How Many Crickets Should a Bearded Dragon Eat: Guide

Introduction to the topic

For most dragon keepers, crickets are their preferred insect food source. They’re a great source of nutrition for bearded dragons, easy to obtain, and easy to digest. Crickets are one of the most popular insects to feed bearded dragons for all of these reasons. Is there a limit on how many you can offer? Bearded dragons need to consume how many crickets daily in order to maintain their health.

To be honest, I’m not sure what to tell you. When a dragon is in a certain stage of life, it requires a different number of crickets. The ratio of insects to fruits and vegetables should be higher in young dragons, but the reverse is true for adults, who require a higher proportion of fruits and vegetables in their diet. It is important to understand the appropriate amount of crickets to feed your dragon at each stage of its life cycle.

How many crickets do bearded dragon requires in its adult stage?

Adult bearded dragons are those that have reached the age of a year and a half. In adult bearded dragons, crickets make up only a small portion of their diet; instead, they eat leafy greens like spinach and kale. Adults should include greens in their diets because eating too many high-fat insects can lead to weight gain, and greens provide a sense of balance. Bearded dragons only eat as much as they need to feel full, and they’ll eat for 10-15 minutes at a time until they’re satisfied.

You can use rubberized tongs to gently pop crickets into your pet’s mouth or hand-feed them. It is, however, preferable to start with a few crickets and allow the crickets time to find them before adding a few more. Adding too many crickets at once can stress your dragon out due to the constant movement and noise the crickets make. Take care not to overwhelm your dragon. As a result, they will be healthier and more likely to live longer if they are left to hunt live crickets on their own.

Typical daily intake for adult bearded dragons is between 10 and 20 crickets, along with leafy greens. Give them one to two feedings per day, each lasting 10 to 15 minutes, as a general rule of thumb.

Medium-sized crickets, which still have soft exoskeletons, should be fed to your adult bearded dragon. A cricket that weighs more than a few ounces may have trouble digesting its food, and this can lead to obstructions in the gullet or digestive tract, which can lead to death. In general, bearded dragons can comfortably eat crickets that are three to three and a half weeks old or younger.

A male bearded dragon is ready to breed after 18 months, while a female bearded dragon takes 24 months to reach reproductive maturity. During the breeding period, which lasts for four months, they can lay anywhere from two to five clutches totaling up to 20 eggs each.

If you want your female beardie to finish laying eggs, you need to supplement her diet with extra protein and calcium during this time. Keep an eye on any females that are reproducing during the mating period, as they’re particularly vulnerable to egg binding, which can be fatal. If you notice that your bearded dragon is sluggish or hasn’t laid any eggs in a month, you should take her to the vet to have the eggs surgically removed. In some cases, this is due to a lack of calcium in the diet, which can be remedied by giving calcium supplements in powder form.

Fertilized eggs can hatch in 55-75 days under ideal conditions. Incubating eggs can be tricky, so only those with extensive experience with bearded dragon care should attempt it. If you handle the eggs too often, you risk damaging the developing embryos or even causing them to separate from the lining that surrounds them.

How to feed a bearded dragon crickets?

During the first few months of life, bearded dragons need to be fed a diet high in protein, such as crickets, to help them grow quickly. Including crickets in your bearded dragon’s diet will help keep him healthy as he grows and help prevent diseases like metabolic bone disease.

How many?

For a 5- to 10-minute period, feed the bearded dragon as many crickets as it can eat. This equates to approximately 60-80 crickets per day if you feed your pet 5 times per day.

How frequently?

Feed your baby bearded dragon at least three to five times a day with crickets.

They eat more crickets as they get older

There are some basic guidelines to follow when it comes to feeding bearded dragons as they get older.

It’s best not to restrict their intake of crickets, especially when they’re still considered babies, as we previously stated (in their first three months of life). Trying to force bearded dragons to eat more or less than they appear to want can be dangerous, so it is unnecessary (and even counterproductive) to do so.

The number of cricket meals your pet receives each day will decrease as it grows older. Shorten the twice-daily feeding sessions after 14 months of age. When your bearded dragon is 13 to 14 months old, for example, cut back on the time they have to eat from the 10 minutes they were previously given.

As a part of the bearded dragon’s diet, are crickets essential?

Crickets present a unique hunting challenge to your beardie due to their agility in jumping from one location to another.

