new to forum

[johnnysd]

hello all, i stumbled upon this forum and decided i needed to join.
let me give a quick introduction to my history. i have a eastern hermanns tortoise that was given to me by my brother who was recently incarcerated. my brother and i were very close and he loved this tortoise. the tortoise's name is "Mr. 8". apparently he was the eighth one to hatch. anyways i've decided to adopt him and care for him while my brother is away. unfortunately i have no experience with tortoise. I've been reading a lot and i'm confused as to what to feed "Mr.8" on a daily basis. some say to feed dandelions and weeds and greens on a daily basis. but some books say to only feed the stuff occasionally. the guy at petsmart told me to feed him T-REx tortoise pellets or RepCal tortoise food.
heres my question, What can i feed "Mr.8" on a daily basis. i work about 12 hours a day so i don't have to much time to prepare food daily for him. i need something that i can prepare once a week and place it in the fridge and leave it out for him everymorning. the enclosure he has is pretty big. its been retrofitted as to not have him dig or climb out. i live in southern california so i was told the weather is perfect for him.
please help any suggestions would be greatly appreciated

 

[dmarcus]

Hello and welcome to the forum Johnny and Mr. 8. you will get a lot of help on thus forum. Most people use spring mix from the grocery store with some other greens, but if you have the ability to let your tortoise graze outside then the grass and weeds and dandelions will work. I don't have a Hermann's but I dont use the tortoise pellets or any pellets from the pet store. Mazuri is a good thing. They are a lot of members who do own your particular tortoise and they will be able to help you more..

 

[pdrobber]

welcome! why not get him in a secure, as large as possible outdoor enclosure with grass and weeds growing in it. You can throw in some grocery store greens or extra weeds if you need to.

Or if you want to stick with an indoor setup and grocery store greens can use escarole, endive, collard greens, spring mix, romaine, red leaf lettuce, green leaf lettuce, kale...make a big salad, store it in containers in the fridge and grab a handful every morning. you can collect some weeds and grass from outside to feed also.

 

[coreyc]

Welcome

 

[johnnysd]

thank you for the quick response. i don't understand why i can't use the tortoise pellets like mazuri on a daily basis. the guy at the pet store says that they are made by veterinarian. and recommeded by them. so why can't we use them daily

 

[Fernando]

Some tortoise made pellets are good. But what you want is also variety. Greens and weeds have their own nutritional benefits. Would you eat the same food every single day of your life? I wouldn't.

If you go to your local grocery store. Purchase the packaged Sping Mix or Santa Barbara mix. Different companies make it (They sell Dole brand at Ralphs)

 

[johnnysd]

Some tortoise made pellets are good. But what you want is also variety. Greens and weeds have their own nutritional benefits. Would you eat the same food every single day of your life? I wouldn't.

If you go to your local grocery store. Purchase the packaged Sping Mix or Santa Barbara mix. Different companies make it (They sell Dole brand at Ralphs)

very good pont. i can't stand eating the same thing twice in a row much less a whole week straight

 

[Fernando]

Also, I would suggest purchasing a calcium powder w/ D3 if he doesnt get to graze outside and get sunshine. Lightly powder his food twice a week.

Does he real outside sunshine? If not, I would make sure to have a good UVB lighting in his enclosure. You mentioned he has a good sized enclosure correct? I would purchase what's called an MVB light. (Mercury Vapor Bulb) It provides good UVB and heating altogether. Saves space

Good diet, Exercise, UVB, warmth and sunshine. Others will chime in shortly...

 

[dmarcus]

I buy varied greens from the grocery store and feed my tortoise something different everyday, then a blend in some Mazuri or Timothy hay every other day..

 

[johnnysd]

Also, I would suggest purchasing a calcium powder w/ D3 if he doesnt get to graze outside and get sunshine. Lightly powder his food twice a week.

Does he real outside sunshine? If not, I would make sure to have a good UVB lighting in his enclosure. You mentioned he has a good sized enclosure correct? I would purchase what's called an MVB light. (Mercury Vapor Bulb) It provides good UVB and heating altogether. Saves space

Good diet, Exercise, UVB, warmth and sunshine. Others will chime in shortly...

he's currently outside, my brother built him a really nice outdoor enclosre last year. its 60"x40"x18" and has a lid on top with metal wirings. we have a really bad raccoon and opposum problem here. i was instructed to keep him indoors during winter and outdoors during remainder of year.
Why do i need to put calcium on his food and where do i get it?

