Can Bearded Dragons Eat Strawberries? For you to stumble upon this blog post, then you must have been searching for what food can bearded dragons eat or perhaps what can bearded dragons eat or the keyword in the article itself, which is can bearded dragons eat strawberries. Well, in this article, I have put together everything you need to know.
Read on.
Strawberries are a delicious treat for everyone. Shortcakes get topped off with strawberries, thereby beautifies them. Strawberries enhance the taste and make it yummy! Are you contemplating whether they are safe for bearded dragons or if your beardie would love to eat this versatile fruit as much as everyone does? Like, do reptiles like strawberries? The following paragraph reveals it.
A bearded dragon eats strawberries, yes. However, only in moderation, as in a mix of other fruits in their diet. On the other hand, strawberries such as apples are among the safer fruits for dragons; that is to say, limiting them to once a month is not necessary.
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Bearded Dragons Have Strawberries?
Strawberries contain a high nutritional value for everyone and beardie, too. Also, they carry a fairly lower phosphorus to calcium ratio. Unlike other fruits, the number of phosphorus strawberries is greater than the calcium percentage. I’ll explain more about that shortly.
Because dragons are so soft and the seeds all pose a choking hazard, so strawberries are not that hard for dragons to consume. However, it would help if you did not feed your dragons with the stems. For that reason, bearded dragons may eat strawberries as a treat once a week or less frequently, depending on what other fruits you are willing to include in their diets.
Often, I have seen a few Dragon Keepers arrange some pieces of strawberries in a dark and leafy green salad or, among other veggies, trying to encourage their Dragon to consume more greens. The method is a popular and proven use of fruit. Still, you need to pay attention to details while using this trick, as you’ve known that Bearded dragons love strawberries and can end up craving the lovely taste of the berries to the point of not wanting their much-needed vegetables, and that is hard to correct once the problem sets in!
Why Can’t Bearded Dragons Eat Strawberries All The Time?
Strawberries contain a lot of nutritional benefits to offer your beardie when you feed them frequently with it.
Here are some of the benefits:
- Carbohydrates: provide energy
- Calcium that enhances the bone and tissue
- Fibre, helping digestion run smoothly.
- High water content: (45% to 68%), which when you feed them with appropriate doses will improve kidney function to avoid dehydration.
- Potassium: regulates your Dragon’s blood pressure and increases Vitamin C, which keeps your Dragon’s immune system, vision, reproduction, and growth fortified, but we still have some reasons why strawberries aren’t safe for frequent consumption.
Here is it: One cup of strawberries contains 23 grams of calcium and 36 grams of phosphorus, so therefore, strawberries carry more phosphorus than calcium. This isn’t too much of a difference, but it’s enough to make strawberries unsafe for regular consumption daily.
You might have heard this, but it’s important to remind you: among the last thing you ought to note in your beardie’s diet component is calcium. Calcium is essential to the bearded Dragon’s growth and the Dragon’s development of overall wellness that most veterinary doctors will prescribe to dust your beardie’s meals with calcium powder so that they can get enough.
Phosphorus is a whole different story, and it isn’t that bad for bearded dragons, but your Dragon must consume in smaller amounts than calcium. Diets that consist of both minerals and a balanced ratio of 1.1 to 2.1 are highly recommended because phosphorus essentially deters calcium from being absorbed into your Dragon’s bloodstreams.
If phosphorus content gets to an extent where it exceeds the calcium quantity in a dragon’s food always, the outcome can be overwhelming. Improper calcium consumption can make your Dragon develop Metabolic Bone Disease, known as MBD. It is usually painful and a paralyzing condition that may warp your Dragon’s bone structure and development.
Hint: the most common illness among bearded pet dragons is metabola ic disease, but one can prevent it easily with the right nutrition and care.
High water content is still the best because iceberg lettuce containing a lot of water and minimal nutrients are not to be fed to your Dragon. Still, diets containing high water content and nutrients are typically safe when you occasionally feed your Dragon. If your Dragon eats too many strawberries, it may develop diarrhea from overhydration and would eventually dehydrate your pet.
Do you know that bearded dragons are equipped to handle prolonged dehydration? However, it’s not the type caused by a cycle of overhydration, which leads to diarrhea, but a very terrible ordeal for you and your dragon pet.
Another thing is lots of sugar. We consider all fruits to consist of some amount of sugar, and the amount of sugar in fruits varies. Eventually, the food restriction is similar to dragon-safe fruits, you should limit the amount.
Feeding your bearded Dragon with too much sugar exposes them to some fatal conditions that humans develop, such as tooth decay, fatty liver disease, obesity, diabetes, and even heart failure. Therefore, despite your Dragon’s love of the strawberries and likely craving more, be careful and only feed them in moderation.
How Can Bearded Dragons Eat Strawberries?
Sometimes, bearded dragons can eat little bites out of a whole strawberry, which is okay as long as you supervise. Try to chop the strawberry into smaller particles and include them in your beardie’s diet dish alone or with veggies and perhaps other fruits.
Do not forget always to wash the strawberries well before you feed them to your beardie, especially if the strawberries are not organic. Even though berries can have chemicals from pesticides and other sprays, we have not heard any report or cases where they harmed or killed bearded dragons.
As soon as you get the strawberries ready, devour your beardie and enjoy! Perhaps, you can even take them together.
What Do Bearded Dragons Eat Mostly?
Bearded dragons are omnivores, meaning they eat both plants and animals. They will eat bugs, worms, and small animals like lizards.
They will also eat fruit and vegetables like apples, carrots, lettuce, berries, oranges and spinach.
Bearded dragons are mostly herbivores but they do need some protein in their diet to maintain their health.
Conclusion: Can Bearded Dragons Eat Strawberries?
It’s my pleasure that you’ve found answers to your most worrying question about bearded dragons, and I hope to continue providing useful content for you.
Thanks for reading.
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