No, you should not feed your bearded dragons pomegranate. It doesn’t anything toxic but the seeds can be an issue. 

Can Bearded Dragons Eat Pomegranate? – The Benefit? A bearded dragon can benefit from eating pomegranates in that it is an excellent source of vitamin C, calcium and antioxidants.

However, there are a few drawbacks to feeding your dragon a pomegranate. Firstly, the high water content of this fruit means that any bearded dragon attempting to eat one is at risk of developing severe diarrhea or perhaps even intestinal obstruction.

Secondly, the seeds themselves contain amygdalin which is metabolized by your bearded dragon’s body into hydrogen cyanide, a potentially dangerous substance. Check out the fruit list.

Let’s dig a little deeper.

Nutritional Components of Pomegranate

*Sugar is the primary worry in pomegranate as overeating could cause your beardie to become overweight.

Nutritional value of pomegranate seed (fresh)

• Serving size: 133g
• Energy – 116.6 kcals
• Protein – 1.88g
• Carbohydrates – 7.97g
• Dietary fiber – 3.24g
• Sugars – 4.35g
• Fat – 5.58g

Saturated fat – 2.28g  – this includes palmitic acid, stearic acid, myristic acid and lauric acid as well as cholesterol and oleic acid which can be beneficial for your beardie too!    Vitamins: Vitamin A equiv. beta-carotene 317iu (6%)

• Vitamin C – 2.82mg (3%)
• Calcium – 175mg
• Iron – 0.66mg
• Phosphorus – 64mg  – this is normally a good thing but the high phosphorus to calcium ratio means that this mineral could potentially be problematic for your dragon! Alkaloids: Punicine
• 5-hydroxytryptamine (serotonin) – this is beneficial for your beardie.

What Fruits Bearded Dragons Can Eat?

• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Kiwi
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Pineapple
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Papaya

Advantages of Feeding My Bearded Dragon Pomegranate

You may be wondering whether or not you should feed your dragon pomegranate.

Adding pomegranate to your beardie’s diet can potentially provide the following benefits:

• It is an excellent source of vitamin C which means that it can contribute to preventing scurvy in your bearded dragon.
• Pomegranate is also an excellent source of calcium and antioxidants.
• Pomegranate can be a nice treat for your bearded dragon.

Disadvantages of Feeding My Bearded Dragon Pomegranate Seeds

There are some problems with feeding pomegranates to your beardie, they include:

• Pomegranates contain a high amount of sugar and if overfed can lead to obesity in your bearded dragon.
• Bearded dragons are unable to properly digest large quantities of seeds due to their hard indigestible casing.
• Seeds contain amygdalin which metabolizes into hydrogen cyanide, a dangerous substance.

Alternative Foods For Bearded Dragons

What are some good alternative foods you might ask? Well, there are a number of vegetables and fruits that bearded dragons can eat. Some of these include:

• Peas – an excellent source of protein while also containing fats and fibers for healthy digestion.
• Lightly Cooked Carrots – carrots contain protein, phytonutrients and soluble dietary fiber while also improving your bearded dragon’s night vision! They make a great choice as a side dish or to add flavor to other foods.
• Cooked Potato Skins – feed your bearded dragon with potato skins at least two times per week for calcium, fatty acids and fiber which helps in digestion. Be sure to remove the brown part on the skin because it contains solanine which is poisonous to animals like reptiles.
• Cucumbers – contain a high level of water and help your bearded dragon prevent dehydration.
• Arugula – a great source of calcium, magnesium and iron, which are essential nutrients for your pet’s healthy development.
• Romaine Lettuce – make sure to remove the core from this type of lettuce because it contains lactucarium which is a mild sedative that helps calm down your bearded dragon. This may also help relieve any stomach irritation or inflammations that may be due to parasites.
• Pumpkin – pumpkins contain lots of beta-carotene as well as phytonutrients which help boost their immune system! Be sure to remove all the seeds first though since they could contain traces of a natural pesticide called cucurbitacin E.
• Eggplant – this vegetable is high in fiber as well as water which makes it a good choice for beardies that fight constipation.

