Varied Diet

[Darwin_T]

My Greek tortoise eats kale. That is almost all he eats. Sometimes he'll have collard greens but it is almost always kale.
Is this bad? Does he need a varied diet? Anything would be great
Thanks
Additional: I know that he can eat grass and weeds and things but I was wondering, could it be just some random stuff I found in my garden? Also, are peppers and tomatoes okay?
What about carrots?
Thanks!

 

[wellington]

Yes, he needs a varied diet. Cut up the other good stuff he should be eating. Cut up the kale, all in tiny pieces and mix together. Spritz with water. He will have too eat all of it to get the kale. As he gets used to eating this, slowly cut back on the kale, adding more of the better stuff until there is no more kale in the mix. Once he is used too eating all the other stuff, you can add small amounts of the kale back in.

 

[Darwin_T]

Thanks I appreciate it.
Would you happen to know anything about tomatoes or peppers?

 

[Tom]

My Greek tortoise eats kale. That is almost all he eats. Sometimes he'll have collard greens but it is almost always kale.
Is this bad? Does he need a varied diet? Anything would be great
Thanks
Additional: I know that he can eat grass and weeds and things but I was wondering, could it be just some random stuff I found in my garden? Also, are peppers and tomatoes okay?
What about carrots?
Thanks!

Yes. That's bad. Real bad. Kale is not a good food to feed every day. Its great once in a while, but not daily.


Yes. He needs a varied diet.

Random stuff? No. You need to learn to ID your local weeds and feed him the good ones.

Peppers and tomatoes are not toxic, but they are not really good foods either. Fill the stomach with things that ARE good, instead of things that aren't.

Carrots are okay in small amounts once in a while. I don't like the sugar content, but I do like the vitamin A.

Here are some other good choices:

Other items that are good for tortoises:
Mulberry leaves
Grape vine leaves
Hibiscus leaves
African hibiscus leaves
Blue hibiscus leaves
Rose of Sharon leaves
Rose leaves
Geraniums
Gazanias
Lavatera
Pansies
Petunias
Hostas
Honeysuckle
Cape honeysuckle
Leaves and blooms from any squash plant, like pumpkin, cucumber, summer squash, etc...
Young spineless opuntia cactus pads

Weeds:
There are soooooooo many... but here are a few to start with:
Dandelion
Mallow
Filaree
Smooth Sow thistle
Prickly Sow thistle
Milk thistle
Goat head weed
Cats ear
Nettles
Trefoil
Wild onion
Wild mustard
Wild Garlic
Clovers
Broadleaf plantain
Narrow leaf plantain
Chick weed
Hawksbit
Hensbit
Hawksbeard

Other good stuff:
"Testudo Seed Mix" from http://www.tortoisesupply.com/SeedMixes
Pasture mixes or other seeds from http://www.groworganic.com/seeds.html
Homegrown alfalfa
Mazuri Tortoise Chow
ZooMed Grassland Tortoise Food

 

[Darwin_T]

Wow. Thanks a lot tom. That us way more than I could have asked for and I really appreciate it.