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Pomegranate is an unusual fruit with a fairly tart taste and a tinge of sweetness underneath. If this is one of your favorite fruits, you might wonder if you can offer a bite to your bearded dragon. While pomegranates aren’t toxic for beardies, they aren’t healthy for them at all.
What Are the Benefits of Offering Pomegranates?
Pomegranates will not add any benefit to your beardie’s diet that they aren’t getting if they are on a healthy and balanced diet already. Their normal diet should consist of specially prepared or “gut loaded” insects. The key is to provide a good variety of insects and leafy greens. There are also commercial diets for bearded dragons.
What Are the Risks of Offering Pomegranates?
Poor Calcium-to-Phosphorus Ratio
Bearded dragons need approximately twice as much calcium in their diet than phosphorus. Eating too much phosphorus will cause it to bind to the calcium in your beardie’s body and deplete him of its calcium stores. This can eventually lead to painful and debilitating disorders like metabolic bone disease (MDB).
Pomegranate has over three times as much phosphorus as calcium, making it inappropriate as a staple food for your reptile.
High Sugar Content
According to the USDA, pomegranates are high on the sugar scale, with approximately 12 grams per half cup of seeds. Sugar isn’t a natural part of a bearded dragon’s diet and can be harmful if consumed in large quantities. A high-sugar diet can cause obesity and fatty liver, a serious and sometimes life-threatening illness.
Dental Disease
A crunchy diet helps to clean a bearded dragon’s teeth. When lots of soft food such as fruit is fed to your beardie, there is a lack of abrasion when eating which leads to accumulation of bacteria and painful infections. Pet bearded dragons are prone to infections and tooth decay, and high sugar diets can contribute to this problem.
What Other Fruits Can Bearded Dragons Eat?
Pomegranates may be tasty, but they’re not a great option for your beardie. If you’re looking for the most nutritious options to sweeten up your pet’s once-monthly treat, we recommend the following:
- Apples
- Berries
- Figs
- Dates
- Melons
- Papaya
- Peaches
Conclusion
Pomegranates are a tasty fruit your beardie might enjoy, but they’re not the best fruit you can offer your scaly friend. They may be full of vitamins and minerals for humans, but their high phosphorus and high sugar make them unsuitable for regular feedings.
Remember, only a small portion of your beardie’s diet should be made up of fruit. If you want to include some fruit in your beardie’s treat list, we recommend opting for one of the other suggested fruits above.
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Featured Image Credit: Fruchthandel_Magazin, Pixabay
