If you own an exotic pet like a bearded dragon, it can be difficult to know what you can and cannot feed them. There are a number of foods we consume in our diets that we may consider giving but want to check ahead of time to ensure it is safe or even advisable. Eggs are a prime example. Can you offer these? Let’s find out!

So, can bearded dragons eat eggs? Bearded dragons can eat eggs, but should only do so in moderation. For adult bearded dragons, it is generally recommended to offer a small serving of egg once per week at most. Babies and younger bearded dragons can typically consume more as they have higher protein requirements, but again this should not exceed 2 times per week.

Eggs can provide many nutrients for your reptile, however, are too high in protein and fat to be a staple in their diet.

Eggs can be offered from ducks, chickens, and quails but the larger the egg, the less that should be served!

While feeding eggs to your bearded dragon can be done; there are a lot of considerations you need to take into account.

Let us now take a look at the most common questions of the topic to ensure you know exactly if you should offer this food, how, when, and in what kind of quantity.

Should Bearded Dragons Eat Eggs?

Bearded dragons are omnivorous; and according to research, do best on a diet of 50% plant matter and 50% animal-based foods.

In their natural habitat, food is generally scarce, so they are known to accept a wide variety of different foods.

Additionally, younger bearded dragons are more carnivorous; consuming more protein than their elder counterparts who typically have more of a preference to plant-based foods.

So where does this leave eggs?

Well, firstly we know that your bearded dragon will likely consume them if offered. But does this mean you should?

It is perfectly safe, and can even be advantageous to offer small amounts of egg.

This is because eggs can help your beardie meet some of their protein requirements and also provide a range of vitamins and minerals that will support their health.

However, you should only look to offer eggs sparingly. They should never become a staple in the diet.

Generally, it is advised to never offer eggs to an adult beardie more than once per week, although due to their carnivorous nature and additional requirement for protein, baby and younger bearded dragons can look to consume eggs 1-2x per week.

You should only offer cooked eggs; that have been prepared via poaching, boiling, or microwaving.

Never cook them in added fats (oils/butter), nor add condiments, milk, or seasonings.

You will want to cut them into manageable-sized chunks and also let them cool before offering them.

There are also a variety of eggs available although quail and chicken eggs are most preferable.

Going further, you should look to offer organic eggs from grass-fed chickens as these are more nutritious.

Quail eggs are excellent because they are small yet still very nutritious; it saves having to worry about serving sizes and the risk of offering too much.

With chicken eggs, you have to be more careful, and it is best to stick to half an egg per serving.

When first introducing your bearded dragons to eggs, look to offer a small amount and see how they react and respond.

Typically, most bearded dragons will enjoy consuming eggs, but not all will. Some will not take to them and may even ignore them altogether. Never force a food upon your beardie.

It is also important that you do not give them an entire egg in one sitting, especially if they have not tried this food before.

While eggs are very nutritious (which we will explain in further detail in the section below), they are very high in protein.

Protein in excess is bad for bearded dragons and can easily lead to weight gain. So it is something you need to be aware of as the owner of this reptile.

Taking it one step further, there is actually an ideal time when a bearded dragon would do very well to consume eggs; if they were malnourished.

During this time, the nutrients found in an egg added to the protein will help to support your dragon during this time.

It may even help them to put on needed weight. If your beardie is not eating much, if anything at all, then mixing some eggs with more appetizing food can be a good solution.

Nutritional Value Of Eggs

Eggs are perhaps some of the most nutritious food sources when eaten in appropriate amounts. This is true for both us humans and for bearded dragons.

While we must be wary of the protein and fat content, the wide variety of nutrients and minerals do make this a food that we do want to offer infrequently.

This is because they can provide a lot of necessary vitamins and minerals that bearded dragons need to thrive. The most important ones are:

Vitamin A
Vitamin D
Vitamin E
Vitamin B12

Vitamin D in particular is very important for bearded dragons. This vitamin, along with calcium, is essential to promote strong bones and prevent deformations.

As you can imagine, this is why we place a UVB light in their enclosure – to help them acquire the Vitamin D they no longer can obtain from the sun.

