# can i feed kale greens to tortoise



## cyyoung749

hey guys i recently bought a kale green from market. is this edible for tortoise?

i mainly feed cactus, hay, spring mix
and some bak choy,carrots, asian pumpkin, dandelions, and others.
hope this diet is good and hoping to add kale greens if its ok


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## Maggie Cummings

Kale is good but bok choy is not, as it causes gout in tortoises. Cabbage is not good either for the same reason...


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## DeanS

In any event, try to rely on store-bought greens as little as possible. I haven't offered anything store bought in months and EVERYBODY's thriving!


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## Turtulas-Len

This time of year I feed more store bought greens to my large sulcata, because yard pickings are pretty slim right now, This week they had collards, turnip greens, kale, and mustard greens on sale so I bought extra.I also got a free bag of large cactus fruit, free, the produce guy ordered them by mistake and no one will buy them around here.


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## cyyoung749

maggie3fan said:


> Kale is good but bok choy is not, as it causes gout in tortoises. Cabbage is not good either for the same reason...



is kale also called collard greens? im confused and how often should i feed my toroise? like once a week?



DeanS said:


> In any event, try to rely on store-bought greens as little as possible. I haven't offered anything store bought in months and EVERYBODY's thriving!



its freezing here and im unable grow for my own. i will buy some seeds on spring.


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## Tom

Its fine once in a while as part of a varied diet. The rest of your foods sound great. I feed bok choy every once in a while too. Like Dean said, I try to avoid the store bought stuff when I can, but sometimes it fills in the gaps nicely.


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## pdrobber

cyyoung749 said:


> is kale also called collard greens? im confused and how often should i feed my toroise? like once a week?
> 
> 
> its freezing here and im unable grow for my own. i will buy some seeds on spring.





Buy one bunch of them (they usually come rubber banded together) feed that daily until theres no more then go buy a different green. Kale and collard greens are two different things. Mustard greens,dandelion greens, escarole, endive, chicory, spring mix, red leaf lettuce, green leaf lettuce, and even spinach and romaine lettuce are good to use if you go by this method and don't stick to feeding just one thing.


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## JoesMum

Kale is amber (feed in moderation) on The Tortoise Table's A-Z Database of what's good for tortoises to eat.

It's a really useful website to look these things up!


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## conservation

I am not a fan of feeding Kale to my animals. I treat it similarly to spinach.


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## cyyoung749

Pets101 said:


> I am not a fan of feeding Kale to my animals. I treat it similarly to spinach.



is there harmful substances in it?



JoesMum said:


> Kale is amber (feed in moderation) on The Tortoise Table's A-Z Database of what's good for tortoises to eat.
> 
> It's a really useful website to look these things up!



thank you thats really helpful


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## Jacqui

funny to read this, since kale is the green of the day here.


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## ascott

Kale is a great source of vitamin A,C,K and calcium, copper, potassium and manganese....as with any other offered food you should offer as part of a varied diet and not as a solo food...if this veg is fed daily in large amounts it is capable of blocking calcium absorption due to the oxalates as well as goitrogens which can affect iodine uptake.....however, as with most other vegs. If you do not offer variety any individual veg. Can become a bad thing.....so moderation and as part of a varied diet it is a great food to offer to supplement.


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## Tom

ascott said:


> Kale is a great source of vitamin A,C,K and calcium, copper, potassium and manganese....as with any other offered food you should offer as part of a varied diet and not as a solo food...if this veg is fed daily in large amounts it is capable of blocking calcium absorption due to the oxalates as well as goitrogens which can affect iodine uptake.....however, as with most other vegs. If you do not offer variety any individual veg. Can become a bad thing.....so moderation and as part of a varied diet it is a great food to offer to supplement.



... thank you.


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## Madkins007

Kale and other 'brassicas' are not like spinach- different concerns.

Kale, cabbage, broccoli, bok choy, kohlrobi, and so on are 'brassicas', members of the cabbage family (and I know I am oversimplifying this). These plants have substances in them that block iodine intake in animals which can lead to goiters (I constantly confuse goiter and gout. Goiters are the iodine-based issue, gout is painful crystals accumulating in joints and is generally thought to be due to excess proteins, dehydration, and kidney issues).

Dr. Douglas Mader ("Reptile Medicine and Surgery") suggests using brassicas as part of a regular rotation (he recommends spinach as well). If you are concerned about the iodine issue you can add a small pinch of iodinized 'lite salt' (1/2 salt and salt substitute).

Spinach, by the way, is considered risky because of oxalates- an acid that binds with the calcium in a food and limits it's usefulness. Spinach has a moderate level of oxalates, collards and other greens have a little less, and things like lamb's quarters are high in it. Dr. Mader does not think they are a concern in a balanced, varied diet for a properly hydrated tortoise. In fact, Dr. Mader is not even against Iceberg lettuce- when used as part of a balanced, varied diet.


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