Is my bearded dragon eating enough? He only wants worms, not veggies.

Thanks for reaching out about Brutus and including photos. You are correct in that blueberries and mealworms are an incomplete diet. A wide variety of vegetables are required. Try offering frozen/thawed medley pack. If he trusts you, offer by hand. Fresh vegetables are healthier and can be offered in small amounts. Green, yellow, red and orange vegetables are all required as each provides different nutrients. Good luck.

Thanks for reaching out about Perceval and including a photo. First, check heat and other husbandry parameters, and fix any concerns. If too cold, there appetite center is depressed. Reptiles will often not eat because of other illnesses such as intestinal parasites or infections, kidney disease, dental disease, etc. A veterinary visit is recommended to help. On the photo, Perceval appears thin. Offering a Gerber's baby food (chicken, beef etc) might provide some nutrition until the primary cause is determined. Good luck.

Thanks for reaching out about Lexi. Mealworms are generally bags of fat, and needed to be gut loaded to provide any nutrition. But other insects must be offered to provide a healthy diet. Don't forget UVB radiation and the proper heat support. Bearded dragons also should eat a wide variety of vegetables. Good luck.

Reptiles can be very subtle in showing when they don't feel well, and often a decrease in appetite is the only sign that they will show. Sometimes they will only be willing to eat their favorite items, so that may be a reason that Cosmo is eating certain things. Alternatively, they may be easier for him to eat somehow as well. Another hard part about reptiles is that they take a long time to show that they are sick, so something could have been going on with Cosmo for quite a while and he just hasn't shown you until now. I would recommend having Cosmo evaluated by a veterinarian due to the decrease in appetite. They will evaluate your husbandry and diet for Cosmo, and may make recommendations for them. This may include adjustments in the diet, as the items you are feeding right now have a great deal of calcium oxalates in them. Calcium oxalates can decrease absorption of calcium by the body, and calcium is very important in reptiles. The items that you are feeding with calcium oxalates include kale, mustard greens, and collard greens. These items should be fed a maximum of 1-2 times per week. Protein in the diet (insects) should be fed about twice weekly. In addition to a husbandry evaluation, your veterinarian may recommend blood work to evaluate systemic health, as well as radiographs (x-rays) to ensure that Cosmo's bones look like they have enough calcium in them.

Mealworms are fine as long as they are freshly molted mealworms. These do not have as much chitin, which is what can pose a risk of impaction or obstruction. Waxworms are very fatty and should be fed only occasionally to juvenile dragons. Stick with appropriately sized crickets, dubia roaches and phoenix worms. Keep him hydrated and warm to keep his GI tract moving. Soak in a warm 50/50 solution of water and unflavored PediaLyte for 20-30 minutes every few days. Yiu can massage the abdomen, front to back, during the soak to stimulate defecation. As long as he is behaving normally and defecating regularly, he is likely not impacted or obstructed.

Some of it depends on the age of the beardie. If young, make sure any live food is small enough for it. Meal works, crickets or even pinkie mice Here's a good recipe for a reptile salad. Basic Salad Recipe 1/2 cup shredded raw green beans 1/2 cup shredded raw orange-fleshed squash (such as acorn, banana, kabocha, spaghetti, and pumpkin) - you can occasionally alternate with carrots 1 medium or 2 small raw shredded parsnips (in areas where these are seasonally hard to find, you can substitute with asparagus or cooked or canned lima, navy or kidney beans that have been well rinsed and minced or mashed. If you use beans, add extra calcium to offset their high phosphorus) * 1/4 cup mashed/minced fruit (strawberries, raspberries, mangos, papaya, figs, cantaloupe, cactus pear) Alfalfa ** Multivitamin and calcium supplements * If parsnips are a seasonal vegetable where you live, you can use 1/2 cup shredded asparagus, trading off with 1/2 cup drained, rinsed, and chopped canned cooked lima beans, plus additional calcium to make up for the lousy calcium:phosphorus ratio in beans. Cooked beans are acceptable for short term use only due to their phosphorous content and other chemicals that can impede the uptake of minerals and trace elements. Asparagus is comparable in protein to parsnip, but does contain oxalates, so should not be a long-term staple. ** The quantity of alfalfa you use will depend upon the alfalfa product you are using. You want to add about 15 grams of protein. That is about 1/2 cup of alfalfa rabbit pellets, or about 1/4 cup or less of alfalfa leaf tea or a tablespoon or so of alfalfa powder. The older the healthy iguana is, the less protein they need, so you may end up using only a couple of teaspoons for an adult iguana. Thoroughly mix all the Basic Salad Recipe ingredients together. Makes about 3.5-4 cups. Add in a multivitamin supplement (any multivitamin supplement for birds or reptiles is fine, but the best, actually, is powder from a crushed Centrum tablet) and a calcium supplement. You do not need to get a calcium supplement that has phosphorous or D3 in it, as the iguana is already getting considerably phosphorous from the plants and multivitamin, and their D3 is best manufactured in their bodies by regular exposure to direct sunlight or special UVB-producing fluorescents. And more good info on husbandry and feeding isnhere. If temperature is not correct they also may not eat. http://www.anapsid.org/bearded.html

The black beard Is indeed an indication of stress or anger. It may be due to his new surroundings or something could be wrong in his environment. You can review care and feeding here: http://www.anapsid.org/bearded.html Confirm proper temps and humidity. Also, provide a hide large enough for him to enter on each side of his enclosure. As long as Boris is at least 16-17 inches long, superworms are fine to feed. Gut load them for 24 hours prior to offering to maximize nutritional value. For variety, you can offer appropriately sized crickets, dubia roaches or phoenix worms. Try offering greens in the morning about an hour or two after the heat lamp comes on. He may be hungrier at this time. Once he eats his greens, you can offer prey. Sometimes, a sprinkle of dried mealworms on the greens will stimulate the appetite. Since he is "new" to you, an exam with your veterinarian or a vet experienced in treating reptiles would be recommended to confirm good health or to diagnose and treat any preexisting conditions.