Taking care of a dog or cat is tough enough, but a reptile? These critters are so different from our mammalian friends that figuring out what they can eat can be a real challenge.
The thing about iguanas is that although they’re omnivores, they tend to prefer chowing down on plant matter. This means they can consume fruits such as grapes.
Yes, iguanas can eat grapes. These fruits contain a few nutrients crucial to their health.
However, iguanas can only eat grapes in moderation, as these fruits don’t provide them with enough of the nutrients they need to stay healthy. The frequent consumption of grapes can therefore result in dangerous consequences for these lizards.
With that in mind, let’s examine the reasons grapes can benefit the health of iguanas, and why they should only eat these fruits in moderation!
The Nutrients Found in Grapes that Benefit Iguanas
Grapes contain some of the nutrients and substances that are essential to the survival and continued good health of iguanas. These nutrients and substances are as follows:
Fiber
Grapes are high in dietary fiber, a substance that’s essential to reptiles – especially those that are primarily herbivorous.
Fiber serves as a bulking agent, allowing the easy and healthy movement of food through the iguana’s gastrointestinal tract and out of its body. It therefore helps prevents digestive issues such as constipation and diarrhea.
The iguana’s intestinal microflora also use fiber for fermentation, a process that’s crucial for the production of B vitamins and fatty acids.
Protein
Grapes contain a small amount of protein.
Like all animals, lizards require protein for the development and maintenance of healthy muscles, blood, skin, ligaments, tendons, and cartilage.
Protein also assists in the delivery of oxygen to various parts of the body, helps boost the immune system’s health, and acts as a source of energy.
Calcium
The good news is that grapes contain calcium. The bad news? They’re not particularly rich in calcium.
Calcium is extremely important to iguanas as this mineral plays a major role in developing and maintaining strong, healthy bones, thus giving said bones extra protection against disease, trauma, and strain.
Calcium also helps muscles to function properly and is involved in various metabolic processes necessary to keep the animal alive.
Vitamin A
Green grapes are rich in vitamin A, while purple and red grapes contain small amounts of it.
Vitamin A helps the iguana’s immune system protect it from infections that harm the digestive tract and respiratory system.
This vitamin is also involved in developing and maintaining healthy bones, keeping reproductive function healthy, and allowing secretory glands like the adrenals glands to function normally.
Vitamin B1 (thiamin)
Grapes are loaded with vitamin B1 a.k.a. thiamin, which is crucial for healthy growth and development. It also helps metabolize proteins, carbohydrates, and fats into the energy iguanas need to survive and remain capable of movement.
Why Grapes Aren’t the Best Fruits for Iguanas
Iguanas should only eat grapes in moderation. This means you should feed your pet one or two grapes once or twice a week only.
But why, precisely, are grapes not so great for iguanas? Let’s find out!
They can’t meet the iguana’s nutritional requirements
Grapes lack several nutrients that are particularly crucial for iguanas. Therefore, if your iguana eats lots of grapes, it’ll end up not receiving these important nutrients, which can lead to nutritional deficiencies and ultimately malnutrition.
Grapes, for instance, don’t contain enough calcium, which, as discussed above, is essential for the healthy growth and maintenance of the iguana’s bones.
Calcium deficiency during an iguana’s early life can lead to irreversible defects. Thus, if a young, growing iguana doesn’t enjoy a calcium-rich diet, its bones may grow incorrectly, resulting in deformities.
On the other hand, adult iguanas that don’t get enough calcium can suffer from weak bones that are prone to damage. In fact, these bones can grow so brittle they can break under an iguana’s own body weight.
In addition, grapes lack vitamin D, which is also essential for bone health.
Also, remember that grapes are high in fiber. When eaten, fiber prolongs the iguana’s feeling of fullness, reducing its appetite for foods that are high in the nutrients critical for its health. Therefore, the more grapes you feed your pet, the fewer nutrient-rich foods it’ll ingest.
They’re sugary
Like many other fruits, grapes are rich in natural sugar. While this type of sugar is healthy if consumed in moderation, it can raise an iguana’s blood sugar levels if ingested in excess. This can cause its body to become less efficient at regulating its blood glucose levels, which can, in turn, contribute to diabetes.
