Changing to dry diet tortoise food

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faithhorse8

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I just got some tortoise food for my red footed tortoise. I try to mix up her diet plan with different veggies and fruits and protein once a week but i sometimes get worried that I'm not giving her a well rounded diet. So i got this food to help her get her nutrients is it a good food? Also the person who had her before me ( iv only had her less than a year) didn't take the best care of her so she has a slight prymid and i have herd that if i give her calcium supplement it can help stop that it it true? I had bout some. ImageUploadedByTortForum1377973315.910563.jpgImageUploadedByTortForum1377973331.996120.jpg

This is her habitat also i spay it with water daily for humidity. I do have a cover and a heat lamp its just not in the picture ImageUploadedByTortForum1377973406.177930.jpgImageUploadedByTortForum1377973468.160181.jpg
 

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Yvonne G

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That's a very pretty redfooted tortoise. I don't put any stock in any of those manufactured diets except for the Mazuri Tortoise Diet. Reason I like that one is because is was developed for the galapagos tortoises in zoos. I have no knowledge of whether the Mazuri scientists are better informed about tortoises than the Rep-Cal scientists, I am just more comfortable with the quality of the Mazuri.
 

Tom

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I agree with what Yvonne said.

Also, pyramiding is caused by growth in conditions that are too dry. Calcium has little to do with it. There is no way to maintain humidity in an open topped sweater box like yours. You need a closed chamber. Be cautious. RFs need high humidity, but they are prone to shell rot if their plastrons are damp all the time. So you need relatively dry substrate, but very humid air. This is nearly impossible in an open topped enclosure, but very easy in a closed chamber.

Check this out:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-32333.html

You can also click the links in my signature for more info on pyramiding.
 

Tom

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faithhorse8 said:
I do have a top and a heat lamp for it it just wasn't in the picture :)

That is good. Do you know the humidity in there with the lid on? If its 80%+ the pyramiding should gradually stop over time. For most people maintaining 80% humidity with a partially covered top and dry substrate, is very difficult. If that is the habitat she's lived in for the last year, that is probably the reason for your pyramiding.
 

mainey34

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You really dont need a closed chamber to keep a redfoot. Some people are just stuck on that theory. You need a good base soil like dirt or something loose, then top that off with cypress mulch or the like pour water on the bottom. This will hold humidity. Make sure you are 80% and above for redfoots...i would also suggest a humid hide. I keep my temps at 92. Mine does not bask, but i keep a household bulb (60wt). As long as you give a good variety diet, exercise, humidity, and sunlight, if yours will tolerate it. You should see the pyramiding stop..the pyramiding wont go away but you can stop the process. Mazuri is a very good product. Try different things. But stay away from manufactured products. Also search tortoise library. The link is below my signature. There is good info on redfoots there. If you have any other questions, feel free to pm me...:)
 

Madkins007

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Welcome to the world of red-footed tortoises and the million confusing and contradicting things written about them!

Diet: There is no real problem feeding it a good fresh food diet then using some dry foods as a supplement. Many animal nutrition experts recommend it. If it is only half or less of the total diet, then any good name-brand 'chow' is fine. Mazuri, Marion Red, and Zoo Med Natural are the ones most of us use but things like Rep-Cal are OK- again- as long as it is not the bulk of the diet (then you want something more trustworthy.) See this article for other viewpoints- https://sites.google.com/site/tortoiselibrary/nutrition

Pyramiding: Pyramiding is caused by poor bone development, with no one obvious culprit. Poor humidity is known cause, but poor diet and basic cares are also a problem. Try this article for more: https://sites.google.com/site/tortoiselibrary/health-and-medical/understanding-pyramiding

Housing: This is a nice starting home, but you should already be thinking ahead to the next stage. There are a couple articles in the Library about this, such as https://sites.google.com/site/tortoiselibrary/Indoor-Housing/planting-an-interesting-habitat
 

jshaw9_

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Here is a mix I just made up, we have weeds (dandelion/plantain) orchard hay and herbs and also timothy hay, I have found cutting it all into edible bite size pieces my tortoise doesn't just go for the leaves and munches happily on all the good stuff!! Has taken approx 10 weeks to ween off a poor diet of just mainly spring greens and virtually zero grasses/hay etc. perseverance is key and don't give in. Hope the tip of bite size pieces can help someone else change their tortoises diet to an appropriate one. (5 to Leopard owner)
 
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nate.mann

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there was a thread on here about the rep-cal daily diet, and many members dont 'approve' of it. its really not all that its made up to be. agreed with Tom, it has been found recently that hydration is mainly what causes pyramiding, so just keep her humid (not wet, theres a difference) and it will stop this.
 
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