For Those Who Have a Young Sulcata...

[Champoi bibiano]

Hi quick update, could not get hold of squash leaves and flowers, as they are very seasonal here, so instead, i added ashitaba to his diet, he loves it.

 

[Pinkdivaisme]

Over and over I type up and answer diet questions and try to get people feeding the right stuff, but I find that the "norm" is grocery store food. Grocery store food is expensive, a hassle to obtain, and very low on the list of what is best for sulcatas.

These tortoises are GRASS eaters. From the moment they hatch, until the day they die, grass should be a large part of their diet. Spring mix, romaine, kale and other greens are okay as a small part of a varied diet, but should not be the bulk of the diet. If someone must feed grocery store foods, the pile should be sprinkled with grass clippings or "Salad Style". For those who like the convenience of pre-packaged, easy to handle stuff, "Salad Style" is basically finely blended up grass hay that can be sprinkled over any other food to add bulk and fiber. I got my "Salad Style" from Tyler at tortoisesupply.com.

For those that have a lawn, or access to one: Get a tub, get some scissors, get down on your knees, and go to work! It is so EASY to cut a few handfuls of fresh, green, tender, young grass, and dramatically improve your baby sulcatas diet. Any kind of grass will work. Finely chop it for little tortoises and sprinkle it all over the other food, or feed it by itself in a pile. Do be careful about lawn chemicals and pesticides. If you have a gardener, or its not your lawn, use extreme caution. Live in a condo or apartment complex? Don't do it. Not worth the risk, no matter what they tell you. Just grow your own grass in pots on your patio or window sills. Friends, family and neighbors might be able to help you out here.

For those who still just love the grocery store: Most stores are now selling little plastic pots of live, freshly sprouted, organic wheat grass. You can find it at many pet stores too. This is a great way to add grass to the diet of a young sulcata. Get your scissors, hold the pot over the food pile and chop away. Water it and keep the pot in a window sill, and in a few days, you'll have more. You might need several pots as your baby grows, or you can buy seed from one of our site sponsors (Thank you Carolina Pet Supply) and sprout even bigger trays of it yourself.

Some of you may find that your "grass eating" tortoise wants nothing to do with eating grass. This should surprise no one, since most breeders and most keepers never even attempt to feed actual grass to their grass eating tortoise babies. So sad! I can tell you from first hand experience with literally HUNDREDS of babies, they WILL eat it. It may take a month or more to slowly introduce it, but PLEASE, slowly introduce it.

Other items that are good for babies and young sulcatas:
Mulberry leaves
Grape vine leaves
Hibiscus leaves
African hibiscus leaves
Blue hibiscus leaves
Rose of Sharon leaves
Rose leaves
Geraniums
Gazanias
Lavatera
Pansies
Petunias
Hostas
Honeysuckle
Cape honeysuckle
Leaves and blooms from any squash plant, like pumpkin, cucumber, summer squash, etc...
Young spineless opuntia cactus pads

Weeds:
There are soooooooo many...
Dandelion
Mallow
Filaree
Smooth Sow thistle
Prickly Sow thistle
Milk thistle
Goat head weed
Cats ear
Nettles
Trefoil
Wild onion
Wild mustard
Wild Garlic
Clovers
Broadleaf plantain
Narrow leaf plantain
Chick weed
Hawksbit
Hensbit
Hawksbeard

Other good stuff:
"Testudo Seed Mix" from http://www.tortoisesupply.com/SeedMixes
Pasture mixes or other seeds from http://www.groworganic.com/seeds.html
Homegrown alfalfa
Mazuri Tortoise Chow
ZooMed Grassland Tortoise Food


When sulcatas get a little older and bigger, usually around 10-12" for me, they will start munching on plain, dry grass hay, all on their own. I like orchard grass hay the best for this, but I also used bermuda grass hay for years too. When they hit this stage, life gets MUCH easier. Just make sure you have drinking water readily available when they start eating hay, and consider soaking regularly if you are not 100% sure your tortoise is drinking enough, or if you live in a really dry area, like me.

I live in a desert and yet there is still green stuff all around me. I beg you to take a walk and learn about all the green stuff around you, INSTEAD of driving to the store again. Instead of a trip to the grocery store, take a trip to a local nursery for some weed IDs, and tips on growing your own stuff. What could be better than stepping out into your backyard and collecting all the free, healthy tortoise food you can carry? Think of the gas savings! Anyone who is a tortoise keeper, ought to be somewhat of a gardener too.

