mazuri hypothetical question..

[XxDarkEuphoriaxX]

Hypothetically speaking, if a redfoot is raised from a baby to adult in a large, humid enclosure... and is fed mazuri all its life, will it live to be an old age and healthy? Yes it is not a natural food, BUT does it contain the nutrients and vitamins needed to produce long lived healthy tortoises? Do zoo's feed their tortoises solely this food?

This isn't in food because the question is applied to redfoots specifically.

Thanks

 

[terryo]

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Mazuri-part-1

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Mazuri-part-2

Some people use it.

 

[HLogic]

Mazuri tortoise chow has been on the consumer market since 1995 and available to institutional organizations for several years prior. I would say 15 - 25 years is insufficient time to answer your question with any certainty. Ask again in 30 - 50 years, someone may have the answer by then!

 

[Madkins007]

If we were talking birds or turtles or many other species, the 'best recommendation' would be to use a high quality prepared diet for about 1/2 to 1/4th of the diet with the rest being 'real foods' with the theory being that the scientists who made the prepared stuff packed it with the trace nutrients found in the wild that are hard to provide in 'grocery store' foods.

Like Art said, they live so long that we really don't have the longitudinal research needed to know if we have them figured out well yet. Based on the input of many other keepers, however, I am thinking that the real/prepared combo might not be a bad idea. But I don't think we can say for sure yet that the Mazuri alone is perfect for all species.

 

[HarleyK]

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Mazuri-part-1

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Mazuri-part-2

Some people use it.

Haha Was going to post the same links!

 

[Whinhill]

I agree it's not perfect for all species my red foots get it twice a week at 2% of their body weight (there's the scientist in me again), but it has advantages.

They find it so palatable it's great for getting oral drugs like wormer in them.

If you have a sick tortoise that isn't feeding you can make it into a paste with baby food (I like the Gerber's butternut squash baby food for this) until it is thin enough to syringe feed a tortoise.

 

[Madkins007]

Whinhill-

I was looking at your signature, and could not for the life of me figure out what species a 'wife' was. (Not real sure about Moggies either for that matter.)


Sorry for the smart-aleck remark. Back to our normal programming...

 

[Whinhill]

Wife is Homo sapiens sapiens

Moggies are Felis catus (and in these cases Heinez 57ers)

 

[TylerStewart]

Call me crazy, but I am more confident in the nutritional mix found in Mazuri than I am in my own ability to duplicate that by shopping at the supermarket. Unless you were using literally 20-30-40 different ingredients, knowing which nutrients each of them had (or didn't have) so that you weren't missing anything, you'd be better off putting a heavy reliance on Mazuri. This also assumes that you know which nutrients the tortoises need or want and in what amounts, as well as the ones they want less of, which I don't think is something that anyone has a great grasp on. I have had good success using the greens almost as a "filler" or a treat with the nutritional bases expected to be covered by the Mazuri.