What is the best Diet for a Hatchling RT ?

[Luisinf09]

Still preparing for our incoming Baby Russian Tortoise. I've done much research on hays, grass, weeds and flowers etc... but What is a strong solid diet to begin with to propose a long healthy life for our hatchling.

 

[Yvonne G]

Excerpt from our care sheet:


DIET
Baby tortoises should be fed the same widely varied diet of edible leaves and weedsand greens and flowers that an adult eats. Special care should be taken to provide maximum nutrition. Here is a link to The Tortoise Table’s printable plant booklet:http://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk/site/files/Edible doc 3rd edition_2013_condensed.pdf
The Tortoise Table database is also an excellent resource when checking if plants are safe to feed your tortoise. Please always err on the side of caution!

We are lucky to have weeds here most of the year, so I feed cat's tongue, thistle (sow thistle, mostly), hawksbit, plantain, mallow, grape leaves, and hibiscus leaves and flowers, violet leaves and flowers, sedum, daylily flowers, miner’s lettuce, dead nettle, rose petals (only from untreated, unfertilized plants), turnip greens, and many other plants on the 'safe' list of The Tortoise Table database. I add in some dandelions, but only when there aren't other things. If you don't have access to weeds during the winter, you can feed mustard greens, kale, and collard greens. Opuntia cactus (called ‘nopales’ in Hispanic grocery stores) is high in calcium, and can be added to the diet occasionally. There are many other tortoise-safe weeds that may be available throughout the year that I did not mention here.

I don’t give the babies any lettuce, just because the nutritional value isn't great, but if you find yourself in a bind, that would be an option, too.

I don't chop any of it up, or even tear it up. I like to make them work a little bit to get their food.
A rule of thumb is to give them a pile of food about the size of their shell. As long as babies are kept nice and humid, and the food you offer is healthy, you can allow them to eat their fill - if the food is all gone by mid-day, it's totally fine to give them a second helping.

(a few examples of edible weeds)
I have never fed any factory-made foods (mazuri or Zoomed grassland or other), simply because it's not necessary here, and because I don’t trust the formulation. I prefer to cook from scratch for my human kids, so it made more sense to go the natural route for the babies as well. If you do feed mazuri, I won't judge – please do your research!

I do not feed ANY fruit, and only very occasionally (1x per month) feed a vegetable such as a bit of pumpkin, winter squash, or a bit of carrot, for the vitamin A in it. Fruit is too high in sugar, and not only can become addicting, but it can also harm a tortoise’s gut. It also creates a favorable environment in the gut for parasites (worms and flagellates) to thrive. If I want to give my tortoises a ‘treat’ I give them a flower, or an especially juicy sedum leaf, or a slice of opuntia cactus.

 

[Luisinf09]

I'm hoping to have all the food for our tortoise grown at home. Deciding on dandelions, hibiscus And looking for a grass to plant as well. Thanks for the info. Just so many options to choose from