Dandelion is a weed with a rosette and large bright yellow flowers. They have been used for medicinal practice for treating physical ailments, digestive disorders, liver disease, and acne.
Not forgetting their leaves are eaten by many animals. In such a case, can bearded dragons eat Dandelion?
Yes, a bearded dragon can eat dandelions and it is a favorite plant-based diet for both the baby and adult dragon.
Why You Should Feed Your Beardy With Dandelion
Dandelion is high in calcium and low in phosphorus which makes it an essential diet for your beardie.
The amount of Calcium in Dandelion is three times that of phosphorus.
Calcium helps to support the growth and formation of bones as well as maintain muscle functioning.
Therefore, it minimizes the risk for developing Metabolic Bone Diseases in beardies.
Furthermore, the dandelion leaves contain a reasonable amount of Vitamin A and K.
Vitamins A supports the healthy growth of bones and reproduction while Vitamin K helps to enhance wound healing and the body’s immunity.
How to Prepare Dandelions for Your Bearded Dragons
Wild and organic Dandelion is completely safe and non-toxic for your beardie to consume and very nutritious.
However, don’t serve them the ones grown by the roadside. The same goes for the ones in areas treated as herbicides or pesticides. Indeed, they contain toxic chemicals making them unhealthy for consumption.
We recommend you picking a fresh and young dandelion that has dark green leaves with bright yellow leaves. These have the most nutrition in them compared to the mature ones.
Then, take a knife and cut the leaves and flowers off the stem, and cut them into smaller pieces for your beardy to easily eat and digest.
It is best if start introducing your baby beardy to dandelion by serving it mixed with nutritious greens, veggies, fruits, and protein. But before cutting into manageable sizes don’t forget to wash away dandelions to wash away dirt.
How Often Can Bearded Dragons Eat Dandelion Greens?
Since the ratio of calcium to phosphorus in Dandelion is 3:1, it makes it an essential diet especially for the young beardy that needs a high amount of calcium to support the growth and development of bones and muscles.
Therefore, you can offer dandelion to both adult and baby beardy regularly if you want.
But it is good to keep in mind to check the Vitamin A level in case you are offering your beardy a multivitamin because dandelion contains a reasonable amount of Vitamin A. high amounts of Vitamin A can cause Vitamin A toxicity or hypervitaminosis A which causes a lack of appetite and nausea in beardies.
Summary
As dandelion is completely safe for your beardy on regular basis you should avoid overfeeding them to avoid hypervitaminosis A and other risks related to overfeeding.
Secondly, do not worry about the low amount of phosphorus in dandelion because the calcium content is abundant and enough for the beardy’s bloodstream to absorb.
Lastly, your beardy can eat the dandelion stem, but the milky sap contains a significant amount of latex which is toxic enough to cause stomach upset and indigestion if consumed excessively.
Thinking about feeding your beardie with fish? Think again!
Related Posts:
Can bearded dragons eat zinnias?
Can bearded dragons eat cauliflower?
My name is Brad and I am the main editor of BeardieZilla.com.
The only goal of this site is quite simply to be able to help you. To help you by the means of my experiment, of the relation which I maintain with my bearded dragon as well as some of my knowledge about beardies.
I hope that you will find answers to some of your most pressing questions here.
Thank you for stopping by and enjoy the blog!
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