Ok. I have found many different posts about edible plants and flowers but of course they all say different things. So I was wondering if anyone has ideas of stuff they have tried with their torts. A big question I have is are pothos and spider plants safe for redfoots?
Edible Plants and Flowers for redfoots
- Thread starter grettas mom
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Hi Grettas Mom,
This topic has been discussed a lot so I understand if it is confusing, but try this link: http://www.redfoots.com/ You can also go to the Redfoot section or the Food and Diet section of this forum for more info or do a search for redfoots and diet or edible plants here. Hope that helps you.
This topic has been discussed a lot so I understand if it is confusing, but try this link: http://www.redfoots.com/ You can also go to the Redfoot section or the Food and Diet section of this forum for more info or do a search for redfoots and diet or edible plants here. Hope that helps you.
grettas mom said:
Pothos seem really open to debate, if they are "safe" or not. Spider plants (or some call them Airplane plants) are said to be safe. I have a couple waiting to be "clean" to feed, but haven't tried any yet.
The best thing is to just go thru the list of plants that are safe and start trying them on ones you have that are chemical/fertilizer free.
Personally, the hibiscus (tropical, hardy, and the bush Rose of Sharon or Althea) are highly loved here. Just off the top of my head for flowers are also roses, day lilies, pansies, violets, nasturiums (sp?), hostas, squash blossoms, hollyhocks, some feed impatients but I tend to avoid them, petunias, boy this list could become very long.
What I did when first starting out was to make copies of the lists and just carry them with me. Then I could compare to what was in my yard, other yards I might harvest from, and to compare while shopping at greenhouses/WalMart, ect..,
Can't speak to redfoots but my Greeks and DT have eaten spider plants with out problems though they prefer to hide in them rather than eat them. I do not feed Pothos.
I know that Terryo has Pothos in Pio enclosure. Here's another list for you just by chance you haven't seen it before.
Redfoot tortoises are omnivorous. They consume both animal and plant material in the wild.
GREENS
Most grocery stores have a decent selection of greens that redfoot tortoises readily eat. Ideally the greens should be organic and pesticide free. However this is the real world and not all tortoise keepers have access to "ideal" food. So, I have this section as a starting point for a varied diet. The following greens are easily found in my local stores:
Romaine lettuce
Red and green leaf lettuce
Endive
Escarole
Chicory
Radicchio
Turnip greens
Mustard greens
Kale
Collards
Spring Mix (mixed salad greens)
cabbage (on occasion)
VEGETABLES
Yellow squash
Zucchini
Winter squash
Pumpkin
Carrots (on occasion)
Green Beans (on occasion)
FRUIT
Papaya
Mangos
Apples (be sure there are no seeds)
Strawberries
Blackberries
Cactus fruit
Tomatoes
OTHER GOOD CHOICES
Some other favorites of my tortoises that are available:
Hibiscus (flowers and leaves)
Opuntia cactus pads
Hosta
Sedum
Mulberry leaves
Hen and Chicks
Ice Plants
Prickly pear flowers, fruit and pads (burn the spines off)
Dandelion
Plantain (not the banana type fruit....the weed plantago major)
Mallow (flowers and leaves)
Henbit
Rose (flowers and leaves....make sure no systemic pesticides were used)
Chrysanthemum flowers
Cornflowers Plagiobothrys ssp
Forsythia (flowers and leaves)
Dayflower Commelina diffusa (flowers and leaves)
Californian Poppy escholzia
Make sure all are pesticide and herbicide free.
MEAT etc.
In the wild redfoot tortoises eat a variety of animal matter including carrion. Redfoot tortoises fed exclusively a plant based diet frequently develop hind leg paralysis. They also have low fertility and hatchlings often fail to thrive. It is often recommended to feed them low fat cat food as often as every other feeding. I have found this to be unnecessary and a contributing factor in pyramiding.
My approach is to feed pre-killed pinkies (new born mice), shrimp, chicken, organ meat, boiled eggs etc. Once a month when outside. Here in South Carolina there is an abundance of worms, slugs, pill bugs and other bugs in their pen. My tortoises feed on them on a regular basis. In the winter bugs are less plentiful so I feed animal protein every other week
For the torts I keep indoors over the winter, I also feed Butterworms (extremely high in calcium and great for hatchlings) and superworms.
With the above one can develop a good diet. Once again (and I can't stress this enough) variety is the key!
Don't feed the same food day in and day out. Mix varieties and choose a different green as the basis every few days.
AVOID
The following food items should be avoided for a variety of reasons. there are many books and groups that go into great detail...so I won't repeat them here. At the end of the page are a few links).
