What do most turtles eat?

Question

Today I found a turtle in my back yard.
My backyard look like a flippin jungle no joke and i dont want the turtle to get hurt. So i want to feed it and give it to the animal shelter.

Answer 1

It's funny how everyone says "oh feed it lettuce" when they have no idea what they're talking about. Most turtles are good with collard greens and mustard leaves and other dark leafy greens. Lettuce holds no nutritional value for any turtles and is a horrible idea to give to them.

Answer 2

You should definitely release it back into the wild.

Contrary to what many people believe, turtles are not easy to care for. They have specific lighting and dietary requirements that can be hard to meet in captivity. (Not to mention, it can be extremely expensive by the time you're done setting up the enclosure.)

What they eat really depends on the species. If you found it on land, chances are that it's some type of tortoise. (Even box "turtles" are considered tortoises.)

Better to just let it go. So many people "rescue" animals from the wild with good intentions... when it's actually to the animal's detriment.

Answer 3

It would be best to release it back near the nearest water source. Trying to keep most wild turtles as pets can be troublesome- they do not do well with the stress of being captured and kept indoors.

If you do decide to keep it, you really need to identify the species to know the right diet. You can try http://www.austinsturtlepage.com and go to their 'World of Turtles' gallery for some help with that.

Answer 4

Try feeding it some lettuce, it usually eats greenery in the wild.

Answer 5

urtle Feeding
The turtles covered on this web site are all omnivorous, which means they eat everything from insects to lettuce. However, this does not mean you can feed your pet turtle anything, i.e. table scraps, and they do require a healthy, balanced, "turtle diet".

Turtles can be expensive to feed, especially since they are exotic pets, and pet stores do not carry too many brands of turtle food. You What Should I Feed My Turtle?


First, know what species you are feeding. Diet and every other facet of care is determined by the natural habitat of the turtle. For instance, River Cooters eat a diet primarily composed of plants, while Map Turtles prefer meat. American Box Turtles are omnivores who eat a little bit of everything. The Malayan Box Turtle should eat plenty of plants with just a little bit of animal matter, but the Chinese 3-Striped Box Turtle eats meats almost exclusively. The red-eared slider starts out life eating mostly bugs, worms and other meats, but becomes more omnivorous as it matures. (Please note: The information on this page does not apply to tortoises, which often have highly specialized diets. For tortoise diet information visit the Tortoise Trust Website and this article on Tortoise Foods.)

Reproducing the natural diet as much as is possible will make your turtle happier and healthier. In the wild, turtles choose from among a variety of foods that are in season and available. Variety is one key to a good diet for your turtle. Calcium is the other important key.

You can read about the complicated relationships between calcium, phosphorus, vitamin D3 and other elements at several websites. The point to remember is that phosphorus is in most of the foods that turtles eat. It is the calcium side of the ratio that demands attention. Providing calcium separately allows the turtle to decide when it needs more calcium. Cuttlebone, plaster block, boiled and crushed eggshells, and crushed oystershell can all provide calcium on demand. Just providing a good source of calcium is not enough, however. Dietary calcium is not properly utilized in the absence of vitamin D3. Turtles can manufacture D3 if provided access to UV-B rays from direct sunlight or a good reptile light (e.g. Reptisun or Reptile D-Light.) Or D3 can be provided in the diet through supplements like Rep-Cal. A few foods block the absorption of calcium because of their high oxalic acid content. Spinach should be avoided for this reason. A turtle fed spinach regularly can become calcium deficient even if a good source of calcium is provided. Chard and rhubarb also contain rather high levels of oxalic acid and should be used sparingly, if at all. (Rhubarb leaves are so high in oxalic acid that they are a deadly poison.)

High levels of protein put an abnormal stress on the kidneys, and has been implicated in shell deformities such as pyramiding. It's best to avoid excessive use of meats intended for human consumption and other high protein food sources such as cat food or dog food. When used sparingly as part of a varied diet, no harm is likely to result, but high protein meats should not be used as a staple.

Other questionably foods:

1.) Members of the brassica family (Cabbage, brussel sprouts, broccoli, bok-choi, and kohlrabi) can be problematic if overused, because excessive amounts of these plants contribute to kidney disease and goiter. Turnips, soybeans, radishes, rapeseed, and mustard also contain goitrogens. These should not play a large role in the diet. However, the addition of cuttlebone and/or kelp to the diet may reverse the goitrogenic effect of the brassicas.

2.) High purine foods, which include peas, beans, mushrooms, shellfish, beef, and organ meats, should be used sparingly because they can contribute to gout if overused.

