Quick question about eating habits...

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Ocean

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Hi everyone! I have a female Russian that I've had for about a year now. She's always been a healthy tort that eats well. I recently updated her enclosure to give her some more room and included some tortoise-friendly live plants for her to munch on in addition to her normal diet. Over the last couple of days she's been an eating machine, chomping on everything in sight. My question is...do I need to worry about her over-eating? Should I remove some of the live plants or just let her continue to eat whenever she wants to?
Thanks! :)
 

mctlong

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Thats typical Russian behavior. They'll gorge themselves eating new plants down to nubs. What kind of plants are they?
 

Ocean

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mctlong said:
Thats typical Russian behavior. They'll gorge themselves eating new plants down to nubs. What kind of plants are they?

Two Aloe plants and one Hosta. She really seems to like the Aloe...when she's not eating it she apparently loves to stomp on it as well. :)
 

SpdTrtl

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My Russians love Hosta, I have tried to plant them a few times but they don't last more than a day.
 

mctlong

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Ocean said:
mctlong said:
Thats typical Russian behavior. They'll gorge themselves eating new plants down to nubs. What kind of plants are they?

Two Aloe plants and one Hosta. She really seems to like the Aloe...when she's not eating it she apparently loves to stomp on it as well. :)

Lucky tortoise! What a nice treat. Gorging themselves on fresh plants usually isn't a problem as long as they have plenty of space to move around and burn off those extra calories. Russians can and do become overweight in captivity if they don't have sufficient space roam around.

The aloe vera acts as a mild diuretic, so gorging on it may give him a case of the runs. Nothing too serious, but if you notice his poos a little runny, you'll know why.

One option is to plant a mixed weed seed mix in his enclosure. It provides lots of variety and is much cheaper than replacing potted plants every time they're obliterated. Just a thought.
 

Ocean

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[/quote]
One option is to plant a mixed weed seed mix in his enclosure. It provides lots of variety and is much cheaper than replacing potted plants every time they're obliterated. Just a thought.
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That's a great idea...thank you! I've got some seeds started so she'll have some fresh leafy veggies soon but I'll start looking for a good weed seed mix as well. :)
 

SmileyKylie623

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One option is to plant a mixed weed seed mix in his enclosure. It provides lots of variety and is much cheaper than replacing potted plants every time they're obliterated. Just a thought.
[/quote]

That's a great idea...thank you! I've got some seeds started so she'll have some fresh leafy veggies soon but I'll start looking for a good weed seed mix as well. :)
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I agree with MTC. be careful with the Aloe. I've heard it can act as a laxative for many different species of animals and can give them diarrhea. My little RT hatchling ate a good amount of Aloe when he first discovered it in his outdoor home and the next day had some runny poo so I keep it elevated so it acts as shade. I'll give him access to it every once and awhile though.

He has an oregeno plant that he loves as well! and newly grown fresh weeds!
I too have found that growing your own stuff is easiest when it comes to providing variety
 

GeoTerraTestudo

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A little pudge is good for tortoises, particularly northern ones like Russians. Just don't let them get too fat to withdraw into their shells.
 

Tom

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I've never seen a russian in a decent size weedy outdoor pen get fat. They graze all day, but they have room to move.
 
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