feeding schedule

[dreadyA]

My rft has a scl just under 6". Is he considered an adult? I have him indoors and if i feed him every 3rd day(like some have suggested), how do I go about doing the " greens day & fruit day & protien day" diet? I might be overlooking, but I can only seem to find yearling & hatchling schedules. Thanks, abe and maynard the tort

 

[DoctorCosmonaut]

I feed my adult Redfoot every other day. Some days she doesn't eat much, others she makes it seem like I was starving her. I would offer food every other day.

 

[Candy]

I wouldn't think of not offering Dale food everyday. I should think out in the wild they come across something to eat everyday. I figure it like this if Dale doesn't want it he doesn't have to eat it (but he does) and he's not getting fat. I feed Dale greens some days and fruit others and elk meat about every two weeks. I don't stress over exactly what to feed him when.

 

[terryo]

This is from Terry K's site for adult Redfoots....
Adult redfoot tortoises [ over 8" ] will 'graze' when outside. They will come out of their hide in the early morning.. and depending on what "season" it is will follow the sun around their habitat until they are "up-to-temps" - mid-80'sF - will then graze until satisfied and then return to their hide until just before dusk when they have their evening 'snack'.. before bedding down for the night. I will 'supplement' their grazing with fruit and greens once a week.. and the cat-food 'protein' once a week.

During the 'winter' months [ below 60F ] they are kept inside and are fed on a 2 day on.. 3 day off schedule. With cat-food once a week.

erb

 

[Jacqui]

I don't stress over exactly what to feed him when.

Exactly my feelings Candy. As a rule, mine are offered something everyday. During the outside months there are days, when I give them no additional food but what they can graze (of which they have plenty to choose from and a wide variety of items). Some days they only get fruit, some days a mixture, some days it may just be greens or even just one kind of green. I figure in the wild they eat what is available, when they come across it. If they come across a large patch of fruit, they may stay near it grazing for a couple of days and then at other times it may be days before they come across any. So that's what I try to match up to. The only real rule I stick to, is some kind of protein once a week, even if it's only worms.

 

[Madkins007]

Here is the deal... overfeeding is one of the biggest problems facing most keepers. When they are grazing freely outdoors on fairly low-nutrient plants in a big habitat with things to do, this is not a problem. When we are feeding high-nutrient foods indoors in smaller enclosures with fewer options, this leads to obesity.

These guys don't really need many calories. We figure that a typical 1lb tort would only need about 16 calories a day, 2 lbs- 32 calories, 4 lbs- 54 calories, etc. (The formula is the weight in kilograms to the 0.75th power, times 32 equals the daily base calorie rate. We double this for active tortoises, and reduce it for less active tortoises. 32 calories is only 50 grams of lettuce, about 3 tablespoons.

So- to avoid overfeeding, we can do very small meals- which makes it hard to include a good variety of nutrients, or we can offer 'normal'-sized meals and skip days. You'll find a dozen 'skip day' plans- alternating fast/light/normal/fast/light/normal, or skipping every other day, or feeding 3x weekly, etc.

There is no magic to schedules- Terry has a good and simple one that works nicely, and others have their own plans and ideas. The goal of any schedule is to make your life easier while helping ensure that the tortoise gets what it needs. Wild tortoises only follow a schedule based on the natural availability of plants.

 

[trixie]

Hi everyone
Hi have 2 red foots and they are both 3 years old and their shells are about 3 inches what can all of you recommend is the best food to feed them and what is a good mixture. i used to live in FL where i ha a lot of grass for them to graze but n NM there is not much. Please help

thanks

 

[Crazy1]

dreadyA and Tricia, check out these sites www.redfoots.com or www.turtletary.com they are great sites for RFs.

 

[dreadyA]

I wouldn't think of not offering Dale food everyday. I should think out in the wild they come across something to eat everyday. I figure it like this if Dale doesn't want it he doesn't have to eat it (but he does) and he's not getting fat. I feed Dale greens some days and fruit others and elk meat about every two weeks. I don't stress over exactly what to feed him when.

Thank you candy for taking the tme to voice your opinion and the positive feedback.

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dreadyA and Tricia, check out these sites www.redfoots.com or www.turtletary.com they are great sites for RFs.

I sure did ovelook it, crazy1. Sometimes I find myself over analysing and needing reassurance . Thanks for the help
I'm going post pics(nice quality) of maynard soon, so y'all can see his handsomeness haha

 

[Crazy1]

DreadyA, I'm looking forward to seeing Maynards handsomeness Oh what RedFoot is not handsome? Oh did anybody tell you we Really do like Pictures