Recent threads on pellet diets have me questioning the little I know about tortoise diets. After a few months watching new owners struggle to make the best choices for their tortoises, I am wondering what is the "best" diet to recommend to people who live in difficult climates or with limited resources?
I read repeatedly about, and now recommend, weeds and safe plants as the best choice. But I have resources many members do not. I have access to a good climate with some open (pesticide free) areas, I have reasonable experience identifying plants, and perhaps most importantly, I have the time to track food down. Even if I didn't have those resources, I live in an area where buying safe foods is easy.
Growing safe foods, on the other hand, was not terribly easy for me. I have limited space and none of it has very good sun and shade. My efforts with testudo seed mix, good as it is, were not very successful. Finding weeds is actually easier for me than growing anything.
I'm not experienced with pellet foods and am never likely to be. Perhaps they are a better choice than I understand? For members who are brand new, who have limited resources, would It be better to recommend a pellet food? Overnight delivery doesn't go everywhere, but it does reach a lot of places! If there is a reasonably stable diet available in a short timeframe, maybe it should be the first recommendation? I'll never be the expert so many folks here are but I'd like to be the most knowledgeable member I can.
I read repeatedly about, and now recommend, weeds and safe plants as the best choice. But I have resources many members do not. I have access to a good climate with some open (pesticide free) areas, I have reasonable experience identifying plants, and perhaps most importantly, I have the time to track food down. Even if I didn't have those resources, I live in an area where buying safe foods is easy.
Growing safe foods, on the other hand, was not terribly easy for me. I have limited space and none of it has very good sun and shade. My efforts with testudo seed mix, good as it is, were not very successful. Finding weeds is actually easier for me than growing anything.
I'm not experienced with pellet foods and am never likely to be. Perhaps they are a better choice than I understand? For members who are brand new, who have limited resources, would It be better to recommend a pellet food? Overnight delivery doesn't go everywhere, but it does reach a lot of places! If there is a reasonably stable diet available in a short timeframe, maybe it should be the first recommendation? I'll never be the expert so many folks here are but I'd like to be the most knowledgeable member I can.