does Mazuri work for you? Good/Bad

Yes i agree, it does even out.. i grow 90% of what they eat all summer long and even stock pile pumpkins and squash for the winter months.....i am just always looking for resources......I am thinking I will try the Mazuri though 25 bucks or so doesnt seem al that much for 25lbs.... seems just slightly more than my dogs food. although I dont have 11 dogs to feed, my sulcata probably eats more than my 35 lb border collie!! they are about the same weight

"i am just always looking for resources"

I certainly can't argue with that! I'm always on the look out myself! The downside to you and I and others keeping tortoises here in the Northeast (and North in general) is that we have such short summers that our "free" food isn't available for long.

I keep it ON my fridge not IN my fridge.

I agree with GBtortoises that it should be used as a supplement. I am not really impressed with the ingredients.
I have actually never used Mazuri. There was one time this winter where I didn't really have good greens to feed Nelson (I think I might have had some romaine actually) so I thawed some frozen pumpkin that day. I've never had a problem where I needed Mazuri because I couldn't get to the store...especially in the summer when I go outside to pick his meals (LOVE that!)
I will admit I am NOT a tortoise expert and I've only had my one tortoise for a little over a year. But I feel I can offer Nelson a better diet with greens, weeds, spring mix, pumpkin, squash, flowers, leaves, etc.

My two herman's love it but only get it maybe three times a week, my little sulcata hates it but will eat some grassland if i lightly slather some on her greens

my two stinkpot turtles eat the mazuri fresh water turtle diet and like it...it is one of their staple pellets(i use several diferent brands and they get treats like krill). they been eating it since they were old enough and eat it well. my only problem with it is the odor..stuff smells awful..it not gone bad as it super fresh it just stinks

I use it two times a week I still give them there greens on those days just half what they normally get.Its like candy to them.

I think its a VERY good idea to get your tortoise interested in eating a manufactured food...not as a replacement of a more natural diet, but so that you have something he'll eat when or if you ever don't have greens or veggies to feed him. Hay the same way. If you can get them interested in eating a manufactured tortoise food and hay, then you're home free if you are ever snowed in and can't get to the store.

All the tortoises I have kept (redfoots, leos, sri lankan stars, burmese stars, russians, and radiateds) all eat mazuri with gusto. I supplement mazuri along with repcal and zoo med grassland tortoise diet (all mixed together) and feed that mixture every week or two in the winter and once/twice a week in the summer. Even with a variety, many of the grocery greens will probably miss some of the nutrients....which is why I supplement with the commercial diets. In addition, I grow most of my greens/weeds/produce. And I KNOW that my gardens produce a lot healthier plants than what is available in grocery stores - a perk about growing your own food/tortoise food.

Gosh, I am not one to debate on this forum for severl reasons, however, this is kinda close to home. Here is what I will say about mazuri, we supplement during our egg laying season only and with small amounts to our breeding colony. We never feed any hatchlings, juveniles, or sub-adults mazuri at all. Like Marty said about her tort not wanting to eat a regular diet, anyone ever considered maybe the manufacturer puts something in it that is addictive, like Mcdonalds? Does a tort in the wild eat the ingediants in Mazuri? It was my understanding that this chow was specifically designed originally for zoos as a supplement in the harsh winter months for the Galop. I will add we are located in Florida with good natural vegitation all year and I would find it challenging in most northen states to support our kind of feeding program. I have nothing against mazuri, however I feel the more natural the food sources the better and should be the number one choice, mazuri chow should be supplemental and secondary.

I have never used it and don't feel my torts need a manufactured food. It is winter, and i am in canada but i still manage to have a constant supply of grasses and weeds growing in my basement under UV lighting. It works for me

I've been feeding my 2 Sulcata tortoises,Secretariat(Male) and Ruffian(Female),Mazuri everyday for the past year and so far,I have gotten no problems.In fact,I have gotten good results from Mazuri.It is part of their staple food everyday together with the grasses they graze at my garden and veggies twice a week.


