Rescued Redfoot... now need help!!
- Thread starter Luckie
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When I was setting up mine, at the time, I didn't want to worry about figuring out what was safe and what wasn't, so I just picked up some fake silk ferns from Walmart. $3.00 each and they cover a lot of area! Beats the price of anything in a petstore. You can probably find similar stuff at Hobby Lobby and other places like that. Just my opinion. I have yet to see any evidence of him trying to eat them either.
I'd use real simply because it's something for your tort to browse and encourages natural behaviour. Chosen correctly plants can and should be a lot more than decor
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- Sep 21, 2010
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Watch out for the fruit. You don't want to over do it. If you really want to see him go nuts, give him a big juicy earthworm.
He'll definitely appreciate a more planted habitat, especially while so young. Real plants offer more benefits than silk do (humidity, air cleaning, etc.) but if live is a problem, silk is perfectly OK.
Diet. I've been trying to create the Ultimate Short-Form Diet Outline, so let me try it again here...
1. Variety. There does not need to be a lot of different things in every meal, but there is also no reason to keep buying the same things over and over. Variety offers interest, better overall nutrition, etc.
One nice thing about variety- it lets you sometimes offer things that some people find controversial, like spinach, and not worry about it because it will be such a small part of the overall diet.
2. Balance. Most of the diet (80%ish, but it is perfectly OK to offer 'all you can eat' of this) should be 'low-energy' foods- greens, leaves, flowers, stems, mushrooms, etc. Aim for foods that are low in sugars and carbs, high in fiber and calcium, and with a 'natural' level of moisture.
A small amount of the diet (20%ish) should be fruits, veggies with seeds (the REAL definition of 'fruit'), meats, and prepared foods and pellets. This is where they get the sugars, carbs, fats, and so on. You can limit it by either offering a little every day, or only offering it a couple days a week, or whatever. Even within this category, however, there should not be much meat.
So, what can they eat? It is easier to list what to avoid...
- No or almost no dairy, raw grains, soy, or nuts.
- Avoid the overly oily foods like olives, avocado,
- Avoid foods that are fatty, salty, sugary, overly processed (except tortoise chows), or have too many chemicals in them (the human food guideline- no more than 5 chemical ingredients and nothing you cannot pronounce- is a good one.)
- Avoid produce that is too hot/spicy, high in citrus (an occasional orange is OK), and most root vegetables (some chopped carrot or sweet potato makes a nice colorful treat.)
Beyond that, there are few absolute no-nos in the fresh food sections of the grocery store, although not everything is equally beneficial.
Diet. I've been trying to create the Ultimate Short-Form Diet Outline, so let me try it again here...
1. Variety. There does not need to be a lot of different things in every meal, but there is also no reason to keep buying the same things over and over. Variety offers interest, better overall nutrition, etc.
One nice thing about variety- it lets you sometimes offer things that some people find controversial, like spinach, and not worry about it because it will be such a small part of the overall diet.
2. Balance. Most of the diet (80%ish, but it is perfectly OK to offer 'all you can eat' of this) should be 'low-energy' foods- greens, leaves, flowers, stems, mushrooms, etc. Aim for foods that are low in sugars and carbs, high in fiber and calcium, and with a 'natural' level of moisture.
A small amount of the diet (20%ish) should be fruits, veggies with seeds (the REAL definition of 'fruit'), meats, and prepared foods and pellets. This is where they get the sugars, carbs, fats, and so on. You can limit it by either offering a little every day, or only offering it a couple days a week, or whatever. Even within this category, however, there should not be much meat.
So, what can they eat? It is easier to list what to avoid...
- No or almost no dairy, raw grains, soy, or nuts.
- Avoid the overly oily foods like olives, avocado,
- Avoid foods that are fatty, salty, sugary, overly processed (except tortoise chows), or have too many chemicals in them (the human food guideline- no more than 5 chemical ingredients and nothing you cannot pronounce- is a good one.)
- Avoid produce that is too hot/spicy, high in citrus (an occasional orange is OK), and most root vegetables (some chopped carrot or sweet potato makes a nice colorful treat.)
Beyond that, there are few absolute no-nos in the fresh food sections of the grocery store, although not everything is equally beneficial.
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