Malnourished, and need help.

[Cate Black]

I HAVE NEVER GONE A DAY WITHOUT FEEDING HER.

I live in the country on a ranch. We grow collard greens, basil, tomatoes, Rosemary, sage. Lots of good veggie and foliage for her to eat and she eat it up!! Im worried that she isnt getting her protein. She went two days without any crickets . it sucked. I fed her fresh salad everyday but I know that doesn't help her health. I'm worried about thee low water bridge that sometimes floods us in so we cant get out of our ranch. If it floods, ill be locked in and unable to give Juliet her food.
So I was wondering -
How much salad will a lizard eat since there are no insects to be found. In an emergency when she has not had food and I cannot go out to get it. They are domesticated, they need us to live. They smile, I love that about bearded dragons.
How long can live without insects? How many crickets an worms do you feed your fully grown dragon? Im not look at this situation as a possibility, but in an emergency I would like to keep Juliet

 

[Cate Black]

She loves superworms but I heard that their heads can remain alive and bite the dragon from the inside. I try to to cut off their heads before Julie gets into them but shes a retty big girl an can smash smash smash. But I wanna be a good mama.

 

[Germ]

The superworm myth is a joke, the same story goes around about mealies, both are a farce. You do not have to remove the heads, that is an old wives tale .

I went through a similar dilemma here, where we went through a period a few years back of a month+ cold snap of -40C (-40F) to -50C (-58F) with no let up. One day we broke all records & were the coldest place on the Planet. All my suppliers feeders were freezing in transit, no live food to be had. I had to find an alternative. I tried RepCal Bearded Dragon Food. At the time I was strictly against all processed foods for my beardies, so it was a tough choice for me. I was surprised that my 4 BDs took to them quite readily & noticed a marked improvement in their bulk & stature, they seemed to stand prouder, stronger. I have been using them as a supplement to my live food & greens ever since, year round. So there is an alternative that you may try in an emergency.

Never feed the pellets dry, always moisten them just enough so they swell with water. Feeding them dry can lead to dehydration because of the moisture drain on their body to digest them. Feeding them moistened is an excellent source of hydration. They are fortified with the majority of the supplements & vitamins found in Herptivite, they are fairly high in protein & low in fat, so are quite good for them. A few of my dragons would only eat the green ones (there is always more green ones) & leave the red & brown ones behind, so I set those aside, save them to gutload the feeders & they get them anyway, . When buying the Repcal pellets I keep an eye out for when the containers have predominantly green ones & stock up by buying 2-4 8 oz containers at a time & they last a very long time. I would feed 15-25 pellets per feeding, depending on the BDs appetite.

Good Luck

 

[Lemonpie]

I would recommend starting a roach colony so you don't have to worry about leaving the house to get more live food. Roaches also have tons of protein and no smell.

 

[Mungi's Buddha]

Those RepCal Bearded Dragon Pellets are a staple of Mungi's diet as well fed with his greens and like Germ's dragons he will only eat the green pellets...smh..I have to admit that I have personally tasted the green, red and brown pellets and I see absolutely no difference other than color but then again my palate may not be as distinguished as a bearded dragon's..lol

 

[sean8172]

I decided to try these pellets on a whim. After reading the label, it seemed very healthy. I was also drawn by the "growth formula" on the label, as both my babies seem a little under sized to me. My female, Aussie, also seems to prefer the green ones as well. Demani (formerly Autumn) will eat any, and all of them. I failed to read the part of the label that instructed to mix with what they are prior. I feed them various greens, as well as crickets, and the occasional meal worm (or ten). They both love the stuff. They actually seem to prefer it over greens, but not live food, if course. Apparently, these pellets are all they should need, meaning greens and live food can be given as "treats". The good news there is, if you don't have live food, they'll be just fine. The other thing I've noticed that I like is you add water, and leave the stuff. It will stay "fresh" all day. I'm far from a pro, but I would recommend this "pellet" food to anyone who either can't get to live food, or just doesn't like dealing with it.

In my humble opinion, Bearded Dragons should always be offered live food, but this food will give them all the nutrition they need.

 

[Germ]

The other thing I've noticed that I like is you add water, and leave the stuff. It will stay "fresh" all day.

Would just like to comment that they will dry out through the course of the day, adding water or misting them will revitalize\rehydrate them, but I replace any leftovers the next day & feed them to my roaches .