spring mix

moorealanna1

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hi so i was feeding my russian tortoise a mix of dehydrated veggies and spring mix and i just realized his spring mix has so much spinach and i didn’t realize, he also won’t eat pellets (i’m gonna try and crush them into his good but he’s so picky that idk if that will work) does anyone have any suggestions on what to feed a picky tortoise
 

wellington

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Much more then just spring mix and pellets.
Riddichio (spelling may be wrong) endive, mustard and collard greens sparingly, arugula, cactus pads, dandelion, and of course any tort safe broadleaf weeds. Leaves and flower of rose of sharon, hibiscus, grape leaf, mulberry leaf.
 

wellington

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As for the pellets, be sure to soak them first until mush. Then smear a little on the greens. As he starts to get used to them you can add more. But be sure to use as big a variety of a diet as you can find. Never just a couple things.
 

Tom

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hi so i was feeding my russian tortoise a mix of dehydrated veggies and spring mix and i just realized his spring mix has so much spinach and i didn’t realize, he also won’t eat pellets (i’m gonna try and crush them into his good but he’s so picky that idk if that will work) does anyone have any suggestions on what to feed a picky tortoise
Best to not use grocery store produce at all. If you must use it, you need to add amendments to it to make it a suitable tortoise diet. Get some of the dehydrated leaf options from KapidoloFarms.com, and the "Herbal Hay" from tortoisesupply.com. Occasional spring mix is okay once in a while, but it is made up of "baby greens" which lack fiber even more than regular grocery store greens.

If you have no weeds, flowers, and leaves available, start growing and finding some to remedy that problem. From the store favor endive and escarole as your main staples. Add in the ones @wellington mentioned for variety.

It will take time to introduce any new food to your tortoise. Start with tiny tiny amounts at first and gradually add more as your tortoise gets used to the new item and begins to realize it is also food. If the tortoise refuses to eat a meal of its favorite because the new stuff is mixed in, then you used too much of the new stuff too soon.

This time of year, most of them want to brumate and already have a reduced appetite. This makes introducing new stuff harder. A hungry tortoise is not a picky tortoise.
 

moorealanna1

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Do you put the herbal hay in with their other food also the kapidola farms site is a bit confusing could you send me the link for the leaves your talking about?
 

Tom

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Do you put the herbal hay in with their other food also the kapidola farms site is a bit confusing could you send me the link for the leaves your talking about?
Both the herbal hay and the dried leaf options from Kapidolo Farms are meant to be sprinkled on top and mixed in with other greens to add fiber, variety and nutrition.

Look at this page, and at the bottom of the page you can go back and forth to other pages with more stuff. For one tortoise, a few of these will last a long time.

 

Bruce miller

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hi so i was feeding my russian tortoise a mix of dehydrated veggies and spring mix and i just realized his spring mix has so much spinach and i didn’t realize, he also won’t eat pellets (i’m gonna try and crush them into his good but he’s so picky that idk if that will work) does anyone have any suggestions on what to feed a picky tortoise
Mine loves romaine lettuce and kale also bell peppers and watermelon canalope
 

Tom

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Mine loves romaine lettuce and kale also bell peppers and watermelon canalope
Hi Bruce. Welcome to the forum. It sounds like you've gotten some bad diet advice there. This is pretty common. Most pet stores and online sources give terrible care and feeding info. Here is the correct care info, including diet:

Questions are welcome.
 
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