Timothy Pellets? Ground up hay? Oat grass?

[KoopaNGoomba]

Hey guys,

It is the time of the year where my unimpressed Sully's have been brought inside and won't be able to have yard grown weeds and grass anymore. I was hoping to get your opinion on a few things.

First, Timothy Hay rabbit pellets. Specifically, Martins Rabbit Pellets. These are the ingredients:

Timothy Meal, Soybean Hulls, Wheat Middlings, Soybeans, Barley, Soya Oil (preserved with Rosemary Extract, Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid), Wheat Germ, Brewers Yeast, Dicalcium Phosphate, Lignin Sulfonate , Salt, Calcium Carbonate, Rice Hulls, DL-Methionine, Mannan OligoSaccharide, Ascorbic Acid (a source of Vitamin C), Choline Chloride, Iron Sulphate, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Vitamin E, Zinc Oxide, Manganese Sulfate, Niacin, Mineral Oil, Copper Sulphate, Folic Acid, Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin B12, Vitamin A, Biotin, Selenium, Vitamin K, Riboflavin, Vitamin D3, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamine Mononitrate, Calcium Iodate, Cobalt Sulphate


Our big guy really likes it soaked with a bit of water. Is this okay for him or should I try ordering in tortoise pellets? If so, what brand?




Secondly, Timothy hay and Orchard Grass!

Goomba is still little! If I put some hay in a blender and made it very small, could I sprinkle it over greens and start him eating hay early on if he'll accept it? I know babies usually won't eat hay but I thought if I bought the softest stuff and ground it up, he might go for it.


And the last... cat grass! They are oat seeds you just sprinkle in the dirt and sprout. Can I sprinkle it into the tortie cages and let them "graze"?


Thanks in advance for the help!

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Oh, and what about sprinkling small seeds like millet and such?

 

[jaizei]

Mine seem to like to bite the heads off any seeds I plant in their enclosures. As soon as it sprouts they decapitate it. Occasionally I'll offer Timothy Bites which are just hay cubes, no other ingredients.

 

[jackrat]

I would say no to the rabbit pellets.

 

[Laura]

Mazuri is a good tortoise food. Real timothy hay is best for your big guy..
for the little one. do what you said.. hopefully you can get him to like it. some do some dont...
good luck this winter.. hope you make friends with the produce guy at your local market..

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Orchard grass.. grass hay.. all ok.. the real stuff. Not alfalfa..
buying a bale from the feed store will be much cheaper..

 

[Madkins007]

If you get some of those compressed hay blocks for rabbits, etc. (not the alfalfa versions), you can tap the block with a hammer to loosen it up in layers, then crumble the layers up for a 'dried parsley'-looking material that adds a lot of fiber to other things in the diet.

I make it even more interesting by adding about a tablespoon of calcium powder and a crushed multivitamin to every cup or so of the chopped hay.