Leopard Grocery List

[South FL Katie]

I made a list of the store bought food items for Leopard Tortoises that I found online but I wanted to check here first before buying any of it. Is there anything here I should avoid or add to list? What are some of your Leopard's favorites? Thanks for all the help guys!

Turnip Greens
Kale
Collard Greens
Grape Leaves
Mulberry Leaves
Endive
Mustard Greens
Red/Green sweet peppers
Zucchini
Butternut Squash
Cucumber


(I'll be grabbing some Timothy hay from Walmart too and we have some hibiscus outside)

 

[Greg T]

Mine all eat the different greens, but I usually feed a spring mix/green or red leaf lettuce most of the time. As for the other stuff on the list, you'll have to try it and see. Some of mine eat cucumber, but one doesn't. He likes squash, but another one doesn't. You'll just have to see what works for yours.

 

[Tom]

That's not a bad start. I'd go easy on the veggies though. A larger variety of greens would be good too. How about Spring Mix, Parsley, Italian Parsley, Cilantro, Bok Choy, Red or Green Leaf lettuce, Watercress, Carrot tops, Radiccio, Spineless Opuntia Catus Pads, etc... Roses and Rose leaves are good too.

Also, one of the best things to do is use a lot of grass and weeds from your area. Its a bit of an adventure learning to identify them all, but its really good for your tortoise. In my opinion, grass and weeds should be the bulk of the diet, if possible.

He probably won't eat the timothy hay for a few years, but there is no harm in trying as long as you don't let it get moldy in there. I usually start with Bermuda Grass Hay, as its finer.

Variety is key.

 

[South FL Katie]

Thanks guys. Bok choy and spring mix are both already in the fridge, now I don't even have to go to the store

Do you know where can I purchase the bermuda grass hay?

Cody got here about an hour ago! I soaked him and fed him and now he's sleeping in his hide house while I upload the pics He wouldn't eat the hibiscus but he tried the leaves...I think he liked the spring mix/bok choy mixture the best.

Edited to add, when you say grass do you mean my regular lawn grass?

 

[Yvonne G]

I doubt a baby tortoise is going to eat hay. Don't worry about it until he's older than three or four. Then you can use hay as a back up food for when the green stuff isn't easy to find (winter time).

 

[Tom]

Thanks guys. Bok choy and spring mix are both already in the fridge, now I don't even have to go to the store

Do you know where can I purchase the bermuda grass hay?

Cody got here about an hour ago! I soaked him and fed him and now he's sleeping in his hide house while I upload the pics He wouldn't eat the hibiscus but he tried the leaves...I think he liked the spring mix/bok choy mixture the best.

Edited to add, when you say grass do you mean my regular lawn grass?

Congratulations on your new Tortoise!

Yes, we mean regular lawn grass. You can let them graze on there own or clip it and feed it to them. You just have to make SURE there are no pesticides or fertilizers or chemicals of any kind. They are grass eaters by nature, so that's the best food for them. The bermuda, orchard and timothy grass hay can be found at any horse supply place for about $14 for a 110lb. bale. Since you only need a hand full, they might give it to you for free. Like Yvonne said though, you won't need the dry grass for a while. I like to chop up fresh grass with scissors and sprinkle it on top of the rest of the food. In my opinion grass should be a fairly big portion of their diet.

We have a plant ID section in the food and diet section. If you post a pic of any of your local weeds, we can try to identify it for you and tell you if its safe to feed. If you browse through that section, you'll probably find most of your weeds already identified.

Speaking of posting pics, did I already tell you about http://tinypic.com/ ? It makes it really easy to post pics of weeds or new baby leopard tortoises, for example. It resizes pics automatically and you don't have to give them any info or set up an account or anything.

 

[terracolson]

I suggest taking it easy and not stressing your self out..

I have a nice simple way to feed my babies,
a box of spring mix, pick out spinach, add organic dandelion greens, (if they have them), i crush up mazuri to a fine powder and sprinkle it over all the greens, i also dust all my greens at that time, with there calcium d3 vitamin mix.

I keep it in a special greens container...

The bin cost me 10 dollars and if i put in all my greens dry it keeps them dry and crisp, if i put them in moist, they stay moist, i love it

the mazuri last one week that way....

 

[Kristina]

If I go to my local feed store with a bag, I can get all the loose hay I want for free.

 

[DeanS]

I'd skip the squash and let them indulge in pumpkin (seeds and all). As greens go, I mostly feed endive, escarole, watercress and rotate the collared and mustard every coupla weeks...did I mention that they get greens only every third or fourth day...and only for the babies and ONLY if I'm supplementing REPTIVITE...otherwise it's grass, dandelions, clover, roses. Being as your in Florida, Bermuda (hay and grass) should be easy to find...it is an African native grass, after all!

 

[South FL Katie]

Thanks so much for all the help!

 

[ChiKat]

I keep it in a special greens container...

The bin cost me 10 dollars and if i put in all my greens dry it keeps them dry and crisp, if i put them in moist, they stay moist, i love it

Where did you get that bin? I need one!