Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi!

I have a pair of yellowfoot tortoises. I have a few questions for other people with yellowfoots. What is there proper name? I have seen Yellowfoot, Yellow-Foot, Yellow-Footed, etc. Mine are not full grown yet, what size do you think I should expect them to get to, and how much might they weight?

The question I am most looking for an answer to is: Is there a good indicator (a chart or something) to tell how much to feed based on weight of the animal? I am not certain of whether I am feeding my animals enough or not, and how I would tell that. They seem healthy with what I feed them, but I want to feed them the right amount. Thanks for your help!
~Kyle

The St. Louis Zoo has one that is 36 to 38 SCL and about 200 to 300 lbs. While that might be an exception it does demonstrate how big they can get.
As far as the common name goes... you can call it what ever you want as long as the person you are talking to knows what you are talking about. While there are some individuals that do try to standardize common names, I can't see it happening for many reasons. That is why the Latin name is so great. It is accepted in every language.
Ed

Good point about the names being scientific or not. Thanks for the info.

Does anyone know anything about my feeding question? (a chart on how much to feed by weight of animal)

Thanks again,
~Kyle

I have two young yellowfoots too. I feed them greens like bok choy and mustard greens, banana, melon, cat food(with calcium supp.) and herbivoire turtle pellets.... My yellowfoots eat just about anything, kale is also very healthy. stay away from iceburg lettuce, tomatoes, and dont feed your yellowfoots bananas tooo much. They need protein in their diet too, get a couple pieces of dry catfood, let them soak in warm water, and when they are soft, they are ready. Don't feed them that more than weekly though. I hope this helps !

Thanks :-}

What I have been doing is making a nice mix of greens and fruits for them, and feeding them the same basic thing each day, with the exception of protein on one day.

I feed for example: chopped up collard greens and dandelion greens, with sliced up squash, carrots, strawberries, pears, and cantalope one day maybe. Then the same thing but with a different mix of fruits and veggies the next day. I have been feeding them usually frozen thawed pinkie mice for protein. They always eat everything very happily, no matter how much I give them. This is good, that they eat, but I just wonder if I should give them more, and at how much food do I stop giving them more. Hmmm...

~Kyle

You're doing fine...If you are not sure if you are feeding them enough, just leave an extra piece of collard greens in their cage so if they get hungry there is something to munch on.

n/p