I have a dessert tortoise what should she be eating?

Answer 1

Growing grass, weeds, dandelions, alfalfa, nopales (Opuntia cactus), and rose and hibiscus flowers and leaves are excellent food sources. Supplement this diet with vegetables such as endive, escarole, broccoli, squashes such as zucchini, chopped carrots, mixed vegetables, small amounts of kale, romaine and other dark-green leafy vegetables. Sprinkling the food with ground-up rabbit or guinea pig pellets is a good way to add extra fiber to the diet. Tortoises have a high calcium requirement: occasionally sprinkle the food with calcium carbonate or offer a calcium-rich source such as boiled chicken eggshells or cuttlefish bone for them to eat. Occasionally sprinkle the food with a suitable vitamin preparation. Provide a shallow dish of water for drinking and soaking.

Answer 2

One of the most important aspects of tortoise care is proper diet; therefore, please follow these guidelines to insure the health and longevity of the animal(s) you care for. The old story of the tortoise and the hare is true but incomplete. Tortoises do move slowly. In fact they live slowly, but they also die slowly. Tortoises will accept many foods that are not good for them and appear healthy for years. In reality, such diets impair organ function and are cumulative, resulting in the eventual death of the animal. Tortoises have evolved by making something out of nothing. They have adapted to withstand food and water deprivation and great fluctuations in climatic conditions.

They cannot tolerate improper diets rich in fruits or animal fats. Please do not make the mistake of viewing a tortoise as if it were a child or typical pet (dog or cat.) They are reptile specialists with specific needs. The desert tortoise is herbivorous, feeding mostly on native grasses, leafy plants and flowers. For feeding a captive tortoise see the recommended tortoise diet in Appendix III.

Caution must be exercised to insure that captive tortoises cannot consume toxic landscape plants such as oleander, chinaberry trees, desert & tree tobacco, and toadstools. Do not feed tortoises lettuce of any kind as it is poor in nutrition. Hamburger or other meat, and dog, cat, or monkey foods do not provide appropriate nutritional balance and should not be offered.

Cactus fruits may be fed in relatively small amounts and only when they are in season. Native grasses and others such as Bermuda grass, dichondra, clover, or alfalfa must be planted inside the enclosure in sufficient quantity to allow daily grazing. When dark greens are offered, they should be clean, fresh, and chopped or grated into pieces small enough for the tortoise to eat. Produce foods should be served on a dish or feeding platform to prevent ingestion of gravel or sand, which can cause gastrointestinal irritation or impaction. A shallow puddle of water for drinking should be provided at least twice a week during the months of activity. A partially buried saucer or shallow trash can lid (plastic or galvanized steel) works well (be sure that the tortoise can climb in and out of it easily.) This water source should be allowed to dry up in between waterings.

Answer 3

I have two desert tortoises. My family has had them for 30 years or so.
DO NOT FEED IT:
-lettuce [it will give it diarrhea!!]
-cabbage
-tomatoes
-anything that is really watery
FEED IT:
-apples
-carrots
-maybe a tiny tiny piece of lettuce
-cactus [if you can]

I let my tortoises live outside in my backyard. They usually eat grass and they have been fine for years. Just make sure the grass doesnt have fertilizers or pesticides in it.
I hope this helps you a little bit. take good care of it

Answer 4

The listed site has one of the best tortoise diet articles I have ever seen!

Focus on nice and fiberous stuff, but offer a good selection.

Avoid hamburger or light green head lettuce.

Answer 5

dessert tortoises sound good to eat. on the other hand, desert tortoises, i know nothing about

Answer 6

like that chocolate syrup you poor over ice cream and it hardens?isnt that stuff called turtle shell something or other?

no but seriously you obtained a living creature you know nothing about?you got it without doing any research?not even finding out what it eats first?

take it back to the pet store,hopefully somebody a bit more responsible picks it up......

Answer 7

Lettuce, bananas, carrots and they do have turtle food too

Answer 8

http://www.tortoise.org/general/descare.html

Answer 9

they love vegetables and mine lloves lettuce,carrots,cucumber,and even watermellon!!

Answer 10

veg veg and lot of veg