Can Bearded Dragons Eat Pomegranate? – The Conclusion!

As you can see, there are some pros and some cons to feeding pomegranates to your bearded dragon. As mentioned earlier, the high water content of this fruit means that any beardie attempting to eat one is at risk of developing severe diarrhea or even intestinal obstruction.

You should not feed pomegranates on a regular basis as their nutritional components are not balanced for dragons.

If fed occasionally however they can provide many benefits so being aware of both sides helps me come to the conclusion… Yes, my bearded dragon CAN eat pomegranate but it should be done so on an infrequent basis.

The short answer is yes, your bearded dragon can eat cranberries. To dive a little deeper, they should be given as a treat rather than a staple food.

A bearded dragon is a type of lizard that many people have as a pet. They are quite docile and tame, making them good pets for children.

These dragons eat bugs in the wild, but when they are kept as pets they can be fed a lot of different foods. One question some owners have is whether their bearded dragons CAN or WILL eat cranberries.

The biggest issue is that they are very acidic, meaning when eaten they can lower the pH in the dragon’s stomach. If this happens for too long it can cause major issues, such as impaction. For the complete list please click here.

For this reason, they should only be given in moderation to bearded dragons.

Nutritional Components of Cranberries

The nutritional components of cranberries can vary depending on whether they are sweet or tart, and what the ratio is between them. Tart cranberries usually have more sugar in them than sweet ones. Sweet cranberries tend to be red whereas tart varieties are white.

All varieties contain 6 grams of fiber, 6 grams of carbohydrates (including 4 grams of sugars), 2 grams of protein, and 60 calories per cup.

Vitamins contained include 0.18 milligrams of vitamin A (1 percent DV), 22 IU vitamin D (4 percent DV), 1-milligram vitamin C (6 percent DV) and 0.53 micrograms of folic acid (2 percent).

Minerals found in them include 12 milligrams of calcium (.5 percent DV), 4.6 milligrams of potassium (1 percent DV) and 0.09 milligrams of iron (.5 percent DV).

Advantages of Feeding My Bearded Dragon Cranberries

Since they are mildly sweet, their flavor is well-tolerated by the dragon. If you mix them with other berries or fruit that is more sour or bitter, you can balance out this flavor to mask it.

If you mix cranberries into the greens that your bearded dragon eats daily, then he will thank you for helping to keep his digestive system healthy and optimized for maximum nutrient absorption.

As mentioned earlier, cranberries can help lower the pH of a bearded dragon’s stomach if eaten in moderation. This makes them ideal to use as an occasional treat for beardies who suffer from tartar buildup on their teeth.

This helps remove some plaque before it starts having negative effects on dental health and function – which leads to more general health issues.

What Fruits Bearded Dragons Can Eat?

• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Applesauce
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Melon
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Strawberries

Disadvantages of Feeding My Bearded Dragon Cranberries

Because cranberries are fairly acidic when eaten, they can cause problems like impaction if fed in high enough quantities over a long period of time.

Excessive cranberry consumption isn’t normally something that will happen if you feed them once or twice a week, but it is still something to be aware of.

One other issue with feeding cranberries is that because they grow wild in colder climates (in Northern Hemisphere zones), the cost may be higher than visitors expect.

Can Bearded Dragons Eat Cranberries? – The Conclusion!

Yes, bearded dragons can eat cranberries. While they are not full of vital nutrients that beardies need to survive, they do have their uses as an occasional treat or flavor enhancer for other foods.

Just because something is safe for bearded dragons though does not mean it should be fed in large quantities. Especially when it comes to fruit and vegetables, these types of food should only make up a small percentage of the diet so your dragon does not develop any deficiencies over time.

Bearded Dragons require lots of protein so if you plan on feeding them fruits and vegetables daily, then please remember this important information!

As always, I hope you enjoyed today’s article…and don’t forget to check out all of our bearded dragon posts!

