Sulcata eating his bedding

Amy K

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My juvenile sulcata is eating his bedding, and I don't know what to use for him. He has eaten pretty large wood chips for his size.20200912_220213.jpg
 

Tom

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What do you feed him? Where did you get him? What bedding is he on? Does he have an outdoor enclosure too?

Pics of the tortoise and enclosure would help.
 

Amy K

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Mine is the bigger one in the picture. I feed him romaine, red leafy lettuce, and dandelion on occasion
 

Amy K

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I don't have an outside enclosure for him because I live in an apartment. His tank is a 75 gallon tank
 

Tom

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Mine is the bigger one in the picture. I feed him romaine, red leafy lettuce, and dandelion on occasion
They should never live as pairs.

I'm seeing glass, so that tells me they are in a tank? Tanks or okay for starting tiny hatchlings, but yours is ready for a much larger enclosure.

I don't see a food bowl. Is this accidental ingestion of the substrate or are you seeing him eat it on purpose?

The diet you listed is not good. Not trying to be mean, but I have to tell you what is wrong so you can fix it. Lettuce is a terrible tortoise diet. Grocery store greens in general are not a good way to go, unless you are amending them to add fiber and variety. When they are fed a low fiber diet, like lettuce from the store, they will sometimes eat rocks, soil, substrate, or other inappropriate items in an effort to correct their dietary deficiencies.

Read this for the current and correct care info, and so you can see what changes need to be made, both to the housing and the diet as well.
 

Amy K

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Thank you for all the information. I now know what I have to do to make his enclosure better.
 

Amy K

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They should never live as pairs.

I'm seeing glass, so that tells me they are in a tank? Tanks or okay for starting tiny hatchlings, but yours is ready for a much larger enclosure.

I don't see a food bowl. Is this accidental ingestion of the substrate or are you seeing him eat it on purpose?

The diet you listed is not good. Not trying to be mean, but I have to tell you what is wrong so you can fix it. Lettuce is a terrible tortoise diet. Grocery store greens in general are not a good way to go, unless you are amending them to add fiber and variety. When they are fed a low fiber diet, like lettuce from the store, they will sometimes eat rocks, soil, substrate, or other inappropriate items in an effort to correct their dietary deficiencies.

Read this for the current and correct care info, and so you can see what changes need to be made, both to the housing and the diet as well.

Is it safe to feed them any kind of fruit?
 

Tom

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Is it safe to feed them any kind of fruit?
I don't recommend any fruit for sulcatas. Is it safe? I don't know how to answer that. Eating a strawberry will not kill them, but its also not good for them.
 

Tom

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Greetings. No fruit for Sulcatas - yes for Redfoot. Sullys arent meant to digest sugary things like fruit. Grass, weeds and more grass n weeds.
And some occasional spineless opuntia, on top of even more grass and weeds. :)
 

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