Calcium Crazy?

[pan1k]

Ok, so I have been feeding Mr. Tibbs Escarole, Spring Mix and Endive. I haven't been dusting his food with calcium either. It's been a few weeks now since i have given him calcium powder. I got a small dish and put the powder in, he is going nuts for it. Should I limit him or just let him take as much as he needs?

 

[wellington]

They say they will use what they need. However, why haven't you been giving it to him weekly? You should sprinkle a little on his food twice a week. Also get a cuttle bone, in the bird section and put that in for him. I would not personally let him eat a lot at one time, seeing you haven't given it to him regularly. See what others say.

 

[dmmj]

Sometimes it seems that some tortoises go crazy over the stuff. I would not let him have unlimited access per se, but if you sprinkle it over his food ( lightly) two or three times a week that should suffice.

 

[Tom]

Opinions will vary on this. Here is mine: I wouldn't let him tank up on it all in one day when he hasn't had any for a while. I would start sprinkling some on his food every other day to build the calcium level back up slowly. After a couple of weeks, I would taper down to twice a week but offer cuttle bone all the time.

Be aware that all that calcium could cause an imbalance with other trace elements and minerals. You might want to pick up some "Miner-All" to insure you don;t run into any problems.

Also remember that all the calcium in the world is useless if your tortoise does not have a UV source with which to synthesize vitamin D3 in his skin. Sunlight is best for this, but artificial UV bulbs are better than nothing.