Cuddle bone question

[christinaland128]

Thank you all so much, I feel a lot better about it now. I'll just leave one in there and let them decide. And does anyone know about the egg shells being hard on them? Mine are only a few months old...

I've never heard or read anywhere that eggshells can harm them. I've seen my torts eat pointy seeds, jagged pebbles, and eggshells. I'm no expert but they appear to be tough when it comes to eating these things. My torts actually seek out broken seed casings.

 

[Ariza]

{{Tom = They will eat carrion, given the chance}}
I read somewhere that's how they get most of their calcium in the wild. They nibble on the bones?

 

[Tom]

I've never heard or read anywhere that eggshells can harm them. I've seen my torts eat pointy seeds, jagged pebbles, and eggshells. I'm no expert but they appear to be tough when it comes to eating these things. My torts actually seek out broken seed casings.

I don't know about RFs, but other tortoise species, including leopards and sulcatas eat their own egg shells while still underground in the nest. Many wild tortoises also eat fully spined cactus pads too. Even non-native species. I've seen pics and video of very healthy looking radiata in Madagascar eating non-native introduced spiny opuntia pads and fruit.

 

[Tom]

{{Tom = They will eat carrion, given the chance}}
I read somewhere that's how they get most of their calcium in the wild. They nibble on the bones?

I cannot confirm or dispute this, but it doesn't seem likely to me. The wild plants over there tend to have very high calcium content, so I doubt eating bones would be necessary. I wouldn't be surprised at all to find out they were eating bones that they could swallow, but I don't know that I would go so far as to say that is where they get most of their calcium.

 

[AndyC]

I just had to google carrion hahaha

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

I just had to google carrion hahaha

That's ok, you just carri on. hahaha

 

[AndyC]

Ha, very nice. I'm glad we all have a sense of humor around here

 

[Ariza]

I've never heard or read anywhere that eggshells can harm them. I've seen my torts eat pointy seeds, jagged pebbles, and eggshells. I'm no expert but they appear to be tough when it comes to eating these things. My torts actually seek out broken seed casings.

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/why-cant-we-give-torts-chicken-egg-shells.27385/

I've read about possible problems, but the internet is so full of contrary info it can get frustrating. The above link is an old thread from this forum (2011) where posters DMMJ and Madkins worry about the eggshells causing internal damage. Of course, I like to recycle, so hate throwing away the eggshells. Maybe I could try using the food processor to grind them small after boiling the egg. So, can Sonoran desert torts ( G Morafkai) eat a boiled-egg and shell? I doubt they would find boiled eggs in the wild. And once she got a hold of dry cat food and ate a bunch of it, I worried about it but she seemed okay. The more I read the more confused I get.