PS.I live here in the Philippines and I get My Mazuri from spikethebest,Corey.

-Ej(Ed) has been feeding Mazuri to his torts for some 15 years already with excellent results.
-The zoos have been feeding Mazuri with excellent results to for over 10 years.
-My friend has been feeding Mazuri only for 4-5 years with good results, he said his torts are more active than ever.

Enough guys?

But what do "excellent results" mean?

I also do a mixture, but it is a nice feeling when you have something they love on hand that is easy. Or if someone has to watch them. I was having a hard time a while back and instead of placing my torts, I had someone take care of them for me and being able to have them just use Mazuri was a god send! I had posted that as a question and it sparked a thread just like this one.
But watching them eat a variety of foods is way more entertaining!
Na

I am sold, I will order some and give it a try, it would be easier to feed them if a "pet sitter" didnt have to go to the store to get fresh greens...excellent.... thanks for the responses.... Now if I could only get some service from Mega Ray

I give Andy (sulcata) Mazuri 3 times a week. I soak it for about 5 minutes to get it nice and moist because I notice he had a really hard time eating it when it wasn't soaked long enough. I've had no problems w/ it and I've been giving it to him for about 2 months now.

I keep it under his enclsoure in a zip lock bag. I buy 1/2 pound bag for $2.50 at my local petshop.

When my tort got sick with a URI his appetite disappeared. I had never used Mazuri pellets, but since he wouldn't eat anything else I gave it a try. He ate it right up. I was happy to see him eat something and really didn't care if it was the best thing for him or not. Since he has started to recover from the URI he prefers radicchio or greens, but still eats the Mazuri. I find that it is easy to add calcium supplements or vitamins to the pellets and will keep some around for just that purpose.

I also don't get the "good results comment"...you mean they like it? Well of course they do...like kids like candy.

I think its a great for a treat, when you run out of produce due to a storm, etc, but not as a regular part of the diet. If anything, I prefer the ingredients of Grassland Tortoise Diet over Mazuri, but neither are ideal, as they violate my thoughts on vitamins for torts (such as D3). I think its bad due to the ingredients, high calories (ie. fastener growth than on other captive diets, and especially compared to wild diets), and that torts get addicted to it. I would also be scared to feed it dry because of how it soaks up water like crazy...meaning I think it would dehydrate the tort from the inside out.

I think one of the reasons it has so much hype is because zoos use it...which I think is mainly because its cheap!

When I've had a pet sitter for even up to 8 days I had no problem leaving a Ziploc of food for each day...I stuck a napkin in each bag to absorb moisture and it stayed fresh just fine. I just gave instructions to feed organic romaine or green leaf or something easy if it did go bad.

Here is something to consider. Nutrients are nutrients regardless of thier origin. If you need Vit C in your diet, does it matter if it comes from oranges (that may be available in your native habitat) or green peppers (that are foreign to your habitat)? Mazuri simply takes the recommended dietary needs of tortoises and makes a diet out of the available products that provide those nutrients.

I was a little leary when I first heard of Mazuri Tortoise also, but in the end...the torts don't lie, my critters are all healthy and happy and no problems. I use Mazuri as a supplement to fresh greens and veggies in the winter, and grasses and weeds in the summer.

I am currently doing some diet trials with a product called Chaffhaye. It is a partially fermented feed based on alfalfa or grass hay...aka haylage. I am using it as a main food source for my llama, deer and sheep and supplementing my kangaroos and torts. These food trials are being done by myself and No, I'm not using any scientific controls...at least not yet.

I will leave it up the the members of the forum to do their own initial reasearch, but would be very interested in a discussion on the product (after, you read the nutritional breakdown of the product) and if you feel it may be an alternative or additional supplement that may make tortoise keeping easier.

Is the Chaffhaye in pellet form do you soak it I would like to try it in my deer feader.