No, bearded dragons cannot eat shrimp. There are a few reasons for this. First, bearded dragons cannot digest the exoskeleton of a shrimp which is why they make a clicking sound when they try to eat one.

The other reason that you should avoid feeding them any wild animal proteins is because of the risk that certain species could be carrying diseases or parasites. Shrimp can be commonly infected with anisakis worms, which can be deadly to bearded dragons if they ingest them while eating the shrimp.

Nutritional Components of Shrimp

This type of invertebrate is low in calcium and other nutrients that bearded dragons need to stay healthy. They are not packed with the proper protein like crickets, mealworms or super worms.

Feeding Shrimp to Your Bearded Dragon (And Why You Shouldn’t)

It’s one thing to say “can bearded dragons eat shrimp?” but it’s quite another matter to provide the proper context needed in order to answer this question properly. That said, by taking a look at why you shouldn’t feed them shrimp we’ll get a more accurate picture of whether they can eat them or not.

While shrimp is a tasty treat for some human beings it’s just not that ideal for bearded dragons and other reptiles alike. That said, there are several reasons why you should avoid feeding them this type of food:

1 – They Might Not Eat Them

If you’ve ever tried to feed your pet live shrimp then you already know the answer to “can bearded dragons eat shrimp?” The simple answer here is no because typically when they see these types of foods in front of them they will either shy away from them or try to kill/eat them which results in the exoskeleton being caught in the digestive tract which will often cause discomfort. Even if they do manage to eat them their digestive tract isn’t made to digest the exoskeleton so they’ll typically release the shrimp after a short period of time which is done by making body movements that result in it being released.

2 – They Are Unhealthy For Them

Instead of thinking about whether or not bearded dragons can eat shrimp, you should be considering what they do contain and why this makes them a poor nutritional option. We’ve already talked about their lack of calcium but another thing that makes them unhealthy is the fact that they are high in cholesterol with most species containing over 200mg per 100 grams. In addition, most types of shrimp also have moderate to high levels of saturated fats as well as sodium levels which means that you need to limit how often you feed them this type of food.

Can Bearded Dragons Consume These Foods?

• Are Pickles Safe
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Onions
• Are Green Onions Poisonous to Bearded Dragons

Advantages of Feeding My Bearded Dragon Shrimp

There are no known advantages of feeding your bearded dragon shrimp.

Can Bearded Dragons Eat Shrimp? – The Conclusion!

In the end, it’s safe to say that you should not feed bearded dragons shrimp. This is because they are high in cholesterol and saturated fats while also containing a high amount of sodium which means that their digestive tract will have a hard time breaking them down resulting in belly aches and other types of discomfort. The exoskeleton part is just one side effect of why you shouldn’t feed your pet this type of food aside from the fact that they usually aren’t going to eat them for the reasons mentioned above.

Instead, there are plenty of other foods out there such as vegetables and fruits so try finding other options instead! Please be sure to share this article with family and friends so everyone can find out whether or not bearded dragons can eat shrimp!

We all know that bearded dragons enjoy eating cacti in the wild, but what about when they are kept as pets. Is it okay to give them cacti or is there a reason why you shouldn’t? The answer is that it depends on the type of cactus you have and how much you feed your beardie.

There are many types of cacti out there, so if you do want to feed your dragon one make sure it’s not toxic for them first. Check out the vegetables bearded dragons can eat.

Which Cacti Are Safe For Bearded Dragons To Eat?

Almost all types of cacti are safe for bearded dragons to eat. You can feed them the pads from the following:

• Prickly Pear
• Golden Crown
• Nipple Cactus

The reason why they eat these spiky plants in the wild is that they contain a lot of water which helps them hydrate in their desert habitats. If you do have a type of cactus that isn’t listed here then definitely avoid feeding it to your beardie as it could be toxic for them.

Which Cacti Are Toxic To Your Bearded Dragon?

