Can Bearded Dragons Eat Pears?

Below is the complete nutrition profile of raw pears.

Areas of Interest

Below are the main areas of interest with feeding pears to bearded dragons.

As previously mentioned, pears have a much higher sugar content than foods bearded dragons normally consume. Too much sugar can cause digestive discomfort and overtime can lead to dental and mouth issues. Sugar can also contribute to weight gain.

Bearded dragons need calcium for skeletal health. A prolonged calcium deficiency will lead to metabolic bone disease and may cause other health issues. Ideally you want your bearded dragon's diet to have twice as much calcium than phosphorus. The easiest way to explain why is to assume each mg of phosphorus will block 1mg of calcium from being absorbed. Pears have less calcium than phosphorus so the excess phosphorus will bind to other calcium sources which will create a deficit. Pears have a better Ca:P ratio than other fruits like apples, so occasionally feeding them pears as treats shouldn't cause any concern.

Bearded dragons normally enjoy eating pears due to their higher sugar and moisture content. Since pears are not the healthiest food choice, they should only be served to bearded dragons occasionally as treats no more than once or twice per week.

Preparation

Don't plan on feeding the entire pear to your beardie. That would be a large treat and a lot of sugar. Instead, cut the pear into segments and only feed one or two of those segments.

First off, remove the peel (skin) from the pear. The pear's skin is difficult for beardies to chew and digest so it should always be removed. You should also remove the stem, core, and seeds.

Cutting and Serving

You don't want to feed too large of pieces to your beardie. Each piece should be a thin slice about the size of a coin. If the piece is wider or larger than the distance between your beardies eyes, it will need to be re-cut as it's too big.

Feed them to your beardie one at a time or mix them in a small dish with other foods.