Cuttle vs. calcium powder...or both?

[mini_max]

Hi, my baby Russian Max is less than 1. I am dusting his food with calcium powder 2x per week, but have been reading about providing a cuttle bone. As this post is titled, I would appreciate feed back on which is better, or if I should be doing both. Thanks.

 

[Yvonne G]

You can lay a cuttlebone on the floor of the habitat. Most tortoises leave them alone for a long time, then all of a sudden take an interest in them. I use both. I have cuttlebones in every enclosure, and I sprinkle calcium powder over the food a couple times a week.

 

[Gillian M]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Pinch the cuttlebone with a pair of pliers and let the dust and tiny particles land in the food. I use dust and cuttlebone, but my torts live mostly out doors.

 

[mini_max]

Well, now I have a crazy about cuttle bone question! Max is chomping it like crazy, like I can hear him crunching it from another room. Is there such a thing as too much?

 

[Alaskamike]

I don't believe a tort will eat too much , if it's just available they seem to self regulate.
I will mention it is wise to scrape off the glue on the back off cuttlebones before offering.

In my pens , I screw a cuttlebone to a steak in the ground. They gnaw on it at will.

 

[Earth Mama]

I've never had a Russian that would touch a cuttlebone. My Red foots eat like candy

 

[Madkins007]

Is there a risk from too much calcium? yes, but it takes a lot to get there. Studies have shown that wild tortoises will often pass a more succulent food item for one with more calcium, and a lot of the fresh food we feed is a bit low in calcium.

It is VERY IMPORTANT to remember, however, that calcium cannot be absorbed into the cells without vitamin D being involved. If your guys get plenty of sunlight, this is not a big deal, but if they do not, you need to find a way to include vitamin D in the diet or cares. Vitamin D does store in the fatty tissues, but there have not been any studies I am aware of that shows how long a tortoise can live on those reserves.