 

[Fernando]

That's good that he grazes outdoors daily.

Calcium is needed for strong shells and bones. I don't have an outdoor tortoise right now so I don't know HOW much of calcium is needed for a tortoise that grazes outdoors. If you purchase it you can buy it from petco for like $4 I think and you can get it with out d3.

Again, I don't know if they need it when they are outdoors all year long so hopefully someone has a better answer for ya!

 

[johnnysd]

That's good that he grazes outdoors daily.

Calcium is needed for strong shells and bones. I don't have an outdoor tortoise right now so I don't know HOW much of calcium is needed for a tortoise that grazes outdoors. If you purchase it you can buy it from petco for like $4 I think and you can get it with out d3.

Again, I don't know if they need it when they are outdoors all year long so hopefully someone has a better answer for ya!

i'm a little confused? what do you mean "without d3" whats that?

---

That's good that he grazes outdoors daily.

Calcium is needed for strong shells and bones. I don't have an outdoor tortoise right now so I don't know HOW much of calcium is needed for a tortoise that grazes outdoors. If you purchase it you can buy it from petco for like $4 I think and you can get it with out d3.

Again, I don't know if they need it when they are outdoors all year long so hopefully someone has a better answer for ya!

i'm a little confused? what do you mean "without d3" whats that?

and i don't know if he grazes or not everytime i see him he's always buried in the ground

 

[Fernando]

from my understanding d3 is a vitamin that is also used to promote growth and strength in the bones. But without a UVB light it can't be used because only the UV rays can activate it from my understanding. Natural sunlight already includes this vitamin d.

 

[GBtortoises]

How big/old is the tortoise? Where are you located (this may determine how long and at what times of the year the tortoise can be outdoors)?

 

[johnnysd]

How big/old is the tortoise? Where are you located (this may determine how long and at what times of the year the tortoise can be outdoors)?

Mr.8 is about 5". i don't know the exact age. my brother hatched maybe 2 1/2 years ago.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi "johnnysd":

Is "Johnny" your name?

Welcome to the forum!!

Tortoises need calcium to make their bones and shell strong. They get a bit of calcium from their food, but without the sun (or an expensive UVB light) they can't make the vitamin d3 required for the calcium to work. Without vitamin d3 the calcium is just pee out. So if your tortoise spends the day outside, you can buy the calcium without d3 because he's getting it from the sun.

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

Welcome! Nice of you to take on the tortoise while your brother is incarcerated.

 

[johnnysd]

Hi "johnnysd":

Is "Johnny" your name?

Welcome to the forum!!

Tortoises need calcium to make their bones and shell strong. They get a bit of calcium from their food, but without the sun (or an expensive UVB light) they can't make the vitamin d3 required for the calcium to work. Without vitamin d3 the calcium is just pee out. So if your tortoise spends the day outside, you can buy the calcium without d3 because he's getting it from the sun.

hi there, yes my name is johnny, and thanks for the info. i first started keeping mr.8 as a favor to my brother. my brother has made some mistakes in his life. but it seemed to me that he was at peace with himself when he was feeding and watching the tortoise everymorning. i'v started to grow fond of mr.8. he has his only personality. at first he was really shy but now he comes out to greet me everymorning. just like he did for my brother.
i have a lot to learn so i will have a lot of questions. i'm all ears to any advice you all may have

 

[Fernando]

Just stick to the forum and you will

 

[Isa]

Welcome to the forum Johnny I think it is very nice of you to take care of Mr. 8 . I am sure that when your brother will be back, you will get one for you, they are addictive
I feed my Hermanns spring mix, escarole, chicory, watercress, kate, wheat grass and in the summer, I plant some greens and more grasses for him .
What I do with the greens I buy is I wash them leaf by leaf, I put them in a salad spinner, I put them in a big Ziploc bags, I put one layer of greens, one scott towel, one layer of greens, one sheet of scott towel ... It lasts and the greens stay good .