I beg of you... PLEASE stop the grocery store MADNESS!!!

Thanks for posting this, I was looking for a good list. When starting out is it better to buy seeds and plant or is there a garden center/ pet store where you can buy some of this already flourishing. I want to have a variety and not sure the best way to get the weeds ect.

 

[Pinkdivaisme]

Read all 10 pages.... I will need to identify the weeds I have. I guess I was wondering do people plant the different grasses in pots or a certain area of yard and let them roam in there when outside as long as it's a safe area. I'm thinking for future when they transfusion more to outside is it better to have plants be potted or planted. Also can most of this be found in a nursery or from seeds.

 

[Tom]

Read all 10 pages.... I will need to identify the weeds I have. I guess I was wondering do people plant the different grasses in pots or a certain area of yard and let them roam in there when outside as long as it's a safe area. I'm thinking for future when they transfusion more to outside is it better to have plants be potted or planted. Also can most of this be found in a nursery or from seeds.

Anything bought at a store will be full of systemic pesticides, unless it is intended for human consumption. The Home Depots near me have a section of vegetables for sale.

I find things grow better when planted in the ground, as long as gophers and other pests don't destroy them. You can block off sections of the enclosure and get things growing well, and then open one section at a time for the tortoise to graze. Close off the section when the tortoise has eaten enough and let that section re-grow while the tortoise eats another section.

 

[Pinkdivaisme]

Anything bought at a store will be full of systemic pesticides, unless it is intended for human consumption. The Home Depots near me have a section of vegetables for sale.

I find things grow better when planted in the ground, as long as gophers and other pests don't destroy them. You can block off sections of the enclosure and get things growing well, and then open one section at a time for the tortoise to graze. Close off the section when the tortoise has eaten enough and let that section re-grow while the tortoise eats another section.

Ok perfect! Until I get the seedlings going can you recommend anything local to find for a young hatchling besides just my normal grass clippings? Also for winter I was going to cut the grass clippings bag and freeze it I didn't know if anything else needed to be done. Since he will be a baby I didn't know if any extra care is needed to the clippings or if that was the best way.

 

[Tom]

Ok perfect! Until I get the seedlings going can you recommend anything local to find for a young hatchling besides just my normal grass clippings? Also for winter I was going to cut the grass clippings bag and freeze it I didn't know if anything else needed to be done. Since he will be a baby I didn't know if any extra care is needed to the clippings or if that was the best way.

The list in post number one of this thread is what you should look for. Weeds, grape leaves, hibiscus leaves, spineless opuntia pads, mulberry leaves, etc...

 

[Barrysulcata]

Hi tom
This is a great topic and I get loads of ideas from you as you probably know I live in uk Barry's main diet is grass / dandelions / hay and loads of wild plants he's as a treat once a week peppers pumpkin and other bits but only once a week
Big thanks for your knowledge
Tim

 

[Carter04]

just read ur post my problem is I have got the zoo Med grass land diet food and the zoo med organic vegs pellets and he will not eat it I have softened it I have done every thing and he will not eat it only Roman I don't want him to sick sick from lack of vitamins please can some one help me or is this normal and have another question he want to bite his food bowl not eat out of it only butt it and bite it ? Is this normal ?

 

[Yvonne G]

I think you'll be getting more answers to your questions on your thread here:

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/help-with-sulcata-tort-month-old.143413/#post-1344661

This thread is really Tom's thread.

 

[Tom]

just read ur post my problem is I have got the zoo Med grass land diet food and the zoo med organic vegs pellets and he will not eat it I have softened it I have done every thing and he will not eat it only Roman I don't want him to sick sick from lack of vitamins please can some one help me or is this normal and have another question he want to bite his food bowl not eat out of it only butt it and bite it ? Is this normal ?

There are many leafy greens to try from the store and out in the world. Unfortunately, many breeders simply throw down some romaine for their newly hatched babies because its cheap and easy. It takes a lot more effort to go outside and scrounge up a wide variety of foods like I, and several other good breeders here do. When people buy one of my babies, they eat everything. If you bought from a "romaine" breeder, then you will have to do all the work, and it will take much longer.