Iceberg lettuce
Bok Choy
All grains (including bread, pasta etc)
All human food except what's been listed as "good"
Pellet type foods (An often overlooked factor of pyramiding is grain based diets. These are the pellet food that some claim to be essential to health. They typically contain soy, wheat and or rice. These are high in omega 6 fatty acids which has a negative effect on health. They also have an acidifying effect which causes a leaching of bone. They are high in phytate which binds calcium and other minerals. They also have an unfavorable ca/ph ratio and a low ca/mg ratio which has a negative impact on calcium metabolism. Grains alter Vit D metabolism. Diets high in grains can have a negative impact on bone growth in spite of adequate exposure to sunshine. (http://www.sawellnesscenter.com//nutrition/Diet/Cereal article-1.pdf)
ANTI-NUTRIENTS
A number of food items contain chemicals that interfere with a tortoises ability to absorb nutrients from food. Although most food items have some of these...a varied diet can minimize the harmful effects.
(more info can be found at Cornell University Poisonous Plants Informational Database)
Redfoot tortoises are omnivorous. They consume both animal and plant material in the wild.
GREENS
Most grocery stores have a decent selection of greens that redfoot tortoises readily eat. Ideally the greens should be organic and pesticide free. However this is the real world and not all tortoise keepers have access to "ideal" food. So, I have this section as a starting point for a varied diet. The following greens are easily found in my local stores:
Romaine lettuce
Red and green leaf lettuce
Endive
Escarole
Chicory
Radicchio
Turnip greens
Mustard greens
Kale
Collards
Spring Mix (mixed salad greens)
cabbage (on occasion)
VEGETABLES
Yellow squash
Zucchini
Winter squash
Pumpkin
Carrots (on occasion)
Green Beans (on occasion)
FRUIT
Papaya
Mangos
Apples (be sure there are no seeds)
Strawberries
Blackberries
Cactus fruit
Tomatoes
OTHER GOOD CHOICES
Some other favorites of my tortoises that are available:
Hibiscus (flowers and leaves)
Opuntia cactus pads
Hosta
Sedum
Mulberry leaves
Hen and Chicks
Ice Plants
Prickly pear flowers, fruit and pads (burn the spines off)
Dandelion
Plantain (not the banana type fruit....the weed plantago major)
Mallow (flowers and leaves)
Henbit
Rose (flowers and leaves....make sure no systemic pesticides were used)
Chrysanthemum flowers
Cornflowers Plagiobothrys ssp
Forsythia (flowers and leaves)
Dayflower Commelina diffusa (flowers and leaves)
Californian Poppy escholzia
Make sure all are pesticide and herbicide free.
MEAT etc.
In the wild redfoot tortoises eat a variety of animal matter including carrion. Redfoot tortoises fed exclusively a plant based diet frequently develop hind leg paralysis. They also have low fertility and hatchlings often fail to thrive. It is often recommended to feed them low fat cat food as often as every other feeding. I have found this to be unnecessary and a contributing factor in pyramiding.
My approach is to feed pre-killed pinkies (new born mice), shrimp, chicken, organ meat, boiled eggs etc. Once a month when outside. Here in South Carolina there is an abundance of worms, slugs, pill bugs and other bugs in their pen. My tortoises feed on them on a regular basis. In the winter bugs are less plentiful so I feed animal protein every other week
For the torts I keep indoors over the winter, I also feed Butterworms (extremely high in calcium and great for hatchlings) and superworms.
With the above one can develop a good diet. Once again (and I can't stress this enough) variety is the key!
Don't feed the same food day in and day out. Mix varieties and choose a different green as the basis every few days.
AVOID
The following food items should be avoided for a variety of reasons. there are many books and groups that go into great detail...so I won't repeat them here. At the end of the page are a few links).
Iceberg lettuce
Bok Choy
All grains (including bread, pasta etc)
All human food except what's been listed as "good"
Pellet type foods (An often overlooked factor of pyramiding is grain based diets. These are the pellet food that some claim to be essential to health. They typically contain soy, wheat and or rice. These are high in omega 6 fatty acids which has a negative effect on health. They also have an acidifying effect which causes a leaching of bone. They are high in phytate which binds calcium and other minerals. They also have an unfavorable ca/ph ratio and a low ca/mg ratio which has a negative impact on calcium metabolism. Grains alter Vit D metabolism. Diets high in grains can have a negative impact on bone growth in spite of adequate exposure to sunshine. (http://www.sawellnesscenter.com//nutrition/Diet/Cereal article-1.pdf)
ANTI-NUTRIENTS
A number of food items contain chemicals that interfere with a tortoises ability to absorb nutrients from food. Although most food items have some of these...a varied diet can minimize the harmful effects.
(more info can be found at Cornell University Poisonous Plants Informational Database)
Candy....well, that was a GREAT post. I printed it out..thanks loads. I do keep Pothos in Pio's viv, but he never touched them at all. He usually just sits under them..I throw some Spring Mix seeds in there and he loves the little sprouts when they start coming up. Every now and them I put a pansy in there and he eats it right to the ground.
WOW!!! Thanks for all the ideas everyone!!! You guys are awesome!!!! I LOVE this forum!!! =)
terryo said:
When you told me Pio had them in his enclosure I went and bought one and planted it. He never touches it or sits under it either he just runs to his hide and there he stays for the rest of the day.
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