Help! Diet & other ?s

[Zabbi0]

Hey there fellow tortoise owners.
So I have a lot of questions..
I have overlooked many of the forum threads on here an scoured the Internet, even seen a Vet and am turning up with not much information in regard to my Sulcata.
I got Samson at a flea market about a year ago. I have tried to be very proactive in taking care of him(not 100% sure if its a him but the vet seemed to lean that way)

Here's the thing. I am very well aware of the fact that grasses and hays are suppose to make up the majority of his diet. It just can't find where to get this stuff??! Maybe I am being a brainless idiot. I've asked the vet (who seemed totally incompetent an didn't seem to know anything about tortoises) and people from PetsMart, Petco and Pets Barn. I can't find this stuff. Also- I can't get a good idea of how much to feed him because I'm not sure exactly how old he is. He's moderately active. For now, I've resorted to the next best thing which I'm still not happy with but it's what I can do- romaine lettuce and a Fluker's calcium sprinkle as well as a Grassland Tortoise Food mix with a lot of vitamins and minerals. I mash it up with water and feed it once weekly. I also let him soak for 15mins or so once a week.

I keep him in a long fish tank with dry bark as bedding and heat lamps and let him roam around the house and outside a lot.

I was starting to worry that he was pyramiding but then a vet tech I know said turtles usually hve a smooth shell while tortoises are usually bumpy and his looks ok.
Will try and post a pic.

Sorry this is a long post. Like I said- I'm trying to just be proactive in taking care of Sammy but feel like I'm doing everything wrong. If you all have any tips or know where to get grasses/hays please let me know... Thanks.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Lizzi and welcome to the Forum!

Well, your vet tech was pretty much wrong in the assessment. Tortoises are supposed to be smooth too. Your sulcata was kept too dry during his first year after hatching, and that's why he's so bumpy. He seems to be big enough now to live outside. Do you have an outside habitat for him for when the weather permits?

Tortoises get their grasses and weeds by living outside and grazing on what grows out there. If you absolutely cannot let him be outside, then there are other foods you can offer, but you can still take a plastic bag and a pair of scissors and go outside and cut some weeds and grasses to add to the grocery store greens.

 

[Zabbi0]

Thanks. I think we are growing Bermuda grass but we have pesticides put out recently.
The thing is I am still living with my parents. I just rent out the upstairs of the house.
I've asked my dad about fixing the fence along the bottom so that he could stay in the backyard but my dad dosent want me touching the fence or paying anyone else to fix it.
He really dosent like Sammy heh and just wants me to keep him upstairs for now. So I let him roam around upstairs or just watch him during the weekends for a few hours outside.
I'll leave him in his tank at night mainly. He just has a ton of energy so I try not to keep him in there.
So if I just pull the grass and add it to the romaine lettuce and maybe soak him more often you think that should be enough? I generally feed him about 1/4 a bag of lettuce a day.
Plus the grassland food once a week. How bad do you think the pyramiding looks?
He still has a ton of energy. He's not very lethargic. I'm still surprised that he typically maintains the exact schedule as me. Sleeps from about 8pm-9am and running around most the rest the day.

 

[Zabbi0]

RE: Help! Diet & other ?s

Also- how bad does his pyramiding look? & about how old does he look?
Will try and post some more pics...

 

[Yvonne G]

His pyramiding looks to be just cosmetic. I don't see any of the symptoms of metabolic bone disease. Also, I think he's about 2 or 3 years old.

For variety you can buy different greens. This week buy turnip greens, then next week buy escarole, then the following time buy endive and so on. You can also add some spring mix to the equation. This is a good time of year to find the edible weeds: fillaree, sow thistle, chicory, etc.

There's a bunch of edible and non edible weed pictures in this thread:

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-14564.html

 

[Zabbi0]

RE: Help! Diet & other ?s

You are so great- thanks so much !

How do you know what bone disease looks like? Symptoms?

 

[mainey34]

Hello and welcome...ill give you my suggestion from my experience with my sulcata. She has slight pyramiding. Mine is around 2 years of age...first off i feed....turnip greens, collard greens, mustard greens, romaine, cucumber leaves, squash leaves, aruglia, weeds and grasses. I use zooMed grasslands tortoise food. And mazuri daily. I soak her in warm water daily, sometimes 2 times a day. Depending on how dry it is. I live in Arizona. She is outside from 10 am to 5pm. After that i bring her in right now because it is too cold at night right now. This works for me. Her shell has improved from when i got her. It has gotten a lot smoother...

 

[Zabbi0]

RE: Help! Diet & other ?s

See- I don't know what all these vegetables are though and where in the world to get them. & how much to feed & how expensive that is? I will have to look at that link later. Do I feed all in one day or rotate like the first person suggested? I will start soaking Sammy much more often but cannot keep him outside for the time being.