The result is either nutritional deficiency or dietary problems such as obesity. Hee hee! However due to one instance in which a tortoise was found dead with a large number of buttercups in it's . Can turtles eat peanut butter? Jocelyn Hsu. Whilst many of the plants and vegetables tortoises eat do contain calcium, it often isnt in high enough quantities, or at least consistently high enough quantities to meet the tortoises needs. In addition to this offer sow thistles, plantain weeds, clover, and succulents. However, only fruit-eaters can eat them. Feed them daily or every other day. Besides leafy green vegetables tortoises are pretty keen on other lumpier veg such as peppers, cauliflower or broccoli, and even butternut squash. We can conclude that horses can safely consume peanut butter in limited amounts. When researching your tortoise food list, you will need to ensure they have the right supplementary foods for them. This is bad for the health of the chelonian. Occasionally, they are also known to consume carrion, insects, and even dung, but this is rare. Furthermore tortoises are well known for being able to take in water from both ends (yes really!) See our Burmese Mountain Tortoise Care Guide for more details. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[120,600],'tortoiseexpert_com-portrait-1','ezslot_28',119,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-tortoiseexpert_com-portrait-1-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[120,600],'tortoiseexpert_com-portrait-1','ezslot_29',119,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-tortoiseexpert_com-portrait-1-0_1');.portrait-1-multi-119{border:none!important;display:block!important;float:none!important;line-height:0;margin-bottom:15px!important;margin-left:auto!important;margin-right:auto!important;margin-top:15px!important;max-width:100%!important;min-height:600px;padding:0;text-align:center!important}, Arid Grassland/Dry Jungle Tropical Tortoise Species. Provide a single small piece of meat or protein rich food once per week. They feed on succulents and herbaceous vegetation such as grasses, flowers, twigs, twigs, leaves, and stems of native plants. The short answer is yescats can eat peanut butter. These include broad and narrow-leaf plantains, clovers bindweeds, chickweed, corn poppy, goats beard, hawkbit, nipplewort, violas, white nettle, Brussel tops, carrot, clover, coriander, curly kale, dandelion, honeysuckle, leafy salads, parsley, rocket, spring greens, bell pepper, courgette, parsnip, and watercress. Thread starter lovelyrosepetal; Start date Feb 8, 2013; Status Not open for further replies. If you can keep it separate from the rest of the Mazuri and mix it in about once a week, and not every day, I really doubt it would be that big a problem. I have been looking for a complete list of foods that an Afgan tortoise CAN have..how can you tell how old it is..it showed up at my gate last week, now looking to take care of it as no one has come to claim it. Vetches such as Common Vetch and Kidney Vetch can all be eaten. Hebes are a family of ornamental shrubs that are native to New Zealand. If your tortoise is housed indoors, you will need to supplement its food with vitamin D3 as well. But your tortoise also loves these flowers as food! However, dogs have a more difficult time digesting fat. The red-footed tortoise is not a strict herbivore as they also eat animal matter. See our Sulcata care guide for more details. This can be harmful, especially if kept up for many years. These omnivores eat fruits during the wet season and flowers during the dry season. Some of these species include red-footed, Indian stars, and elongated tortoises. They can also be offered fruits occasionally (once a week in limited amounts) and commercial diets. Offer substantial meals every other day but offer food every day. Knowing the right foods to feed our reptile friends ensures that they are healthy and grow well. Remember to dust their food with calcium and vitamin D3 supplements. Bread, just like most human-consumed food, has added preservatives that can harm tortoises. But if you're wondering if it's a safe or even healthy treat to share with Fido, there are a few things . The species is known to feed on seeds, nuts, and grains. Buttercups are a grey area when it comes to deciding if they are safe for tortoises or not. Additionally, lightly dust all the food offered to them with calcium (twice a week) and vitamin D3 powder (once a week). On this blog I share my experiences of raising and caring for tortoises and everything I've learned along the way to help other tortoise owners. Eating a controlled amount of peanut butter will not cause any physical harm to Rottweilers. Peanut butter is a popular treat for dogs, so you may be wondering if your cat can eat peanut butter, too. Both creamy and crunchy peanut butter blends are equally attractive to birds. Ensure that these foods make up about 80 percent of the tortoises diet. Unsurprisingly, fruit should be provided the most scarcely of all, and never citrus varieties. Peanut butter is unsafe to give to rabbits. The scientific name of the species is Malacochersus tornieri. link to What Happens If My Tortoise Eats a Slug or Snail? Growing your own plants helps avoid any harmful pesticides from affecting your pet. Many of these plants such as succulents and houseplants can make excellent tortoise table plants to give your tortoise some cover. Your tortoise should mainly feed on grasses and salad vegetables, but throughout this list well provide some common alternatives that can be great additions to your reptiles diet. Daffodils are another bulb plant, like Crocuses, that are completely toxic to tortoises. Birds can have peanut butter that is past its best by date, but no butter that is rancid, moldy, or spoiled should be available to birds, as it could be toxic or dangerous. