Every owner is curious about whether or not they can feed their bearded dragon people food. In regards to turkey, no you should not feed your bearded dragon turkey. Now with that being said, your beardie won’t necessarily die or get sick from the turkey. It’s just that turkey is very high in fat and sodium, 2 things your dragon doesn’t need in plenty.
Nutritional Components of Turkey
Turkeys are domesticated birds that belong to the same biological family as chickens, but their meat is much leaner. The nutritional components of turkey include:
- Vitamin A
- Calcium
- Iron
- Potassium
- Vitamin B6
- Phosphorus
- Selenium and Zinc
As you can see, this meat contains a vast amount of nutrients that would normally help keep your beardie healthy and strong.
Now for some less positive news – it also contains a lot of fat and sodium. This means that feeding your dragon this food more than once a week isn’t recommended.
How Much Turkey Can Be Fed?
One average size serving of turkey (about 100g) has been found to contain 25% of the total RDI for Vitamin A. In other words, only feeding your dragon a serving of turkey once or twice a week will give them plenty of Vitamin A.
In regards to sodium content, 100g has been found to have about 782mg which in a nutshell is a very high amount in comparison with other meats. So try to use sodium-free seasonings when preparing this meat and avoid using too much salt when cooking it.
Otherwise, you might end up overloading your beardie’s diet with excess sodium which can lead to serious digestive problems and cause too much water retention in their body leading to puffiness in the belly area (which isn’t normal).
Can Bearded Dragons Eat Seasoned Turkey?
No, you should not give your beardie seasoned turkey.
You have to be careful about salted seasonings since they are high in sodium. This means that if your dragon eats too much, their blood will become more concentrated with water which could lead to serious problems with regulating their body fluids (since dragons drink by lapping water off their bodies).
Also, try to avoid using white bread or any other type of moistened breads when feeding your dragon this kind of treat. Breads like these contain lots of carbohydrates (a type of sugar) which isn’t good for them at all.
Can Bearded Dragons Consume These Foods?
Can Bearded Dragons Eat Ground Turkey?
No, ground turkey is as bad as sliced turkey. The reason for this is that it’s very high in sodium. If your dragon eats too much of this meat, they could end up with serious health problems (which can be avoided if you simply don’t feed them turkey).
Benefits of Feeding My Bearded Dragon Turkey
There are no real benefits of feeding your bearded dragon turkey.
Since this meat has a lot of vitamin A, calcium and selenium, it would make sense to feed your beardie turkey. But again the amount of fat and sodium makes it unsuitable for them to consume in large amounts.
So just stick with giving them other leaner meats that are okay for bearded dragons to eat like fish, chicken or very lean beef rather than turkey.
Risks of Feeding My Bearded Dragon Turkey
The risks of feeding your bearded dragon turkey far outweigh the benefits.
- Too much Vitamin A
- Too much sodium.
The amount of fat in turkey is also really high so you should try to get lean cuts of meat only.
- Vitamin B6 might not be easily absorbed by the body
- There are some reports that feeding your dragon seasoned poultry (turkey included) may cause tumors in their body (it’s very rare).
You also need to remember that if your beardie starts acting strangely then you should probably stop giving them this type of food right away.
Alternative Foods For Bearded Dragons
There are plenty of alternative foods for your bearded dragon. Here are some:
- Prawns
- Scrambled eggs
- Cooked lean meats (fish, beef, chicken)
- Cooked brown or white rice
You just have to be careful when it comes to the sodium content in some of these foods. And if you want to feed your dragon-cooked prawns then make sure they are deveined since there is a special gland in their body that can cause problems for reptiles. This type of gland is located near the anus and it’s very tough. So make sure to cut through it with something sharp during cooking if your dragon eats them whole. If you aren’t planning on feeding them raw prawns then I would suggest you cut this gland out before giving them prawns
Are Crickets Better For My Bearded Dragon Than Turkey?
Absolutely! Crickets are a much better choice since they have a high content of phosphorus and calcium, a moderate amount of fat and very low sodium.
They also contain other essential nutrients like selenium, iron and zinc so you should consider feeding your dragon crickets instead of giving them turkey.
Crickets should be a staple food for your bearded dragon since they contain a lot of healthy proteins which is really good for them to have in their diets.
Can Bearded Dragons Eat Turkey? – The Conclusion!
To sum it all up, the answer is no your bearded dragon cannot eat turkey.
It’s not a great food to give them and they can’t have it in large amounts since it has too much sodium and fat content. It also contains way too much vitamin A which isn’t good for their liver if given in large quantities.
Give your beardie leaner meats that are safe for them to consume instead of turkey so you can avoid any unnecessary health issues caused by this type of meat. I would recommend you get fish, chicken or lean beef instead to feed your dragon with so they can get their share of proteins without having lots of extra fats.
As for other types of people’s food, make sure you check out our other articles on what bearded dragons can eat.