Redfoot ate a mushroom in the yard

[chipperchip]

Hello, my 1.5 yr. redfoot Chip ate a mushroom in the backyard. We live in northern Ohio, and I am not sure what kind of mushroom It was. It was growing in a mossy area in the shade on the grass. I was outside with Chip and watching him, however, he stopped in his journey and when I went over to see what he was up to half the mushroom was eaten, and I did see him chewing. Should I be concerned? He has eaten store-bought mushrooms in the past, however, he has never eaten one from outside. Unfortunately, I know they can be toxic to humans and pets. Even the deer and raccoons don't bother with them. Please advise!!!!!

 

[JoesMum]

How much was eaten? How big is the tort? Do you have a photo of the mushroom or one like it so that it can be identified? There is a difference between toxic and distasteful... not all toxic mushrooms are deadly. Hopefully all will be well, but without knowing what was eaten we cannot say.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

No to unknown mushrooms.
MY Rf have all gotten sick from eating wild mushrooms.
I had to switch to a different pen substrate because the mulch I had been using grew them when it became wet.
RF love to eat mushrooms.

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Mushrooms, toadstools and other fungi, some are toxic and some are unpleasant but harmless and some are safe and yummy.
Without detailed photos it's impossible to say and even then, many are a nightmare to identify.
See if you can find it on the net.

 

[chipperchip]

Here are some photos of the tort and the mushroom he ate. You can see how much he ate. I am not sure of his exact age, but we think he is around 1.5 years old. Subtract 3" from the size due to bad positioning and he is around 6". He seems to feel OK today. Any ideas on what kind of mushrooms they are and about how old Chip might be? [ATTACH=full

 

[JoesMum]

The pictures are good, hopefully someone can identify your Ohio fungus from that.

None of us will be able to tell you the age of your tort, I'm afraid. They all grow at different rates, depending on diet and how they are kept, etc. The only way you can ever know a tort's age is by knowing its hatch date.

 

[domalle]

Hello, my 1.5 yr. redfoot Chip ate a mushroom in the backyard. We live in northern Ohio, and I am not sure what kind of mushroom It was. It was growing in a mossy area in the shade on the grass. I was outside with Chip and watching him, however, he stopped in his journey and when I went over to see what he was up to half the mushroom was eaten, and I did see him chewing. Should I be concerned? He has eaten store-bought mushrooms in the past, however, he has never eaten one from outside. Unfortunately, I know they can be toxic to humans and pets. Even the deer and raccoons don't bother with them. Please advise!!!!!

I have a different experience over many years from ZEROPILOT. All of my adult redfoots relish encounters with wild mushrooms found in their wanderings
in a Mid-Atlantic US summer outdoor quarters and eagerly devour them. Like you, I have often been alarmed with mushroom encounters especially when one of my cherryheads attacked a sinister deep indigo interiored specimen. But he survived and flourished.

 

[domalle]

Here are some photos of the tort and the mushroom he ate. You can see how much he ate. I am not sure of his exact age, but we think he is around 1.5 years old. Subtract 3" from the size due to bad positioning and he is around 6". He seems to feel OK today. Any ideas on what kind of mushrooms they are and about how old Chip might be?View attachment 135797 View attachment 135798

BTW, he is a very pretty little tortoise. I agree with JoesMum that, unlike determining a tree's age from a count of its rings which can be definitive, it is difficult to identify a tortoise's exact age. But from his growth rings, it appears that he is about 5 to 6 years old.