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'tortoiseexpert_com-leader-2','ezslot_12',115,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-tortoiseexpert_com-leader-2-0'); This means that jungle tropical tortoises have evolved to be omnivorous and able to digest a wider range of food groups without issue. Top. Some of these include bread, bran, pasta, onions, garlic, rhubarb, and dairy products such as cheese and yogurt. Tortoises are primarily herbiverous animals and consume a range of different weeds, grasses, and leafy vegetables, as well as commercially available tortoise feeds. Sprinkle calcium (twice a week) and vitamin D3 (once a week) powder on their food. For example I have a dry mix that includes Red Clover, Marigold, and Plantain, none of which I would normally have to hand. One rule of thumb seems to be; whatever your tortoise can consume within half and hour should be the amount you continue to provide for them. These perennials are hardy flowers that are extremely popular with tortoises. While several species of tortoises such as greek and elongated tortoises do eat mealworms, this is rare. While the length of an average adult red-footed tortoise is 12 inches, they can grow to be over 16 inches. Thread starter . Grasses, weeds and other fibrous plants such as plantains, bindweeds, chickweed, corn poppy, goats beard, hawkbit, nipplewort, violas, and white nettle should be offered. I was given a Red Footed Tortoise that is thought to be around 20 years old and weighs around 12lbs. When it comes to the amount of food to offer the chelonian, you should allow it to eat as much as it can. Posted: Wed May 19, 2010 10:15 pm. The leopard tortoise, on the other hand, drinks a lot of water. Tortoises can consume butter lettuce as part of their diets because it is nutritious, low in calories, and high in fiber. These fleshy stalks contain oxalates, which are tiny calcium crystals that can cause severe irritation to your tortoise, especially when ingested. if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[250,250],'tortoiseexpert_com-mobile-leaderboard-1','ezslot_17',121,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-tortoiseexpert_com-mobile-leaderboard-1-0'); I wont list every possible plant you could feed your tortoise, as there are many lists available elsewhere, but one of the most comprehensive of which can be found here. Citrus fruits are a definite no no, and that goes for all tortoises. Growing a variety of these common flowers in your garden can provide a welcome snack for your tortoise as it roams around. When vegetation is scarce, they may turn to animal materials such as slugs, snails, worms, and other small insects to fulfill their dietary needs. Check out this article for more detail on calcium sources, and which you should use and avoid.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'tortoiseexpert_com-narrow-sky-1','ezslot_21',127,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-tortoiseexpert_com-narrow-sky-1-0');if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'tortoiseexpert_com-narrow-sky-1','ezslot_22',127,'0','1'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-tortoiseexpert_com-narrow-sky-1-0_1');.narrow-sky-1-multi-127{border:none!important;display:block!important;float:none!important;line-height:0;margin-bottom:7px!important;margin-left:auto!important;margin-right:auto!important;margin-top:7px!important;max-width:100%!important;min-height:250px;padding:0;text-align:center!important}. Contrary to what some may think, you can't only feed a tortoise lettuce leaves. While they can eat cauliflower in small quantities. These species are native to tropical jungle regions in Africa and South America, as well as the arid grasslands of sub Saharan Africa. Everything You Need to Know About a Sleeping Turtle, Rep-Cal Maintenance Formula Tortoise Food, Zoo Med Tortoise & Box Turtle Flower Food Topper, Zoo Med Reptile Calcium without Vitamin D3, Sea Turtle Hatching Season Around The Globe (Top 25 Locations), Bermuda grass (the chelonians can graze on bermudagrass lawns), beans (pinto, lima, kidney, green, garbanzo). You should provide any human food for them in general, but those with added sugar, preservatives or colors are particularly dangerous to their health. You can also allow them to graze on Bermuda grass. It is safe to consider the species a herbivore. In the case of a lactating sow, a steady diet of peanuts is necessary to ensure no change in the sow's weight. Gazanias resemble large yellow and orange daisies with dark inner markings. Since your pet tortoise is domesticated, it will most likely eat anything you feed it, including bread. Buttercups For Tortoises - Summary. And due to the food's caloric density, weight gain is a risk, especially for indoor pets or overweight cats. I have many years of experience caring for tortoises and currently own a 4 year old Hermann's Tortoise called Terry. It is recommended to feed subadults and adults a mix of leafy greens, grasses, weeds, and other fibrous plants about four times a week. There are many tortoise safe plants that you can feed your tortoise. Please remember that it should be a seasonal 'treat.' It is crucial to limit their consumption to 1-2 tablespoons. They have dark-colored, loaf-shaped carapaces (back shell) with a lighter patch in the middle of each scute . The binomial name of this species is Manouria emys. They make excellent cover for tortoises and can also be eaten safely. Sulcata and Leopard tortoises are predominantly grazers, so much like sheep they spend their days chomping away on grass. Succulents make excellent tortoise table plants, especially for desert-dwelling tortoise species. Providing a good choice of edible plants for your tortoise is always preferable to relying on shop-bought salads. Other tortoises in the genus Testudo (Mediterranean tortoises) include the Egyptian tortoise (Testudo kleinmanni), and the marginated tortoise (Testudo marginata). However, there is a catch. This turtle is endemic to South America, specifically Paraguay, Bolivia, and Argentina. 9 / 13. They also need to feed on grasses, weeds, and hay. Putting houseplants fresh from the store into your tortoises enclosure can run the risk of your tortoise consuming harmful pesticides. I recommend Zoo Med Reptile Calcium without Vitamin D3. This not only minimizes the amount of fruit you can give them, but it can seriously damage their internal organs. Well also touch on any toxic plants for tortoises so that you know exactly what to avoid. Most tortoises do not eat mealworms. The list contains even more plant species that you can feed to your tortoise safely. If you must feed them cabbage, do so in limited quantities. As with other tortoises, the Testudo kleinmanni will only eat as much as it needs. While both the Greek and Hermanns tortoises accept animal protein such as cat food, avoid feeding them this. Yes, they can eat collard greens.