If your beardie seems out of sorts, low energy, and on the thin side – you may have a malnourished bearded dragon on your hands. We all know these reptiles are notoriously picky eaters. But if they appear not to be getting enough nutrients, it’s our job as their keepers to make sure our scaly friends get the right balance of vitamins, minerals, calcium, fats, and protein.
In this blog, we will discuss:
- What malnourishment is.
- Some everyday situations that may appear to be malnutrition but are not.
- The top 5 signs that you may have a malnourished bearded dragon.
- 4 ways to correct malnutrition in your bearded dragon.
- And finally, why feeder insects, like dubia roaches, are an excellent way to keep your beardie’s diet balanced.
Even if your dragon seems perfectly healthy now, this information could save their life in the future, so let’s dig in!
What is Malnourishment?
Malnutrition is a condition that develops when a human or animal doesn’t get enough of the minerals, vitamins, and other nutrients needed to maintain healthy organ function and tissues. Malnutrition can happen both when your dragon is undernourished and over-nourished.
It’s important to remember that bearded dragons will go through several cycles each year where they may appear ill or malnourished, but in reality, they are perfectly healthy.
Please consider the following situations before deciding your bearded dragon is malnourished:
- Brumation – This naturally occurring hibernation cycle typically occurs in the fall or winter in response to changes in natural light. During brumation, your dragon may appear lazy or experience a loss of appetite.
- Shedding – During shedding, you will notice your dragon’s color becoming duller, and their eyes may appear to be puffed out. These signs are a normal part of a healthy shed cycle.
Baby beardies will shed their skin as they grow, which can happen several times a year. However, mature bearded dragons may only shed their skin once or twice per year.
If you suspect something is off with your dragon’s health and have ruled out brumation and shedding, it’s time to inspect them further for the tell-tale signs of bearded dragon malnutrition.
5 Tell-Tale Signs of a Malnourished Bearded Dragon
Below, you will find the 5 most common signs of an imbalance in nutrition:
- Thin tail – A healthy beardie should have a robust (but not too large) tail. A boney or thin tail is a common sign of a malnourished bearded dragon.
- Deflated fat pads – Bearded dragons have fat pads on their heads. If your dragon appears to have deflated fat pads, it could be missing critical nutrients in its diet. Many people are concerned with too much fat in their dragon’s diet. That is an important concern because it can lead to fatty liver disease – but typically, this problem is not as common as most reptile keepers may think.
- Lethargy – If your dragon seems more sluggish and less alert than usual and you have ruled out hibernation, shedding, and problems with the light and/or temperature in their enclosure, malnutrition may be to blame.
- Calcium deficiency – Common signs of calcium deficiency in beardies are poorly developed “Gumby” bones that break easily, rickets in breeding females’ tails, and “bobblehead.” To learn more about the importance of calcium in your pet reptile’s diet, please read our blog, The Importance of Calcium for Reptile Health.
- Obesity – As mentioned above, too much fat in your reptile’s diet can become a problem. As with humans, the body doesn’t function as it should when carrying too much unnecessary weight. If you have a giant, chunky dragon with visceral fat pockets on its abdomen, or abnormally large fat reserves on the head, over-nourishment may be the culprit.
Bearded Dragons and Parasites
In bearded dragons, there are good parasites, and there are bad parasites. The good parasites help with processes like digestion, while the bad parasites lead to severe health problems like malnutrition.
The only way to confirm one way or another is to test for parasites. If you suspect your dragon’s health may be suffering due to a parasite, schedule an appointment with a veterinarian for a stool test right away.
4 Ways to Correct Malnutrition in Your Bearded Dragon
If your bearded dragon is looking worse for the wear, your first step should be to contact a veterinarian specializing in exotic pets. Your vet will examine your dragon to rule out any other health problems like parasites before recommending a new feeding plan. If you’ve noticed your dragon is on the thin side, it’s important to adjust their diet and enclosure so they can get the nutrients they need to stay healthy.
Your vet may recommend all or some of the following strategies for getting your beardie’s nutrition back on track:
- Adjust their light setup – Improper lighting is one main reason why your beardie may lose their appetite.
- Offer your dragon a cornucopia of nutrients – Offering a wide variety of healthy foods is a great way to keep your bearded dragon’s nutrition balanced. This is especially important if they are young and still growing.
What does a healthy diet look like for a bearded dragon?