3.) Head lettuce and celery are "empty" foods in that they provide very little useful nutrition or fiber. Some tortoises apparently become fond of lettuce to the exclusion of other foods. In my experience, all the turtles I've known preferred other foods over lettuce, but there are many people out there who feed lettuce almost exclusively. This is a recipe for a long miserable death. However, there may be some benefits in occasional feeding of lettuce. There is some evidence that it contains antiseptic properties. Additionally, celery or lettuce can be used to entertain a turtle that is already well fed. When a turtle begs for food after already eating some slugs, a big leaf of dandelion, some cantaloupe and a chunk of cuttle bone, it will do no harm to toss him a lettuce leaf or a bit of celery.

4.) Canned and other processed foods often are very high in salt and other preservatives. The effects of these things are not fully known, but they would not be part of a natural diet. It would be prudent to limit their use.

It all comes down to variety. If you feed just cantaloupe and crickets, there will be problems down the line. There's nothing wrong with those foods. They're simply insufficient. If you feed a wide variety of foods, the occasional use of cabbage, cooked beef heart or lettuce will not cause problems. Further, feeding some foods that are low calcium foods, or high in oxalates, will matter not at all if a separate source of calcium (cuttlebones/ plasterblocks/ eggshells/ crushed oystershell) is always available. This is more in keeping with the way turtles feed in the wild anyway. While some keepers carefully consider the phosphorus:calcium ratio, turtles don't waste a precious second pondering the chemical analysis of their food. If it's tasty and it's there, they'll eat it! Later, they'll munch some carrion bones or birds' eggshells and get caught up on calcium. Turtles fed a wide variety of foods are happier and less likely to develop food fetishes.
what should I feed my turtle what's the best food for turtles I don't know what to feed my turtle.


Try *Many* of These Foods for Omnivorous Turtles

greens:

aquatic plants, collards, turnip greens, red and green leaf lettuce, romaine lettuce, dandelion, chickweed, plantain weed, carrot tops, red lettuce, endive, fig leaves, grape leaves, sow thistle
(avoid overuse of spinach)

veggies:

squashes, peas in the pod, okra, grated or sliced carrots, sweet potatoes
occasional use--green beans, wax beans, corn

fruits:

figs, grapes, blue berries, cantaloupe, blackberries, tomato, banana, strawberry, apple, citrus fruits, mango, kiwi-- all fruits are fine for occasional use

flowers:

geraniums (Pelargonium species), Chinese Lantern (Abutilon hybridum not Physalis sp.), nasturtium, borage, hyssop, carnations, daylilies, petunia, pansies, chives, dandelion, rose and rose hips

meats:

silkworms, earthworms, crickets, snails, shrimp, slugs, waxworms, mealworms, zoophobas, pinky mice (live or pre-killed).
okay on rare occasion--cat or dog food, cooked chicken or turkey, boiled eggs, lean beef, cooked fish.
(hamburger and other fatty red meats should be avoided, and never use raw meats because of contamination dangers)

prepared turtle foods:

Commercial foods can be used as part of the diet--
Tetra's Reptomin, Wardley's Reptile T.E.N., Turtle Brittle, Purina AquaMax

supplements:

Reptile Tri-Cal or Rep-Cal are the best calcium/D3 supplements by far. A jar of Rep-Cal is rather expensive, but lasts a very long time. Tri-Cal even comes in a handy shaker bottle. Use once a week. Vitamin supplements may also be used.
(Don't use any calcium supplement that has phosphorous in it.)



have probably seen the words "food stick" appear quite a few times on the site, so let us explain what these are. Buying feeder fish can be quite expensive in the long run, food sticks can help keep your turtle healthy. One brand we recommend is

Among the better commercial foods for aquatic and semi-aquatic turtles are Tetra Reptomin floating Turtle sticks. Again, these are expensive, so you can get creative and mix in other fish food, and bits of meat, fruit and vegetables.

It is important that you keep a close watch on your turtle's diet, and if you own more than one turtle, make sure they both get to eat equal amounts of food. Turtles are generally messy when they eat, so make sure to keep the water clean and free of debris, as small decomposing particles of flesh can get trapped under rocks and logs and contaminate your turtle's environment.

If you notice your turtle seeming lethargic and having cloudy skin patches, or milky eyes, it may be because of poor nutrition or disease. Make sure you take your turtle to a veterinarian who knows about reptiles to determine whether the animal's diet is too blame, or if there are other factors involved.

Another good practice is to feed your turtle live fish at least once a week, to make sure it gets to exercise. Turtles like to hunt, and it is also great fun to watch them dive in after small fish.

Make sure to have a water dish in your turtle's terrarium or pen, since it will be a clean source of water from it to drink from, as its swimming water is mostly contaminated with urine and feces.

Both aquatic and terrestrial turtles have similar feeding habits, although aquatic turtles seem to keep eating meat even when they are older, whereas terrestrial turtles have a tendency to eat more vegetation. Older turtles eat less meat because they require less protein, therefore, special care must be taken not to overfeed turtles with protein rich food. As for vegetation, turtles like berries, and some leafy vegetables, including lettuce, cabbage, alfalfa, and clover.

more