A lot of exercise and enrichment are provided for your bearded dragon by doing this.

It is safe to use crickets as a staple insect because they are high in protein and low in fat.

Crickets, on the other hand, are more readily available and less expensive than Dubia roaches, which are commonly used as feeder insects.

Some bearded dragon owners are also afraid of Dubia roaches, so handling crickets is a lot more convenient.

However, as long as you are aware of this and take your beardie to the vet on a regular basis, you should not be concerned about parasites in crickets.

What are the tips for feeding crickets to bearded dragons?

Preventing negative effects

Your bearded dragon’s size and age should be taken into consideration when selecting crickets for your pet’s diet. Continue reading for more information on bearded dragon impact. Babies and young dragons should be fed crickets that are smaller and less mature than the ones they are currently eating.

Adult dragons should only be fed medium crickets that are 3 to 12 weeks old (1/2″ to 5/8″ long) as a general rule of thumb. Soft-shelled crickets aid digestion. A cricket’s exoskeleton is more difficult to break down when it is five weeks old.

Inquire about changes in behavior or eating habits

To ensure that your bearded dragon’s digestive health is not compromised by feeding it crickets, it is always a good idea to keep an eye out for any changes in its behavior or eating habits. The bowel movements of your child should also be monitored. Crickets will bite your bearded dragons if you leave uneaten food in the enclosure for an extended period of time.

Make sure your bearded dragon’s habitat is properly heated and illuminated to aid digestion and metabolism.

Can you feed alive crickets to your beardie?

You should remove any uneaten food from your bearded dragon’s enclosure after feeding times. Your bearded dragon won’t be bothered or attacked by any uneaten crickets if you do this.

In order to avoid stressing out your beardie, it is best to get rid of these crickets and keep your cricket bin a safe distance away from its enclosure.

Loading and dusting of the guts

Your bearded dragon will be able to get all of the nutrients and minerals it needs from crickets, which can be loaded with supplements like vitamin D3, calcium, and other multivitamins.

Gut loading can be achieved by feeding your crickets a day prior to your dragon’s feeding sessions with these vitamins. Do not feed your dragon for at least 24 hours after gut loading because a cricket’s metabolism is extremely rapid. After 24 hours, the supplements will no longer be of any nutritional value to your beardie because they will have passed through their digestive system.

Feeding them with live crickets is critical

Understanding why bearded dragons need to be fed only live crickets is critical to their diet comprehension. You should never feed your bearded dragon any crickets that have been dead or decomposing for a long period of time. Many harmful bacteria can be found in and around these crickets’ bodies, as well as a lack of moisture, making them difficult to digest for pets.

Putting some live crickets in your bearded dragon’s cage will make it jumpy, and that will make it want to go out and hunt for the crickets, which it will enjoy. Bearded dragons are very uninterested in stationary prey and may be unable to detect it, which is why it is necessary to feed them live crickets and not freeze-dried ones. You should not feed your bearded dragon any dead crickets, as they may have died of a parasitic infection or disease that your bearded dragon will contract if it eats them.

Your dragon crickets should only be fed food that has been purchased from a pet store. Wild crickets can carry a number of deadly parasites, making them dangerous to catch and feed to pets. In order to ensure a steady supply of feeder crickets, you can breed them together.

Do bearded dragons need to be fed?

Because they are not aggressive, bearded dragons are easy to feed. Bearded dragons can be fed free of charge by placing food in their bowls or by hand. As far as live feeders and insects go, this is mostly true. However, some owners may have a hard time getting their pets to eat certain high-nutrient vegetables.

Even though their bite contains toxins that are similar to rattlesnake venom, which can cause swelling and bleeding, the effects on humans are not severe.

While they’re eating, it’s a good idea to keep an eye on them and see if they’re finished. Remove any remaining food from the table and re-portion food if they don’t eat it in the next 10 minutes.

Watch How many times a day should I feed my bearded dragon | Video

Top 5 FAQs and answers related to How many crickets should a bearded dragon eat

The Ending

Once you know how many crickets a bearded dragon needs at each stage of its life cycle, everything becomes clear.

As your beardie gets older, you’ll be a better beardie owner if you know how their needs change. That goes for anything and everything, not just cricket feeding.

Simply follow the instructions in this guide if you are a new owner. When things are kept simple, everything will work out just fine.

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