tortoise food

[LeaderLeprechaun]

i know that i cant feed turbo, my red foot, a varied diet like he would get in the wild. i have it as varied as i can get it with different fruits and different greens, vegetables and such. but i know its prolly best if i get him once a week some kind of mazuri. ive been looking for stuff that petsmart carries because thats the closest pet store too me and i found this item. however im a little worried cuz i thought i heard about alfalfa being bad for them in substrate and it has a form of alfalfa in the food. has anyone used this type of food for a tropical forest species? any advice would be appreciated. and no i didnt see any mazuri specifically for torts.

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11147189

 

[Niki]

I actually just last night ordered a one lb bag of mauzri for my RT to try. If you look on the for sale thread there are people selling it and has the ingredients listed. I am no expert on mauzri but I think the petsmart kind isn't what you want... But someone with more experience will post something. I see so many people feeding it to there torts.. I had to try!

 

[LeaderLeprechaun]

I actually just last night ordered a one lb bag of mauzri for my RT to try. If you look on the for sale thread there are people selling it and has the ingredients listed. I am no expert on mauzri but I think the petsmart kind isn't what you want... But someone with more experience will post something. I see so many people feeding it to there torts.. I had to try!

xD im not a trusting person when it comes to buying items from someone i dont know and isnt from a store that i cant return items to, sorry. thank you for replying

 

[Jacob]

I Really dont know what to do you, if no stores by your area carry it.and you dont wanna order it online.
You can check reptile stores in your area and see if they have a way to carry it, or order it from a big tortoise website
so you feel safer

 

[Niki]

xD im not a trusting person when it comes to buying items from someone i dont know and isnt from a store that i cant return items to, sorry. thank you for replying

I understand... Just to let you know, I ordered it from Az tort compound and went through pay pal. I am not sure the return policy is. But I get that you want to actually see it before the purchase! Just throwing it out there...

 

[jaizei]

The search function on this forum is amazing.


http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Zoo-Meds-food-vs-Mazuri#axzz1ubbjeJTZ
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Zoo-Med-Natural-Forest-Tortoise-Food#axzz1ubbjeJTZ
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Zoomed-Tortoise-Food#axzz1ubbjeJTZ

 

[LeaderLeprechaun]

The search function on this forum is amazing.


http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Zoo-Meds-food-vs-Mazuri#axzz1ubbjeJTZ
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Zoo-Med-Natural-Forest-Tortoise-Food#axzz1ubbjeJTZ
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Zoomed-Tortoise-Food#axzz1ubbjeJTZ

i have done a search tyvm.

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I Really dont know what to do you, if no stores by your area carry it.and you dont wanna order it online.
You can check reptile stores in your area and see if they have a way to carry it, or order it from a big tortoise website
so you feel safer

kk thanks for your reply

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xD im not a trusting person when it comes to buying items from someone i dont know and isnt from a store that i cant return items to, sorry. thank you for replying

I understand... Just to let you know, I ordered it from Az tort compound and went through pay pal. I am not sure the return policy is. But I get that you want to actually see it before the purchase! Just throwing it out there...

i appreciate it

 

[dmmj]

Do you live near a fed store? If so they should be able to order both a 5 pound and a 25 pound bag for you, you most likely won't find it in smaller sizes than 5 pounds in a retail store, if that is what you are looking for.

 

[LeaderLeprechaun]

Do you live near a fed store? If so they should be able to order both a 5 pound and a 25 pound bag for you, you most likely won't find it in smaller sizes than 5 pounds in a retail store, if that is what you are looking for.

no i dont lol but thanks

 

[DixieParadise]

Prior to getting the Mazuri, I fed my RF's the Natural Forrest food. Because I have a Box Turtle, I mixed with the ZooMed Box Turtle feed (smaller pellets). They ate it and did fine with it. It was not an everyday thing as my Mazuri is just a twice a week feed for them. Mostly their diet is mixed greens and some fruits with Protein on Sunday.

So in answer to your original question, yes that is an acceptable diet for them. I believe their is a thread somewhere on the forum polling the the two, Mazuri or ZooMed foods. And to be honest with you, my torts seem to like the ZooMed better than the Mazuri. So, don't miss what you don't have...PM me your address and I will send you a sample. Just so you can compare the two.

 

[Utah Lynn]

All I can tell you is, I bought the Grassland for my Russians', and they won't touch it. Some torts do, some torts don't.

 

[LeaderLeprechaun]

Prior to getting the Mazuri, I fed my RF's the Natural Forrest food. Because I have a Box Turtle, I mixed with the ZooMed Box Turtle feed (smaller pellets). They ate it and did fine with it. It was not an everyday thing as my Mazuri is just a twice a week feed for them. Mostly their diet is mixed greens and some fruits with Protein on Sunday.

So in answer to your original question, yes that is an acceptable diet for them. I believe their is a thread somewhere on the forum polling the the two, Mazuri or ZooMed foods. And to be honest with you, my torts seem to like the ZooMed better than the Mazuri. So, don't miss what you don't have...PM me your address and I will send you a sample. Just so you can compare the two.

thanks

 

[Tom]

A few things: There are several long term trustable members here on the forum that sell Mazuri in small quantities. In fact there is not a member that sells it that I wouldn't trust. Tortoisesupply.com is my personal friend Tyler and he has been been here on the forum longer than I have. Its only a few bucks you are risking and its a really good food. If Tyler doesn't send you your food on time and in excellent condition, I will PERSONALLY send you a check for twice the amount you paid out. I am THAT confident that he is legitimate and on the level. I don't know the other sellers personally, but I have not heard one single complaint about any of them, and if there were a problem we WOULD hear ALL about it...

