# bearded dragon only eats livefood..



## emmilllyyy (Oct 9, 2010)

hiya i got my new beardie a couple of days ago and hes completely turning his nose up at any veg i offer him! ive offered him watercress, rocket and spring greens, dusted and some with mealies in to try and entise him with the movement but hes a jammy little b**ger and licks the mealies off of them! he goes mental for livefood and has had a lot of crickets and a few mealies, how can i get him to eat veg? i know it could be that hes in a new place etc, hes in the same viv he was in previously but how long should he go without eating veg before i should start to worry?

emily: victory:


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## bw89 (Jan 11, 2010)

How old is the Dragon? Some baby/young Beardies love greens, and some wont even bat an eyelid. As they get older they incorporate veg into the diet more and more, and by the time they are adult they eat veg most of the time. 

If he or se is a baby, I wouldn't worry about it, but i would offer it daily anyway.:2thumb:

edit: If he is older, try getting the veg wet prior to serving, experiment with different foods/flavours, wave it in front of their face. When i put veg in my adults vivs, they will usually find it on their own. It may be that he is still sttling in.


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## emmilllyyy (Oct 9, 2010)

he's about 18 months old :gasp:


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## bw89 (Jan 11, 2010)

I added something to my post, try those suggestions. I will post more if I think of any: victory:


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## emmilllyyy (Oct 9, 2010)

I've been wetting it already :2thumb: the previous owner said he was a pig and ate everything, spring greens, kale, rocket, leftovers :lol2: how long should I leave it before I start worrying, I've only had him 2 days


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## bw89 (Jan 11, 2010)

emmilllyyy said:


> I've been wetting it already :2thumb: the previous owner said he was a pig and ate everything, spring greens, kale, rocket, leftovers :lol2: how long should I leave it before I start worrying, I've only had him 2 days


I think it is purely down to him being a little, shall we say discomposed, after his move. It may be that he has to adjust to a new routine (which wont be hard for him) and will probably take a few more days. If he hasn't eaten by Thursday or Friday, I would start to try different things. Does his tail base look nice and fat?


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## welsh emma (Jun 17, 2011)

on a similar note, do beardies recognise coloured food etc? Our 5mnth beardie loves rocket and romaine but won't touch a bit of red pepper etc. Have beardies ever refused food they don't recognise? As he's so young I'm not worried yet!


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## bw89 (Jan 11, 2010)

welsh emma said:


> on a similar note, do beardies recognise coloured food etc? Our 5mnth beardie loves rocket and romaine but won't touch a bit of red pepper etc. Have beardies ever refused food they don't recognise? As he's so young I'm not worried yet!


Yes i think they do. Mine show higher interest in green or yellow foods than other colours. Although, i have found mine go absolutely nuts for squash and anything else orange.:lol2: I dont think they refuse food they dont recognise, in fact i think they are happy to taste most things, but i think if they dont like it they will remember.


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## Anu (Jun 8, 2011)

I've had my boy for over a month, he's almost 2 and hardly touches his greens, at all. I posted about this a while ago and people said its fine, some people even have beardies that don't fit the stereotype protein/veggie ratio, just like mine. I think what I gathered is that he is still getting his vitamins and calcium intake from his supplements, mine also drinks water from his sprayer, lol. Some humans don't like veggies, right . You've also had it for a small amount of time and they really need to acclimatise themselves first before typically running on their prior-to-move diet.


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## AuntyLizard (Feb 7, 2007)

lol At that age their main diet should consist of veg. I have a few suggestions if you would like to get him eating veg.

Offer a wide range of colour
Try grated or finely chopped butternut squash
go a week without offering any live food seriously if he is hungry he will eat the veg. Just make sure that you keep him hydrated. 

You could also reward him for eating veg like giving him a wax worm or one of his favourite live foods but, just the one no more. 

This is one of the biggest problems you will hear with beardies but, it is down to not offering veg from babies.

Liz


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## bw89 (Jan 11, 2010)

Anu said:


> I've had my boy for over a month, he's almost 2 and hardly touches his greens, at all. I posted about this a while ago and people said its fine, some people even have beardies that don't fit the stereotype protein/veggie ratio, just like mine. I think what I gathered is that he is still getting his vitamins and calcium intake from his supplements, mine also drinks water from his sprayer, lol. Some humans don't like veggies, right . You've also had it for a small amount of time and they really need to acclimatise themselves first before typically running on their prior-to-move diet.


He wont get all the vitimins etc he needs with live food alone, supplemented or not. Insects are very high in protein, essential when the dragons are young and need to grow, but should be limited when they are old. Yes some people don't like veg, but adult Bearded Dragons are not humans, and their adult diet should consist mainly of veg.

Following on from what Aunty Lizard said: "it is down to not offering veg from babies", your dragon's previous owner probably did not offer your Dragon veg when he was younger, and so he dosn't eat veg now. I would change that if i were you. Hold back on the live food, if he is hungry he will eat the veg.


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## anneshirley16 (Jun 8, 2011)

Following on from what Aunty Lizard said: "it is down to not offering veg from babies", your dragon's previous owner probably did not offer your Dragon veg when he was younger, and so he dosn't eat veg now. I would change that if i were you. Hold back on the live food, if he is hungry he will eat the veg.[/QUOTE] 

that happened 2 me i was told not 2 feed my 1st beardy veg so when she got older it was so hard 2 get her 2 eat it so i only gave her fruit and veg no live food for a week or 2 but she must ave got hungry but now she love it and as her fav its just time keep giveing it 2 him and no as much live and he should eventually get there


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## janeann10uk (May 27, 2009)

one of mine used to love her veg but has suddenly stopped ! shes almost 2 - will the " no livefood" rule work on a beardy that old, and should i monitor her weight?


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## bw89 (Jan 11, 2010)

janeann10uk said:


> one of mine used to love her veg but has suddenly stopped ! shes almost 2 - will the " no livefood" rule work on a beardy that old, and should i monitor her weight?


Yes you should still offer the veg daily, and hold back on the insects. If she is hungry she will eat, after all it is only natural. It's a good idea to monitor weights anyway, but unless there is a drastic drop (maybe 70-100 grams) you want to stick to the proper diet. Insects can be used to bulk the animal up when weight is low.


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