New Greek Tort owner

[Dwayne_H]

Hello everyone!

I'm sorry i haven't had the opportunity to introduce myself before, I am Dwayne 22 years old from Malta. It is a relatively dry country (400-600mm of yearly rainfall, with the mean temperature being 18*C). I am new to this, so if possible I would kindly like your help on a couple of things..

1st of all.. This winter has been particularly cold for Malta (with temperatures reaching 5-7*C, rare but not unknown to happen here). I haven't been able to keep my tortoise (7 months old) outside in the sun for too long as it was either too windy or too cold (or it would be too cloudy). So I resorted to using artificial lighting. I am currently switching it on their enclosure during daytime and switch it off at night time. Should I switch it on for longer? Let's say leave it on 24/7?

2ndly.. My tortoise seems to be very picky with food and only eats lettuce, is there a way how to slowly introduce other food? As I do not want the tortoise to end up malnourished. Thanks

- Dwayne

 

[leigti]

Your tortoise only needs light and UVB during the day. However if it is a baby it should have heat 24/7. You can use a ceramic heat emitifier CHE for heat. Try mixing the lettuce with other types of weeds and Leafy greens. Tear them all into small pieces and mix it together.

 

[pam]

Welcome

 

[HLogic]

Welcome to the forum, Dwayne! Continue the on/off with the lights though a timer might be an easier way to accomplish that. Just stop feeding lettuce. Give it a couple of days and drop a handful of escarole, chickory, collards or other dark leafy greens in the enclosure. I'm sure your tort will gladly accept the alternate foodstuffs in relatively short order.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Dwayne, and welcome to the Forum!

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Hello Dwayne welcome to the TFO from AZ, USA . Greektorts rule !

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Morocco has been the same this year. I think a lot of the Med countries have had an unusually cold this year, and my girl and I have both missed our sun, though it's come back now thankfully. Tidgy and I are both sun worshippers. Just make sure you're not using a coiled bulb, as sometimes they can hurt tortoises eyes or even blind them. What's your Greek's name?
Take HLogic's advice and starve the beast until it eats something else. If you keep spoiling it with it's favourite lettuce it won't learn to eat other things which it will probably enjoy once it's tried them. They get hungry soon enough and missing a meal or two won't do any harm.
Welcome to the forum, all knowledge is here. read and learn (Not from me so much, but some of these guys and girls really know their onions.
Hurrah for Greeks and the Med!

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Hello everyone!

I'm sorry i haven't had the opportunity to introduce myself before, I am Dwayne 22 years old from Malta. It is a relatively dry country (400-600mm of yearly rainfall, with the mean temperature being 18*C). I am new to this, so if possible I would kindly like your help on a couple of things..

1st of all.. This winter has been particularly cold for Malta (with temperatures reaching 5-7*C, rare but not unknown to happen here). I haven't been able to keep my tortoise (7 months old) outside in the sun for too long as it was either too windy or too cold (or it would be too cloudy). So I resorted to using artificial lighting. I am currently switching it on their enclosure during daytime and switch it off at night time. Should I switch it on for longer? Let's say leave it on 24/7?

2ndly.. My tortoise seems to be very picky with food and only eats lettuce, is there a way how to slowly introduce other food? As I do not want the tortoise to end up malnourished. Thanks

- Dwayne

I'm sorry where is Malta ?

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

I'm sorry where is Malta ?

Small over populated island in the Mediterranean sea south of Sicily, I think and east of the sticky out bit of Tunisia and thus north of Libya. Nice place, good people. Probably got a variety of greek tortoise there, but I'm not sure of this.
I'm on the same stretch of water, but quite a distance away.

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Small over populated island in the Mediterranean sea south of Sicily, I think and east of the sticky out bit of Tunisia and thus north of Libya. Nice place, good people. Probably got a variety of greek tortoise there, but I'm not sure of this.
I'm on the same stretch of water, but quite a distance away.

Thank you I would love to go there if they got greeks there but they would let me leave with all the greeks I would want to bring home .

 

[bouaboua]

Hello and Welcome! ! !

