constant eating????

[Blgreek08]

My new cherry head is constantly eating, I have to feed him 3 to 4 times a day and the piles of food are at least 3 times as big as him, he is only in inch long, it's crazy, it's this normal? He eats more them my two 4 inch redfoots combined, it's insane! Any ideas

 

[Yvonne G]

I would let him eat as much as he wants for for the first couple weeks. He may have been starved where he came from. After a couple of weeks though, I'd put out a set amount of food that you think is good for his size, and let him make do with that.

Sometimes eating too much causes distortions in the shell growth. Also, too much eating and not enough exercise can make them fat.

 

[Blgreek08]

He came from allerga

 

[Yvonne G]

Then I take back my "starved" comment. There's none better than Allegra!

 

[allegraf]

Then I take back my "starved" comment. There's none better than Allegra!

Haha! No starving them here. I would suggest limiting feeding to once a day. I know you are mostly feeding him greens but no need to allow him to continuously gorge himself.

 

[christinaland128]

My Reds eat like piggies too. One of them is nearly an ounce heavier than his brother. They have gained almost a full ounce in a month and .5" in length.

 

[Turtlepete]

Perhaps you should switch to just offering him browse? I skip "regular" feeding days and do this with my hatchlings. Spread out hibiscus leaves, plantain, and store-bought greens among the enclosure. A piece of mushroom, slice of cantaloupe or papaya, etc....Also this keeps him from being able to just sit in one spot and gorge himself. I do this with mine to make sure they are getting a good amount of exercise, and besides the fact, it gives them something to do!
Just a thought to switch things up...

 

[yillt]

My Reds eat like piggies too. One of them is nearly an ounce heavier than his brother. They have gained almost a full ounce in a month and .5" in length.

Billy has gained 10grams in the last month. It is because every day it is warm now so I put him outside and everyday he eats. I can't stop him from eating the grass. But I have to bring him in because at night the temperature drops rapidly.

 

[Blgreek08]

Perhaps you should switch to just offering him browse? I skip "regular" feeding days and do this with my hatchlings. Spread out hibiscus leaves, plantain, and store-bought greens among the enclosure. A piece of mushroom, slice of cantaloupe or papaya, etc....Also this keeps him from being able to just sit in one spot and gorge himself. I do this with mine to make sure they are getting a good amount of exercise, and besides the fact, it gives them something to do!
Just a thought to switch things up...

i really like this idea because it seems like he doesnt move around a whole lot. i mean he does come out and wonder but not to the extent i expected him to. i want to make him a bigger enclosure but im a little short on space at the moment and its bigger then he needs for his size at the moment. i wont lie im hoping he grows fast to catch up to the others. but not to fast that it messes up his shell. he is a crazy little guy though. absolutely gorgeous and isnt afraid of me already and its only been a little over a week

 

[Turtlepete]

i really like this idea because it seems like he doesnt move around a whole lot. i mean he does come out and wonder but not to the extent i expected him to. i want to make him a bigger enclosure but im a little short on space at the moment and its bigger then he needs for his size at the moment. i wont lie im hoping he grows fast to catch up to the others. but not to fast that it messes up his shell. he is a crazy little guy though. absolutely gorgeous and isnt afraid of me already and its only been a little over a week

I'm a little doubtful as to the "growing to fast messing up their shells" thing. I've heard that a couple times, but I've never personally seen a tortoise over-eat that much. And it just plain doesn't seem logical that a tortoise could cause growth deformities simply by...eating...Sounds much more like a dietary imbalance causing improper growth/bone issues, then just the excess of food itself; i.e., lack of proper minerals/trace elements for proper bone growth.
Not to say over-eating doesn't have a lot of downfalls, because it does. Tortoises in captivity have such accelerated growth rates compared to their wild counter-parts, sometimes they grow up to 4x quicker. This puts a lot of strain on the metabolism.

Another nice part of offering browse to avoid gorging....Often, they may gorge themselves simply because it is there, right in front of them, and they don't have to put any additional effort into it other then sit there and eat. Think about it in human terms (uh-oh, apples to oranges?). If there is a bowl of potato chips sitting in front of you, you will probably eat a lot more then if you have to walk around your house picking up individual chips .

 

[Blgreek08]

I'm a little doubtful as to the "growing to fast messing up their shells" thing. I've heard that a couple times, but I've never personally seen a tortoise over-eat that much. And it just plain doesn't seem logical that a tortoise could cause growth deformities simply by...eating...Sounds much more like a dietary imbalance causing improper growth/bone issues, then just the excess of food itself; i.e., lack of proper minerals/trace elements for proper bone growth.
Not to say over-eating doesn't have a lot of downfalls, because it does. Tortoises in captivity have such accelerated growth rates compared to their wild counter-parts, sometimes they grow up to 4x quicker. This puts a lot of strain on the metabolism.

Another nice part of offering browse to avoid gorging....Often, they may gorge themselves simply because it is there, right in front of them, and they don't have to put any additional effort into it other then sit there and eat. Think about it in human terms (uh-oh, apples to oranges?). If there is a bowl of potato chips sitting in front of you, you will probably eat a lot more then if you have to walk around your house picking up individual chips .

Tried your idea today smaller portions in 4 different places, it's a no go. Made no difference, he was out of food in less then an hour and a half. He just loves food....... he is my little fatty hehe

I'm my opinion they do not grow faster in captivity though, my redfoots over the summer when put outside and left to graze and such grow much faster, they hardly grow at all in their indoor enclosures. I track their growth rate, there average per month indoors is about a 2-4 ounces every three weeks, in less then a month of being out side already this summer one gained 12 ounces and one gained 9......just my opinion from how my torts have been growing

 

[ascott]

I believe what is meant by captive is; kept in a set up space and not left to do what a tortoise would do in the wild IN THE WILD....which is a huge contrast and can not be matched in captivity....

Also, since opinions are what are being shared; I also believe (my opinion, as there is no true way to say one way or the other--not with current knowledge that is in the research world, aka; world of speculation) that if you offer large amounts of food over a long period of time (more than a full year of seasons) you can absolutely contribute to the growth of a shell in a negative way.....especially if in addition to that continual gorging you add to it a tortoise that is not properly hydrated nor offered a HUGE space to exercise in (by saying HUGE I refer to acres and acres of choice space that a tortoise would have at their disposal in the wild and not in a captive environment--even if that environment is awesome)...