They can pose a choking hazard
The roundness of the grape makes it a considerable choking hazard to iguanas. For this reason, you should chop each grape up into long stripes or tiny pieces before feeding it to your pet.
Thankfully, grape seeds are too small to choke an iguana. They don’t contain any substances that are toxic to this animal, either. Nevertheless, as grape seeds also can’t meet the iguana’s nutritional demands, you should also feed these to your pet in moderation.
They may contain toxins
Do you want your iguana to eat grapes? Then make sure to offer it organic grapes. This is because non-organic grapes are typically grown using chemicals such as pesticides, which can harm our lizard friends.
Whether or not the grapes you have are organic or non-organic, make sure to thoroughly wash them before feeding them to your pet. This will cleanse their skin of debris and/or potentially harmful chemicals if the grapes are non-organic.
For similar reasons, don’t give your iguana any processed grapes such as cooked grapes, as these often contain ingredients (e.g. salt, sugar, fats, oils, herbs, spices, etc.) that can harm reptiles. If you insist on cooking grapes for your pet, don’t use such additives and avoid cooking techniques that rely on ingredients. Fried food, for example, is bad for iguanas, as frying makes use of oil.
Lastly, give your iguana fresh, ripe grapes only, as grapes that are about to go bad or are already rotten generally contain microorganisms that can cause illness.
Other Fruits Iguanas Can Consume
When providing an iguana with a well-balanced diet, variety is key. This means you should feed your scaly friend a rich assortment of fruits, vegetables, and other healthy snacks.
Keep in mind, however, that as most fruits tend to be high in sugar and lack the nutrients necessary to keep iguanas healthy, they can be bad for your pet if eaten often. For this reason, fruits should compose around 5% of your iguana’s diet.
Feed fruits to your pet once or twice per week. You can also sprinkle tiny slices of fruits (like a dressing) of the same amount onto its meals.
Below is a list of fruits your iguana can ingest safely and that can enhance its health:
- Apples
- Apricots
- Bananas (skin included)
- Dates
- Figs
- Guavas
- Mangoes
- Melons
- Peaches
- Pears
- Raspberries
- Star fruit
- Strawberries
Seek a veterinarian’s advice before feeding any of the above fruits to your iguana. This is because a vet can determine which of these fruits your pet needs to eat, how often it can eat them, and how much of them it can eat.
The Best Plant-Based Foods for Iguanas
80% to 90% of what your iguana consumes should consist of dark green leafy vegetables. You can also offer it red, orange, and yellow vegetables.
Below are examples of calcium-rich veggies you can feed your iguana. These should make up between 40% and 50% of the adult iguana’s diet.
- Alfalfa hay
- Beet greens
- Bok choy
- Collard greens
- Dandelion greens
- Escarole
- Kale
- Kohlrabi
- Mustard greens
- Parsley
- Romaine lettuce
- Swiss chard
- Turnip greens
- Watercress
Below are other veggies that are good for iguanas. These should compose between 30% and 40% of a full-grown iguana’s diet.
- Asparagus
- Bell peppers
- Broccoli
- Cabbage (red or green)
- Cactus
- Carrots
- Cilantro
- Corn
- Cucumbers
- Green beans
- Okra
- Parsnips
- Peas
- Sprouts
- Squash
- Sweet potatoes
Mushrooms can also be part of the 30% to 40% listed above.
Avoid light green veggies as these are deficient in the vitamins and minerals necessary to keep iguanas healthy. Examples include celery and iceberg lettuce, which are extremely watery and low in nutrients.
We recommend feeding raw vegetables to your iguana, as cooking reduces their nutritional value. Also, make sure that any cooked veggies you give your pet are as plain as possible, as many ingredients we use during the cooking process can harm reptiles.
In Conclusion…
While iguanas can eat grapes and even benefit from their various health-boosting qualities, these fruits don’t make ideal snacks for these reptiles.
Grapes don’t contain enough calcium and lack vitamin D, which are both essential nutrients for iguanas. In addition, feeding these fruits to your pet may leave them vulnerable to diabetes, choking, and toxicity.
If you want your pet to enjoy a healthy, happy life, its diet should consist mainly of leafy greens especially of the dark green variety, as these are rich in the nutrients crucial to the health of iguanas. Fruits should only make up about 5% of what they eat!