Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm getting my first Uro tomorrow or Friday and i've just realized that no one mentions how many times a day to feed a Uro in any of the care sheets i've read. Even the great care sheet at DeerFernFarms.com doesn't say. Can someone please fill me in on this? Once or twice a day?

Once a day is plenty unless it's a little bitty thing. Some folks feed every other day. I think Doug Dix is on a twice a day regime - in the morning, he feeds the tortoise mix and in the afternoon he feeds leafy greens. If you aren't doing that, one morning feeding is just fine. Don't feed late in the day, though, since they need a couple of hours after eating to bask in order for the food to digest properly.
-----
Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Uromastyx geyri (Joe and Arthur)
3.0 Uromastyx dispar maliensis (Tank, Turtle, and Spike)
1.0 Uromastyx ornata (Scuttlebutt)
2.1 Anolis carolinensis (Bowser, Sprocket, and Leeloo)
0.1 African dwarf frog (Sheila)
1.0 Betta splendens (Mr. Miagi)
1.1 Felis domesticus (Roscolux and Jenny)

I keep iguana food and bird seed in all the cages for them to chomp on at will and drop a handfull of leaves in each morning. For the group I have at work, Friday evenings I leave an extra-large helping and all seems to work fine (try to get in early on Mondaytoo). Everything goes on the cool side of the cage to prolong its shelf-life. There's normally something still good after several days although I've even seen the animals pickup and eat dried leaves when they're nearby, so it all seems to be "useful" for some time. I clean out excess 1-2 times a week as my schedule is pretty heavy.
-----
2.1.0 uromastyx geyri (Saharan/Nigerian)
0.0.4 uromastyx hardwickii (Indian)
2.1.0 uromastyx macfadyeni (Somalian)
1.1.0 uromastyx ocellata (Sudanese)

"Yes, it's a problem. No, I don't want to talk about it."

what is tortoise mix made up of? I would like to try that.
Is it a pellets? Where could I get it from?

Thanks,
-----
~*~.. Nikki ..~*~

Huntington (Long Island), New York

Hi Niki, it is in pellet forum and Doug Dix at deerfernfarms.com sells it.
-----
Jackie, Limey,Grog and Bacardi (ornate uros)

Specifically, it's Mazuri Tortoise diet - large pellets that you soak in hot water. The uros generally don't like it, so you can mix with some green peas to get their interest (gradually cut back on the peas over time). My little one I got from Doug is already eating it with or without the peas. It's supposed to be very good for them - high quality ingredients, and it helps them gain weight quickly. I've found already that mine won't eat it unless that's all there is to eat. So I feed that alone every other day. All but one of mine will eat it now (and he's fussy), and I've only been doing it about two weeks.

One thing to note: this tortoise diet DOES CONTAIN D3. If you already supplement with D3 or if you provide high amounts of UVB, think very carefully about how (or if) you feed the tortoise diet. Overdosing D3 is toxic. My UVB is very weak right now, but I have MegaRays on the way - as soon as they're in, no more tortoise diet on those tanks!
-----
Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Uromastyx geyri (Joe and Arthur)
3.0 Uromastyx dispar maliensis (Tank, Turtle, and Spike)
1.0 Uromastyx ornata (Scuttlebutt)
2.1 Anolis carolinensis (Bowser, Sprocket, and Leeloo)
0.1 African dwarf frog (Sheila)
1.0 Betta splendens (Mr. Miagi)
1.1 Felis domesticus (Roscolux and Jenny)

i am not feeding the tortoise stuff but what constitutes too much UVB in combination with that stuff? like if i did use it and i have reptisun strip lights on their cage, would i then have to turn them off or are you talking about something more powerful?
-----
vonnie
***There is no pleasure in having nothing to do; the fun is in having lots to do and not doing it. Mary Wilson Little ***

I'm referring to strong UVB. If you have two Reptisun 5.0s less than 10" (unfiltered) to your critters, then you shouldn't need to add any additional D3. Or again, if you have a quality merc vapor (not crappy Capture the Suns or anything) or your uro gets exposed to unfiltered natural sunlight, then you shouldn't provide dietary D3.

