# E coli outbreak concerning Romaine lettuce.



## Chuck C (Jan 12, 2018)

Do I need to be worried about the e coli issues ? My Sulcata is 5 years old. I didn't hear about the possible contamination and was still feeding him the Romaine. From what I can tell the brand I got was ok, but not sure going forward. Anything I should watch for concerning his health ? Any ideas on possible replacement of the Romaine ?
Thank you.


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## Moozillion (Jan 12, 2018)

Chuck C said:


> Do I need to be worried about the e coli issues ? My Sulcata is 5 years old. I didn't hear about the possible contamination and was still feeding him the Romaine. From what I can tell the brand I got was ok, but not sure going forward. Anything I should watch for concerning his health ? Any ideas on possible replacement of the Romaine ?
> Thank you.



My guess would be not a likely problem for HIM (remember, most tortoises like to eat POOP [emoji33][emoji90] which is full of germs). But you might want to wash your hands a little more often, just as a precaution for YOU.
BUT I could be totally wrong!!! Let’s see what more experienced keepers think! [emoji2][emoji106]


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## Reptilian Feline (Jan 13, 2018)

Sallad... grean leaves eaten raw.... is always a concern here in Sweden. We rarely have food poisoning here, så when it happens, it's usually becaose of some sallad. Food you heat up is never a problem, but sallad greens can't be cooked. If you rinse it properly a bit longer and more carefully than normally, you should be fine, and the tort too


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## Tom (Jan 13, 2018)

If you must use grocery store foods, favor endive and escarole as your staples. You need to mix in some grass, chopped soaked grass hay, soaked ZooMed Grassland pellets, and or some Mazuri to amend these types of greens. I would not use romaine very often or let it be a very large percentage of the diet. It lacks nutrition, fiber, calcium, and has a poor calcium to phosphorous ratio.

Here is thread with some feeding ideas:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/


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## cheerios586 (Jan 14, 2018)

Hi,

What is Mazuri and where can I find some? I'm having trouble finding food that is not romaine lettuce and such. I've been feeding mostly out of the grocery isle. I do have some mix tortoise food that has all the right mix. However she hates it and refuses to eat when I try to give it to her. I've tried moistening it, and only introducing it in small amounts to try to get her use to it, but, she will go days without eating if I do.

Thanks in advance!


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## Speedy-1 (Jan 14, 2018)

cheerios586 said:


> Hi,
> 
> What is Mazuri and where can I find some? I'm having trouble finding food that is not romaine lettuce and such. I've been feeding mostly out of the grocery isle. I do have some mix tortoise food that has all the right mix. However she hates it and refuses to eat when I try to give it to her. I've tried moistening it, and only introducing it in small amounts to try to get her use to it, but, she will go days without eating if I do.
> 
> Thanks in advance!



Here you go ; http://www.mazuri.com/promo4.aspx


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## cheerios586 (Jan 15, 2018)

Hi,
Thank you so much for the link. So, it's like tortoise dog food. lol


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## Reptilian Feline (Jan 16, 2018)

When Embers refused to eat his pelleted food (I always serve mine wet) I simply mushed it up with some banana (only if your tort can eat it) and he started eating it as well.


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## cheerios586 (Jan 16, 2018)

Speedy-1 said:


> Here you go ; http://www.mazuri.com/promo4.aspx


Hi,
Thank you so much for the link.


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