There are some kinds of cacti that are dangerous for reptiles to eat due to their toxins so be careful with which ones you choose to give him/her. The following cacti are toxic to your bearded dragon:

• Arizona barrel cactus
• Marston’s organ pipe cactus
• Cardinal cactus

Bearded dragons are impressively hardy creatures who can eat almost anything, but that doesn’t mean you should give them everything. Just like with any animal, if the wrong type of plant is ingested it could be fatal for your beardie so make sure they can only eat safe plants!

So again, if you have a type of cactus that isn’t listed here and you’re unsure of whether it’s toxic or not, please consult a veterinarian.

Vegetables

• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Mustard Greens
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Onions
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Peppers

How Much Should You Feed Your Bearded Dragon?

You should only feed your bearded dragon cacti after you’ve soaked them in water – this is because they contain a lot of water in the wild and in captivity, so soaking them in warm water for around 10 minutes makes them softer and easier to digest.

After you’ve soaked your cacti, cut off small pieces with kitchen scissors or nail clippers then feed them to your pet. Try not to feed your beardie the spines as they can get stuck in his/her throat – if this happens, see a vet immediately!

As with any plants you give your bearded dragon, only provide him/her with cacti once or twice a week so they don’t develop any health problems.

Can You Put A Cactus In A Bearded Dragon’s Cage?

It’s not recommended that you put cacti in your bearded dragon’s tank as they can damage his/her skin or eyes. The best thing to do is just feed them the pieces after soaking, but if you’re set on decorating your pet’s cage with a cactus then make sure it’s suitable first!

Final Thoughts

I hope this article has helped answer your question, “Can Bearded Dragons Eat Cactus?”. The simple answer is that almost all types of cacti are safe for bearded dragons to eat as they contain a lot of water. If you want to make sure it’s safe before feeding it to him/her though, please consult a veterinarian first!

If you have any other questions or queries about beardies then don’t hesitate to contact us at headquarters!

Can Bearded Dragons Eat Eggplant ? The answer is, they can! However, you should only feed them eggplant occasionally when it comes to their diet and not as a staple. While it is safe for your bearded dragon to eat, there are far more beneficial foods for him/her. This should be an ‘every now and then’ supplemental food. Not a staple.

How To Prepare Eggplant for My Bearded Dragon

Bearded dragons can eat the inside flesh of the eggplant but the skin and seeds should be removed before feeding. The pieces should be very small and fed to your beardie infrequently.

Served raw. Slice them into pieces no longer than 2 inches for an adult bearded dragon. Size will vary depending on your beardie’s size. Check out the vegetables for bearded dragons.

Vegetable List for Bearded Dragons

• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Dandelion Flowers
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Dandelion Greens
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Dill

Advantages of Feeding My Birdie Eggplant

Eggplant has a high water content which means it will not fill your creature up, therefore, making sure he/she continues to have an urge to eat. A small piece of eggplant is very low calorie so you do not have to worry about weight gain or obesity for your bearded dragon.

Disadvantages of Feeding My Bearded Dragon Eggplant

Eggplants are part of the nightshade family of vegetables. While these are safe for human consumption there are some that believe they might be harmful to other animals. Therefore, you should ask yourself if you want to take the risk of feeding them eggplant.

While eggplant offers some beneficial nutrients, the high levels of acidity are often overlooked. These high levels can become a problem for your bearded dragon if consumed at a high level.

The acidity levels of eggplant are significantly higher than any other vegetable. Too much acidity in your bearded dragons diet can lead to metabolic bone disease.

Having said that, you should only feed them eggplant every now and then as a treat. And if you decide to do so , remember it is best served RAW!

Final Thoughts

While eggplant is fairly safe for your birdie to eat, it cannot be fed as a staple. Just like with any treat or food you give them there is always a chance that they can become sick.

As long as the pieces are very small and served infrequently, there shouldn’t be any problems.

It is true, bearded dragons are reptiles that can be fed with crickets. However, you should never feed your bearded dragon dead crickets. You should also clear out any crickets that have died inside your beardie’s tank. As a good rule of thumb, never feed your dragon any dead insects. Once an insect has begun decomposition and your bearded dragon eats it, he/she could become sick.

