Question about how much food to feed

[skroschel]

I have my tortoise with me at college and it's quite impossible (unfortunately) for me to build an outdoor pen for her considering our yard is puny and I'm only renting the place. But lately, I've been buying her more of a variety at the store: red and green leaf lettuce, radicchio, and endive. Her pen is a bit smaller than it was at home but I let her out in my room and let her roam around throughout the day. Sometimes when I have time, I take her outside but our yard has no weeds in it
But my main question is about her eating habits. She's been eating like crazy lately!! Before I moved into school, I would take her outside for 20ish minutes and let her graze around the yard for breakfast, then I would leave her in my room for the day. And she would be super active! Roaming around all the time.
Now, she doesn't have quite as much roaming time in my room, but is always checking her food bowl for something to eat. And when I do bring her food, she eats it like she's been starving for days! I don't know if this is because of her growth and exercise that she's hungry or if she just really likes food and I should be feeding her less so she doesn't get overweight?
I'm basically unsure of how much to feed her. Lately I've been giving her a little bit of everything I mentioned earlier and I give her a descent handful. Sometimes I give her treats later in the day but that's only cause she's trying to eat the wood and rocks in her pen! So that must mean she's food-deprived? Should I be feeding her more?
Any other suggestions? I know her home isn't ideal for most russians, but this is the first time I've brought her to school with me and I'm not sure my parents would be much better suited at home to take care of her on their own time.
Thanks!
PS: I'm from Minnesota!

 

[Laurie]

I've heard a couple things to base how much good to give.

Give a pile about the size of the shell

Give as much food as they will eat in 20 minutes daily

Give as much food as they will eat in 1 hour every other day.

I like the 20 minute one.

 

[Tom]

Your russian is gearing up for winter. Do you hibernate? I like to let my tortoises eat. In a small indoor enclosure with the wrong foods, too much could lead to obesity. I would let your tortoise eat as much as it wants, but if you see it getting a little pudgy, then think about cutting back. Selecting better foods would help too. Grocery store stuff is last on my list. Look for weeds, flowers and leaves in your area that are suitable. They are much less likely to get fat on these foods.

Also, tortoises need outside time. Its pretty easy to set up a kiddie pool or some cinder blocks in a small area, even in a rental place. This would be of great benefit to your tortoise while the weather is still nice enough.