turtlebean

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2020
Messages
190
Location (City and/or State)
Connecticut
Hi all!

Little update on my little bean.

When I first got Tortillini I was feeding him a diet of mostly grocery store greens. The occasional tortoise pellets soaked and mixed in. Mostly escarole, chicory, some spring mix, small amount of red and green lettuce maybe some spinach, some turnip or collard greens... basically whatever I read on these forums that was okay to serve.

Now that most of my seed mixes and plants have started to grow in TORTILLINI HAS EVOLVED into the next stage of his life.

First we started with the broadleaf and testudo mixes. He kinda shunned them at first, so I would mix them in with escarole or chicory (his fave) and he would slightly nibble on the homemade stuff. It was super frustrating though because he mostly only seemed to wanna eat the grocery store stuff.

Then I introduced hostas to him. The ones I started growing are tiny and inferior to the ones my mom has growing in her garden, so I opted for those. They were HUGE compared to mine. He was slow to them but now LOVES them.

Exhibit A- BF7222E9-E248-4677-89BB-FC6892DAC69C.jpeg

Seeing him eat these was super inspiring to me because I feel like this was his first big step transcending to the world of non grocery store greens.

I read on here mulberry leaves and the spineless cactus pads are also super good for russians so I scoured all the markets around me for the cactus pads but no luck rip. Also I can’t find a mulberry tree??? anywhere in my yard. So I ordered these cactus pads off etsy, 200+ 5 star reviews and pictures of other little torts enjoying these pads, so I bough them.

Safe to say, he’s loVING THEM.

Exhibit B- D1F578E4-0F17-446C-8AC4-DF29C0819693.jpeg

When I bring him his food in the morning I usually hand feed him whatever new piece I have with me or his favorite green. It’s cool cause now he starts seeing me as the food bearer and will walk over to me every morning. It’s really the only time in the day I get to spend with him because I leave for work and he’s usually asleep when I come home at the end of the night. After I hand feed him one or two things, I set his food pile down and he’ll go to eat that.

Okay last thing. I have no idea what the heck or where the heck mulberry trees are. Research still pending. In the meantime I bought some off ebay and let me tell you... this little guy LOVES THEM.

Exhibit C-
B3CF1C08-C69D-48BC-89DB-A6F39171D903.jpeg

I’m just really excited because i’ve gone from about 100% of his diet being grocery store greens to about 25%. He now eats a healthy portion of weeds and leaves, and now cactus pads too! I’m hoping to find a more sustainable place to get cactus pads from as well as the mulberry leaves. Perhaps I’ll trying growing the pads but we’ll see.

-Julia R (Happy tort mom who feels like one of those moms who gets their kids to eat brocolli for the first time)
 

Newtortmom13

New Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2020
Messages
7
Location (City and/or State)
Wilmington
Hi all!

Little update on my little bean.

When I first got Tortillini I was feeding him a diet of mostly grocery store greens. The occasional tortoise pellets soaked and mixed in. Mostly escarole, chicory, some spring mix, small amount of red and green lettuce maybe some spinach, some turnip or collard greens... basically whatever I read on these forums that was okay to serve.

Now that most of my seed mixes and plants have started to grow in TORTILLINI HAS EVOLVED into the next stage of his life.

First we started with the broadleaf and testudo mixes. He kinda shunned them at first, so I would mix them in with escarole or chicory (his fave) and he would slightly nibble on the homemade stuff. It was super frustrating though because he mostly only seemed to wanna eat the grocery store stuff.

Then I introduced hostas to him. The ones I started growing are tiny and inferior to the ones my mom has growing in her garden, so I opted for those. They were HUGE compared to mine. He was slow to them but now LOVES them.

Exhibit A- View attachment 296526

Seeing him eat these was super inspiring to me because I feel like this was his first big step transcending to the world of non grocery store greens.

I read on here mulberry leaves and the spineless cactus pads are also super good for russians so I scoured all the markets around me for the cactus pads but no luck rip. Also I can’t find a mulberry tree??? anywhere in my yard. So I ordered these cactus pads off etsy, 200+ 5 star reviews and pictures of other little torts enjoying these pads, so I bough them.

Safe to say, he’s loVING THEM.

Exhibit B- View attachment 296527

When I bring him his food in the morning I usually hand feed him whatever new piece I have with me or his favorite green. It’s cool cause now he starts seeing me as the food bearer and will walk over to me every morning. It’s really the only time in the day I get to spend with him because I leave for work and he’s usually asleep when I come home at the end of the night. After I hand feed him one or two things, I set his food pile down and he’ll go to eat that.

Okay last thing. I have no idea what the heck or where the heck mulberry trees are. Research still pending. In the meantime I bought some off ebay and let me tell you... this little guy LOVES THEM.

Exhibit C-
View attachment 296528

I’m just really excited because i’ve gone from about 100% of his diet being grocery store greens to about 25%. He now eats a healthy portion of weeds and leaves, and now cactus pads too! I’m hoping to find a more sustainable place to get cactus pads from as well as the mulberry leaves. Perhaps I’ll trying growing the pads but we’ll see.

