Bearded Dragon Loose Stool

Question
My boyfriend, and his 7 year old bearded dragon moved in with me 5 months ago.  Prior to living with me, the beardie was only fed bearded dragon pellets and was given crickets only a few times a year as a treat.  When he first moved in, he did not eat from what I could tell for over a week and had not had any bowel movements and then finally had a solid stool after a couple of weeks.

In order to entice the beardie to eat, I started researching and feeding him vegetables (arugula, carrots, green beans).  He now has a big appetite and is fed shredded carrots daily and he also eats the pellets.  He also gets other assorted veggies daily (green beans, sweet potato, dandelion greens, and whatever else I have handy).  Since introducing veggies into his diets, he has loose, smelly stool daily.  I tried introducing mealworms to him but they made his stool even worse.

He drinks water from his water dish occasionally and almost daily when he is misted with water and then when he gets his weekly bath.  

Should we be concerned with his loose stools or are they to be expected with his diet?

Answer
Hi Alison,

A faecal exam is really the only way to be absolutely certain but in view of the fact that there are no other associated symptoms (lack of appetite, lethargy, weight loss), it does sound diet related. The variety of veggies he is now getting sounds great but I would expect that the increased fibre and water from them would have the described affect on his stools. Your bearded is also a bit past middle age and I often find that diet changes with older animals (of any species) tends to result in loose stools.

I would not be worried at this point but keep an eye out for any other symptoms and get a stool sample to the vet if indicated.