Most breeders feed them something easy as babies. "Mixed greens" is probably store bought spring mix. Super easy and the babies like it, but its not a great food, and it makes it really hard for the new owner to get their babies eating the right foods.Tom
I got two. Keep them together but I’m set up to keep them separate. A family that breeds them in the Chicago suburbs. Have been bringing their adults to the Reptile show for many years. Say they feed the hatchlings mixed greens with a bit of calcium powder several time a week.
They are active and eat well but very selective.
Don’t want to starve them into field greens unless it’s recommended.
I’ve tried yard and garden foliage off the list with no luck.
Tortoises are creatures of habit. They eat what they've eaten before. Most of them don't take to new foods very quickly unless they were started by someone who does what I do. I don't feed them the same food twice for at least their first couple of weeks. Every day they see some new and novel food.
Its worth the time to get them eating better foods. Store bought greens don't meet their needs very well. Start by mincing up a tiny tiny amount of the new food and then mincing up the old favorite. Wet the greens and thoroughly mix them together. When I say a tiny amount, I mean like one percent. Over time, they will start incidentally eating the new stuff and get used to the taste, smell and texture. You can gradually up the ratio of new to old. Don't worry about it if they choose to eat light a few days. The more angry they get the less picky they will be. You aren't starving them. There is a whole plate of food right in front of them. They can eat whenever they want.