 

[Dwayne_H]

Thanks very much everyone! Malta is approximately 60 miles from Sicily. With regards to Greeks turtles in Malta Grandpa Turtle 144, I'm afraid there are very few if any left living in the wild .. Thankfully though they are protected by law . My tort's name is Mimi

 

[smarch]

Hello and welcome.
Keep doing what you're doing with the lights, they wont be too happy about trying to sleep with the lights on... and could you blame them?
To get picky eaters to eat healthier foods you basically break up the foods you want them to eat into small pieces mixed with the food they will eat also into small pieces, so they'll have no choice but to eat what you want them too, the slowly put less and less of the lettuce for more and more healthy greens. Or you could just keep putting in the stuff you want them to eat and they'll eventually eat it because they wont starve themselves... I didn't like that tough love approach with mine though, I caved and later had to try the mixing thing.

 

[Dwayne_H]

Thanks Smarch! I still have approximately enough lettuce for this week and half of the next, so by the end of this week I'll start introducing other greens slowly. What veggies would you guys suggest I should start introducing?

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Any (non toxic) broad leafed weeds and greens from the garden (Tidgy loves dandelions), but also flowers such as rose petals.
There is a care sheet on this forum that gives an excellent list of good foods for your greek, perhaps someone could provide a link, as I'm rubbish at all that. But you should be able to find it easily enough.

 

[puffy137]

Hello Dwayne , I live in a warm desert country, Kuwait . My greeks all live outdoors, they are all related to each other. Owing to the fact that there aren't many local grown weeds here my herd live mostly on romaine lettuce. which they love. During our winter my babies spend many hours outdoors , sometimes even not going into their houses at night. It gets pretty chilly here too , although it seldom if ever gets to freezing.

 

[smarch]

When you have access to weeds in your yard (if its untreated) you can pick a whole variety of weeds, we have a section specifically for IDing weeds if you are unsure. For grocery greens I use escarole, collard greens, dandelions, mustard greens, swiss chard, and kale, as well as spring mix now and then that has a nice variety of greens. Those are pretty much my only option in the winter here in very snowy New England. I'd suggest getting 2 to mix together or alternate. You wouldn't want to eat the same thing everyday

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Hello Dwayne , I live in a warm desert country, Kuwait . My greeks all live outdoors, they are all related to each other. Owing to the fact that there aren't many local grown weeds here my herd live mostly on romaine lettuce. which they love. During our winter my babies spend many hours outdoors , sometimes even not going into their houses at night. It gets pretty chilly here too , although it seldom if ever gets to freezing.View attachment 122290 View attachment 122291

Sorry Dwayne and Mimi,I'm hijacking your thread again, but I've just gotta say how much I love Puffy's tortoise family. They are wonderful, I've seen some pics before. But isn't there an impaction risk with all that sand?
It should be easier for you in Malta, Dwayne, to give a more varied diet than Puffy, whose more limited due to climate and his general environment , though his torts are clearly happy and healthy. Pick weeds, feed the tops off store bought veggies and occasional treats like cucumber and even a rare bit of tomato, red lettuce is apparently a bit better than green and don't feed iceberg and the like as they have very little nutritional value. I'm still trying to find that link to the correct foods list! There's a bit under Mediterranean tortoises section, subsection Greeks, but there's a better one somewhere else.
keep asking!

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

When you have access to weeds in your yard (if its untreated) you can pick a whole variety of weeds, we have a section specifically for IDing weeds if you are unsure. For grocery greens I use escarole, collard greens, dandelions, mustard greens, swiss chard, and kale, as well as spring mix now and then that has a nice variety of greens. Those are pretty much my only option in the winter here in very snowy New England. I'd suggest getting 2 to mix together or alternate. You wouldn't want to eat the same thing everyday

Thanks, smarch, there you are Dwayne and Mimi, a nice variety for you, hope you can get some of those in Malta, though most are unavailable here in Morocco. Good luck, you'll find something I'm sure.

 

[puffy137]

When you have access to weeds in your yard (if its untreated) you can pick a whole variety of weeds, we have a section specifically for IDing weeds if you are unsure. For grocery greens I use escarole, collard greens, dandelions, mustard greens, swiss chard, and kale, as well as spring mix now and then that has a nice variety of greens. Those are pretty much my only option in the winter here in very snowy New England. I'd suggest getting 2 to mix together or alternate. You wouldn't want to eat the same thing everyday

True , mine get the veggie peelings from the kitchen , & lately daily tops green parts of strawberries that we have from our farm , but I still spend a lot on lettuce