can i give my turtle iceburg lettuce during the day? i will still feed it everyday its just that i have heard to put lettuce in the tank while im at school. i feed my turtle everyday after school. can i leave lettuce in there just to eat during the day? its just if he gets hungry during the day. the pet shop said u can leave lettuce in there but im just making sure.
2007-02-13 16:38:05 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Reptiles
I raise land turtles (tortoises, box turtles) and yes the lettuce would be fine to leave in the tank. Feed him something more nutritional for his meals though. Some pet stores carry a food consisting of dehydrated flies. This is a HUGE treat, and full of protein. Make sure you feed him a wide variety of foods and keep his tank very clean. Unlike land turtles, water turtles are known to pass along salmonella. Make sure you wash your hands very well after handling him.
2007-02-13 18:12:40 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
1. Iceberg lettuce is not healthy for turtles (or anyone else, actually!)
2. You should not leave any food in a turtle tank- it will soil the water (or, if this is a land turtle, spoil and stink.) As a rule of thumb, we remove uneaten food after 10-30 minutes.
3. Portion control is important with turtles or they end up obese and ill. A DAILY portion is only about the size of the turtle's head.
4. Pet shop guys rarely know turtles well- for far better advice, try the site http://www.austinsturtlepage.com or their discussion forum at http://www.turtleforum.com
2007-02-14 11:31:53 · answer #2 · answered by Madkins007 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Iceburg lettuce has no nutritional value to a turtle.
I will occasionally drop spinach leaves in my tank (I have 2 turtles) just as a treat. After school everyday is plenty, and make sure you're checking to see if he's eaten all of his food. If he doesn't, fish it back out so that it doesn't rot in his water. That could make him sick. :(
Good Luck!
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2007-02-14 00:42:52 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can give him lettuce, but iceberg is not a good choice. It's mostly water and has little nutrition. Some better choices would be romaine, kale, collard greens, beet greens, endive, or escarole - any of these should be found in your supermarket produce section with the "leafy" greens. You could also give them zucchini or other squashes (sliced lengthwise). Spinach should be used only occassionally because it interferes with the turtle's ability to absorb calcium, which they need. There are feeding clips mahe for holding pieces of seaweed in marine tanks - basically a potato chip bag clip with a suction cup - that would hold the food where you wanted it and let the turtle tear pieces off as he wanted them. See this website for appropriate turtle veggies: http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/caresheet-red_ear_slider.htm
2007-02-14 01:13:36 · answer #4 · answered by copperhead 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
no you should not give him iceburg lettuce it has no nutritional value all the foods you give should have something of value in it for the turtle and iceburg lettuce has none
2007-02-14 08:16:45 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can leave lettuce in the tank, but small amounts, not a whole leaf.
2007-02-14 00:45:20 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's just fine
2007-02-14 01:55:32 · answer #7 · answered by Sparkling pearl 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