Crickets are insects that can be eaten by the bearded dragon, but not all types of crickets are safe for it to eat.

It is also best to acquire them from reliable sources to make sure that you will get fresh and clean ones so as not to harm your pet’s health. Some aquarium shops have live crickets which you can breed yourself if you want a constant supply for your pet bearded dragon. But first, check whether or not this kind of cricket is ok for a dragon to eat.

Some crickets have been known to carry parasites, so it is vital that you know your insect’s source. Check out the insect list for bearded dragons

Nutritional Value of Crickets

*There is no nutritional value for dead crickets. Listed below are a few helpful bits on live crickets.

1. Crickets have a high nutritional value

Crickets contain a large amount of copper, selenium and vitamin B12 which are beneficial in the growth and metabolism of bearded dragons. They also have a fair amount of calcium to help your dragon’s bones grow strong. The best part about feeding your pet with crickets is that they don’t have any fat at all so there won’t be extra calories when adding them to its diet.

2. Crickets provide good energy for the bearded dragon

Bearded dragons need much energy when roaming around in order to catch their prey or when defending themselves from other dragons by puffing out their beard (It sounds funny, but it is true). Crickets are insects that generate a great amount of energy to help your pet dragon thrive. Crickets are the bearded dragon’s favorite snacks, so make sure you have plenty of them around.

3. Crickets can be gut-loaded for extra nutritional benefits

Ever heard about the term “gut-loading” when it comes to insects? This means that you stuff the crickets with nutritious foods before feeding them to your beardie. They could be fed with collard greens, carrots, oatmeal or fruits before being offered to your pet dragon as a treat. You may also purchase commercial diets meant for gut-loading crickets at local pet shops or online reptile stores. It is best if they are organic and do not contain any harmful pesticides which could affect your lizard’s gut.

Insects List

• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Roaches
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Rolly Pollies
• Can Bearded Dragons Eat Silkworms

Advantages of Feeding My Bearded Dragon Crickets

*None of the advantages involve feeding a dragon dead crickets.

Crickets are a great source of protein and energy for bearded dragons which is why they love them so much. They can be fed with gut-loaded insects, commercial diets or just plain insects to add some variety to their daily diet. Crickets do not have any fat at all so you don’t have to worry about overweight lizards from eating too many crickets over time.

Another reason why bearded dragons enjoy eating crickets is that they are easy prey for them to catch and kill, especially if your pet dragon has been well trained by its owner on how to hunt them down. A bearded dragon only needs a few good chomps of their powerful jaws before munching on a cricket.

Disadvantages of Feeding My Bearded Dragon Crickets

Boredom. Bearded dragons usually eat all they can when given live crickets but they may just stop eating them after several feedings if they get bored with their taste. You can give your bearded dragon some variety by offering him/her different insects, vegetables or fruits in order to prevent boredom when eating his/her favorite treats.

If you are breeding your own crickets at home, make sure that you treat them properly before putting them in the tank of your pet lizard. They should be kept clean since bacterial infections spread quickly among these bugs especially when put together in large numbers. Some species of bacteria could lead to fatal illnesses for your beloved pet bearded dragon so always do your best to keep them clean and free from any bacteria.

Cricket Breeding and Care

If you plan to breed your own supply of crickets, it is important that you house them in an enclosure specifically made for this purpose so they do not escape. Remember that these insects are carriers of parasites, so you must take good care of them.

Crickets should be kept in wire cages and they also need fresh food and water regularly. The substrate you use must be non-insect friendly like soil which contains harmful chemicals that could irritate the insects. You can use wood chips or paper towels instead.

Commercial diets are available for crickets to help you easily raise them without any fuss. Crickets will need supplemental calcium to help them molt their shells, but dust it on with fine-grained sand and not directly unto their food.

Final Thoughts

Live crickets are phenomenal food for your bearded dragon. Dead crickets should be avoided at all costs. Once decomposition begins in an insect, the higher the likelihood that that insect could make your dragon sick. Stick to live crickets for your bearded dragon and I promise you’ll have no complaints.