Hi need help! (feeding)

Tortuga Gill

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Hi, sorry if this is the wrong place to put this post but ive been feeding my russian a (rotated) mix of mustard greens, kale, turnip greens, collared geeens, endive, mallow, dandelion leaves, squash, and zucchini pretty much daily as its what i have the most access to here in colorado. Ive been lurking this forum reading as much of the stuff i find for new parents as i can find but recently i found the tortoise table page and its honestly got me concerned that im not feeding the right things. Or that i am, but way too much of them. And im really worried that im going to make her sick with this diet. Any advice I could receive would be incredibly appreciated. Thanks.
 

Gillian M

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Welcome to the forum.

Have you read the "Beginners Mistakes" Thread? There's a lot of info that may help you there.

Please post pics of your tort and his enclosure so as to enable us to help you more easily; and give him a soak in warm water every day so as to avoid dehydration and pyramiding.
 

Tortuga Gill

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Arvada, CO
Welcome to the forum.

Have you read the "Beginners Mistakes" Thread? There's a lot of info that may help you there.

Please post pics of your tort and his enclosure so as to enable us to help you more easily; and give him a soak in warm water every day so as to avoid dehydration and pyramiding.
Hi! Yes i have read that post and i just want to ensure that the diet i have her eating isnt going to cause any health issues. And everything i had read was that adult russians didnt need a daily soak but if thats wrong, its easily righted. Ive been doing it twice a week and i keep a dish of water in the enclosure. Also will attach picture of enclosure and my tort. Quality might be a little rough. Sorry.
 

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Gillian M

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Hi! Yes i have read that post and i just want to ensure that the diet i have her eating isnt going to cause any health issues. And everything i had read was that adult russians didnt need a daily soak but if thats wrong, its easily righted. Ive been doing it twice a week and i keep a dish of water in the enclosure. Also will attach picture of enclosure and my tort. Quality might be a little rough. Sorry.
In that case, please accept my apologies if I was the one to make the mistake.Also sorry for having said '"he" instead of "she."

Pic is fine. Thanks for posting.

Let's ask @ZEROPILOT @Yvonne G for help. Thanks.
 

Maro2Bear

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Greetings

I know that you said you have read a ton on Russians, just wanted to make sure you saw this care sheet here -
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/b...or-other-herbivorous-tortoise-species.107734/

Lots of info from substrate, to lighting, to food to soaking.

Most ppl here on the Forum use garden center terra cotta plant saucers for food and water bowls. Sink them down in level with the substrate, easier for tort to eat and drink. Less of a tipping over and/or drowning hazard.

Larger enclosures as well are always encouraged... hope the care sheet helps.

PS - daily soaks are just fine, helps to ensure good hydration.

Happy Torting
 
Last edited:

Tortuga Gill

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Greetings

I know that you said you have read a ton on Russians, just wanted to make sure you saw this care sheet here -
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/b...or-other-herbivorous-tortoise-species.107734/

Lots of info from substrate, to lighting, to food to soaking.

Most ppl here on the Forum use garden center terra cotta plant saucers for food and water bowls. Sink them down in level with the substrate, easier for tort to eat and drink. Less of a tipping over and/or drowning hazard.

Larger enclosures as well are always encouraged... hope the care sheet helps.

Happy Torting
Hi! The terra cotta saucers are a great idea. I did see the care sheet. Will re read again just to make sure i didnt miss anything. I guess my concern really as far as her diet is that im not over feeding her things that are going to be bad for her if she gets them daily. Im trying to vary the diet as much as i can. Ive been looking at the tortoise table page as well. Any tips on what i could maybe use as a daily “staple” while mixing in different things that she should only have in moderation would be super helpful. I live in colorado if that helps.
 

Maro2Bear

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Yep. They are helpful. I feel a bit less insecure about it now. Haha. Thank you.

The DIET section in the link i added earlier really has a lot of good info, with a bonus of good to feed weed pictures. Good varied diet of the listed items, stay away from offering “unknowns”, keep soaking. Your access to outdoor weeds will soon be ending, so see what works best. Good luck.
 

RosemaryDW

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The diet information is so hard to figure out, you’re not alone!

