Can Bearded Dragons Eat Mango?
Bearded dragons love to eat sweet and juicy fruits, but is it right to feed mangoes “the king of fruits” to the bearded dragons? Can bearded dragons eat mango? safely? Or should you be feeding them other fruits and greens instead? The simple answer is yes, your bearded dragons can eat mango. However, before making it a regular diet, you should consider the important things about feeding mangoes to your bearded dragon. So, I’m going to discuss all feeding the mangoes to your bearded dragon.
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Is Mango Good for Bearded Dragons?
Besides tasting delicious, mango has many nutrients quite beneficial for bearded dragons.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C is a strong nutrient that assists boost the best immune system and also helps to fight disease. Mango contains a good amount of vitamin C. Vitamin C is good for the health of your bearded dragon.
Iron
There is a small amount of Iron present in mangoes, iron is an important nutrient, especially for the baby bearded dragons that are developing and growing. Though it can also be toxic in large amounts, the amount present in mangoes is safe for your pet.
Fiber
Mango also contains a high amount of fiber, which is healthy for the digestive system of your pet and decreases the frequency of constipation and diarrhea. A high fiber diet also lessens the risk of colon cancer as it allows the body to expel the toxins quickly.
Water
Reptiles like bearded dragons obtained their water mostly from vegetables and fruits. Mangoes help to rehydrate the bearded dragon that has gone long without taking water and is in the distress.
Why Mango is not good for beardies?
While mango is considered safe for your pet dragon, but it has a few constituents that can be dangerous for your bearded dragon.
Sugar
Sugar is the primary concern while feeding your dragon mango. It contains a high amount of sugar that can quickly cause obesity if you feed it to your pet very often. Obesity is a problem for humans and as well as for pet dragons, and it is increasing.
An overweight bearded dragon can be prone to many health problems, including fatty liver disease, heart disease, kidney disease, and many more. Obesity can cause difficulty in breathing for your pet. Sugar can lead to dental problems for your dragon, if your dragon gets any dental problem, your pet can have difficulty in eating the food.
Calcium to phosphorus ratio
Another thing we should do is to avoid foodstuff with inaccurate calcium to phosphorus ratios. Experts suggested keeping this ratio 1:1, but 2:1 is considered even better with two parts of calcium and one part of phosphorus.
Phosphorus bind with the calcium then prevents calcium from absorbing by your bearded dragon, so if your pet’s food contains more phosphorus content than the calcium, it prevents your dragon from receiving the benefits from nutrients. Mango has 14 mg of phosphorus to 11mg of calcium per 100gram of serving. As this ratio favors the phosphorus content, your pet will not intake the calcium content from the food with this ratio.
Vitamin A
While the content of vitamin A in mangoes is not so high, dragons are prone to vitamin-A toxicity. This can lead to health issues like congenital disabilities and osteoporosis. You must be cautious when feeding fruits like mangoes along with any supplement that may contain vitamin A too. Then the amount of vitamin A becomes too much, and that is harmful.
How can I feed my bearded dragons mango?
• It is best to buy organic fruits for your bearded dragon because these have the lowest risk of harmful pesticides.
• Cut the mango into slices about ¼ inch apart, like the apple slices.
• Slice the mango into smaller cubes and remove the skin from fruit cubes.
• Feed small amounts of fruit or one slice mixed in the salad or any other healthy vegetables and fruit.
• Mix mango slices with any other healthy food including squash, seedless, bell peppers, watermelon, mustard greens, and collard greens.
Can baby bearded dragons eat mango?
The baby bearded dragon is safe to eat mango fruit just like the adults are. Additionally, the baby bearded dragon needs a good amount of mango in their diet but not too much. As your baby bearded dragon is growing bigger, their requirement for nutrient-dense foodstuff and high content of calcium is even greater. But, you should not fill your baby pet’s stomach with foodstuff that is not going to assist them to grow.
Can bearded dragon eat mango on daily basis?
Bearded dragons should not eat mango on daily basis. As we have mentioned in this article, this is because of the fact that mango contains high sugar content and low nutrients like calcium. So, if your pet should not eat mango every day, then just how often can bearded dragons eat mango? Bearded dragons can eat one or two slices of mango per month. The portion should be small and served with other healthy veggies or greens or any salad.
5 fruits for bearded dragons to eat instead of
Following are some healthy fruits that you can feed your pet.
- Figs
- Dates
- Apricots
- Cherries
- Raspberries
- Strawberries
Summary
When feeding your pet (bearded dragon) mango, it is best to provide it in a very small amount as a treat. It is high in sugar content and has a bad calcium/ phosphorus ratio, so it is not something that you want to feed every day or even in a week.
Since dragons have a difficult time getting more calcium in the diet, we suggest making calcium food like collard greens and dandelion greens a major part of the routine diet and keeping foodstuff like mango for only special days like once in a month.
