What to most tortoises eat ?

Question

i'm looking after a friends tortoise & i would really like to vary its food, whats the best thing to feed a tortoise, i don't have a clue what breed it is, thanks

Answer 1

fruit and veggies mine used to like dandelion leaves also banana and tomato

Answer 2

YOU SHOULD BE VERY CAREFUL. If you can, post a picture of the tortoise so we can identify it for you. Some tortoises are from desert areas and tend to eat grasses, dark veggies and cacti but some are from humid areas like forests, etc and tend to eat (and need) more fruit and even protein laden foods like meats. Can you describe it at all? The safest thing to do if you cant identify it is to just feed it leafy greens but stay away from fruits (since most tend to eat leafy greens like kale, mustard greens, etc) but not all eat fruits, etc.  

Answer 3

i have a hermann tortoise, his favourite foods are

-baby corn

-tomato

-cucumber

-strawberry

-watercress

-cabbage

-fresh greens

WHAT EVER YOU DO, DO NOT FEED IT LETTUCE AS THEY CANT DIGEST IT AND IT COULD KILL IT! I WAS TOLD THIS BY THE PET SHOP THAT I BROUGHT MY TORTOISE FROM

Answer 4

I thought they eat lettuce leaves?

Answer 5

tomato, curly kale, & cucumber are good choices

Answer 6

Weeds Weeds and more Weeds.  Some tropical tortoises need some protein too, so it depends what kind of tortoise you have.  

Tomatoes, cucumber and lettuce is not really ok as the tortoise will not gain any nutritional value from these foods.  This the leads to tortoises getting really bumpy shells which is a sign of metabolic bone disease and ultimately a premature death.  Saying this fresh food is always going to be by far better than any of the tortoise pellets you see for sale in the pet shops. which are too high in protein and have no calcium or goodness.  There have been many research articles into such foods.

Romaine lettuce is good for tortoises and this is included in Florette's crispy salad if you want fast food.  But this should be given as part of a varied diet.

You can grow your own weeds and buy the seeds from sites like the urban tortoise or you can pick your own weeds, but be careful they haven't been sprayed.

Ok, readily available weeds and edible plants... Dandelion, plantain, sow thistle, hawkbit, sedums, opuntia cactus, shepherds purse, forget me nots, hibiscus, speedwell, mallow, vetch.

You can also sprinkle Limestone flour for added calcium and nutrobal vitamin supplements on the weeds and plants and then you will have one healthy tortoise!

Good Luck

Answer 7

i knew a couple who had one and fed it salad: cucumber, lettuce, tomato etc. but as a treat he used to get a batch of dandelion heads each day( like a hand full ). I think it would depend on the tortoise so ask a vet or pet shop owner if i were you, good luck  

Answer 8

Leafy greens, flowers, grasses and sometimes insects. Pet tortoises usually need stuff like alfalfa, dandelions and clover.

Answer 9

lettuce small carrots cumcimbers.......be sure to wash the food so you dont kill the tortoiuse

Answer 10

Dandelion leaves and flowers, (they love them), Cucumber, Courgette, Carrot, Tomato, Lamb's lettuce, Romain Lettuce, Never feed it Iceberg lettuce as it is useless to tortoises as they cannot absorb anything from it. Berries, e.g. Blackberries, Strawberries, Raspberries, Blueberries. Fruit, Apples, Grapes, Peaches. You can try banana, but my tortoise doesn't like it much. Don't try oranges or tangerines as I feel that they could be a stomach upsetter. Try not to feed it much fruit. Try and stick to vegetables. No meat or human processed foods also. Tortoises also eat ready made tortoise formula foods like pellets and dried fibreous foods.

Have fun xxxx

Answer 11

letucce and tomatoes...... mostly veggies

Answer 12

Tortoises are best fed on weeds, Dandelions, clover etc. You can also feed romaine lettuce, kale, finely chopped carrot but as part of a balanced diet. Stay away from tomato's and fruit only feed as a special treat, very rarely! Good Luck

Answer 13

Fruits and Vegetables

The following fruits and vegetables can be given to aquatic turtles (and box turtles): grated carrot and squash, cut apple and pear, corn (cooked kernels), peas, most tropical fruits (banana, papaya, guava, etc.), grapes, most berries (strawberries, raspberries, etc.), most leafy greens (romaine lettuce, collard, kale, mustard, dandelion, watercress, arugula, parsley, etc.), most melons (cantaloupe, honeydew, watermelon, etc.), and many others.

Answer 14

vegetables! Tortoises naturally eat vegetation... feed it lettuce, shredded carrots, radishes etc

Answer 15

http://www.tortoisetrust.org/  

http://austinsturtlepage.com/  here are two sites where you can look up what type of tortoise you are looking after, it does make a difference as to what you feed it but for a quick measure until you find out what tortoise you are looking after feed it a natural weed diet as suggested by the tortoise trust as nearly all tortoises will eat his with out causing harm and is the basic diet for most tortoises but you do need to know what type of tortoise you are looking after to feed it correctly, really your friend should have left you with feeding  instructions best of luck honey hope you find what you are looking for

Answer 16

lettuce and other green edible leaves

Answer 17

Most tortoises do well on a diet of weeds. NO VEGTABLES OR FRUIT!! Unlike what everyone else is recommending. This would include clover, dandelions, plantain etc..

Look on this forum as there are lots of pictures of suitable weeds you can easily find growing.

http://www.shelledwarriors.co.uk/forum/