Juvenile bearded dragon (4 yrs of age or younger) diets will consist of 80% insects, 15% greens & veg (twice a week), and 5% fruit (once a month).

Adult bearded dragon diets will consist of 80% greens & veg, 15% insects (twice a week), and 5% fruit (once a month).

Dragons also love flowers and herbs to mix it up from time to time.

There are many greens, vegetables, and fruits that are safe for bearded dragons to eat. Click HERE to see a list of over 50 safe plant foods.

It is HIGHLY recommended to use Organic only. Frasier Farms has a great selection of what you need at a reasonable cost. 

You want to feed a ‘fist full’ of plant food for adults and half that for juveniles and then offer more if they still seem hungry.

Below is a list of the most common staple plant foods that you can feed your bearded dragon on a regular basis.  Keep in mind, this is only for one animal so don’t buy more than will stay fresh.  Many have their own small garden just for their dragons to save on cost, which is great if you have kids helping with their care.

MAKE SURE you ask or do your research before feeding anything that is not listed below – for example Spinach and Chard is a big NONO.

The items in BOLD are what we use most at the rescue – all veg must be bite sized, taking special care if you have a juvenile:

Greens

Raw Veggies (unless otherwise specified)

Fruits (once a month and small amounts)

Herbs / Flowers (sparingly or as treats) (click HERE for a more in-depth list)

 Insects - Bearded dragons will eat just about any insect that moves, however it is up to you to make sure that they only eat safe bugs. You should never feed your bearded dragon bugs that you have found in your house or on your property even if you do not use pesticides.  Those bugs could contain parasites and/or pesticides that may cause negative health effects on bearded dragons.

*These grow and morph into moth’s VERY fast so try to only buy one or a few at a time if you can.  Juveniles should only eat them when they are on the smaller size.  These are like Big Macs and should only be fed occasionally.  They are full of fat and water.

**These are very healthy for dragons and provide enrichment and exercise BUT you should not feed them in the enclosure.  A separate container like a tub or a 10-20 gallon tank work well. 

***These are like French Fries and should only be given as a treat, to provide variety, or if your dragons fat packets are looking low.  We use Black Soldier Fly Larva instead as these are high in calcium, which is why they are also called Calci worms.

****These are very low in nutritional value but provide enrichment and exercise BUT you should not feed them in the enclosure.  A separate container like a tub or a 10-20 gallon tank work well – Black Mexican Crickets are more hardy, live longer, do not jump as much, and are more nutritional.

SBRSC Bug Portion Guide Per Feeding

Juveniles:

Large or Giant Mealworms – 15-20 or 25 if not in combination with other bugs – staple food

                Calci-worms – 5-10, usually with other bugs

                Hornworms – 1-2 bi-weekly or as a treat

                Dubias or Black Mexican Crickets – small to medium in size – as many as the dragon will eat in 15 minutes

Adults:

Giant Mealworms – 10-15 or 15-25 if not in combination with other bugs – staple food

                Super Worms – 5-8 – always fed in combination with other mealworms and greens and veg mix – staple food

                Calci-worms – 5-10, usually with other bugs

                Hornworms – 1-2 bi-weekly or as a treat

                Dubias or Black Mexican Crickets – medium to large in size – as many as the dragon will eat in 15 minutes

Alternatives

Some animals, such as bearded dragons, will readily consume canned insects or snails if mixed with their ‘salad’.   These are good to have if you are not able to find or buy live or if you want to mix up the variety.

Dragons that normally hunt live prey may need to be enticed to try canned foods at first by moving the food around in front of them. You can use a pair of feeding tongs (https://amzn.to/4daUXGY - Amazon) to gently wiggle food, giving it a life-like appearance or you could get the Vibrating Feeding Dish (https://amzn.to/3WbNcdE - Amazon)

Here are is what we use at the rescue:

·         Josh’s Frogs Super Worms - https://amzn.to/3UpyfTX - Amazon

·         Josh’s Frogs Crickets - https://amzn.to/4d2W3EF - Amazon

·         Josh’s Frogs Grasshoppers - https://amzn.to/3Q9zQKX - Amazon

·         Exo Terra Mealworms - https://amzn.to/3vVHnXc - Amazon

·         Exo Terra Silkworms - https://amzn.to/3xLrKSC - Amazon

·         Exo Terra Fly Larvae - https://amzn.to/3xNnvWJ - Amazon

·         Fluker’s Regular Dubia Roaches - https://amzn.to/4b1nywc - Amazon

·         Fluker’s Small Dubia Roaches - https://amzn.to/3Uu40v5 - Amazon

·         Exotic Nutrition Snails (no shell) - https://amzn.to/3U9BhKS - Amazon

You can also provide dried flowers for your dragon that can be served in a salad dry or rehydrated. We use Zoo Med Flower Food Topper - https://amzn.to/3UuhdEo - Amazon - when we don’t have fresh.

Supplements

Tap water is healthy for your animals because of the minerals in it but you will need to remove the chlorine from it with Zoomed ReptiSafe Water Conditioner for Reptiles - https://amzn.to/480MCBM - Amazon.  This is to be used in drinking water and soaking water.

We recommend that you use the Supplement Powder Mix every time that you feed a protein source to your dragon.  We make a mix that is kept in a small container (like a recycled baby food jar) of the following supplements:

·         Rep-Cal Calcium with Vitamin D3 - https://amzn.to/3OdOtMx - Amazon - 1 tsp (required)

·         Rep-Cal Herptivite Multivitamin with Beta Carotene - https://amzn.to/3S9vZhs - Amazon - 1 tsp (required)

·         Exotic Nutrition Bee Pollen - https://amzn.to/3U8oRmh - Amazon - 1/2 tsp crushed with a mini mortar and pestle set - https://amzn.to/4b3N2Jy - Amazon (recommended)

·         Spirulina Powder (for those who don’t like their greens) - https://amzn.to/49MLa72 - Amazon - 1/2 tsp

SBRSC Feeding Schedule

This is a good starting point and baseline that you can then branch off from as you build your relationship with your dragon and their likes and dislikes.

ADULT

Monday - leafy greens and veggies (we use red, yellow or orange bell pepper, yellow squash, & finely chopped rainbow carrots)

Tuesday - leafy greens and bugs dusted with calcium/vitamin powder (We mix collard greens, dandelion, & mustard greens)

Wednesday - no food

Thursday - leafy greens and veggies (red, yellow or orange bell pepper, yellow squash, pealed cucumber all finely chopped) with a little bit of fruit (1 raspberry, 1 blueberry, or finely chopped apple)

Friday - leafy greens and bugs dusted with calcium/vitamin powder

Saturday - no food

Sunday - leafy greens and bugs 

JUVENILE

Monday - leafy greens and veggies (we use red, yellow or orange bell pepper, yellow squash, & finely chopped rainbow carrots) and bugs

Tuesday - leafy greens and bugs dusted with calcium/vitamin powder (We mix collard greens, dandelion, & mustard greens)

Wednesday - no food

Thursday - leafy greens, bugs and veggies (red, yellow or orange bell pepper, yellow squash, pealed cucumber all finely chopped) with a little bit of fruit (1 raspberry, 1 blueberry, or finely chopped apple)

Friday - leafy greens and bugs dusted with calcium/vitamin powder

Saturday - no food

Sunday - bugs