Is the cuttlefish/turtle bone good for tortoise?

[qiangzhu]

Like this one https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TNP11C4/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
I don't know why it looks delicious to the tortoises but my Sulcata and Radiata like them so much and eat very quickly. But to me, it is something hard, solid and sharp. Will it hurt tortoise's mouth or stomach? I saw my sulcata just bited one piece and then swallow it.

What about these blocks https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007B4XFUU/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

 

[Tom]

The cuttle bones are great and will not hurt your tortoises.

I've tried the calcium blocks, and none of my tortoises have ever bit into them. They just walk over them and ignore them like a rock.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

The cuttle bones are great and will not hurt your tortoises.

I've tried the calcium blocks, and none of my tortoises have ever bit into them. They just walk over them and ignore them like a rock.

Me, too.
The calcium/mineral blocks have never worked for me, either. Save your money.
I buy cuttlebone from the big bird store my wife visits.
They sell broken chunks for cheap.
"Bird people" don't buy broken ones.
I just toss them into my pen and when the tortoises get the urge, they eat them.

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

My girl often bites her cuttlefish 'bone'
I had a calcium block sent to me and she peed on it.
Twice.
Disgraceful behaviour, I know, but I think it means she wasn't keen.

 

[Toddrickfl1]

I remove the hard backing with a knife before giving it to my tort because my tort cut his mouth on it one time.

 

[qiangzhu]

Me, too.
The calcium/mineral blocks have never worked for me, either. Save your money.
I buy cuttlebone from the big bird store my wife visits.
They sell broken chunks for cheap.
"Bird people" don't buy broken ones.
I just toss them into my pen and when the tortoises get the urge, they eat them.

I did try that. I think the problem is that the surface of the block is polished so it is really like a rock. But if I cut the block into half and the rough surface of the block is exposed my Sulcata started to eat it

 

[ZEROPILOT]

I did try that. I think the problem is that the surface of the block is polished so it is really like a rock. But if I cut the block into half and the rough surface of the block is exposed my Sulcata started to eat it

My issue with the blocks was that they absorbed urine and water and fell apart outside in a mess.

 

[qiangzhu]

My issue with the blocks was that they absorbed urine and water and fell apart outside in a mess.

Yes. That may be a problem Just my Sulcata eats things very agressively. It is always like not eating for years. So I usually only put the blocks or cuttlefish bones in the enclosure for 10-20mins. Otherwise it will eat them all

 

[Kristy1970]

I did try that. I think the problem is that the surface of the block is polished so it is really like a rock. But if I cut the block into half and the rough surface of the block is exposed my Sulcata started to eat it

I give my sulcata 1/2 cuttle bone... once or twice a month... she goes crazy and bites off too big of pieces... in my opinion... so I break it up for her, because it looked like she had trouble swallowing when she broke off a large piece on her own.

 

[pawsplus]

Cuttlefish bone is bone. And bone is high in phosphorus, there By potentially throwing off the Ca ratio of a meal. It is safer to feed calcium carbonate, with or without added D3. I get Now brand calcium carbonate powder, made for humans.

 

[turtlesteve]

Cuttlefish bone is bone. And bone is high in phosphorus, there By potentially throwing off the Ca ratio of a meal. It is safer to feed calcium carbonate, with or without added D3. I get Now brand calcium carbonate powder, made for humans.

Cuttlebone isn't bone, it's calcium carbonate (cuttlefish are mollusks, so cuttlebone is basically a seashell that forms inside the cuttlefish instead of outside). I'm sure it contains some trace phosphorous but not that much. Also, even if it was calcium phosphate, this might not be a problem by itself. Currently I'm actually supplementing some P with Ca on purpose - it's not clear to me yet if it provides any benefit, but it's not harmful. There is an optimum Ca to P ratio - too much Ca will actually inhibit bone formation, just the same as too much P.

 

[Pastel Tortie]

Cuttlefish bone is bone. And bone is high in phosphorus, there By potentially throwing off the Ca ratio of a meal. It is safer to feed calcium carbonate, with or without added D3. I get Now brand calcium carbonate powder, made for humans.

It's cuttlefish bone, not bone meal. Bone meal is derived from land animals (livestock). Cuttlefish aren't even real fish. They're cephalopods, related to squid and octopi. Completely different sources.

 

[Lokkje]

I also peel off the hard backing from the cuttlebone because my leopard tends to chomp and then seem to be choking or getting cut from it. He also just stomps over calcium blocks which I used to dutifully place in his enclosure before I realized he used them like a basking rock. I even tried the flavored ones and he was unimpressed.

 

[AgataP]

Cuttlefish bone is bone. And bone is high in phosphorus, there By potentially throwing off the Ca ratio of a meal. It is safer to feed calcium carbonate, with or without added D3. I get Now brand calcium carbonate powder, made for humans.

Oh that was funny.
I give you +1 for effort ??

A cuttlebone is not a bone, but rather the internal shell of the Cuttlefish, a small, squid-like cephalopod.

 

[Lokkje]

I didn’t know what Cuttlebone was until I saw recommendations on this forum to provide it for my tortoise. It’s understandable that it would be mistaken as a bone. It has a pretty interesting structure and I ended up looking at the pictures on Wikipedia when I started trying to cut the hard part off to protect my tortoise and realize just how layered and spongy the rest of the cuttlebone is. It’s interesting to read about and I would recommend reading the article on Wikipedia if you’re interested in that type of mollusk or with the cuttlebone is made up of. I am frequently amazed by how knowledgeable people are here on the forum and I’ve learned a great deal and appreciate it.

 

[Chubbs the tegu]

I didn’t know what Cuttlebone was until I saw recommendations on this forum to provide it for my tortoise. It’s understandable that it would be mistaken as a bone. It has a pretty interesting structure and I ended up looking at the pictures on Wikipedia when I started trying to cut the hard part off to protect my tortoise and realize just how layered and spongy the rest of the cuttlebone is. It’s interesting to read about and I would recommend reading the article on Wikipedia if you’re interested in that type of mollusk or with the cuttlebone is made up of. I am frequently amazed by how knowledgeable people are here on the forum and I’ve learned a great deal and appreciate it.

If u chop it up into a fine powder and put it into a plastic baggy you can make a good profit

 

[Lokkje]

If u chop it up into a fine powder and put it into a plastic baggy you can make a good profit

Or you can get shot if you tried it in my neck of the woods.

 

[Chubbs the tegu]

take the money and run!

 

[pawsplus]

Oh that was funny.
I give you +1 for effort ??

A cuttlebone is not a bone, but rather the internal shell of the Cuttlefish, a small, squid-like cephalopod.

Shelll is bone. And the powdered calcium carb is cheap. A largish bottle lasts me years.

 

[pawsplus]

"Cuttlefish bone is a long-standing method of providing extra calcium to tortoises, and especially to turtles, as it floats readily in water. The main chemical constituents of cuttlebone are calcium carbonate, sodium chloride, calcium phosphate, magnesium salts and an abundance of micro-trace elements. Despite its high gross calcium content, cuttlefish bone is relatively poorly absorbed, and as such should not be relied upon as the sole source of calcium supplementation. It can, however, be employed as a secondary source."

Tortoise Trust Web - Promoting Proper Bone Development

Tortoise Trust Web - A site dedicated to the conservation and captive care of Chelonia

www.tortoisetrust.org