Let us now take a look at some of the different eggs you can look to feed your beardie, along with their nutritional profile:

Egg Nutrition

Per Egg	Quail Egg (9g)	Chicken Egg (50g)
Energy	14 calories	71 calories
Protein	1.17 g	6.2 g
Fat	0.99 g	4.76 g
Vitamin A	48.9 IU	270 IU
Vitamin D	4.95 IU	41 IU
Vitamin E	0.097 mg	0.525 mg
Vitamin B-12	0.142 µg	0.445 µg
Calcium	5.76 mg	28 mg

Source: USDA

As you can imagine, a bearded dragon’s requirements for such vitamins and minerals is much lower than ours, as humans.

Therefore, when you compare the nutrients in the table above, it’s important to consider that more is not necessarily better or even required by a beardie.

Equally, eggs will not be the only source of these nutrients and they will obtain them from other foods.

Quail Eggs, if available, therefore are preferable – being lower in calories, fat, and protein while simultaneously offering all of the necessary vitamins and minerals that chicken eggs can provide.

Either type of egg can be healthy, with appropriate serving sizes and serving schedules as discussed above and below:

Serving Frequency	Quail Egg	Chicken Egg (Medium 50g)
Baby/Juveniles	One Egg (9g) 2-3x per week.	Half an Egg (25g) 1-2x per week
Adults	One Egg (9g), 1-2x per week	1/3rd/Half an Egg (17g/25g) 1x per week/2 weeks.

Risks Of Bearded Dragons Eating Too Many Eggs

Like with most foods; more is not always better. While some eggs in your bearded dragon’s diet can lead to improved health – and as we can see they are very nutritious, too many can cause issues.

As the table documents above, eggs are naturally high in protein. While some are required in the diet; too much can result in excess weight gain, fatty liver disease along with other health complications.

That being said, it’s very important to consider the age of your beardie.

Baby/young/juvenile bearded dragons do require more protein and therefore naturally are more carnivorous in their appetite.

This is why you will often see recommendations to offer them crickets, cockroaches, mealworms, and other insects more frequently;y during this stage of their lives.

Yet, as bearded dragons age, their requirements and resulting preferences for animal-based foods decline.

They move into a more herbivorous diet – doing best on more greens such as dandelion, collard greens, parsley, watercress, and clover.

As an owner, you need to follow this natural tendency and preference.

Your vet will help you to transition your beardies diet over the course of their lives and at appropriate times. Generally, this happens slowly.

How To Offer Eggs To your Bearded Dragon

So with the above information in mind, if you did want to offer some egg to your bearded dragon, how would you go about doing so?

There are actually a couple of ways to prepare them, but first and foremost, you should never:

Offer Eggs Raw
Cook them in fat such as oil or butter.
Add seasonings, sauces, or spices

Poaching or gently boiling is recommended, along with whisking the egg plain in a bowl and then microwaving it for a minute or two.

Make sure you let the egg cool. You can then cut it into smaller bite-sized pieces and mix it into your beardies’ regular diet and salad bowl of dandelion, mustard greens, etc.

Hard-boiled eggs are also an option and how some owners prepare them for their beardies.

Remember, never offer raw eggs to your beardie as it can be a challenge for them to digest. Again, be sure to cut the egg into bite-size chunks to ensure they do not choke.

Finally

Bearded dragons can eat eggs. In fact, there are a lot of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals in eggs that they can benefit from.

However, due to the high protein and fat content, eggs should be offered sparingly.

Baby, young and juvenile beardies can consume eggs more frequently as they adhere to a more carnivorous diet, but adults less so as their dietary requirements and need to transition over to a more herbivorous one.

Both quail and chicken eggs can be excellent choices; when given in appropriate serving sizes.

Poaching, boiling, or microwaving eggs are the best ways to prepare them.

Never feed eggs raw, too hot, fried in fat, or seasoned.

From there, your beardie can enjoy eggs from time to time and benefit from the many vitamins and minerals they contain – like Vitamin D.

Can Bearded Dragons Eat Eggs? [Scrambled, Raw or Poached?]