Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a Sulcata that is a few weeks old and I am trying to get him on a grass diet. The problem is that he is so small that he can't seem to tear any of the planted grasses(mostly bermuda but I also tried wheat grass) and he won't eat it if I cut it up for him. I was going to leave the cut grass and make him eat it because that was all that was there but then he started eating the substrate(lizard litter). So I gave him dandelion leaves and he ate all of them! He seemed to be starving! How can I get him to eat the grass? And do all hatchlings have trouble ripping pieces off of planted grass?

Apparently he is starving. When mine was the size of a gnat I
coddled him by tearing up his lettuce leaves and cutting up
anything else he would eat = small cubes of squash for
example. Working at tearing the grass is good for keeping
beaks trim and excellent exercise. However he obviously has
trouble at this size feeding of the course grass so why don't
you give him something he can eat? Sometimes I think this
nonsense about putting a non-native animal on our idea of a
natural diet (grass that isn't even close to Africa's) borders
on abuse. Give your tortoise a varied diet and feed it.

Thanks for the help. I have been feeding him dandelion and also romaine lettuce everyday, but after reading a lot about sulcatas it seems like he will not be heathy if I keep this up. I have been mixing the grass in with the lettuce but he just leaves it alone. In the mean time I will just let him try and eat the planted grass and feed him other greens(which he can eat and seems to love) until he can tear the grass.

of weeds and grasses, mine wouldn't eat cut pieces. But he'd
eat weeds in the winter that I got out with a garden tool that
got them out with the roots easily - like a V fork thing.
Romaine is the worst lettuce becauce of its calcium/phosphorous
ration, it practically robs your tort of calcium each bite.
Better greens are collards, endives and escarole. Try getting
some turtlecafe seeds that have a mix of grasses and weeds
in them so there's a big variety. I used to grow the buckwheat
and he loved it. Grew to eating size in 5 days indoors!

spoiled little tort (I don't know who that is, couldn't be mine
since mine has turds 10 times that size) is getting weeds with
roots (watch for little spiders running away!) on newspaper in
a 4' X 4' "playpen" for eating and getting out of the regular
enclosure which was 300 gallons already.

My babies did not want to eat grass at first either. Now that they do eat it, they tend to snub everything else. I did and still do cut up grass and weeds and keep it in their food bowl whilst they are inside. They eat it like it is going out of style.

I also found that they munch on the Timothy Hay I have in the enclosure for them to hide it. Great source of fiber. All this and they are only 2" long.

Contrary to some peoples beliefs, I agree with keeping them on the most natural diets. Yes, they may not get the exact same type of grasses and weeds where they came from, but I do not recall seeing romaine or anything else like that growing in the desert.

I agree about the "natural diet," realizing that as mentioned above, you can't really duplicate it exactly. We can only give it our best shot. I'd continue to offer the grass, in small pieces and small quantities, mixed with a variety of healthy greens & weeds. Sometimes it just takes time for them to eat it. If you gradually increase the amt of grass/greens, you can often sneak it in.

how's Tofu? I remember you said you were pretty busy personally,
nice to see you, you're one of the few comparison tort of any
size owners thats here. I've moved Teddy to outdoors permanently.
Can't believe he's sleeping outside (he's still a baby!) but he
seems to like it, he looked kind of surprised the first few
mornings like "you guys forgot to bring me in" but I think it's
better than the A/C. My husbands gathering supplies in the
garage for his outdoor shed - looking at 8' X 8'. Does Tofu
stay out all winter and what state were you in again?

Yeah, it's been a tough year for us. Had to care for my mother, who has Alzheimer's, because my father was hospitalized (he still is). What a stressful job that was! She's now in a nursing home - a difficult decision, but we knew it would happen. Anyways... enough about that.

Let's see, Tofu is not out all year yet. He goes out for the day as soon as temps are acceptable (and for a bit whenever it's warm enough throughout the year) and for 24/7 when nighttime temps are okay. (Indiana) We lock him up in the former dog run at night (6 ft. fencing).

We still need to build a proper outdoor barn with heating, etc. What I'd like to do this summer is to get started on that, but finances may not allow due to the family situation earlier in the year. Sigh. At the very least, he needs a larger pen, possibly situated in the garage where we could eventually cut a door through to the back. I saw a dog kennel like that and it seemed like a good option. We'll have to see. Part of me is reluctant to relinquish being able to observe him, at will, for extended periods of time.

I'll have to go measure him, but I think he's about 17" now. Weight? I'd have to take him to the vet's to be sure, but I'm guessing 35lbs? (my schedule is still such a mess) We try to weigh him here, but the scale isn't very accurate, so he could weigh more.

Did I answer everything? Will post pics as soon as I can go out and get them. You have to see the Tofu-mobile my son built.

Wendi

When my sulcata was little she preferred to find her own grass to eat. If I would put her outside she would walk around stop check out a piece move on and finally find a piece to her liking. If I put cut grass in her pen she would just ignore it. She would eat grass planted in trays and put in her pen. You can add variety by offering rose and hibsicus flowers if you have them growing if not you should plant some. They are a favorite of my tortoise.
Linda