diet for greek!

[cyyoung749]

hi, im feeding my greek mostly with spring mix(every day,no spinach),some zoo med pellets 2-3 times a week, hay(everyday), calcium about 3-4 times a week,and cactus. I just started feeding cactus to my baby greek, but he barely shows interest. He really likes spring mix sprinkled with hay. Is this right diet for greek?

Thank you!

 

[HipsterTorts]

Everything pretty much sounds good except the hay. I've heard a few things about not feeding it to greeks, but I'm not sure. I'd talk to someone that has more experience with hay. Personally, I stay away from it because I'm unsure.

But yeah everything else sounds spot on! About the cactus, my baby greeks don't care for it either. Also, have you tried giving him Mazuri? Mine go nuts for it!

 

[GBtortoises]

Hay is fine for Greeks, although like other Testudo species, very few ever show any interest in it. Some of my adults will occasionally eat some, young tortoises will sometimes pick out dried clover and other content from timothy hay. Hay can be a good source of fiber. I leave a small pile of 24/7 in all of my indoor enclosures for all size tortoises, hatchling to adult. Some occasionally consume it, some never do but I always give them the option to be able to if they want.

Cactus is fine too, young tortoises will usually consume it but it may need to be sliced thinly or grated for them since they often don't have strong enough jaws to bite into it.

Caution should be exercised when feeding Mazuri and other pellet foods to young, developing tortoises. Mazuri contains 15%+ protein and some of the newer pellets contain 20% and more. It's fine as long as you have a very active, energetic tortoise that burns energy rapidly. But many hatchlings spend alot of time in hiding and not as active as their older counterparts. Pellets foods should be fed sparingly and a good quality, varied diet should be the norm.
Hay can also contain fair amounts of protein but with their reluctance to consume hay there shouldn't be much concern about them getting too much protein.
Also when feeding pellet foods ensure that your tortoise is kept well hydrated.

 

[cyyoung749]

Hay is fine for Greeks, although like other Testudo species, very few ever show any interest in it. Some of my adults will occasionally eat some, young tortoises will sometimes pick out dried clover and other content from timothy hay. Hay can be a good source of fiber. I leave a small pile of 24/7 in all of my indoor enclosures for all size tortoises, hatchling to adult. Some occasionally consume it, some never do but I always give them the option to be able to if they want.

Cactus is fine too, young tortoises will usually consume it but it may need to be sliced thinly or grated for them since they often don't have strong enough jaws to bite into it.

Caution should be exercised when feeding Mazuri and other pellet foods to young, developing tortoises. Mazuri contains 15%+ protein and some of the newer pellets contain 20% and more. It's fine as long as you have a very active, energetic tortoise that burns energy rapidly. But many hatchlings spend alot of time in hiding and not as active as their older counterparts. Pellets foods should be fed sparingly and a good quality, varied diet should be the norm.
Hay can also contain fair amounts of protein but with their reluctance to consume hay there shouldn't be much concern about them getting too much protein.
Also when feeding pellet foods ensure that your tortoise is kept well hydrated.

thank you for ur answer. It seems like my tortoise only like spring mix. I dont see him eating alot of hay, pellets,cactus.

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Everything pretty much sounds good except the hay. I've heard a few things about not feeding it to greeks, but I'm not sure. I'd talk to someone that has more experience with hay. Personally, I stay away from it because I'm unsure.

But yeah everything else sounds spot on! About the cactus, my baby greeks don't care for it either. Also, have you tried giving him Mazuri? Mine go nuts for it!

oh really i have zoo med pellets instead of mazuri. which one do u prefer?

 

[GBtortoises]

Spring mix is fine as a base diet but tortoises really need more than just that. Spring mix contents vary somewhat by company but they all generally contain various lettuce species and not much else. There are alot of other quality foods that should be added to a tortoises diet that will provide additional vitamins, minerals, fiber and calcium content.