclosure, everything changes. They turn into tiny, scaly terminators.
Understanding what do bearded dragons eat is basically the difference between having a pet that thrives for fifteen years and one that struggles with metabolic bone disease or obesity within three. Most new owners think it's just about tossing in some crickets and a piece of lettuce once in a while. Honestly? That's a recipe for a very sick lizard. These guys are omnivores, but their needs shift drastically as they age, almost like how a human toddler eats differently than a grown adult.
It’s a weird balance of insects and greens.
The Great Bug Debate: Live Feeders Only
First things first: your dragon needs live prey. If you're squeamish about bugs, a bearded dragon might actually be your worst nightmare. Dead, canned, or vacuum-sealed insects lose a ton of their nutritional value and, frankly, most dragons won't even look at them because they're triggered by movement.
Dubia roaches are the gold standard. They don't jump, they don't smell, and they are packed with protein. Compare that to crickets, which are loud, die easily, and can actually bite your dragon back if left in the tank overnight. It's a bit of a horror movie scenario if you leave a dozen crickets in there and your dragon is trying to sleep while being nibbled on.
Black soldier fly larvae—often sold under brand names like NutriGrubs or Phoenix Worms—are another heavy hitter. They are naturally high in calcium, which is huge. Bearded dragons need a very specific calcium-to-phosphorus ratio to keep their bones from turning to mush.
Avoid mealworms for babies.
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The shells are made of chitin, which is basically a biological plastic that’s hard for tiny guts to digest. It can lead to impaction, which is a fancy way of saying your lizard gets a life-threatening blockage in its intestines. Stick to softer feeders until they’re at least 12 inches long.
Why Variety Actually Matters
Imagine eating nothing but chicken nuggets for every meal. You’d survive, but you’d feel like garbage. Dragons are the same. You want to rotate between:
- Silkworms: Great for hydration and contains an enzyme called serrapeptase that aids calcium absorption.
- Hornworms: These bright green monsters are like giant water balloons. Use them sparingly as a treat or if your dragon is dehydrated.
- Butterworms: High fat. Think of these as the cheesecake of the reptile world.
- Superworms: Only for adults. They’re crunchy and exciting but can be addictive.
The Salad Struggle is Real
When they are babies, dragons are basically 80% bug-driven. They need that protein to sprout from a four-inch hatchling into a nearly two-foot dinosaur in a year. But as they hit adulthood, the script flips. An adult bearded dragon should be eating roughly 70% to 80% greens and vegetables.
Getting an adult dragon to eat their salad is sometimes like trying to convince a kid to eat broccoli instead of candy. They will look at you with pure judgment.
The base of every salad should be dark, leafy greens. Not iceberg lettuce. Iceberg is basically crunchy water and has zero nutritional value. It’ll just give your dragon diarrhea. Instead, reach for collard greens, mustard greens, turnip greens, or escarole.
Dandelion greens are a secret weapon. Most people pull them out of their yards as weeds, but they are incredibly nutrient-dense for reptiles. Just make sure you aren't picking them from a lawn that's been sprayed with pesticides. That’s an easy way to accidentally poison your pet.
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Veggies and Fruits: The "Sometimes" Foods
You can't just do greens. You need colors. Shredded butternut squash, bell peppers (not the spicy ones!), and snap peas add texture and vitamins.
Fruit is a tricky one. Bearded dragons love fruit because it’s sweet, but their mouths aren't designed to handle that much sugar. Too much fruit leads to mouth rot and tooth decay. Yes, lizards can get cavities. Keep berries, papaya, and melon to a once-a-week treat. Avoid citrus entirely; the acid is way too harsh on their digestive systems.
The Invisible Nutrients: Calcium and D3
Even if you provide the perfect menu, your dragon will die without supplements. In the wild, they get hit with intense Australian sun all day. In a glass box in your living room, they need help.
You have to "dust" their bugs with calcium powder. It’s exactly what it sounds like—you put the bugs in a bag or cup with some powder, shake them until they look like powdered donuts, and serve.
If you don't have a high-quality T5 UVB tube light, you need calcium with Vitamin D3. If your lighting is top-tier, you might only need D3 occasionally. It’s a delicate dance. Without Vitamin D3, their bodies literally cannot process the calcium you’re giving them. They’ll start twitching, their jaws will get soft, and their limbs will bow. It’s heartbreaking to watch and entirely preventable.
Toxic Foods: What to Never Feed
There are things that seem healthy but are actually lethal.
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- Avocado: Extremely toxic. Never even a tiny bit.
- Rhubarb: Contains high levels of oxalates that bind calcium and can cause rapid kidney failure.
- Beet Greens/Spinach: These contain oxalates too. A tiny bit won't kill them, but it blocks calcium absorption, so it’s better to just skip them.
- Fireflies: Just one firefly can kill a full-grown bearded dragon. The chemicals that make them glow are a potent cardiotoxin for reptiles.
- Wild-caught bugs: You don’t know where they’ve been or what parasites they’re carrying.
How Often Should You Feed Them?
A hatchling needs to eat like it’s their job. We’re talking three times a day, as many bugs as they can eat in a 10-minute window. It’s expensive. You will go through thousands of bugs.
By the time they are a year old, you can scale back to bugs every other day, or even every two days, while keeping a fresh bowl of greens available every single morning.
Hydration is part of the "eat" equation too. Many dragons don't recognize standing water in a bowl. They expect to drink dew or rain. Misting their greens with water is the easiest way to trick them into staying hydrated. If their "urates"—the white part of their poop—are hard and yellow instead of soft and white, your dragon is thirsty.
The Reality of Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD)
The reason everyone obsesses over what do bearded dragons eat isn't just because we want them to be happy; it's because MBD is a nightmare. This disease is the most common killer of captive reptiles. When the dragon doesn't get enough calcium or UVB light, its body starts pulling calcium from its own bones to keep its heart beating.
The bones become porous and weak. They snap just from the dragon trying to walk. You’ll see "rubber jaw," where the lower jaw hangs open because the bone is too soft to hold its shape. If you catch it early, you can stop the progression, but the skeletal deformities are permanent. This is why the diet isn't just a suggestion—it's the foundation of their entire existence.
Actionable Steps for Your Dragon's Menu
If you're looking to overhaul your dragon's diet right now, start with these specific moves:
- Audit your greens: Swap out any kale or spinach for collard or mustard greens to ensure maximum calcium bioavailability.
- Ditch the crickets for dubias: If your local pet store doesn't have them, order them online in bulk. It's cheaper and significantly healthier for the lizard.
- Invest in a kitchen scale: Weigh your dragon weekly. Weight loss is often the first sign of a parasite load or a nutritional deficiency before they actually "look" sick.
- Check your bulbs: If your UVB bulb is a screw-in "coil" type, replace it with a T5 linear tube. The coil bulbs don't provide enough coverage for proper digestion.
- Gut-load your insects: Feed your feeder bugs high-quality veggies 24 hours before giving them to your dragon. Whatever the bug eats, the dragon eats.
The goal is to mimic the Australian outback as much as possible within the confines of a 120-gallon tank. It takes effort, but watching a healthy, vibrant dragon hunt is one of the most rewarding parts of being a reptile keeper. Keep the salads fresh, the bugs jumping, and the calcium flowing.
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