Supplements?

[Haran_Kislev]

Need some help.
I understand that I need to add supplements to my bearded dragon diet.
But I'm not sure which one.
I use both calcium and multivitamin of exo-terra.
I read that the calcium need to be without D.
What do you use and most important , which brand is most recommended for bearded dragons needs. And, do I need to add another supplements?

 

[Haran_Kislev]

 

[PatsyB]

The calcium I use came in a white jar and it is without D3. I can't remember the brand because I put it in a salt/pepper shaker to make it easier to dust their food. The multi-vitamin I use is Reptivite. I'm sure the ones you bought are just fine. Make sure you also offer salad because they get their vitamins from the greens too.

 

[Penelopesmom]

Are you still supposed to use calcium without d3 if you don't use a mvb?

 

[ilovebeardies]

I use reptical for my dragons

 

[PatsyB]

Are you still supposed to use calcium without d3 if you don't use a mvb?

Do you mean UVB? You need to have a UVB light for your dragon. The UVB light mimics the natural light they would get outside. Without it they can't synthesize D3 which is needed to absorb calcium. Without it they can get metabolic bone disease and stunted growth. Giving them D3 orally is not as good as letting them absorb it through the light.

 

[Luvthemanimal]

If you use calcium WITHOUT D3 is fine. Dust with it everyday... BUT you still need to dust WITH D3 twice a month...... Or what I do is dust my feeders only on Tuesday and Thursday with both multi vitamin and calcium with d3

 

[DanielE]

If you use calcium WITHOUT D3 is fine. Dust with it everyday... BUT you still need to dust WITH D3 twice a month...... Or what I do is dust my feeders only on Tuesday and Thursday with both multi vitamin and calcium with d3

Im going to but in and ask a quick question since we are on the topic.
I use the calcium with D3 dusting crickets every day and use the multivitamin one a week instead. Is this ok?

 

[Luvthemanimal]

No. You don't want to dust your feeders everyday with D3 it can be bad for them. Especially if you feed silkworms which are loaded with calcium already.....

So what I do is calcium mon, wed, fri and multivitamin Thursday and sat..... But I will double check on that..... I have it written on the top of the containers..... And I'll post pics of the stuff I use.

 

[Haran_Kislev]

From what I understand you should not use any D3 because it get it from your UVB light. Just multivitamin and calcium.

 

[Haran_Kislev]

http://www.beautifuldragons.com/Nutrition.html

 

[Luvthemanimal]

I'd still have with d3 as your generally only giving them vit D if you bring them out doors everyday......

 

[Penelopesmom]

Do you mean UVB? You need to have a UVB light for your dragon. The UVB light mimics the natural light they would get outside. Without it they can't synthesize D3 which is needed to absorb calcium. Without it they can get metabolic bone disease and stunted growth. Giving them D3 orally is not as good as letting them absorb it through the light.

I use a reptisun 10.0 t8.

 

[Penelopesmom]

No. You don't want to dust your feeders everyday with D3 it can be bad for them. Especially if you feed silkworms which are loaded with calcium already.....

So what I do is calcium mon, wed, fri and multivitamin Thursday and sat..... But I will double check on that..... I have it written on the top of the containers..... And I'll post pics of the stuff I use.

I don't know if it's true but I have heard people say the d3 in the calcium supplement is so minuscule that the risk of overdose is minuscule. You would overdose with calcium before you would d3.

 

[Luvthemanimal]

I don't know if it's true but I have heard people say the d3 in the calcium supplement is so minuscule that the risk of overdose is minuscule. You would overdose with calcium before you would d3.

Yep pretty much..... From what I've been told you want to dust with d3 unless your beardie spends most of its time out doors.... (this is by my vet) only reason I dust every other day sometimes not at all is because I feed silks and they are owned with calcium.

 

[Penelopesmom]

Yep pretty much..... From what I've been told you want to dust with d3 unless your beardie spends most of its time out doors.... (this is by my vet) only reason I dust every other day sometimes not at all is because I feed silks and they are owned with calcium.

Same thing goes when you feed repti worms is don't dust when I feed those. I have not tried silk worms with Penelope yet.

 

[Luvthemanimal]

I only dust crickets and super worms......... Never dust pheniox, silk or hornworms

 

[jarich]

Phoenix worms do not need to be dusted, silks its sort of either way, and hornworms definitely require dusting.

As for the Vit D3, if you provide a good source of UVB light at a proper distance, then it is not necessary at all to use Vit D in a supplement. It does not require the sun to create good levels of Vit D metabolites in the blood, merely a good source of UVB light. Supplemental D3 is pretty useless anyway, and though rare, it does have the potential to be detrimental. Vit D is a fat soluble vitamin, so can build up to high levels over time in the body. (water doesnt flush it out, in other words) Part of why this is bad is that it can cause the animal to absorb more and more calcium and lead to calcification of the organs and tissues. Its a pretty rare thing, but also a totally unnecessary risk if you are providing a good UVB source. Its always better for them to get Vit D naturally anyway, as the UV exposure not only allows the reptile to synthesize the Vit D, but also provides the feedback loop that stops Vit D production when they have enough.