However, if you have one Reptisun on top of the screen covering an 18" tall cage, then a small amount of dietary D3 probably won't hurt, as the amount of UVB actually reaching the animal is minimal.
-----
Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Uromastyx geyri (Joe and Arthur)
3.0 Uromastyx dispar maliensis (Tank, Turtle, and Spike)
1.0 Uromastyx ornata (Scuttlebutt)
2.1 Anolis carolinensis (Bowser, Sprocket, and Leeloo)
0.1 African dwarf frog (Sheila)
1.0 Betta splendens (Mr. Miagi)
1.1 Felis domesticus (Roscolux and Jenny)

If you've got even two 5.0 UVB bulb located more than 12" from your uro, you'd better be supplementing with D3. All of the tests I've seen show that the UVB output diminishes exponentially as the distance increases. In other words, at say 14" you may not be getting half of the usable output as you would at 12" and at a distance of 18" from you're uro, you're clearly wasting your money.

Doug Dix also told me you can't always believe what the manufacturers tell you about their bulbs. Some bulbs don't have the advertised output, or drop off substantially in less than 6 months. He demonstrated this to me with a few simple measurements with his UVB meter. It was very eye opening, but since I've got an engineering backround, not terribly surprising.

I'm following what Doug does, since he's been at it for a long time, tests his bulbs and has personally tried and trued his setups.

Craigo

You can run, but you can't hide, unless you're a uro

Hi Torey,

I noticed that Doug uses UVB lights in all of his cages and uses the Mazuri, Uromastyx dust as well as a light dusting of Miner-All for his uros. It's my understanding that Miner-All is a very low dose of D3 and I suspect that the amount in the Mazuri is also quite low. Doug spends a lot of time figuring out diet, so I don't think you should stop providing Mazuri after you add UVB lights. The amount of UVB provided by lights is a small fraction of what natural unfiltered sunlight provides.

Craigo

You can run, but you can't hide... unless you're a uro

Craigo-

He's also using fluorescent coil tubes which don't provide anywhere near the UVB of a merc vapor bulb such as the MegaRay. I know he's using Arcadia bulbs (which are supposed to be good quality) but I have no experience with those in particular. If they are similar in output to a Reptisun 5.0, then his cages would not have the UVB I'm talking about. If a Reptisun (or Arcadia) puts out 20 uw/cm3 at 15" (random made-up example), then a MegaRay might put out 200 uw/cm3 at the same distance. A *little* dietary D3 shouldn't hurt with the Reptisuns in that case, but it would be unnecessary and dangerous with the MegaRay.
-----
Torey
Eugene, Oregon, USA
1.1 Uromastyx geyri (Joe and Arthur)
3.0 Uromastyx dispar maliensis (Tank, Turtle, and Spike)
1.0 Uromastyx ornata (Scuttlebutt)
2.1 Anolis carolinensis (Bowser, Sprocket, and Leeloo)
0.1 African dwarf frog (Sheila)
1.0 Betta splendens (Mr. Miagi)
1.1 Felis domesticus (Roscolux and Jenny)

Torey,

Thanks for the clarification. I'd hate to see people stop using Mazuri just because they're using a UVB bulb. Doug was also testing a couple of high UVB output bulbs, unfortunately I don't know what kind they were. He showed the cages to me and told me that so far the uros clearly didn't like them, and basically avoided them. He showed me the output with his UVB meter and it was very high, again I don't recall the number. It is a bit of guesswork it seems. I'm going to go with what's working for me right now as it seems to be a good balance. Keep us informed on how your MegaRay enhanced enclosures work.

Thanks,
Craigo

You can run, but you can't hide... unless you're a uro

Soften the Mazuri tortoise pellets in warm to hot water. Then you just mix it in 50/50 with warmed mixed vegetables and/or peas. It is a diet used by zoos. My Gus digs the stuff. I also use Uromastyx dust and Miner All daily (also from Deer Fern Farms) for a balanced diet. So far, so good.

Craig

You can run, but you can't hide... unless you're a uro
Uro supplies