Dog Food vs Whole Prey

[monitorlizard]

Which do you think is better for Blue Tongue Skinks? Supplemented with vegetables of course.

[Corey209]

Which do you think is better for Blue Tongue Skinks? Supplemented with vegetables of course.

I've heard whole prey is better for all lizard who can take it, like Tegu's can be on a 100% whole prey diet and remain very healthy.

There's a local person I've been talking to who breeds and has very healthy blue tongues that only does dog food with vegetables which is very cheap.

[monitorlizard]

But which one creates a healthier animal?
There is a difference between surviving and thriving, and I'm having a hard time figuring out which one makes which.

[infernalis]

Consider this... I won't even give most dog foods to my dogs.

Whole prey will always be best.

A lot of dog food brands have the same ingredients used to make dish soap and anti freeze!!!

[Corey209]

There's also dog food's that aren't made with crap, but they're costly.

[monitorlizard]

But what about the few dog foods you would?
I'm fairly sure that dog food is bad, as it looks like crap, smell like crap, and the ingredients are crap.
The only problem I running across is, people have animals that are 15+ years old that have been fed nothing but dog food.
No one has fed only whole prey though, so I have no information about that.

[Corey209]

But what about the few dog foods you would?
I'm fairly sure that dog food is bad, as it looks like crap, smell like crap, and the ingredients are crap.
The only problem I running across is, people have animals that are 15+ years old that have been fed nothing but dog food.
No one has fed only whole prey though, so I have no information about that.

Natural Balance Synergy Ultra Premium Dog Food at PETCO (http://www.petco.com/product/113621/Natural-Balance-Synergy-Ultra-Premium-Dog-Food.aspx)

[Little Wise Owl]

What do BTS eat in the wild? Insects, snails, fruits, berries, flowers and leafy greens.

That's what's best for them.

I would avoid grain inclusive dog foods like the plague if you do choose to feed them. Dogs do not need grains, skinks DEFINITELY do not need grains.

[Azrael]

Have you SEEN some of the Beneful dishes that are available? People that buy that stuff are feeding their dogs better than they're feeding themselves!

Rachael Ray does make a grain-free dog food. It's a little expensive, but definitely worth it.

[stephanbakir]

People that buy that stuff are feeding their dogs better than they're feeding themselves!
I went to a reptile expo today... the mcdonalds in there had a line up that went around the corner and down the hall... Human beings are notorious for ingesting food that is worse for their bodies then raw sewage with a fecal cherry on top.

[Azrael]

I went to a reptile expo today... the mcdonalds in there had a line up that went around the corner and down the hall... Human beings are notorious for ingesting food that is worse for their bodies then raw sewage with a fecal cherry on top.

:laugh: How incredibly true!

[Corey209]

What do BTS eat in the wild? Insects, snails, fruits, berries, flowers and leafy greens.

That's what's best for them.

I would avoid grain inclusive dog foods like the plague if you do choose to feed them. Dogs do not need grains, skinks DEFINITELY do not need grains.

They also eat mice.

[Little Wise Owl]

They also eat mice.

Yes, they can but their wild diet doesn't appear to include many rodents... Probably for good reason. Theys gots tiny legs.

[Corey209]

Perhaps but I'm leaning more towards a diet mostly of invertebrate and vegetation/fruit. And I don't imagine they're agile enough to catch and consume rodents consistently on a daily basis.

Youtube wild blue tongue skinks, they're actually very fast.

I can't remember where but I read a wild BTS was found with a small family of mice inside it's stomach.

[stephanbakir]

Could have cornered them in a nest and they had no choice but to get nommed, but I duno, never read the story.

[Little Wise Owl]

Yes, thank you. I know they're fast but rodents are faster. The addition of mice in their captive diet would be good for variety but rodents do not likely make up a huge portion of their wild diet.

[Corey209]

Yes, thank you. I know they're fast but rodents are faster. The addition of mice in their captive diet would be good for variety but rodents do not likely make up a huge portion of their wild diet.

I personally would not feed mice every other day but I'd rather feed whole prey then dog food unless it was some expensive stuff.

[Little Wise Owl]

I wouldn't feed dog food even if it was the most expensive stuff. It would never be better than a fresh, whole diet.

[Zoo Nanny]

My Bts was on a cat food diet with grapes when I got him. He was at least 5 at the time. It took me a few years of trying to get him to eat other foods. No live foods were ever eaten by him so I was searching for an alternative to the cat food which was full of crap he didn't need. I settled on baby food chicken and turkey. There are no added ingredients other than water. He's been eating this along with a variety of greens, veggies and fruit now for the past 8+ years.

[ilovemypets1988]

you will find that baby food is actually extremely healthy these days and often made with true ingredients thats just been put into a processor to turn it into a gel like substance. theres even full meals for babies now that have tons of fruit and veg already in it aswell as meat chunks (in the 1-3yr range) and this is cheaper than the best dog food and alot better than it to

[Zoo Nanny]

I buy mostly organic baby foods. I do from time to time buy the other brands so long as its with broth and not gravy. The turkey and broth is just that turkey and water. I always keep other baby foods on hand too for back up when I run low on veggies or fruit. It's also great to use in place of sugar in breads and cookies for birds.