Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Since Oct. '04 I've been raising a small group of '00 hatchlings. They are doing well.. one of the females..

Just recently a source of cactus is available and they ate with the same gusto that they eat everything.. even tho' this is a first for them. I understand cactus has a great calcium/phos. ratio.. but is quite high in 'carbs'! How often can cactus be fed to them? They have never eaten any fruit/cactus ever! How tolerant is their system to the 'carbs' in cactus?

Thanks for the insight...
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Terry E. Kilgore
Turtletary.com

I have no experience with elegans. However, I feed a lot of spineless Opuntia "nopales" cacti and quite a bit of cactus fruit "tunas" to my Leopard, Greek, Marginated and Russian tortoises. It is very low protein (1 or 2%?) but high fiber and reasonable Cah ratio. My animals seem to do well on it, I try to mix it with higher protein items to get a rough average of 5-7%, (just guessing), such as clover, alfalfa, Mazuri 5M21, etc. I know Calfonia Desert tortoises eat it a lot in the wild. Curiously, I am told tortoises in the wild in Madagascar and Turkey and other places where the prickly pear has become an invasive pest feed on it. Look for it at groceries that cater to Mexican populations, much cheaper than the other sources I see promoted. Good luck, Vic H. P.S. easy to grow in right climate!

Thanks Vic,

Actually I found a 'Mexican' food store and went in to find that I spoke much less Spanish than they spoke English.. and they had a cooler with a big 'box' of these..

$2.47 per pound (tax inc.)

Do you notice "runny-poop" when you feed it to yours?

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Terry E. Kilgore
Turtletary.com

Yes!, that's the stuff. Get your self a leather glove and a soft brass brush and rub off the hard spines/glochids (tiny spines you can barely see) with the brush under running water. Use duct tape to remove any glochids you may get in your fingers. I was shocked at your price, I usually pay 2 pounds per dollar, sometimes 3/$, but I live close to Mexico. It is miraculous to see wild tortoises eat the spiny type...but I like to make it easy for my herd.

Runny stools? Well, sometimes my G. pardalis really eats a lot of it and gets "loose", especially if they eat a lot of "tunas", the prickly pear fruit. I try to mix it with other foods, and I don't notice loose stools in my Greeks/Russians/Marginateds...

It is very low protein, contrary to what some folks think, so be sure to mix it with other foods. Good luck, Vic H./Imperial Valley, CA.

I feed cactus at times 5 days a week. It does make their stools bubbly and soft if fed in large amounts, but with no down side. I grow lots of it, two types. I could not suggest a better all around base than this plant group (opuntia) every tortoise I own loves it! Desert species or not. Best wishes Douglas Beard / Flora & Fauna

Thank you Douglas...

Any idea what causes the 'runny-poop'? Does their system not like something about the sugar/carbs in the cactus?
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Terry E. Kilgore
Turtletary.com

Try to eat or drink a pound of aloe vera; and we know that it is good for you, without having a case of at least loose stools! LOL best Douglas

Missed the analogy [???] Remember.. I'm not the Horticulturist - you are! What's that mean Douglas???
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Terry E. Kilgore
Turtletary.com

In 4 years this male went from here..

to here..

Without any cactus for food.. if it ain't growin' wrong... don't change it's diet?
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Terry E. Kilgore
Turtletary.com