9Boxies had posted a request for a recipe using gelatin a few weeks back. I collect turtle books, and I remembered reading about a gelatin recipe. I was looking at the volumes from the 70's, but I finally found it in "Turtles: A Complete Pet Owner's Manual" by Hartmut Wilke published in English in 1983.



I'm just passing this on! I don't necessarily recommend it, and I've never used it. This guy calls it a "miracle food". Well, it's been 23 years and nobody that I know is using it. Take that for what it's worth.



"The ingredients are as follows: For predominantly vegetarian turtles: 75% to 85% vegetable matter composed of as many different kinds and textures as possible. For meat eaters: 60% to 70% meat and fish of all kinds, including frozen shrimp and octopus, raw liver, and eggs; in short, any animal protein except fats and pork.



The rest of the 100% (measured in weight) is made up of foods of the opposite class, i.e., herbivores get 80% plant material and 20% animal proteins, and carnivores get the larger percentage in meat and fish.



After all the ingredients are washed, they are ground up in an electric mixer and should produce a liquid with the consistency of honey. Heat this mixture to about 175 degrees F, stirring constantly to keep it from burning and from coming to a boil, which would destroy nutrients. Let it cool to about 140 degrees F and mix in gelatin powder along with one teaspoon of mixed minerals and one quarter of vitamin pill per quart. Dissolve the vitamin pill in a little water before adding it, and use somewhat more gelatin than the directions call for because the jello may otherwise dissolve in the warm water of the terrarium. It is very important to stir the mixture thoroughly before it starts to jell so that the supplements are evenly distributed.



When the mass has jelled, cut it into individual servings and freeze in plastic bags. Later you can take out one package at a time, thaw it, cut it into strips, and feed these to the turtle. You create the flavor that appeals to your turtle by adding an extra handful of your turtle's favorite fruit, vegetable, or meat. One side benefit of this method of feeding is that there are hardly any leftovers to soil the water. As I have already said, this miracle food by itself is no substitute for fresh foods and should consequently not be used as a steady diet over long periods of time without the addition of fresh tidbits. But it is very handy during periods when we cannot devote as much attention to the care of our turtle as usual."



The entirety in quotes are his words, and not mine. I've often wondered if using gelatin would be good for the turtles nails, beak, and shell. They are made up at least in part of keratin, and gelatin is supposed to be a great nutrient for keratinous body parts. What do you guys think?

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