Reptile Nutrition:
What every Technician needs to know.
Teresa Shisk-Saling LVT
In order to provide proper nutrition for a pet reptile. . . .
We need to know what it is. . . .
Even animals in the same class can have very different dietary needs
What DO we know about reptile nutrition?
There has been MILLIONS of $$$$ on dog/cat food research. This research has been going on for decades. It’s
still ongoing.
With reptiles, we still can’t agree on what certain reptiles eat. There is an ongoing discussion just on iguanas.
There are more species every year that are finding their way into the pet trade. We don’t REALLY know
nutritional requirements for reptiles or what they actually get out of the food they eat.
SO, what do we do??
Herbivore:
Know the natural history. . . The more we study where an animal comes from the better idea we have about
what they are eating in the wild.
Variety is the spice of life. . . A wide variety of greens and vegetables give the best chance of getting the most
nutrition for the animal. Again, you want to be aware of the natural history of the pet. Chances are a tree
dwelling animal is not going to be a big root vegetable eater.
COLOR, Color, color!!! In some species, it seems that color may be an appetite stimulant. Again, the more
variety, the better chance you have of getting proper nutrition to that animal.
Carnivore/Insectivore:
There’s more to life than crickets! There are a variety of insects available to feed pet reptiles. Everything from
the standard crickets and mealworms to Hissing and Dubia roaches are readily available.
Garbage in, Garbage out. . . in other words, if you don’t have your prey on a nutritious diet, there won’t be any
nutrition to pass on to the predator.
Gut Load
Commercially Available vs. Home made
With a homemade diet, you can customize what you are feeding. You know what is in it.
However, you have to have some idea of what your carnivore or omnivore needs.
Homemade diets help you deal with an animal that has a nutritional deficiency
Carnivore = “Fat”ivore ?
Not all prey is created equal. Rats have a much higher fat content than mice.
Omnivore:
Can NOT live by protein alone. No matter how much they beg . They have to have a variety.
Quality over quantity. Good quality protein as well as a variety of greens and vegetables will produce a quality
animal.
Oxalate
Organic chemical found in certain foods that can combine with calcium to form calcium oxalate, an
insoluble chemical the body can not use.
Even some of the most often recommended greens are high in Oxalates. Variety!! The more variation the better
the chance of a balance.
A great website to find the nutritional contents of food items is
www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search
A Word about Supplements:
You can’t “fix” a BAD diet with supplements
If supplements ARE used. . . . Use sparingly
Use Calcium WITHOUT phosphorus
With a varied Healthy Diet. . .
•
With healthy prey items
•
Proper lighting
•
Proper temperature and humidity
•
When you have all the pieces together, you then have. . . .
A HEALTHY REPTILE!!