"Hand feeding"

[Yvonne G]

No, not feeding my Aldabran my hand, but feeding BY hand!


We have another thread with this same title, and as I was scrolling through the unread threads just now and came past that one I slapped my forehead and said, "OH NO!!!! I LEFT MY CAMERA OUTSIDE!!!" and its raining. I had taken some pictures of hand feeding my aldabran tortoises and set the camera down to do something else then forgot it. But my luck held, and the camera has thankfully given up its pictures.

My Aldabran pen is 80% or more clover with just a little bit of grass and other stuff. I didn't know that clover was one of those things that binds calcium and shouldn't be fed a whole bunch. My two Aldabran tortoises graze daily on their clover and I only give them Mazuri once a week. So a couple years ago I discovered that both of them are calcium deficient and verging on MBD. Since that discovery, I've been giving them human calcium pills in pieces of fruit about 4 or 5 times a week. It has taken 2 years, but I'm starting to notice a SLIGHT improvement in them.

This is SO taking a bite of his peach/calcium:

 

[luvpetz27]

Love the picture!! Lookes like he enjoyed it!

 

[pdrobber]

aww yay love seeing your tortoises

 

[Yvonne G]

Yes, they're 12 years old and up until I had to start hand feeding them, they wouldn't have anything to do with people. Were very intimidated by us and very shy. Now that they associate people with food, you have to keep watching them all the time you're in their pen because they follow you around a try to eat you.

I'm trying to get them to eat grass hay along with what they graze on, but so far its no go.

 

[luvpetz27]

Be careful and watch your back!! ha

 

[wellington]

Nice pic. Nice to know about the clover too. I didn't know and always am throwing seeds to grow more. I guess I will have to stop that

 

[Yellow Turtle]

With aldabra that big, I might not want to risk my hand too. I have fun seeing picture of Greg hand feeding apple to his aldabra though.

Mine associates people with food as well, chasing after toes and fingers.

 

[lovelyrosepetal]

That is a great picture. I also had no idea about clover. Thanks for informing us. I love SO, really nice looking.

 

[bigred]

I didnt know that about clover either

 

[Clawhammer]

cascade seed planting works well with other things like lettuce, turnip and spinach, collards. could that be a good grazing diet? in place of clover.

Im just learning torts but rotation farming is my thing. For hogs/goats i put on pasture planted as above Heavey on turnip) for 17 days while cascade planting thier next pasture and rotate , plant, rotate. Just an idea. Cascade planting works well for those pastures and the diet is good for hogs and well goats you know, they eat anything........ Torts IDK?

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Ryan:

The Aldabran tortoises are in an already established pasture. It is almost covered with clover. I suppose I could fence off half of it and spray some sort of vegetation killer on it and re-plant.

As it is, I'm hoping the bermuda will eventually overtake the clover. Every year I'm seeing more and more grass. I DO toss lettuce seeds out there every spring, but they die quickly because its so hot here.

 

[Clawhammer]

RE: "Hand feeding"

Hi Ryan:

The Aldabran tortoises are in an already established pasture. It is almost covered with clover. I suppose I could fence off half of it and spray some sort of vegetation killer on it and re-plant.

As it is, I'm hoping the bermuda will eventually overtake the clover. Every year I'm seeing more and more grass. I DO toss lettuce seeds out there every spring, but they die quickly because its so hot here.

That sounds so nice ... I'm really hopin I can manage a heard of Aldabras. They are just so awesome. As for plantings I personally never spray anything. See, with hogs if I don't like the way a planting mix worked for em I set em out, they root the pasture to mud and I restart in 17 days with new knowledge. Not sure that experience would be of use to us in this field. I got a lot to learn.

unless of course, if u want to section off a small section and buy a hog to rotortil it in roughly 17 days and move to new section lol that I can offer tried and true advise