Hector's Diet

[animal-lover506]

Hello Everyone,
Haven't been on the forum in a while but have the exciting news that I have adopted Hector, the Russian Tort, from CORHS!!! They were very nice and pleased to see him go to a home
Anyway, I just wanted to ask about diet a little even though I know most everything I can feed him. So far I have gave him dandelions, kale, little bit of shredded baby carrots, and he also has timothy hay in his enclosure for burrowing and nibbling but I'm not sure if he ate that. He liked everything though... so how often can he have one 2 inch long shredded baby carrot? I know they're not the greatest as they have high acid levels right? I hear kale and dandelions are good though and we have lots of kale right now and many dandelions in our yard(no chemicals sprayed). So any other suggestions that I could get from the super market during the winter? Or any plants or flowers that can live inside during winter that he could eat?
Thanks so much and i'll try and post some pics soon
-Ava #super #happy

 

[animal-lover506]

Just posted pics on the media!! btw

 

[Tom]

Carrots are not so good. To high in sugar. Once on a while in small amounts is oaky, but not on a regular basis.

Same with kale.

The main part of the diet should be broadleaf weeds. You can find these or grow them yourself.

Hay is not good as a substrate. Its too dry, and if it gets wet at all it will quickly mold. And russians are not really grass eaters anyway.

If you must use food from the grocery store favor endive and escarole heavily, but use lots of variety. Also supplement grocery store green with Tyler's "Herbal Hay" mix, or some "Salad Style" to add some much needed fiber.

Here is a care sheet for russians:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

Here is another one that might help:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

 

[animal-lover506]

Carrots are not so good. To high in sugar. Once on a while in small amounts is oaky, but not on a regular basis.

Same with kale.

The main part of the diet should be broadleaf weeds. You can find these or grow them yourself.

Hay is not good as a substrate. Its too dry, and if it gets wet at all it will quickly mold. And russians are not really grass eaters anyway.

If you must use food from the grocery store favor endive and escarole heavily, but use lots of variety. Also supplement grocery store green with Tyler's "Herbal Hay" mix, or some "Salad Style" to add some much needed fiber.

Here is a care sheet for russians:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

Here is another one that might help:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

Thanks Tom. And hay is not his flooring. He has coconut coir mixed with sand and some moss. The hay is simply for burrowing and only covers a corner of his enclosure. Again, thanks for the info on his diet.

 

[Tom]

Well.... Since you mentioned it...

Sand is a serious impaction risk. It can also be a skin and eye irritant. Its one of those things that is recommended in so many old care sheets, but I've seen it cause so many problems. You see, my career has had me working with many vets for almost 30 years. They all know of my tortoise "affliction" and they share just about any interesting tortoise case that comes in through their doors with me. I can't even count all the sand impaction X-rays I've seen over the years.

My goal on this forum is to help people avoid mistakes before its too late. All this info and more is in the care sheet above.

Good luck and happy torting.