It’s raspberries season, and you bought a bag of them to eat from the grocery store. It’s very sweet and delicious to eat itself or use in a dessert. Since you have a bearded dragon, you want to share this tasty fruit with them. After all, bearded dragons are omnivores, which means they can eat vegetables, fruits, and meats.
So can bearded dragons eat raspberries? You can definitely feed raspberries to your bearded dragons. However, you’ll want to give them occasionally only. Eating too many raspberries could cause them to have diarrhea and other digestive problems. This is due to the high content of water in the fruit.
Is It Safe For Bearded Dragons To Eat Raspberries?
Raspberries are safe to feed your bearded dragons, but in moderation only.
This fruit has a high content of water. Bearded dragons may get diarrhea if the raspberries are eaten too much.
Besides that, raspberries are very sweet tasting, which makes them high in sugar content. Bearded dragons tend to not cope well with an excessive amount of sugar in their body.
However, bearded dragons are omnivores, which means they can eat both plants and meats. This is very important as their natural habitat is in the deserts. The deserts are mostly dry for the most part of the year. Access to food during some parts of the year can be difficult.
Therefore, bearded dragons have evolved to eat just about anything and everything.
Bearded dragons should be given a variety of fruits to keep them interested in eating. Raspberries are great for them as they will keep them interested in eating.
However, you’ll want to give them raspberries as a treat only. Besides having digestive problems from eating too much of it, they could also get addicted to raspberries. If they enjoy raspberries too much, they may not eat anything else.
Nutritional Content Of Raspberries
Raspberries are very nutritious for your bearded dragons to eat. Below are the vitamin and minerals that they can expect from eating raspberries:
- Carbohydrates – These are great for giving your bearded dragon energy to move around
- Copper – This mineral helps maintain healthy blood vessels, bones, and nerves in bearded dragons
- Potassium – Helps the bearded dragon maintain healthy blood pressure. It also regulates muscle contractions and nerve signals
- Phosphorus – Helps keeps the bearded dragon’s bones and teeth strong
- Magnesium – This mineral helps regulate blood sugar at an optimal level
- Fiber – Good for keeping the bearded dragon’s digestive system healthy. Try to avoid too many raspberries or you’ll end up with a digestive problem such as diarrhea
- Iron – This mineral helps keep the bearded dragon’s bone strong and promote red blood production
- Vitamin C – This vitamin helps prevent the reptile from getting sick and recovering quickly from an illness. It also helps regrow and repair damaged body tissues
- Vitamin E – This vitamin keeps the bearded dragon’s skin healthy. It also protects the cells from damage caused by free radicals
- Vitamin K – This vitamin helps prevent blood clots and promote strong bone and development
How To Prepare Raspberries For Your Bearded Dragons
Picking Raspberries
Whether you’re picking them from the farm yourself or buying them from the grocery stores, it’s important to choose only fresh raspberries for your bearded dragons.
Fresh raspberries will contain the most nutrition. As the raspberries start to go bad, they will begin to lose their flavor, texture, and nutritional value.
Also, it’s not a good idea to feed your bearded dragons spoiled or raspberries that are old. These will usually have mold and other bacteria growing on them. Since it’s high in sugar content, it will attract
Preparing Raspberries
Before preparing the raspberries, make sure to wash them well first. Rinse them under cold water for a couple of minutes. Doing so will help remove any chemicals such as insecticides and pesticides from the fruit.
Once they are washed, remove any stems and leaves that may still be attached to the fruit. The stems and leaves are not dangerous for the bearded dragon to eat, but they will just have a hard time digesting them.
To make it easier for your bearded dragon to eat and digest, cut the raspberries into smaller pieces. Also, smaller pieces will prevent them from choking on the fruit. These smaller sizes are great for baby and juvenile bearded dragons.
For adult beardie, you can try to feed them either cut or whole raspberries. Their mouth is big enough where they will just mush up the soft raspberries.
Feeding Raspberries To Your Bearded Dragon
If you have a bearded dragon that is stubborn, or it’s their first time trying raspberries, you’ll have to trick them into eating it. Some bearded dragons are stubborn and will be reluctant to try anything new.
If that’s the case, one way is to make a salad with all their favorite food and include pieces of raspberries in there. This way, as they are eating the salad, some raspberries will get eaten as well.
Once they are used to eating raspberries, you can feed them just the raspberries. They can be fed from your finger or with a pair of tweezers if you feel comfortable enough. Otherwise, you can place a couple of raspberries on a plate, and they’ll eat off it.
What Other Fruits Can Bearded Dragons Eat?
Besides raspberries fruit for feeding your bearded dragon, you can also try to give them other fruits to eat. You should try a lot of other fruit to keep them interested and see what’s their favorite fruit is.
Below is a list of other fruits that you can feed to your bearded dragon:
- Apples
- Apricot
- Blackberries
- Chayote
- Cherries
- Cranberries
- Grapes
- Grapefruit
- Guava
- Honeydew
- Melons
- Papayas
- Peaches
- Pears
- Pineapple
- Mango
- Nectarine
- Raisins
- Strawberries
- Watermelon
Related Questions
Can you feed bearded dragons frozen raspberries?
You’ll need to thaw frozen raspberries first before feeding them to your bearded dragon. Also, it’s a good idea to dry the fruit, so your beardie won’t consume too much water. If so, they could get diarrhea from consuming too much of it.
