Green beans are nutritious and versatile. You can add them to salads, soups, or eat them fresh. If you have a bearded dragon, you may wonder if you can feed green beans to them. After all, it’s a vegetable, but can bearded dragons eat green beans?
So, can bearded dragons eat green beans? Yes, bearded dragons can eat green beans. Make sure that it’s fresh, doesn’t have any pesticides, and cut it into small pieces. Avoid feeding your beardie any canned green beans as those contain preservatives that can harm them.
Is It Safe For Bearded Dragons To Eat Green Beans?
Providing your bearded dragon with the right nutrition is very important. But it can be difficult to determine what is and isn’t safe for them to eat.
Fortunately, green beans are safe for bearded dragons to eat. While they are not an essential part of a bearded dragon’s diet, you can include them as treats or as part of a meal if your dragon is willing to consume them.
You might want to try steaming or boiling the green beans first before feeding them to your pet. This will help eliminate some of the possible anti-nutrients and toxins that may be present in raw green beans if grown using pesticides and chemicals.
Is It Healthy For Bearded Dragons To Eat Green Beans?
Green beans are a great source of fiber and vitamins A, K, C, and B6. Green beans also contain folate, potassium, manganese, and even some calcium! All of these nutrients have been shown to be beneficial for bone health.
Nutrition Facts
One cup of raw green beans include:
- Vitamin K: 43 mcg
- Thiamin: 0.1 mg
- Niacin: 0.7 mg
- Vitamin B-6: 0.14 mg
- Vitamin E: 0.41 mg
- Calcium: 37 mg
- Iron: 1.03 mg
- Magnesium: 25 mg
- Phosphorous: 38 mg
- Potassium: 211 mg
- Zinc: 0.24 mg
Below are some of the health benefits of feeding green beans to your bearded dragons:
Prevent MBD
Green beans have a good amount of calcium content. Calcium is crucial for the bearded dragon’s health as it prevents Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD). This disease is not reversible and will eventually lead to the death of the bearded dragon if it’s not treated.
Bearded dragons need calcium on a daily basis to stay strong and healthy.
Improve Digestion
Green beans are a good source of fiber. Fiber is important for the overall health of the bearded dragon’s digestive system. Since fiber cannot be digested and absorbed by the body, it will help bulk up the stool. This will prevent constipation and help move the stool move through the digestive tract smoothly.
Can Bearded Dragons Eat Frozen Green Beans?
Bearded dragons can eat frozen green beans, but it has been thawed completely first before feeding them any. If you try to feed them frozen green beans, even if it’s a small piece, it could cause them to choke on it.
Frozen green beans are a good treat for your beardie due to the high amount of nutrition it has. Most places will freeze the beans right away after it’s harvested. The quick freezing will lock in the nutrition. For that reason, frozen green beans have the same amount of nutrition as fresh green beans do.
Frozen green beans are a great nutritious treat for bearded dragons, but make sure that the green beans are completely thawed before giving them any.
Can Bearded Dragons Eat Canned Green Beans?
Canned green beans are cheap and available at most grocery stores. While bearded dragons can eat green beans from a can, I don’t recommend you feed them any.
The process of canning green beans involves high heat, which removes some of the vitamins and minerals.
Also, canned foods will usually contain trace amounts of BPA (bisphenol-A). Over time, the BPA from the lining of the can will start to be absorbed by the green beans. When your beardie eats it, the BPA will be in their system.
Another reason to avoid canned green beans is that it contains a lot of preservatives. These can include salt, sugar, and nitrites. All of these preservatives can be harmful to your reptiles if it’s in large amounts.
To prevent any health issues arising from canned green beans, it’s best to avoid them.
How To Feed Green Beans To Bearded Dragons
When it comes to feeding green beans to your bearded dragons, it’s straightforward and doesn’t take a lot of time preparing them.
First, make sure the green beans are washed thoroughly to remove any chemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers that may be on there.
Then, cut the green beans into small pieces. Each piece should be the size no larger than the distance between both of their eyes.
After that, place them into their bowl for them to eat.
Another way you can feed green beans to your beardie is to mix it with other vegetables. This is a great way to give your beardie a boost in nutrition.
Along with the green beans, you can add carrots, beets, and some leafy greens to create a salad. Make sure each piece of the vegetable is cut into small pieces. Then mix all the veggies together and place them into their bowl.
How Often Can Bearded Dragons Eat Green Beans?
Bearded dragons are omnivorous reptiles, meaning that they eat both vegetables and meat. They can eat green beans in small amounts. Green beans contain vitamin C, folate, fiber, potassium, and iron. A few of these green beans will not harm a bearded dragon; however, it is advised that you only feed your dragon one or two pieces at a time to prevent diarrhea or other digestive issues.
Other Vegetable That Bearded Dragons Can Eat
Cabbage
Cabbage is nutritious and healthy for bearded dragons to eat. They can be fed to bearded dragons as a vegetable. Just make sure the cabbage is fresh and cleaned thoroughly first before feeding your pet.
Celery
You can offer your bearded dragon celery. Feeding celery to a bearded dragon is beneficial because it contains vitamins, minerals, and essential nutrients. Celery can help keep your beardie’s digestive tract running smoothly.
Lettuce
Lettuce is not only healthy, but it’s also nutritious. However, lettuce should make up a small part of your bearded dragon’s diet. This is due to the high amount of water that lettuce has. It’s best to feed them romaine or butterhead lettuce. Avoid iceberg lettuce since it has very little nutritional value and too much water. Whichever lettuce variety you feed your beardie, just make sure the lettuce you’re feeding is pesticide-free and grown in a safe environment.
Conclusion
While green beans are not a main staple of the bearded dragon diet, they can be beneficial when added in small amounts. As in most cases with vegetables, it is best to feed raw green beans to your pet.