Second: You live in Mississippi. There are horses and livestock every where there. There simply must be horse supply and feed stores somewhere not too far away...

Third: Alfalfa is bad as a substrate because it is too dry, but it is not harmful in any way. It used to be thought of as a bad food due to the relatively high protein content, back when some of us mistakenly believed that protein caused pyramiding. Plant protein is no problem for a redfoot and alfalfa really a good food, as part of a balanced diet, for any tortoise. I am just about to plant a bunch of my own alfalfa. The ZooMed food is good. You may need to mix a small amount of it with some chopped up greens after soaking it first, to get him started on it.

 

[Madkins007]

Dang. Tom said pretty much exactly what I was going to.

However, I would not stress about it much. While a lot of people (including me) think some Mazuri is helpful, it is not vital and if it causes you too many problems getting it, I would really not bother much.

Besides, in Mississippi, can't you pretty much just toss some seeds on the ground and grow almost anything? You could GROW a great diet that would probably be a lot cheaper than any processed foods.

 

[LeaderLeprechaun]

A few things: There are several long term trustable members here on the forum that sell Mazuri in small quantities. In fact there is not a member that sells it that I wouldn't trust. Tortoisesupply.com is my personal friend Tyler and he has been been here on the forum longer than I have. Its only a few bucks you are risking and its a really good food. If Tyler doesn't send you your food on time and in excellent condition, I will PERSONALLY send you a check for twice the amount you paid out. I am THAT confident that he is legitimate and on the level. I don't know the other sellers personally, but I have not heard one single complaint about any of them, and if there were a problem we WOULD hear ALL about it...

Second: You live in Mississippi. There are horses and livestock every where there. There simply must be horse supply and feed stores somewhere not too far away...

Third: Alfalfa is bad as a substrate because it is too dry, but it is not harmful in any way. It used to be thought of as a bad food due to the relatively high protein content, back when some of us mistakenly believed that protein caused pyramiding. Plant protein is no problem for a redfoot and alfalfa really a good food, as part of a balanced diet, for any tortoise. I am just about to plant a bunch of my own alfalfa. The ZooMed food is good. You may need to mix a small amount of it with some chopped up greens after soaking it first, to get him started on it.

i know there are livestock feeds around here but i live on the gulf coast. the beach area lol. if i wanna get to a feed and stock store id have to drive 2+ hours up and then 2 back. plus i doubt my mom will actually let me drive that just for a small bag of feed. but i have started him on the zoomed and hes kinda eating it. but i only feed it to him once or twice a week. all the other days i feed him hibiscus (f+l), spring mix or collard greens, squash, pineapple, strawberries, pear, etc. i was just curious about mazuri and such cuz i wanted him to have a well rounded diet. and im glad there hasnt been a problem with online purchases here. i might consider it down the road if the little box of feed i have goes well. plus a friend on here is mailing me a sample of mazuri to test it out before i buy some, which i am very grateful for.

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Dang. Tom said pretty much exactly what I was going to.

However, I would not stress about it much. While a lot of people (including me) think some Mazuri is helpful, it is not vital and if it causes you too many problems getting it, I would really not bother much.

Besides, in Mississippi, can't you pretty much just toss some seeds on the ground and grow almost anything? You could GROW a great diet that would probably be a lot cheaper than any processed foods.

that is incorrect. the soil where i live isnt fertile. it has too much sand. now in the delta near the river the soil is superb for growing but since i live near the beach is is almost impossible to make grass grow even much less anything else. im currently struggling with growing watermelon, bell pepper and even forget-me-nots. plus my family and i in the past tried to make a small growing patch which was hardly successful because of how sandy it is. if its not sand in some areas its clay

 

[Redstrike]

There is a forum member on here (jdub) that sells mazuri at a very low price per pound (I think I bought 1lb for 7.99 - this included shipping). On a per volume basis, it is pricier than most large-scale purchases, but I use it 1-2 times per month and don't need more than a small quantity. I can tell you the shipping was fast and the service was exceptional!

I also use the Zoo Med forest tortoise diet on occasion because it's a bit more natural than Mazuri. My two redfoots love it and it makes a good supplement 1-2 times every couple of weeks.

Other than this, I think Tom provided an excellent approach with any local feed stores to obtain Mazuri and like Madkins said, it's not critical. There are many that do not use any processed foods for their tortoises and they are beautiful and healthy animals (http://www.redfootman.net). As I've said above, I do use both processed foods as minor components to the diet, mainly as supplements.

 

[Paradon]

I've been told that some species can be hard to raised to adulthood and breed without Mazuri. IF you look at Mazuri, it has had a long, good track record for more than 30 years. It was design to help the Golopagos tortoise get a head start in life in captivity. The diet in captivity can be quite limited, especially for people who cannot get good fresh greens all year round; this is why some people add commercial food like Mazuri to diet a couple times week to round and boost the overall nutrition of the limited captive diet.

 

[LeaderLeprechaun]

I've been told that some species can be hard to raised to adulthood and breed without Mazuri. IF you look at Mazuri, it has had a long, good track record for more than 30 years. It was design to help the Golopagos tortoise get a head start in life in captivity. The diet in captivity can be quite limited, especially for people who cannot get good fresh greens all year round; this is why some people add commercial food like Mazuri to diet a couple times week to round and boost the overall nutrition of the limited captive diet.

lol i kno that but that wasnt the reason for the thread. i was asking about a specific product but thanks for your input

 

[Cindy Ski]

that carolinapetsupply.com is a great site!