What you need to do is introduce new foods slowly. Mince up the romaine super fine, wet it, and then mix in a very small amount of the new food. For example, soak one small broken piece of the ZooMed Grassland pellets. Soak your pellet fragment until it turns to mush and then thoroughly mix it in with the romaine or other store bought greens. Over a time period weeks or months, gradually use more of the new stuff and less romaine. If you can get your baby to survive long enough to put on some size, they become ravenous and eat anything and everything as they get larger.

Just curious. Where did you get your baby?

 

[Shelbyismytortoise]

Great thread Tom. Now breath and reboot, your going to have to keep updating this thread, or restating it often
Now, how about us with leopards that won't eat grass or hey. I keep trying, he keeps refusing. Any tips?

Sometimes it takes a long time for them to get used to eating grass but if you keep trying he will eat it eventually. I had the same problem with my 8 month old sulcata tortoise! Good Luck!

 

[wellington]

Sometimes it takes a long time for them to get used to eating grass but if you keep trying he will eat it eventually. I had the same problem with my 8 month old sulcata tortoise! Good Luck!

Yep I know. I believe this was posted a few years ago. My leopard is outside perminently now and is 5 years old. Not the best grazing eater, but he did get there.

 

[tortoisenana]

Can I feed my tortoises frozen vegetables? Also I can not get them to eat Mazuri, how can I get them to eat it? Which is better Flukers or ZooMed? They graze in a yard part of the day so most on their food is grass.

 

[Tom]

Can I feed my tortoises frozen vegetables? Also I can not get them to eat Mazuri, how can I get them to eat it? Which is better Flukers or ZooMed? They graze in a yard part of the day so most on their food is grass.

Vegetables, frozen or other wise are not the best food for your sulcata.

What type of Mazuri have you got? LS or original? Are you soaking it before offering it to the tortoises? It usually helps to introduce a new food by mixing it up with an old favorite.

I would not use the Flukers. The ZooMed is a good way to make grocery store greens better for them. Soak a half a pellet and then mush it up with the days greens.

 

[tortoisenana]

Thanks, I have read almost everything on this site but I still didn't know if I was doing anything right. My two are eating, pooping, wandering and growing so I guess I'm not doing too bad. I have ordered some
Zoo Med Natural Grassland Tortoise Food with Added Vitamins & Minerals
I like to have something to feed them when they can't go outside very long or I don't have any greens for them. They get soaked almost every day and they love it . I gave them a cactus bulb cut up and them really ate the inside. Now they have redness purple mouths. I have always had pets but I enjoy my tortoises so much more than I thought I would. Plus it get me off the internet and outside! Thanks again for sharing your knowledge.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Barb.....Find a feed store (bring a big bag,) tell them you have tortoises and ask if you can scrape up some of the loose hay. Usually, it's fresh grass hay, soft and better then that rabbit crap. My feed store charges me $2. I bring the biggest bag they make. Even my small Sulcata eat it.

 

[Ang]

If I grew my own hibiscus plant In a pot with organic potting soil it will be safe for my sulcata to eat rite? I didn't want to buy an already grown plant incase it had been exposed to any pesticides.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Orchard grass works great. I've tried all sorts of different grass seed, and nothing works better that the stuff in the link in the first post of this thread.

Right now I've started some Rye Grass, orchard grass, some sort of chicken grass mix. They eat all of it.

I also clip my yard grass all summer long with an electric mower and mix the clippings in with other good stuff. Grass is an important component of a sulcata diet. They should be eating a large percentage of grass as they get bigger. I like them to be eating some tender young grass when they are little too.

With as many Sulcata as you have, why in the world do you have to mow the grass?

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Can I feed my tortoises frozen vegetables? Also I can not get them to eat Mazuri, how can I get them to eat it? Which is better Flukers or ZooMed? They graze in a yard part of the day so most on their food is grass.

That's because they dont recognize that crap as food. If they are already eating grass why do you want to add crap to a decent diet??? Add leaves and weeds. I never ever saw a tortoise open a Fluckers jar, yet I have seen them eating grass flowers weeds leaves, hell, read Toms food list .

 

[Tom]

With as many Sulcata as you have, why in the world do you have to mow the grass?

Because they grass doesn't grow inside their enclosure. I have to take the cut grass to where the tortoises are.