Bringing home a pet also brings along a lot of responsibilities and feeding your bearded dragon is a part of it. You need to be familiar with the feeding habits of your newly bought reptile especially when your pet is young and growing.

You will be pleased to know that your pet is an omnivore which means that it needs a right balance of animal and plant material. If you don’t take care of what and how you feed your pet, your pet can suffer horribly which is definitely something you will never wish to happen.

Feeding Baby/Juvenile Dragons

An important fact you need to keep to keep in mind that juvenile dragons are very curious and like to taste everything that comes within their reach. Therefore, it is important that during the early growth phase you keep a strict eye on your pet watching every movement closely. It is also recommended that you select enclosure substrates cautiously, avoiding items that contain loose particles which could hinder intestines of a baby dragon.

Food particles given to a baby dragon or even an adult dragon should not be large. The best size for your bearded dragons is a food particle which is smaller than the space between their eyes. Large particles can cause considerable damage to your pet.

Feeding plan for a baby dragon (up to 12 weeks) should be started off with number of insects’ everyday. You can also opt for “calcium dusted” insects at least four times a week. Excellent insect sources include crickets, cockroaches and mealworms. Slowly you can shift your juvenile dragon to green vegetables that are finely chopped. There are about 42 types of vegetables that are safe for your bearded dragon, and provide it with maximum nutritional value required for healthy growth.

Give about 10 minutes to your pet to eat sufficiently. Avoid over stuffing your pet. If your pet refuses to eat you can offer food after some time.

If you like to know more on the types of food items you can feed your baby bearded dragon don’t forget to get a copy of “Bearded Dragon Secret Manual”. This book will guide you about the different food items you can select for your baby pet and will also help you plan a right feeding schedule so that your bearded dragon grows and remains healthy.

Feeding Adult Bearded Dragons

Once your baby dragons reach adulthood, they can be fed on a variety of food items having a healthy mix of crickets, meal worms, pink mice and vegetables. Adult dragons can also be given a special treat in the form of locusts, wax worms, silk worm and a number of other types of worms which are available. Your adult pets also deserve their preys to be dusted with a calcium and vitamin D supplement but they require less calcium than juvenile dragons.

NEVER FEED YOUR BEARDIES ON INSECTS CAUGHT IN YOUR BACKYARD. Doing such a mistake can poison your dragon to an extent that it can be killed. To keep your pets safe, keep them away from wild insects. Once your prey is done with the treat, remove all unconsumed food from the enclosure and clean it.

Fresh water in shallow bowls should also be offered to the dragons with the meals and at times you need to put water in the pet’s snout if they don’t drink it themselves.