-Julia R (Happy tort mom who feels like one of those moms who gets their kids to eat brocolli for the first time)
Hi I've also thought about growing the spineless prickly pear cactus but it takes like 7 years for them to grow from seeds to editable plants so don't feel alone I've been looking for mths and can't find them anywhere but on line
 

Toddrickfl1

Well-Known Member
Tortoise Club
5 Year Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 7, 2018
Messages
7,103
Location (City and/or State)
Ga
Awesome, I can't find a mulberry tree near me either. There's a neighbor down the street that has a huge patch of cactus growing by the mailbox though. So I dress up in all black and go down there at night like a ninja.
 

Srmcclure

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 10, 2020
Messages
1,791
Location (City and/or State)
Oklahoma city
Awesome, I can't find a mulberry tree near me either. There's a neighbor down the street that has a huge patch of cactus growing by the mailbox though. So I dress up in all black and go down there at night like a ninja.
Grab me some while you at it please!? I can't find them anywhere here. I'll probably have to do online too. Same with the mulberry ?
Thats so cool you are able to expand his diet with yummy plants! I'm trying to do the same. Some things are kind of hard to find, but seeing this makes me super happy and it has renewed my search for new foods ?
 

turtlebean

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2020
Messages
190
Location (City and/or State)
Connecticut
I’m gonna keep trying to incorporate more and more healthy things into his diet! If anyone has any other suggestions, let me know, i’m super down to try them!

If only Tortillini liked his weed mixes as much as he liked his cactus pads:rolleyes:
 

turtlebean

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2020
Messages
190
Location (City and/or State)
Connecticut
These just came in this week so i’m not quite sure yet how long they’ll last. I honestly didn’t even know if I should put them in the fridge but that sounds like a good idea!
 

Kim&Tim

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 14, 2020
Messages
190
Location (City and/or State)
The Netherlands
Awesome, I can't find a mulberry tree near me either. There's a neighbor down the street that has a huge patch of cactus growing by the mailbox though. So I dress up in all black and go down there at night like a ninja.
I would so do this? i grow stuff myself, but a neighbor has lot's of weeds, I know he doesn't spray, it's a complete jungle. Sometimes I take stuff too?
 

leoturt

Active Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2019
Messages
144
Location (City and/or State)
Western Canada
Here’s a picture of the mulberry leaves and cactus pads I got off the internet View attachment 296529
What site do you get those mulberry leaves from??!! I've been looking for fresh ones but can't find any online! And There's none where I live.
Also, I am growing my own spineless prickly pear cactus so I won't have to rely on buying any in the future. It's easy to grow them.
 

Ruszian Tortoise

Active Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2020
Messages
116
Location (City and/or State)
TX
Grab me some while you at it please!? I can't find them anywhere here. I'll probably have to do online too. Same with the mulberry ?
Thats so cool you are able to expand his diet with yummy plants! I'm trying to do the same. Some things are kind of hard to find, but seeing this makes me super happy and it has renewed my search for new foods ?
Happy Birthday!
~~~
... What?
Tortellini is evolving!
*cue music: dun dun dun*
That's great!
 

turtlebean

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2020
Messages
190
Location (City and/or State)
Connecticut
What site do you get those mulberry leaves from??!! I've been looking for fresh ones but can't find any online! And There's none where I live.
Also, I am growing my own spineless prickly pear cactus so I won't have to rely on buying any in the future. It's easy to grow them.
I just went on ebay and searched mulberry leaves! There’s a ton of sellers on there with excellent reviews, so I just picked a listing and purchased!

I think i’m gonna look into growing some cactus as well, it would definitely pay off in the long run!
 

leoturt

Active Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2019
Messages
144
Location (City and/or State)
Western Canada
I just went on ebay and searched mulberry leaves! There’s a ton of sellers on there with excellent reviews, so I just picked a listing and purchased!

I think i’m gonna look into growing some cactus as well, it would definitely pay off in the long run!
I will try that.

And, here is one of 6 of my spineless prickly pear with new growth. They are outside in pots on my balcony and just need well draining soil and water once in a while. It's pretty cool watching the growth progress (at least for me since it's my first time). I bought the pads from coastal silk worms online.
 

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turtlebean

Well-Known Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2020
Messages
190
Location (City and/or State)
Connecticut
I will try that.

And, here is one of 6 of my spineless prickly pear with new growth. They are outside in pots on my balcony and just need well draining soil and water once in a while. It's pretty cool watching the growth progress (at least for me since it's my first time). I bought the pads from coastal silk worms online.
Oooh that’s so cute!! I will check out their website and maybe even try growing as well:cool:
 

Crush da Baum

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 1, 2020
Messages
544
Location (City and/or State)
Brooksville
Grab me some while you at it please!? I can't find them anywhere here. I'll probably have to do online too. Same with the mulberry ?
Thats so cool you are able to expand his diet with yummy plants! I'm trying to do the same. Some things are kind of hard to find, but seeing this makes me super happy and it has renewed my search for new foods ?
Sure!
 
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