Thoughts on tunas (prickly pears) as part of European tortoises diet?

[Terry Allan Hall]

Got a bumper crop this year, much more than we'll ever use for jelly, jam and pies, and my torts love 'em...the question is how often can I feed them to my pets?

Will they mess w/ the internal ("gut") flora, like many other fruits do, or are they safe to feed often?

Thanks!

 

[wellington]

Are you talking the fruit or pads. According to what I have read before on the forum. It, the fruit is to be fed occasionally. According to what I have gathered on the forum with the pads, it can be fed often as part as a varied diet.

 

[CourtneyAndCarl]

You could send some to me for MY tortoise......

 

[tortadise]

Yeah I feed sparingly. I wish I could feed more because I have soooooo many of them on my cactus plants.

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Are you talking the fruit or pads. According to what I have read before on the forum. It, the fruit is to be fed occasionally. According to what I have gathered on the forum with the pads, it can be fed often as part as a varied diet.

Tunas are the fruit, nopales are the pads...they get nopales 2-3X a week, but usually there's only enough tunas for jam, jelly, a few pies and an occasional treat for my 4, but this year there are easily 10X as many available.

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You could send some to me for MY tortoise......

Be happy to do so, for the cost of the postage.

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Yeah I feed sparingly. I wish I could feed more because I have soooooo many of them on my cactus plants.

Bumper crop for you, too?

 

[wellington]

Have you ever tried freezing it? Seeing you have extra this year. Maybe you can experiment on different ways to preserve them. Then let us know which one is the best way. I have to buy mine from a produce store. They don't always have them. So when they do, I buy two or three. The problem, I don't feed it often enough to use all of it. It does last a long time in the frig, but I would love to know how to preserve it so when they do have it, I can buy lots.
Also, the pies and jam you make. Is it with the red ones or the green ones? Except for the outer skin, is all of it used? I have never tasted it. Does it need to be sweetened a lot? I may have to try this pie. I wouldn't mind the recipe, if you wouldn't mind Sharing it is it like making an apple pie?

 

[CourtneyAndCarl]

Have you ever tried freezing it? Seeing you have extra this year. Maybe you can experiment on different ways to preserve them. Then let us know which one is the best way. I have to buy mine from a produce store. They don't always have them. So when they do, I buy two or three. The problem, I don't feed it often enough to use all of it. It does last a long time in the frig, but I would love to know how to preserve it so when they do have it, I can buy lots.
Also, the pies and jam you make. Is it with the red ones or the green ones? Except for the outer skin, is all of it used? I have never tasted it. Does it need to be sweetened a lot? I may have to try this pie. I wouldn't mind the recipe, if you wouldn't mind Sharing it is it like making an apple pie?

You have found cactus pads at a produce store? WHICH ONE!?

 

[tortadise]

oh man they need not sweetening when ripe. Theyre kinda like a kiwi but better.

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Have you ever tried freezing it? Seeing you have extra this year. Maybe you can experiment on different ways to preserve them. Then let us know which one is the best way. I have to buy mine from a produce store. They don't always have them. So when they do, I buy two or three. The problem, I don't feed it often enough to use all of it. It does last a long time in the frig, but I would love to know how to preserve it so when they do have it, I can buy lots.
Also, the pies and jam you make. Is it with the red ones or the green ones? Except for the outer skin, is all of it used? I have never tasted it. Does it need to be sweetened a lot? I may have to try this pie. I wouldn't mind the recipe, if you wouldn't mind Sharing it is it like making an apple pie?

This is the pie recipe I use...Mmmmmmmmmmmmm good!:
http://stormteller.livejournal.com/118895.html

Here's a good jelly recipe, too:
http://www.rootsimple.com/2010/08/low-sugar-prickly-pear-jelly-recipe.html

And I just found a recipe for Tuna margaritas...in case anyone's interested :
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/prickly-pear-margarita-recipe/index.html

Been considering freezing some, see how well that works...if successful, I'll put a a gallon ziplock of 'em away for winter treats.

 

[tortadise]

Yep I make rum drinks with them. I sent some to jacqui dont remember her feedback on her rum drink experiance with them but I love em. I use about 3 a day and still cant put a dent in them. Maybe I will try to freeze some too. Puree it and bag it up. Great idea you guys.

 

[wellington]

futureleopardtortoise
Pads and the fruit. The pads aren't the spineless ones though. I only bought them one time. The store is called fresh farms, they have them all the time. The fruit I buy at a store called "Produce" its a polish grocery. I have also found pads at Dominick's and Whole foods. However they only have them like maybe a couple times a summer. I haven't bought them since last summer. When I realized there were spineless ones, I ordered those from Tortoise Supply.

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Yep I make rum drinks with them. I sent some to jacqui dont remember her feedback on her rum drink experiance with them but I love em. I use about 3 a day and still cant put a dent in them. Maybe I will try to freeze some too. Puree it and bag it up. Great idea you guys.

I think Jacqui really liked them, so much, she can't remember

---

Have you ever tried freezing it? Seeing you have extra this year. Maybe you can experiment on different ways to preserve them. Then let us know which one is the best way. I have to buy mine from a produce store. They don't always have them. So when they do, I buy two or three. The problem, I don't feed it often enough to use all of it. It does last a long time in the frig, but I would love to know how to preserve it so when they do have it, I can buy lots.
Also, the pies and jam you make. Is it with the red ones or the green ones? Except for the outer skin, is all of it used? I have never tasted it. Does it need to be sweetened a lot? I may have to try this pie. I wouldn't mind the recipe, if you wouldn't mind Sharing it is it like making an apple pie?

This is the pie recipe I use...Mmmmmmmmmmmmm good!:
http://stormteller.livejournal.com/118895.html

Here's a good jelly recipe, too:
http://www.rootsimple.com/2010/08/low-sugar-prickly-pear-jelly-recipe.html

And I just found a recipe for Tuna margaritas...in case anyone's interested :
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/prickly-pear-margarita-recipe/index.html

Been considering freezing some, see how well that works...if successful, I'll put a a gallon ziplock of 'em away for winter treats.

Thank you. I will deff try the pie and the margarita, yum. My mother does the jelly, I will have her do that one.