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More than any other topic, people ask a lot of questions about their bearded dragon’s diet. They worry about the risks of overfeeding (or even worse, underfeeding) their pets, making sure they get the right nutrition, and stay healthy.
If you’re looking for a quick answer on how much to feed your beardy, it’s just not that simple. There is a lot to take into account, including your pet’s age and the other things you’re feeding it.
In this article, we’ll talk about how many feeder insects you should be feeding your beardy, but also how to build a balanced diet that doesn’t leave anything out. Let’s get into it.
Bearded Dragon Biology
The bearded dragon (genus Pogona) is a group of lizards that live on the ground and in trees in Australia. The kind commonly kept as pets are native to the more arid, desert parts of the continent. Beardies are omnivores by nature, meaning they need a healthy mix of protein (from insects), leafy greens, and fruits. But what kind of mix has the right stuff to get them all the nutrients they need?
Let’s start with protein. Bearded dragons need high concentrations of three things in their feeder insects: fat, protein, and calcium. Ideally, you should give your beardy as much variety as you can, so some owners will actually keep two feeder insects on hand for regular use. One is something like a dubia roach, which is higher in protein, while another could be something like a superworm, which is fattier.
Either way, you will need to dust your feeders with calcium supplement to get them to meet the third requirement. Feeder insects rarely have enough calcium on their own to meet reptiles’ needs, so dusting is a must.
If you’re only using one feeder, mealworms are a good option for protein and fat. But beware, mealworms have a lot of fiber in them, which can give your beardy digestive problems. Constipation can be a serious health problem in bearded dragons. So if you choose to use mealworms, watch your beardy closely. If their digestion gets weird, you will want to change feeders.
How Beardies’ Diets Change
One of the critical things to know about what, and how, bearded dragons eat is that their diets change as they get older. Juveniles are much more carnivorous, chowing down on protein and energy-rich fat to promote growth. At this stage, the main challenge is getting them to eat their veggies.
As your beardy ages, it will become more partial to vegetables and fruits. Older adults may lose interest in hunting somewhat, and you may want to switch feeders to something larger and more sedentary.
Sizing Your Feeders
The rule of thumb for picking out feeder insects is that they should be as long as the space between your beardy’s eyes. Mealworms are a medium-size feeder, maxing out at around 1 1/4” long. Using smaller feeders, this will do for baby and juvenile bearded dragons. But full-grown adults will need to move up to something larger.
The typical example we use for an adult-size feeder is the superworm. Superworms are a close cousin of mealworms (both in the darkling beetle family, Tenebrionidae). Another good option we’ve already mentioned are dubia roaches, which run the full gamut from ⅛” to a maximum of 1 1/2” or more.
Fruits and Veggies
But feeder insects are just one part of a bearded dragon’s diet. They also need lots of leafy greens, and the occasional piece of sweet fruit. When we say “leafy greens,” we mean hearty, super-healthy stuff like kale, collard greens, and mustard greens.
Beardies go crazy for a little fruit. Well, they’ll actually go crazy for any amount you give them. But you should keep the portions small, because too much sugar can contribute to obesity and other health problems. The other nutrients in tropical fruits like mango, banana, papaya, or apple are very healthy for them, though.
Juvenile Bearded Dragon Feeding Schedule
Baby bearded dragons need as much insect protein and fat as they can get. They’re rapidly growing at this stage, and a high protein diet supports growth.
To support that, you want to do one large feeding of insects per day. Give your beardy five or six insects (making sure they’re the right size) once per day. We used to think that the best way to do these feedings was to give your beardy as many insects as they would take in 10-15 minutes, but some research has shown that this kind of feeding can lead to obesity.
Supplement this daily feeding with a mix of leafy greens and the occasional fruity treat. We recommend giving your beardy their vegetables first, and waiting until the afternoon to give them their insects.
Subadult Bearded Dragon Feeding Schedule
Around 6 months old, your beardy will graduate into the subadult stage. At this point, you want to continue the salad feeding once per day, and include fruit treats every so often. The size of your insect feedings will be about the same, but you will want to start skipping days.
So subadult bearded dragons should get five to six appropriately-sized feeders every other day, rather than every day. Remember to dust your feeders with a calcium supplement so they get all their vital nutrients.
Adult Bearded Dragon Feeding Schedule
After a year, your beardy is an adult. Adult bearded dragons primarily eat vegetables, so you will want to pare back how often you offer them insects once again. But you want to continue offering them leafy greens every day, and continue giving them fruit treats.
Adult bearded dragons need five to six appropriately-sized feeders, two times per week. Remember that your feeders should increase in size with your beardy. As your bearded dragon grows, you may need to shift to a larger feeder to accommodate them. Continue monitoring their health and making changes as needed.