Skip to Content

Can Bearded Dragons Eat Berries?

Can Bearded Dragons Eat Berries?

We all deeply care for our beloved beardies. To ensure their safety, we need to go to considerable lengths to discover if some foods are edible for them. On that note, the question “Can bearded dragons eat berries” arises from the depths.

Mother Nature sometimes plays dirty tricks on us, but other times she’s gentle. Berries are an excellent snack for all bearded dragons, young or old! It’s necessary to keep them in the realm of occasional snacks.

But why is that? Are there some ingredients within berries that are bad for the overall health of bearded dragons? Do berries contain enough calcium within them to help out with beardies’ weak bones?

Many people have doubts about whether bearded dragons can eat berries. They are skeptical of every fruit that has a high amount of sugar in them. Stick around to find out how to properly offer beardies some berries without worrying about those sugar levels!

How Do Berries Fit Into Beardies’ Diet?

Wild bearded dragons have a much tougher time dieting correctly. They are mainly found in deserts, savannas, scrublands, and subtropical woodlands in Australia. You guessed it right; beardies prefer warm areas that provide access to different foods.

Beardies tend to eat flowers, leaves, fruits, insects, and even some tiny lizards, meaning that they are omnivores. They know what’s best for them; with a keen sense of smell, they can detect whether something is edible or not. 

On the other hand, domesticated bearded dragons don’t have to worry about such things as we, their owners, tend to their every wish. They are capable of living everywhere globally as long as we provide them with the necessary environment.

Bearded dragons need a large vivarium with plenty of obstacles inside that recreates how they would live in the wild. I would highly recommend providing them with said stuff as having a dull interior of their vivarium can lead them to develop disinterest towards exercising daily.

You must regularly check on the temperature of their vivarium. During the daytime, you should maintain a temperature between 75-85 degrees Fahrenheit. During the night, a temperature between 70-75 degrees Fahrenheit should be the targeted amount.

All of the stuff above is crucial for your beardies’ well-being, but one thing rises above all other things. Without a proper diet, bearded dragons can’t function properly. A general rule of thumb is that 75% of their diet should consist of insects and worms, and 25% should consist of greens.

If you want to be perfectly sure about what foods are best for your bearded dragons to consume, contact your local veterinarian. They are in our service 24/7 and will most definitely help you out with whatever they can!

Bearded dragons’ diet mainly consists of:

  1. Small insects (cockroaches, dubia roaches, and crickets)
  2. Worms (waxworms, butterworms, mealworms, king worms, and earthworms)
  3. Vegetables (green beans, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, cabbage, asparagus, and peas)
  4. Fruits (apples, figs, peaches, kiwi, plums, and melons)
  5. Leafy greens (collards, coriander, clover, dandelion greens, and endive)

To see the complete list, click on the link here.

Only when everything above is perfectly balanced, a bearded dragon can have the luxury of being healthy. Don’t forget that they get thirsty all the time! Beardies need to have a constant supply of fresh water at their disposal so that they can rehydrate themselves whenever required.

Some of you might’ve noticed that one thing is missing from the list. Those who don’t know what I’m talking about don’t worry; occasional sweets aren’t a regular part of a bearded dragons’ diet. Many wild beardies don’t actively stumble upon sweet fruits.

This is where we have the first glimpse of berries.

There are many berry-type fruits out there in the world, but the ones that are primarily found in pet beardies’ diet are:

All of these berries are phenomenal snacks for offering to your beloved bearded dragons. Always remember to give them no more than one type of berry, once or twice a week. Like with every kind of food, it has its good and bad sides. 

I’ll dissect these four berry type fruits individually:

Blueberries

Before offering any type of food to your bearded dragon, it’s necessary to inspect whether it’s healthy or not. It isn’t a big secret what color blueberries are. I mean, it’s in their name; blue! If you see any other colors present on the blueberry, avoid it at all costs:

  • Green and reddish berries will taste sour as they are not ripe. Ingesting them may lead to some stomach problems for your beloved beardies.
  • Every blueberry that is darker to the eye should be avoided as well. A darker color is a strong indicator of a potentially squashed or moldy berry. 
  • Only those who have a bright blue color should be considered healthy for your beardie.

