Grazing in the back yard?

[superjet86]

Hey,

I have a problem. i want to let my leopard out side to graze but my dad fertilizes the grass once a month. what are your thoughts about that? is it safe after a while once the fertilizer goes away or should he not eat that grass ever?

i want to make a outdoor enclosure and i have hay seed but it doesent grow as think as sod and my tort is small and cant walk through it like the thick grass

any ideas?

 

[Itort]

I assume he is using a commercial lawn food, if so I won't let the eat it unless none was applied for at least 6 months. As far as the hay seed (what kind ?) it is probably designed for large herbivores and at maturity too coarse for a young tort. I would suggest establishing dandilion, plantain weed, and viola (wood violet and pansy) in the enclosure to be grown organically.

 

[superjet86]

i bought the seed from the online tortoise feed store (dont remember which one)

could i grow it indoors in his indoor enclosure? im just worried that run off water will bring poison into the out door pen...

 

[superjet86]

is there any safe nutrients i can use to grow the grass inside and let him roam in that box? i have a rubbermade that i was growing it in but it dies so quick.

what can i add to the soil to help keep it alive so i can place him in the tub of grass to graze

 

[superjet86]

what about using something like the areogarden machine? its like a indoor greenhouse. it also uses organic nutrients safe for humans.

would something like tht work?

 

[Jentortmom]

I wouldn't use anything on plants that you plan on feeding your tort. You can purchase lights to help the plants grow indoors, or setup trays outside and rotate them into his pen.

 

[Yvonne G]

Ask your dad if you can section off one corner of the yard, or even section across the whole yard at the back. Then ask him to please not fertilize or spray any kind of pesticides on the sectioned off portion. Of course, if he does allow you to do this, it would be up to you to care for this section and be sure it doesn't become an eyesore, as it sounds to me as if your dad is very proud of his yard and likes it to look nice. It is my opinion, that after watering and caring for your turtle yard for a couple weeks, all of the fertilizers would now be up in the plant and would be delivered to your tortoise as nutrients, and not as poison. I fertilize my horse pasture, then water it for two weeks, then put the horses back out there. Been doing that ever since I've had horses and have never poisoned one yet.

Yvonne