Kongs for Redfoots/torts in general??

[Chewbecca]

You know those kongs for dogs?
These things:

I was just talking to someone (heck, she might be a member here) who has a redfoot, and she said she stuffs one of these for her redfoot.

I was talking to her about Stagger and she said that in the wild they usually have to work for their food (whether it be digging, nosing, ripping to break it up, or moving distances to get to the food).
So, she puts all kinds of redfoot-friendly foods in a kong and her tort eats her food that way!
I was amazed.
She said her redfoot either loves it or despises it. But she has to work for it.
Same concept with dogs.
But she puts the food in there so that she has to yank it (but it's accessible, so it's not like it's impossible for her tort to get the food).
She head butts it and pushes it around, but she gets the food out of it.


Weird, but interesting. I NEVER would have thought to give a tort a kong.

 

[terryo]

They are not in the wild, and I think this is cruel. I love when Pio comes out when he hears me putting his food in his viv. He looks so happy to see me. He is a beloved pet, and shouldn't have to work for his food. Just my HO.

 

[Chewbecca]

Wait.
I HIGHLY doubt this person is intending to be cruel to her tortoise.

I don't think it's any more cruel (as least as far as I can imagine it right now) to give a tortoise a kong than it is to give a dog a kong (I just am not quite sure I understand how well it would work).
People give dogs kongs to keep them mentally stimulated and to have something to do.

She doesn't stuff food in there all the way to the end, obviously, she simply puts stuff in there loosely so that when her tort head butts it, kicks, it or scutes it along, food falls out, and her tort eats what food falls out.
And as I said, her tort will yank leaves and stuff out of the hole.
I think she said she doesn't know if she loves it or despises it as a joke because her tort head butts it.

 

[Magic Lyn]

Wow, I never thought that my tortoise could be seduced by my dogs' fave toy! Interesting, you keep learning new things everyday! :-O

~Lyndsay

 

[Chewbecca]

Well, I just thought of something, though.

If anyone is to do this, I STRONGLY advise that A.) think twice before taking any suggestion of mine. hahahaha. B.) use a kong that's biggest hole is considerably smaller than your tort's head.

I just asked this person how she works this kong, and if she uses one with a hole considerably smaller than her tort's head.

 

[terryo]

Rebecca, I don't think she is intentionally being cruel. I think it's different with a dog. But for some reason I can't picture a tortoise doing the same thing as a dog can do. A dog can hold the kong in both front paws to try and get the food. I can't even picture a tort trying to do the same. I kind of think it would be frustrating. If he is head butting it, and the food falls out....... Maybe if you feed him first, and then give him the kong to play with it would be OK. I know that when my animals come out to eat they are usually starving, and I just think it would be a little cruel to make they work so hard for their supper. Everyone is different.

 

[Chewbecca]

Oh no, I know.

But she scoots it, head butts it, kicks it, and the food comes out.
It's not difficult for the tortoise.
It's actually probably mentally stimulating.
As I said, she doesn't stuff the food all the way in there, she leaves it very close to the hole so that it practically falls out, but it does require movement.

 

[t_mclellan]

I know 1 person that uses Kong's with their Sulcata.
He puts them on the male gular scutes. Kinda like a bra.
Sounds silly but it dose prevent damage.

 

[Madkins007]

Most animals in the wild have to problem solve every day- finding food, finding shelter, etc. In captivity, we take that and sheer space away from them.

A lot of zoos and other animal experts recommend 'enrichments' to stimulate the animals, and food is a common enrichment.

For Red-foots, some enrichments I have heard of or tried include:
- Hiding food in the habitat- tucking mushrooms or strawberries in odd places, putting some food on top of the hide or something.
- Making food harder to get- hanging greens from overhead, using the Kong mentioned (I like the idea, Chew!), putting food under something the tortoise has to move (like a berry basket), offering whole fruit or veggies with the skin still on, offer food they have to work with to bite (in the summer, I drop whole cantelopes or ears of corn in there.)
- Offering toys. Whiffle balls or similar light, tough balls are common. Some torts ignore them, some bat them around.
- Offering something to explore, like a pile of rocks or a plant.
- Offering live food, like worms placed on the soil

You don't need to do it all the time, and outdoor pens are usually enriched already. I don't see it as being cruel or frustrating, either.