I wasn’t pleased with the general look of blueberries sold in my local market, so I did my fair share of research. It turns out that most of the blueberries that are unhealthy for eating are the ones that are sprayed with pesticides and insecticides!

To ensure that your bearded dragons get the best-quality fruits, head to your local market and buy some organic fruits. Every plant that hasn’t been sprayed throughout the growing process remains organic and therefore healthy for consumption!

After buying the blueberries, you will need to wash them thoroughly. Even though berries typically grow above ground level, some traces of manure and dirt can always be found on fruits. Put the berries in a strainer and wash them with cold water.

All berries, particularly blueberries, are soft fruits that have a low tearing point for shredding apart. Make sure that the water you are using is gently dripping from the faucet. Wash them a couple of times and after that, dry them out by placing them in a kitchen towel. 

Put them in the fridge ONLY after draining all the water present on them, as putting them in a refrigerator when they are still wet will form mold. 

Follow these guidelines with every berry-type fruit in this article.

If you ever feel like your bearded dragons aren’t taking enough water, I propose a solution to that. Give them some blueberries – they contain 85% water, which means that they’re a great source of hydration for your beardie!

On top of that, blueberries are rich in carbohydrates. Bearded dragons are energetic and will try to be on a constant move, searching for new adventures! A proper diet will ensure that beardies have the necessary fuel to sustain them throughout those long adventures.

Consider giving them some blueberries as they are a great source of energy!

Strawberries

Like blueberries, these can be included in moderation. Unfortunately, bearded dragons can develop certain diseases, the most gruesome one being metabolic bone disease. Due to the lack of calcium in bearded dragons organism, they have bones that deteriorate quickly.

To ensure that that doesn’t happen to your beardie, make sure that you give it lots of food containing high calcium levels. Luckily for bearded dragons, you can just start giving them some strawberries, a fantastic treat rich in calcium!

Strawberries are also a great source of hydration as it has a high water concentration within them!

Blackberries

Just because bearded dragons eat a lot of stuff doesn’t mean that they should eat more than they should! Beardies are voracious – sometimes, they will tend to eat everything they are offered in a short amount. 

There aren’t many immediate consequences in doing so, but eating like that all the time will have its detriments in the long run. Diarrhea and intestinal issues are just one of those things that shouldn’t happen to anyone, especially to bearded dragons!

Give them some blackberries to make sure that they are having a good amount of fiber intake. Vitamins A, C, and K are also one of the benefits of eating blackberries as they aid your bearded dragons’ growth, organs, bones, and blood.

Raspberries

They are also good, but only in moderation. Most bearded dragons prefer eating raspberries over other berry-type fruits. You should keep track of that as they could stop eating other more nutritious food just because they’ve grown attached to the taste of raspberries.

Nonetheless, they are still a phenomenal treat for your beardie as they are rich in:

  • Proteins (necessary for building strong muscles)
  • Potassium (some bearded dragons have muscle contractions problems. Offer them raspberries from time to time to ensure that those problems stay in the past!)
  • Magnesium (a mineral that helps with maintaining adequate blood sugar levels)

Every berry has its own set of health benefits, so don’t be shy and offer some to your bearded dragon!

Can Bearded Dragons Eat Berries? – To Summarize

If you are still unsure about can bearded dragons eat berries, I guarantee that they most certainly can! Berry-type fruits are a phenomenal asset for your beardies’ diet. Although they are rich in sugar, that shouldn’t pose a problem as long as you offer them a moderate amount.

A general role is to keep that at one berry once or twice per week. Any more than that can lead bearded dragons to develop specific stomach problems. Before offering them some, you need to make sure that berries are thoroughly washed and dried out.

Be it blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, or raspberries – every single one of them has its set of health-related benefits that help out our beloved beardies. They are an excellent source of fiber, proteins, magnesium, vitamins, water, and carbohydrates.

These fruits may be small, but they offer a substantial amount of quality nutrients that aid the overall health of beardies. Trust me on this one – your bearded dragons will be delighted every time you give them some to munch on!