- Fruits and vegetables – most importantly, leafy greens – but you can also give them fresh treats like apples, carrots, mango, peaches, squash, and strawberries in moderation.
- Feeder insects – like superworms and dubia roaches.
- Supplements – bioavailable calcium supplements are an excellent addition to your dragon’s diet.
- Entice them with an exciting diet –Bearded dragons are notoriously picky eaters. It’s our job as their keepers to ensure their diet is filled with the right balance of vitamins, minerals, calcium, fats, and protein. To learn some excellent strategies for getting your persnickety beardie to feast, read our blog, Encouraging Picky Eaters with Dubia Roaches.
- Increase the frequency of feeding sessions – You may also want to feed your dragon more often than usual if they are malnourished. Allow them to eat as much as they’d like for 10 minutes 2-5 times a day.
Ensure a Balanced Diet for Your Dragon with Dubias Today
Dubia roaches are a turbocharged superfood for your bearded dragon. Nutritionally, they beat out other popular feeder insects like crickets.
Take a gander at the difference in the nutritional breakdown:
Protein | Moisture | Fat | Fiber | Ash | Ca:P Ratio | |
| Crickets Nutritional Value | 18% | 73% | 6% | 2% | 2% | 1:9 |
| Dubia Roaches Nutritional Value | 21% | 65% | 9% | 5% | 1% | 1:3 |
Additionally, dubias are a great source of calcium and ideal for gut loading. This hack will ensure your bearded dragon ends up extracting the most nutritional value from their food possible.
Keep Your Dragon’s Nutrition in Tip-Top Shape With Dubias Today
It can be unnerving when our dragons seem unhealthy. But with a bit of attention, care, and a balanced diet, your beloved beardie will be well on their way to becoming a shining beacon of health and vitality.
Ready to revolutionize your bearded dragon’s diet with delicious, nutritious, and fun-to-eat dubia roaches?
Can I give my beardie earth worms? My girl loves them!! I haven’t seen to have any issue so far. Thank you so much!
Our founder, Rich Beasley, was a top breeder of bearded dragons for years and doesn’t suggest it. The reason is because they carry soil-borne organisms in their gut which can be pathogenic. We suggest commercially bred hornworms or superworms instead.
Stay tuned – we’ll be posting a blog on this topic very soon, with pros and cons of feeding earthworms to bearded dragons.
This is a great question so we looked more deeply into it. Here’s what we found – hope it helps! https://www.thebugshed.com/can-bearded-dragons-eat-earthworms/
I am having a hard time getting my dragon to eat any greens. I have tried mixed greens that the other dragon in the school loves, and she turns up her nose. I have tried several different kinds of greens, but none of them seem to appeal to her. She loves her dubias (at least the ones I get from you!) and she will eat mango, blueberries, and banana. Any advice?
Hi Karen! Good question. Bearded dragons can be notoriously picky eaters. But they do need their greens!
Since she does like fruit, you might try coating her greens with a fruit-based salad dressing to entice her to eat them. Nature Zone makes a salad dressing for bearded dragons. It’s strawberry flavored and also contains calcium and other nutritional supplements. https://www.amazon.com/Nature-Zone-Salad-Dressings-Bearded/dp/B00DJBRHTE/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8&th=1
We’ve never had to use it so can’t vouch for it personally. It has mixed reviews on Amazon: some bearded dragon owners swear by it, while others report that it didn’t work at all. Ultimately it depends on the tastes of your individual dragon. We think it’s worth a try at least. Or you can try creating your own dressing from fruit or fruit juice. Withholding fruit for a couple days before offering it may also help to make her more eager to eat the dressed- up greens.
Hope this helps. This is a really great topic so we’re planning to do a bit more research and write a blog on it soon. In the meantime if you try this suggestion please let us know how it works for you. (Or if you find anything else that works we’d love to hear about it!)
Hi! I’m temporarily caring for my daughter’s beardie, Puff (yes, the magic dragon) and am wondering if he can have frozen fruit, thawed & at room temperature? She doesn’t give him fruit that I know of, and I’m trying to broaden his diet. Im assuming I should introduce things slowly, maybe 1 or 2 blue berries, strawberry pieces and a slice or 2 of banana? I’m reading articles and trying to get a feel for being a good reptile g-ma.
Hi Cynthia, apologies for the late reply but your approach sounds perfect!