tortoise diet ????

[Blu Mongoose]

We"ve had our leopard tort hatchling for a few months now. He is the picture of health and has a great appetite. The thing is , I keep hearing horror stories about growth problems with new hatchlings. Since this is my first to raise from a hatchling it worries me. If there are any serious tort people out there, let me hear from you. I did check out the turtle trust for some facts , but amounts to be fed weren't mentioned.
He eats a variety of dried grasses and dark green and yellow vegatables, with cuttle bone on the side.
He gets at least 10 hrs of lighting a day. Any knowledgable input would be appreciated.

Thanks!

[Halfdawg]

I will see what I can come up with for ya on proper feeding. The thing is there are people out there that dont care to do any reading on proper care and feeding and just feed them dog food because they grow faster. But they dont know that high proteins are bad for thier kidney, liver and digestion systems. We would also like to see a pic of your new little Tortoise.

[Blu Mongoose]

Here is a pic of the hatchling. We feed a low protien diet. But since this is our first hatchling and I hear so much about what can go wrong, I want to know as much as possible.
As tiny as he is, he isn't shy. He comes running up to us when we come over to his enclosure.

[cpx_20o5]

Hi, lovely leopard tortoise.
Theyre diet is alot like sulcata (Geochelone Sulcata - African Spur Thighed Tortoise).
Which is fibre and greens.

Here is a list of whats edible for leopards, sulcatas and most tortoises around.
Orchid Grass, Bermuda Grass, Clovers, Dandelions, Kale, Spring greens, Garden Sage, Meadow Sage, Prickly Pear, Timothy Hay, Cress, Yellow BedStraw, Hibiscus, Oat Grass, Lawn Grass, and similar things..

Leopards often would graze upon mixed grasses, prickly pear, succulents and thistles.

heres a list of what is actually edible (from Chelonia.org)
Hibiscus (leaves & Flowers)*
Morus (Mulberry, leaves)
Gazania krebsiana*
Barleria obtusa* (flowers)
Tradescantia (wandering Jew)*
Aloe vera (African)
Abutilon hybridium (Cinese Lantern, flowers)
Mimula luteus & cupreus
Cotyledon orbiculata (green variety)
Painted Lady*
Echeveria fimbriata*
Echeveria coccinea*
Echeveria elegans*
Echeveria agavoides
Graptoveria debbi
Graptoveria bellum
Kalanchoe beharensis
Kalanchoe tomentosa
Kalanchoe rhombopilosa
Kalanchoe tubiflora
Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi
Kalanchoe blossfeldiana
Lampranthus spectabilis (vygie, daisy like flower)
Lampranthus haworthi
Malvaviscus arboreum (Fire-dart bush - flowers)*
Papaya or Pawpaw leaves
Testudinaria elephantipes
Testudinaria macrostachya (also called tortoise plant)
Lippia*
Gerbera jamesoni - Barbeton daisy
Dimorphotheca pluvialis (Cape Daisy)
D.sinuata (Namaqualand daisy)
Arctotis (African daisy)
Lederbouria spp*
Violets (not African - English)*
Petunias*
Lobularia maritama (Alyssum or sweet Alice)
Watercress (not from marshy areas - contaminated)
Endives
Russelia juncea (coral plant - flowers)*
Mesembryanthemum (Lampranthus spp - ice plant)
Aeonium arboreum
Geranium (Pelargonium)
Aeonium haworthii
Agave parryi
Aloe kedongensis
Cotyledon (most types)
ladismithensis
Chlorophytum comosum (Indigenous hen & chicken)*
Schlumbergera spp
Calisia repens (golliwog)*
Dichondra repens (wonderlawn)*
Berula erecta
Callisia elegans
Bulbine natalensis
Bulbine latifolia
Albucalilly* (flowers)
Eriocephalus africanus
Colocasia spp(not to be confused with elephants foot Alocasia macrorrhiza)
Mackaya bella (flowers)*
White and blue Mazus*
Nylandtia spinosa (tortoise berry)
Portulacca*
Bauhinia natalensis
Ifafa lilly
Odontonemia strictum (cardinals cloak)
Indigenous hibiscus (red leaf)
Violets
Erica (Heath - most types)
Comfrey

As many different grasses as you can supply from the following list (70% of diet):

Couch grass (Cynodon dactylon)
Eastern Province vlei grass (Eragrostis lehmanniana)
Dew grass (Eragrostis pseudo-obtusa)
Bushman grass (Schmidtia kalahariensis)
Carrot grass (Tragus racemosus)
Beesgras (Urochloa pantcoides)
Veld grass (Ehrhartacalycina)
Darnel rye grass (Lolium temulentum)
Barnyard grass (Echinochloa crus-galli)
Mouse barley grass (Hordeum murinum)
Crab finger grass (Digitaria sanguinalis)
Dallas grass (Paspalum dilatatum)
Wintergrass (Poa annua)
Dropseed grass (Sporobolus africanus)
Kikiyu grass (Pennisetum clandestinum)
Buffalo grass (Stenotaphrum secondatum)
Swazi grass (Digitaria swazilandensis)
Alfalfa (Lucerne - beware, high protein!)



