How much do I feed my box turtle?

Question

I found a box turtle crossing the road last month and brought her home for a pet. She has a 100 gallon terrarium with all the fixings of home. She is eating well, we give her plenty of crickets, mealworms, snails and an array of fruits and veggies. The only problem is that she is insatiable. Is it possible to overfeed? How much should she eat and how often?

Answer 1

Wow- you got some GREAT answers that someone marked as being bad. It is frustrating when people give good answers bad ratings for unknown reasons.

It is WAY easy to overfeed a box turtle- they are programmed in nature to eat while food is available, and hunt for it the rest of the time.

The 'head size is serving size' is good, as is the '15 minute rule'. Daily for young turtles, then start skipping days as it gets older until you are skipping 2-3 days at a time.

HOWEVER...
1. It is illegal in most states to catch wild box turtles. This is because they are so endangered that they are already extinct in most of their old ranges. Some states get really nasty about this. Please consider releasing it and buying a legal captive-bred Boxie.

2. Wild-caught turtles are stressed by captivity, loaded with parasites, and have very specific temp and humidity needs. Please consider releasing it ASAP.

Answer 2

The best time to offer food is after the turtles have had several hours to warm up in the morning. Offer food daily to youngsters, every other day to adults. Since turtles are motivated by sight and smell, offer a varied, colorful diet. At each feeding, there must be both plant matter and animal products. Add vitamin supplement (such as Reptivite) twice a week.

Answer 3

I have heard two different things about turtles. The one I follow is feeding them enough food that amounts to the size of their head. The other is feeding them as much as they can eat in 45 mins. I guess for a bigger turtle this might work but for my two inch red ear it seems like it could be a little much that is why i feed him an amount that is the size of his head.

Answer 4

you seem to have it's diet well in hand by what you say your feeding to find its food intake needs get your food mix in a container mark the level in the container then slowly feed the mix when she leaves the food (stops eating that is) put left overs back in the container check against your first mark what's missing now becomes it's food intake do the test a few time to make sure it's not having an off day this then will give you some idea of a good meal for it
feed that every day adults can be fed every 2 days in late spring and summer remember it so tempting to keep giving food to your pets but in the wild they may go days with out eating and expend a lot of energy hunting yours will not . find its needs and stick to it as it will just keep eating and eating all that dose is just mess up its home faster as it's body dosent need it and just give you more work
PROTEIN makes up about 50% of the diet. Protein foods should be cut up small enough so the turtle cannot get its fill of food with just one bite of protein. Mix the protein with the vegetables and fruits. All meats should be sprinkled with calcium supplement that contains no phosphorus. Cuttlebone given to birds may also be shaved onto food stuff or left in the turtle's home so the turtle can forage on it al will. It is high in calcium
VEGETABLES make up about 30% of the diet. Use only the part of the vegetable that is colorful as it contains the most nutrition. Use fresh vegetables whenever possible, and steam or grate hard vegetables before offering to the box turtle
FRUITS make up about 10% of the diet and are dessert for your turtles. Most turtles love fruits and each seems to have a favorite. Try to find your turtle’s favorite. Chop the fruit into small pieces and mix it with things the turtle should eat but won’t. This way, with every bite of fruit it will also eat the required food. I sprinkle vitamins on the fruit as well.
LEAFY DARKY GREENS make up the remaining 10% of the diet. Dark leafy greens contain fiber and many minerals and vitamins. Greens help keep the turtle gut healthy through their cleansing action. Always provide your turtles with greens.

note on protein) due to the possiblity of contamination, fat content and salt: never feed Raw meats, fatty meats or processed meats stick to Natural live, whole foods like pesticide free earthworms, slugs, waxworms, beetles, grubs, sow bugs. Boiled, chopped chicken, feeder fish or beef heart.
OCCASIONALLY—Low-fat soaked dog kibble, soaked puppy Milkbones low-fat premium canned dog food, cooked lean steak, mealworms and crickets that have been gutloaded with enriched food. Prepared box turtle food products.
RARELY—Boiled egg, tofu, low-fat cat kibble.

best of luck with your new found friend

Answer 5

I have 8 box turtles and have had them for 12 years.I feed them for two days in a row,then skip a day( they do not eat everyday in the wild) I let them eat as much as they want in an hour,then take the rest away.I feed crickets,snails,(good source of calcium) earthworms,slugs,waxworms,feeder fish,Bil-jac frozen dog food,fruits,veggies,Cheerios and Repto-min pellets,moistened.I also leave a cuttlebone (for birds) in their enclosure as a calcium supplement,and for them to sharpen their mandible on.I really don't think the turtle will overeat,but if it does seem to be getting fat ( can't get in it's shell,LOL) just cut back on the amount.I've had one of mine eat an entire sardine and a whole peach at one feeding. They will also eat frozen mice.Do you have a UV light? This is very important,as is an undertank heater;it helps them to digest their food.Oh,and never feed spinach,as it can cause kidney stones.Good luck.

Answer 6

I have a red-eared slider turtle, but I have taken care of a wild box turtle.
No crickets or snails, not easily digestible!Only certain fruits, but give it 1 cup of veggies and .75-1cup fresh mealworms each day. They like em' alive and wriggling!
Since it's wild, it likes the outdoors, so make a small area 4 it in the backyard. Trust me, the turtle will be happier this way!

Answer 7

If the turtle is shedding skin that means u fed him too much or the water is too hot. How big is your turtle?
I will tell u how much if u tell me the size and the name.
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