Feeding leopard torts

[Esiotort]

Hello!!! im getting my leopard tort after I get back from my long trip to America In November so still plenty of time to find out lots of information. First question! I've read that they can eat all these lovely foods like melons and tomatoes, thawed mixed veg also apple but I read that they should only have these foods maybe once a week and they should mainly have lettuce/grass. What do you guys feed your leopards. Thanks x

 

[dmmj]

To date my leopards have not had any type of fruit or veggies. Mine like grape leaves, dandelion leaves and flowers, hibiscus flowers. They also recently had some various squash leaves and flowers, personally I would not feed them anything like fruits or veggies more than once a month, but that is just me.

 

[Julius25]

mine eat hay, lettuce, endive, opuntia rackets, opuntia fruits, fiber pellets, grass from my garden (and fruit once a week)

 

[Tom]

They shouldn't be eating any of those first foods you mentioned. They should be eating mostly broadleaf weeds. If you need to feed some spring mix or endive once in a while, that's fine, but their diet should be mostly leaves and weeds. If they will eat grass for you, that is fine too, but many of them aren't to keen on the grass. Like David mentioned, hibiscus leaves and flowers, grape leaves, squash leaves and flowers, mulberry leaves, opuntia cactus, various other succulents like jade plant and red apple ice plant, ice plant, aloe, etc. various places sell seed mixes for Testudo species. These seed mixes also grow great foods for leopards.

The fruit thing comes up here pretty regularly. Many people feed some once in a while, and it of course does not hurt anything. However, they just don't need it and its not good for them. Its sort of like you eating a big chocolate syrup covered ice cream sundae. It won't kill you if you eat it once in a while, but its not GOOD for you, and you would certainly be healthier if you ate something better for you instead of that.

If you click the links in my signature, there is all sorts of current info on raising a smooth healthy leopard tortoise. A lot of the info you will find "out there" is outdated and wrong.

 

[Esiotort]

Oh okay thanks guys just goes to show doesn't it I saw the fruit thing on many websites. Id live to see some pictures if it's no hassle. I can't wait to my tort

 

[wellington]

Hello and WELCOME. Tom's threads are a great way to raise your leopard and also in my opinion very easy way. They are also listed in my post by my signature.