As humans we want to feed feed feed animals but for tortoises, the enclosure and lighting are the most important thing to help your tortoise have a healthy life. I can tell you’re already working on the information provided so far. :)

Your diet is fine right now, you might want to bump up the amount of endive and dandelion you’re feeding her and reduce the collards, turnip greens, mustard greens and kale. They are definitely all good foods, the balance is just a bit off.

I wouldn’t feed squash every day, or only if it is a very small bit of the total offering.

Maro2Bear’s link is an excellent place to start for diet. The Tortoise Table is highly conservative, that’s just fine for a beginner who doesn’t want to feed anything that’s at all questionable. But it’s also a bit intimidating!

As you get more comfortable with your tortoise, you can find more flexible information on foods in our Diet forum. Search for plants you know the names of and see how people feed or don’t feed them. You might also look at the Tortoise Chef thread that’s pinned to the top of the Diet section. That’s what people actively feed, versus questions about individual plant identification and safety.
 

Tortuga Gill

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Joined
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Location (City and/or State)
Arvada, CO
The diet information is so hard to figure out, you’re not alone!

As humans we want to feed feed feed animals but for tortoises, the enclosure and lighting are the most important thing to help your tortoise have a healthy life. I can tell you’re already working on the information provided so far. :)

Your diet is fine right now, you might want to bump up the amount of endive and dandelion you’re feeding her and reduce the collards, turnip greens, mustard greens and kale. They are definitely all good foods, the balance is just a bit off.

I wouldn’t feed squash every day, or only if it is a very small bit of the total offering.

Maro2Bear’s link is an excellent place to start for diet. The Tortoise Table is highly conservative, that’s just fine for a beginner who doesn’t want to feed anything that’s at all questionable. But it’s also a bit intimidating!

As you get more comfortable with your tortoise, you can find more flexible information on foods in our Diet forum. Search for plants you know the names of and see how people feed or don’t feed them. You might also look at the Tortoise Chef thread that’s pinned to the top of the Diet section. That’s what people actively feed, versus questions about individual plant identification and safety.
Thank you very much for the advice and really appreciate it. I will definitely cut back big time on the squash (was kind of questioning it being a daily thing to be honest). And lucky for me i can find the dandelion for sale in the produce section of my grocery store year round. And i will figure out a better rotation for the greens that she probably shouldn't pork out on daily. So glad i found this forum. Everyone has been super helpful and friendly and its nice not to have to stumble around in the dark as much as i might without the help.
 

Maro2Bear

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Thank you very much for the advice and really appreciate it. I will definitely cut back big time on the squash (was kind of questioning it being a daily thing to be honest). And lucky for me i can find the dandelion for sale in the produce section of my grocery store year round. And i will figure out a better rotation for the greens that she probably shouldn't pork out on daily. So glad i found this forum. Everyone has been super helpful and friendly and its nice not to have to stumble around in the dark as much as i might without the help.

Great...,!
 

RosemaryDW

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You can add escarole and frisee to your dandelion and endive rotation. They’re all related but it’s good to mix it up.

You will have a hispanic market nearby, pick up the occasional cactus pad, marked “nopales.” It’s an excellent food.

You’ll want to add some fiber; not something you have to do this minute but it’s important. You can poke around in the diet thread to see if you are better served by fresh foods around you (grape and mulberry leaves, squash stems and leaves) or a pellet supplement, like Mazuri.
 

Tortuga Gill

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Joined
Sep 7, 2018
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Location (City and/or State)
Arvada, CO
You can add escarole and frisee to your dandelion and endive rotation. They’re all related but it’s good to mix it up.

You will have a hispanic market nearby, pick up the occasional cactus pad, marked “nopales.” It’s an excellent food.

You’ll want to add some fiber; not something you have to do this minute but it’s important. You can poke around in the diet thread to see if you are better served by fresh foods around you (grape and mulberry leaves, squash stems and leaves) or a pellet supplement, like Mazuri.
Yeah ive looked around for grape leaves and such, not really having much luck finding them. Might end up just goingwith mazuri and i was going to try a salad topper mix as well just to make it more varied. And i plan to start growing what foods i can for her as well.
 

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