Ask about aldabra

[berrilturtle]

hi all......i want to ask about aldabra food
i just bought 10cm(4inch)
his weight is 223gram when he just arrived
after 4 or 3days in my home,his weight become 275gram
is it normal??
he always drink everyday

but i want ask about 1 thing
his menu everyday is grass,hibicus,carrot,bean sprouts n papaya

but he only chose carrots, papaya and a very little bit of grass .. grass .. is this good? carrots and papaya does not pose a problem for my Aldabra?

 

[dmmj]

I don't own an aldabra but I would cut back on the fruits and veggies, grass is very good for them, we have an aldabra breeder here I am sure he will chime in soon.

 

[Jacob]

I too would cut down on that veggies and fruit and feed once or twice a week with the other food.
His diet should include, cactus, grass, spring mix, hibisicus, weeds, mazuri.
If he is a picky eater gradually add stuff to what he likes and chop it up finely he will have no choice to avoid the food, shortly he might get a nack for what he didnt like.

Aldabra's grow very fast and are the second largest species of tortoise.

 

[berrilturtle]

Oh....so i must cut down fruit and vegetables??
how about carrot???

 

[wellington]

It's a cutie. Look on here for ALDABRAMAN threads. You will find a lot of helpful stuff, great pics and even see in his pics what he feeds and what they have to graze on.

 

[Badger]

Wow! Super cute!

I am also a new Aldabra owner, I have two babies, Shelly and Golide and had them for about a year now.

When they were young, I fed them mostly a mix of dark leafy greens along with mazuri and zoomed grassland. I tried to feed them hay as well but they will not eat it on their own. What I did was to use a pair of scissors and cut them hay very finely, wet it and then mix it in with their greens and so every time they take a bite, they will swallow some hay as well.

From my very limited expereinece, once they get to about a year old, they will start munching on the hay by themselves, I feed them a mixture of mountain grass, orchid hay and Timothy hay.

They sure grow quick. When Shelly first arrived she was less than 300g. 11 months late, she is 1.5kg. Goldie was 800g in July 11, now he is 3.5kg! They literally grow before your very eyes!

Good luck! You sure have a beautiful baby!

 

[berrilturtle]

Hmm
So they will start to eat a grass when they ready??

Hmmm
How long shelly when she arrived???

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

Congrats! We feed all natural grass, weeds, cactus, and misc greens. We avoid fruit at that age. The more high fiber and variety you can provide is best. Try and allow your aldabra to get plenty of exercise, walking and browsing is best. Ours do very well in Florida with the natural higher humidity levels.

 

[berrilturtle]

My aldabra do not want to eat the cactus
What should i do??

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

My aldabra do not want to eat the cactus
What should i do??

We start our hatchlings within the first month on very fine chopped cactus and they seem to love it. Here is a picture from today of a three year old eating cactus.

 

[berrilturtle]

hmmm
why my aldabra doesn't like cactus??
she reallt likes carrot and hibicus
does not matter to give him a carrot??

 

[Radiated]

It sometimes depends on what kind of cactus u feed...maybe show some pics. The carrots are okay occasionally but not the main part of the diet..

 

[berrilturtle]

It sometimes depends on what kind of cactus u feed...maybe show some pics. The carrots are okay occasionally but not the main part of the diet..

i give a oputina cactus
like this....

my sulcata,radiata,cherry head and pardalis like it so much
hmmm....today my aldabra menu is timothy hay,grass,hibicus,mazuri..he ate, then I add the carrots .. since I added the carrots he would prefer the carrot rather than the other

 

[Radiated]

well, some tortoises don't like it, maybe let it get used to it. Cut down the carrots gradually. Do you supplement with Calcium, vitamins and D3?

 

[berrilturtle]

he was the only one of my tortoise who do not like cactus
hmmmm ... yup
I add calcium D3 and vitamin into the food
there is something wrong?

 

[Radiated]

he was the only one of my tortoise who do not like cactus
hmmmm ... yup
I add calcium D3 and vitamin into the food
there is something wrong?

no

 

[Badger]

Hmm
So they will start to eat a grass when they ready??

Hmmm
How long shelly when she arrived???

From my limited experience, they will not be too keen to eat grass/hay when they are young. Its good for them, so the way I do it is cut it up finely and mix it with their salads. Once they get to about 12 months old, they seem to pick on the hay on their own.

Shelly was about 3 inches when she arrived, now she is about double that probably around 6-7 inches.

Goldie and Shelly loves pumpkin, carrots, papaya, blueberries, dragon fruit. They seem to pick out the brightly coloured stuff. Though I seldom give it to them, probably once every month or two. In general, only on Birthdays, Christmas and when I need to feed them medicine!

 

[DAV46]

Try finely chopped Collard Greens, Turnip Greens and Kale. I have always used these darker greens and from what I have read they have a decent amount of calcium and mine has loved it.

 

[berrilturtle]

Oh ok
Today i give hibicus mix with grass and some carrot

 

[berrilturtle]

to greg and the other
I wanted to ask about my Aldabra
he has a 4inch long and weighs 273gram
is this ideal?
in Indonesia we bought from the seller, instead of breeders
I want to ask also, according to your experience .. Aldabra of this size have what age?