# grass question for leopard



## jmelyn20 (Jun 21, 2009)

I have a 15 seed mix of grass seed on my lawn. Iv looked through many lists and have'nt found a poisonous grass on any lists. Think it would be okay to use the grass from the yard to try and feed? Its free of fertilizer and pesticides.


----------



## Maggie Cummings (Jun 21, 2009)

Yes, he can eat it. But if he's a hatchling or a yearling he's not likely to just munch on it. Leo's seem to care more for broadleaf weeds...but you can't hurt anything by trying...


----------



## tortoisenerd (Jun 21, 2009)

You may want to introduce a small amount on his food chopped up and see how he takes to it. Then, increase the amount slowly over time.


----------



## jobeanator (Jun 22, 2009)

yeah i would try some greens from a grocery store first such as endive or escarole and mix some grass or weeds with it


----------



## purpod (Jun 22, 2009)

Good Day ~

I had gotten some grass seeds specifically for tort's and in the beginning, when the grass was just starting to grow, my female, Snortie Tortie, ate the seedlings down to the dirt. However, now that there is grass growing all over, she only nibbles on that and prefers to munch on the white clover leaves..

I wish you well with getting yours to eat regular grasses; the idea to introduce some in your tort's food from TNerd was a good idea. Also, Joby's suggestion of endive and escarole are two other leafy greens that I add to my tort's diets.

Enjoy your day,
Purpod


----------



## spring pace (Jun 22, 2009)

jmelyn20 said:


> I have a 15 seed mix of grass seed on my lawn. Iv looked through many lists and have'nt found a poisonous grass on any lists. Think it would be okay to use the grass from the yard to try and feed? Its free of fertilizer and pesticides.



absolutely, just as long as youre sure its free of fertilizers. grazing is great exercise in addition to whatever you are feeding. your gonna love hearing your tort tear the grass, reseeding w/ the seed mix is a good idea, i have patches of sulcata seed mix in galileos graze, it assures me hes getting a variety of foods. pretty close to living in the wild. smiles, spring


----------



## Seiryu (Jun 22, 2009)

What sulcata seed mix are you referring to spring? is it the carolinasupplies or whatever it is grazing tortoise mix?


----------



## spring pace (Jun 22, 2009)

Seiryu said:


> What sulcata seed mix are you referring to spring? is it the carolinasupplies or whatever it is grazing tortoise mix?



thats the one!!!!!!! i started 6 flats of it. covered it w/ hay to protect from the birds, let it grow for a year in the flats and when i started seeing that they were well established, i planted the little containers in the yard, though it still had to be protected from gali just ripping it out of the ground the first day. now i treat it just like the grass, it gets mowed and new types of grasses and clovers keep coming up. its really hardy. i only mow the lawn once a month, galileo is pretty good at keeping everything short, i do the mowing just to clean it up a little bit and it gives the seed mix a chance to spread. www.carolinapetsupply.com is the only place i know of that carries it. they also have a russian tort seed mix i hear is pretty good and would be OK for a sulcata/leopard


----------



## Seiryu (Jun 22, 2009)

spring pace said:


> Seiryu said:
> 
> 
> > What sulcata seed mix are you referring to spring? is it the carolinasupplies or whatever it is grazing tortoise mix?
> ...



Thanks. Ya I have a Leopard and was looking at their mix. But $20 ($10 shipping) is the killer. Although if it works, it may be better than me running around trying to find seeds locally.

It took a year to establish though? I'll be having a new Leopard here, probably under one in the next month. So he won't be eating nearly as much as the bigger torts. Or did it only take a couple weeks for it to start?

At the moment I only found 3 types of grass seeds that are not bad from local feed shops nearby. All the rest have Endophytes in them which are very bad.


----------



## purpod (Jun 22, 2009)

The grazing tort mix that I had gotten from Carolina Pet in the mail did not take long at all to sprout in our Tortie Town. It was a small ziplock baggy and altho I, too, thought it was kind of pricey, it did grow in well.

Some of the grasses are very thin and small, others are thicker, like crab grass. It's a thick carpet of grass now. I just sprinkled the seed and then covered it with a light coat of dirt and I had sprouts in no time. I think Spring was talking about it being well established, tho, and not just sprouting..?

Anyways, have fun with it,
Purpod


----------



## spring pace (Jun 22, 2009)

Seiryu said:


> spring pace said:
> 
> 
> > Seiryu said:
> ...



it did sprout really quick, couple weeks at most, but it was another 3 weeks before it got long enough so i could add it to his salad. i went for the long term plan because it was very expensive, now i have a base thats going to last for a long time because the grasses are now seeding themselves, having the yard which is marathon, fine grasses and crab grass is really helpful and galileo likes it just as much as the salads i put together for him. i still on occasion give him oxbow hays to keep him interested so if in the future the grass isnt available hell still have a good fiber source. oh, and i get flakes of oat hay in early spring to insure seed heads and hopefully dandelion hitchhikers, spread it on the ground outside his yard, water it every day and grow oat grass, but its only good for a few months, i get some regrowth the next year but not much, so i start all over again. another really good fiber source.


----------

