Bearded dragons are one of the most popular pets in the world. They’re easy to keep, they grow up quickly, and their personalities are known for being friendly and outgoing. But when it comes to feeding, they can be picky eaters! You love your bearded dragon, and you want to make sure they’re happy and healthy. But you don’t know if you can feed bell peppers to bearded dragons! So can bearded dragons eat bell peppers?
So, can bearded dragons eat bell peppers? Yes, bearded dragons can eat bell peppers. The vegetable is packed with vitamins and minerals that your beardie can benefit from. For that reason, bell peppers can be served to them a couple of times per week.
Feeding your bearded dragon can be a bit confusing, especially when it comes to feeding bell peppers to bearded dragons. Luckily, we’ve got you covered with a complete tutorial on how to feed bell peppers to bearded dragons. Follow this guide and watch as your beardie grows into the healthiest little critter around.
Is It Healthy For Bearded Dragons To Eat Bell Peppers?
Bell pepper is a healthy addition to your bearded dragon’s diet. While there isn’t much research available on the subject, bell peppers are commonly fed to pet dragons and appear to be well-tolerated by most of them. Bell peppers are a good source of antioxidants, folate, potassium, and vitamins A, B6, C, E, and K1.
Nutrition Facts
3.5 ounces (100 grams) of raw, red bell peppers are:
- Calories: 31
- Water: 92%
- Protein: 1 gram
- Carbs: 6 grams
- Sugar: 4.2 grams
- Fiber: 2.1 grams
- Fat: 0.3 grams
Below are some of the health benefits of feeding bell peppers to your bearded dragons:
Good For Hydration
Not only are bell peppers high in nutrients, but they are also good for hydration. If you need help getting enough water into your bearded dragon’s diet, consider adding bell peppers.
Boost Immune System
Bell peppers are loaded with vitamin C, which is important for maintaining a strong immune system. When you feed bell peppers to your bearded dragons, they will be better able to fight off illnesses and infections. We recommend adding at least one pepper to its diet a few times a week.
Prevent Illness and Diseases
Bell peppers are great for bearded dragons. They are stuffed with nutrients that your pet needs, including vitamins A and C. These antioxidants, can help prevent illness and diseases. An antioxidant is a compound that protects the cells in the body from damages due to free radicals. Add some colorful bell peppers into your bearded dragon’s diet a few times a week to prevent them from becoming sick
These are just a few of the many great uses for bell peppers you can use to help your bearded dragon stay healthy.
Can Baby Bearded Dragons Eat Bell Peppers?
Baby bearded dragons can eat bell peppers. It’s actually one of the vegetables that you can feed them often.
Baby bearded dragon’s diet should consist mainly of insects. Live foods should make up 80% of their diet, while vegetables make up the other 20%. Baby beardies need a lot of protein in their diet because they grow very quickly.
As for bell peppers, it has a good amount of nutrition that baby beardies need to grow strong and healthy. You can feed a small amount of bell peppers to them a couple of times per week.
How To Feed Bell Peppers To Bearded Dragons
Feeding bell peppers to your bearded dragons is pretty straightforward. You just need to prepare them first before giving any to your beardie.
Before preparing the bell pepper, make sure they are fresh.
Then wash the bell pepper thoroughly with water to remove any pest and debris from it.
With a knife, cut away the pepper top, membranes, and remove all the seeds.
Slice the pepper into very small pieces and feed them to your beardie. You can also mix the pepper with other vegetables as well. If you do, make sure to cut each vegetable into small pieces as well. Then mix all the veggies together and place them in their feeding bowl.
You can feed them any color of bell peppers. Green bell peppers are unripe and will not contain much nutrition as yellow and red ones do.
How Often Can Bearded Dragons Eat Bell Peppers?
Bell peppers are nutritious, but you cannot feed them as a staple food. There are a few reasons why, and I will explain them below.
Bell peppers don’t have a lot of calcium. Bearded dragons need calcium in their diet each day to keep their bones healthy and strong. Without enough calcium in their diet, it may lead to fragile bones and other health issues.
Another reason is that bell peppers have poor calcium to phosphorous ratio. It has twice the amount of phosphorous as calcium. When your beardie eats food that has a high content of phosphorous, there’s a chance they can develop metabolic bone disease.
The metabolic bone disease occurs when your beardie has a calcium deficiency. This disease is very painful for them and will eventually paralyze them. Over time, when left untreated, death will occur.
The last reason is that bell peppers are full of vitamin A. Bearded dragons that consume a lot of vitamin A-rich foods can develop hypervitaminosis A (overdose of vitamin A or vitamin A toxicity).
Therefore, to keep your beardie safe when feeding them bell peppers is to give them a small amount, a couple of times a week.
Other Vegetables That Bearded Dragons Can Eat
Carrots
Bearded dragons can happily munch on a carrot for a snack or treat. This is because carrots are packed with an impressive amount of nutrients and vitamins, which bearded dragons need to stay healthy.
Lettuce
Lettuce is a great choice for bearded dragons, but it should only be used as part of a varied diet.
While bearded dragons can eat lettuce, it is not a good idea to feed them a lot of it. If you notice your bearded dragon eating a lot of lettuce, you should cut back the amount they are given. Be sure to include fruits and vegetables in your pet’s diet alongside other greens such as dandelion leaves and collard greens for healthy digestion and optimal nutrition.
Watercress
Bearded dragons can eat watercress as a part of their diet. However, it should only be fed occasionally and in small quantities because of its high oxalate levels. Feeding your bearded dragon too much watercress could lead to health issues for them. If you want to feed your bearded dragon watercress, give them a small amount.
Conclusion
Bearded dragons can eat bell peppers, and it’s healthy for them. Bell peppers are a great source of fiber, vitamin C and other important nutrients. Bearded dragons can eat bell peppers in moderation, however overfeeding them can lead to health issues like diarrhea and dehydration.
