Can Bearded Dragons Eat Bananas?

People like to keep bearded dragon as pets, and when you keep them as pets, it becomes important to know what kind of food you can feed them. Banana is widely available in most places and is relatively cheap but provides lots of nutrients. So it is a good choice for bearded dragon.

But can bearded dragons eat bananas? Yes, a bearded dragon can eat a banana. A bearded dragon is small, but they eat a lot of different kinds of foods, and one of them is banana. Banana provides instant carbohydrate, potassium and other vital nutrients. It would help if you cut the banana in small pieces, peel it off and then feed the bearded dragon.

Banana Provides Vital Nutrients For Bearded Dragon

Banana is a nutritious food, and when you give a banana to a bearded dragon, they eat with delight. The reason why I say they eat with delight is that a lizard usually knows which food is right for them and when you give them the right food, they eat it without hesitation.

Banana not only taste good, but it also has a lot of food value which is helpful for the bearded dragon. That said you should feed other food to the bearded dragon along with a banana. Bananas are rich in potassium and are highly useful to a bearded dragon. 

A bearded dragon is omnivorous, so they also need meat protein that’s why you have to feed them animal protein along with fruits.

Banana Is Cheap

Many people feed banana to their bearded dragon because bananas can be cheap (depending upon where you live) so if you have a bearded dragon in your house then feeding them banana will be a great option.

It will satisfy their hunger and will provide sufficient nutrients. If you have a garden filled with the banana tree, then this can be the best thing to do. You can get the banana for free and can feed them. 

Why Bearded Dragon Eat Bananas?

Wild bearded dragon also eats banana because they provide sufficient nutrients, they satisfy the hunger, and they are easy to eat. Bearded dragon doesn’t have to waste a lot of energy while eating a banana, so a banana is easy food for them.

But this also leads to a problem. A bearded dragon can go inside the human territory to eat a banana, and because of that, it can get troublesome for both the human and bearded dragon.

The History Of Bearded Dragons And Bananas

Bananas are there for eons, and so are the bearded dragon. Before human traded banana, bananas were found in the wild bearded dragon has eaten them for a long time. The bananas are rich in nutrients, and any hungry bearded dragon will try to eat it. 

A bearded dragon can climb banana trees to eat bananas, and they can also eat bananas that have fallen on the ground. As long, it satisfies their hunger they will eat. That said they don’t wholly rely on banana only. They also hunt.

Banana is filled with carbohydrate, so it gives instant energy which another excellent property for any animal. They can use the extra energy for hunting and other purposes. 

How Many Bananas Should You Feed To Your Pet Bearded Dragon?

It will depend upon what else you are feeding to your bearded dragon. If you are not feeding anything else which is of course not recommended, then you may need to feed at least half banana. If your lizard stops eating after half banana, then stop feeding them more banana because your lizard is satisfied.

You can keep a few bananas because they will not eat the whole banana at once, so let them take their time. They will eat it part by part and throughout some time. Of course, if the lizard is too hungry, then the lizard will eat as fast as possible.

Which Is Better For Bearded Dragon Big Or Small Bananas?

You can feed whatever banana you can get, but small banana will be cost-effective (depending upon where you live) You can feed them small bananas along with other food. Bearded dragon likes all kind of bananas. So it won’t be a problem. 

The wild bearded dragon eats all kinds of banana. It depends upon what they get. If they get a small banana, then they will eat the small ones, but if there are only big bananas, then they will have to eat the big one. Big ones can be challenging because they are heavy, and they can be difficult to eat.

Why Bananas Can Be Dangerous For Bearded Dragon

Although a rare incidence bearded dragon can choke after eating a banana, this is rare because usually, a bearded dragon knows how much they should eat and how much they should not eat at one go but sometimes they miscalculate and eats a lot more than they can handle which leads to choking. The bearded dragon will start coughing after it gets choked and then may throw out the extra food. 

Usually, they don’t die from choking, but it’s still a possibility. So make sure to cut the banana in small pieces and then offer the food to the bearded dragon. In that way, the risks of choking will significantly reduce. When a banana is in semi liquid state, it becomes slippery and gluey, and that gluey banana can get inside the lizard windpipe if the lizard eats too much at once. 

This gluey substance is hard to eject from the system because it sticks firmly. This can lead to suffocation. When a lizard swallows a banana, it first chews it and then it is converted to a semi-fluid substance which then goes through the esophagus and then into the stomach, but sometimes it can get on the trachea which leads to suffocation especially when the lizard is eating too fast.

Some lizards have congenital disabilities, and they often face this challenge while swallowing. If your bearded dragon has congenital disabilities, then make sure cut the banana in tiny pieces and give the limited quantity at a particular time. 

Bananas Can Be Helpful While Swallowing

Banana can be helpful while swallowing other food. If the lizard is eating dry food and has to put the effort in swallowing it, then banana can play a catalyst in swallowing the food. The banana works as a useful catalyst in swallowing the food most of the time, but some times the opposite can happen.

You can give your bearded dragon small pieces of banana along with other food so that your bearded dragon can swallow the food properly. Usually, a lizard doesn’t face too much problem while swallowing any food, but banana can still be helpful.

Bananas And Energy

Banana is filled with carbohydrate, which means if a bearded dragon eats it, it will get instant energy. Banana can be good food if your lizard is feeling lethargic and is showing low energy. Adding a banana to the diet will help the lizard to gain back it’s energy.

Although it won’t happen immediately, you can expect to see results in about a week. Adding a banana to the bearded dragon diet will fill up their daily carbohydrate need. A banana is the best and the cheapest diet that should be added in a bearded dragon daily diet. Along with that, you can give them other food which fills up other criteria for their daily need.

Conclusion

Bearded dragons are omnivorous, and they can eat bananas, but it’s better to feed various kinds of food because they also need animal protein. In the wild, you can often see bearded dragon eating bananas because it gives them instant energy, and they can use that energy for other purposes.

The banana also fills up their stomach and is easy to digest. Sometimes bearded dragon can even choke while trying to eat banana so always make sure to peel the banana and give them small pieces.