Weeds (* indicates vital to diet):

Plantago major (Broad leafed plantain)*
Plantago lanceolata ( Buckhorn, narrow leafed plantain)*
Taraxacum officinale (Dandelion most important)*
Cnicus benedictus (Thistle)
Galinsoga parviflora (Small flowered quickweed)
Opuntia (most types)*
Rubus cuneifolius (Sand bramble)
Paperthorn*
Tribulis terrestris (common dubbeltjie)*
Arctotheca calebdula (Cape marigold)
Trifolium repens (white clover) Note: becomes toxic when dry.
Cerastium capensi (Cape chickweed)*
Silybum marianum (Blessed milk thistle)
Commelina benghalensis (indigenous wandering jew)*
Clover*

NB: Grass is a very important part of their diet and should be available in large quantities. Opuntia cactus is also excellent for leopard tortoises. It has a good calcium to phosphorus ratio and is very high in fiber

[Blu Mongoose]

Thanks for the input. I greatly appreciate it. We went to the vet for a checkup and all is well. I have an indoor garden for them and am adding to it all the time. Due to the climate here they can't live outside year round, so I try to offer as close to a natural diet as possible.

[cpx_20o5]

Thanks for the input. I greatly appreciate it. We went to the vet for a checkup and all is well. I have an indoor garden for them and am adding to it all the time. Due to the climate here they can't live outside year round, so I try to offer as close to a natural diet as possible.

Sounds all good so far!
The good thing about leopars, sulcatas and hermanns, is what their diet is! its all natural and wild for them, which is very good.

Whats your indoor setup like?

[Blu Mongoose]

Whats your indoor setup like?

Because he is so tiny, he is in an open top tank with uvb lighting.
He also has a basking light at one end , with a thermostat.
has a hide box and a shallow ( 3/8 in. deep) water dish to avoid drowning. Grasses for subtrate. When he grows larger he will be moved to a wooden enclosure with hole cut to sink his dishes in.
Finding a dish that shallow was a trick. I finally found a heavy glass soap dish that was perfect.
If you can add anything feel free.

[cpx_20o5]

Hey Blu Mongoose, sounds great really.
Even trhough glass tanks and wooden vivs are bad, whe you say wooden enclosure do you mean a "Tortoise/Turtle Table"?

Do you have any soil/bed-a-beast substrate at all?
Since leopards are fine diggers, they really need something to properly dig into.
You can use soil and bed-a-beast around the basking spot area, this will allow them to dig after theyve basked.
My hermanns love it.

In future, for dishes and what not, you can use a plant pot saucer?
or a plate that is like sunk in a fair bit.
OR if you wanted you can use large jar lids, or shallow plastic tubs with stones in the bottom so they dont drown.
=] any of them are perfect.

Also, if you dont already! you might wanna add some climable things.
you can use slate bits piled on each other, or large stones or rocks that are different sizes.
I sue 6 small slate peices around 3-5 inches long each! and i have 3 rocks, 1 flat pebble like rock, 1 bumpy rock and 1 large pebble rock at different levels of the cage.
Then i have a peice of bark! which they like to climb along with a log hide.
Everything is climbable to a tortoise.
They are good climbers.
Normally they can flip them selves back ontop their feet if they fall on their backs.

[West Coast Jungle]

I have a leopard and they make great lawn mowers
High fiber grasses should be the majority of there diet. Mine lives outdoors most of the year but right now she is in the green house until cold and rain pass. She gets mostly grasses but also gets raddacio, escarole and endive mixes too. They love dandelion leaves too! A little calcium dust once or twice a week as babies and UV lighting and you should be fine.

Yours is a cuty. best of luck

[cpx_20o5]

I Agree, like most tortoises they make great lawn mowers.
in the summer time, if your lawn needs trimming, let your tortoise roam supervised over the hole garden, they'll trim it!
When theyre adults you got a reall good lawn mower then!
Like west coast jungle said, their diet is mostly high fiber grasses, which means their diet is so easy!
you can grow all kinds of grass and feed it.

if you wanted, you could convert an indoor enclosure into a grass haven!
Get some grass turf, add about 3 inches of soil under the turf so the grass can grow nicely, and then you plant in other grass and weed seeds and you hang your uv light over the middle, and have just soil under the basking light.
ANd just let it all grow!
Naturally trim it once in awhile, with hatchlings long grass could get caught on them and they could get stuck!

I did this actually for my pair of hermanns tortoises, did great for along time!
i miss it!