My torts seem to enjoy some of this (especially hidden food, live food, skin-on food, and hanging greens), and just leave if a challenge is too much.

 

[dreadyA]

I would only do that if the tortoise was housed indoors, just to mimic the outdoors.
If theyre already outside, i dont see why you have to stimulate their mentality since they're are already in the "wild"(your backyard).

But all in all, thats a really cool idea! I liked it.

---

I take that back, you can still "stimulate" them with food with the peel still on. Like a nice soft ripe mango!

makes me want one!

 

[Chewbecca]

Well, I cannot claim it as my idea.
As I NEVER would have thought to give a redfoot a kong. hahaha.
And until Stagger gets a lot bigger, I really have no plans to give him one in fear he'd get his head stuck in the hole.

But it'd be darling to see one mess around with one and scoot it along, head butt it, and try to figure out how to make the red thing give it food.
hahahaha.

 

[llamas55]

I like some of Mark's challenges, esp. hiding something somewhere, so they get to play hide and seek for it. Kongs with dog food, the dog food is going to kind of rattle out, but a veggie etc. is NOT going to roll or pop out, and the tort might try and chew it, and will not have a way to get the food out...the idea of mental stimulation tho, that is great, but not with a dog toy, MHO

 

[t_mclellan]

Just in case you thought I was joking!

 

[matt41gb]

That's a really creative idea! I think for the most part make our tortoises lazy. Life is much harder in the wild, and this is a great stimulant for that. I have thought of this idea many times, but all I do is throw a whole apple in the enclosure. It takes them forever to finally make an indention so that they can eat the rest of it. It's really great to give them something to do.

-Matt

 

[terryo]

I can definitely see throwing an apple in and I always throw some worms in....I have plenty of pictures of Pio searching and digging under his water dish. But how could he get any food out of that little hole? I could see him pushing it around and head butting it, but wouldn't it frustrate him trying to get food out of it?

 

[Chewbecca]

I can definitely see throwing an apple in and I always throw some worms in....I have plenty of pictures of Pio searching and digging under his water dish. But how could he get any food out of that little hole? I could see him pushing it around and head butting it, but wouldn't it frustrate him trying to get food out of it?

There's two holes in a kong.
A tiny one at the tip, and a bigger one at the bottom.
You can loosely put some leafy greens in there with the edges sticking out so that he has to yank it out.

 

[chpete79]

I don't find this cruel at all. If the tortoise can't get the food out of there I'm sure the owner would help out as necessary. I am planning on attaching a clothes pin in the enclosure just out of my tortoise's reach so I can clip in a chunk-o-weeds hanging down. If I get home from work and all of them are still there I will prepare him a plate.

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Ooooooo! Good idea!

I tried and tried last summer to put various kinds of weeds that tortoises supposedly like into Taco's enclosure, only to have her completely ignore them. One of my theories is that she likes to pluck them herself, so maybe if I clip them to the wires of her Zoomed playpen (that I AM getting this spring) she will feel like she's picking them herself and EAT some of them.

 

[dreadyA]

Ooooooo! Good idea!

I tried and tried last summer to put various kinds of weeds that tortoises supposedly like into Taco's enclosure, only to have her completely ignore them. One of my theories is that she likes to pluck them herself, so maybe if I clip them to the wires of her Zoomed playpen (that I AM getting this spring) she will feel like she's picking them herself and EAT some of them.

hehehe, are you trying to make it obvious for lllrep to see?! I think they need to send you coupons!

 

[llamas55]

you know, my standard poodle has a toy that, UNLIKE a kong, is meant to come apart to put food in. there is no way to clean a kong. This other toy is a sphere with random holes that can be set bigger or littler. sold at the dog toy section and about $15, comes in 2 sizes of toy too. a kong would just get yucky inside.