Reptile & Amphibian Forums

RMB posted some time ago on some diet he concocted for his eastern babies (posted pics and a video). Can someone remember that, or suggest one of their own, that is easy to make and healthful for boxies?

I use a mix of soaked mazuri and some chopped fruit, chopped greens and chopped veggies. Under all that, I put some small red wigglers.

This picture is what my turtles' meals look like, as well. I use Nasco's turtle brittle (soaked), or another meat item, romaine or red leaf lettuce, a fruit-often grapes, apples, or cantaloupe, and add a vegetable-maybe grated carrots, or sweet potato. I usually add a few insects on top, but not so many that the turtles won't eat the rest of the food. I feed every 3rd day.

I have used this meal plan for years. This type of complete mixture is also discussed in my box turtle book and by MATTS's Sandy Barnett, and other turtle keepers

The diet that contains one type of item, which is changed at every feeding, is OK, but a person needs to be careful to get a complete and varied diet into their turtles regularly. A few weeks without say, plant matter is not good. I think it is easier to feed a complete diet. Plus there is less chance the turtle will become a picky eater if it is fed a variety of foods at each meal. Tess

Tess...I coppied this diet from your book. Each time I feed them, I change the veggies and fruit.

didn't rmb blend and freeze a fruit and veggie mix? I don't know how to find that post from a few years ago. I can't afford keeping buying a whole plant of lettuce for just one box turtle.

Check the frozen food section at your grocer's. I know around here it's easy to find frozen chopped collards, but I'm in the South.

Or, see if you can make friend and obtain vegetables that may be past their prime (i.e.not pretty any more) for human consumption: the produce mgr. may be able to give you a call to alert you when semi-viable produce is about to hit the dumpster. Do the same with any restaurant that might have a salad bar...

Get creative.

How about some straight frozen mixed veggies, blended a little, with Reptovitamin (or whatever the spelling of what I have)?

I don't think we have frozen collards here, but I'll check.

See what the veggies are in the mix...some may have less than ideal nutrition for a turtle.

I found frozen collard greens. Just chop them into fine pieces?

re: mixed veggies - what are NOT good nutritionally?

>>I found frozen collard greens. Just chop them into fine pieces?
>>
>>re: mixed veggies - what are NOT good nutritionally?

Pat dry the collard greens, chop and mix with fresh fruit and a protein. If you buy leaf lettuce, try washing it, patting it dry, and store in a large plastic zip lock baggie. It will last longer. What is not good is a mix with a lot of cauliflower and broccoli, unless it is used as a rare treat.

There are so many types of mixed vegetable these days, unlike the old days when it was just carrot, peas and green beans That can be used, no problem. You can even buy fresh items like sweet potatoes and winter squash, wash and cut them, steam them and then freeze them single layer on a cookie sheet. Finally package them in a freezer bag. You just take out a few to use at different servings.

How about broccoli? Is that OK?

It LOVES collards by the way - thanks for the tip.

Typcical mixed veggies I think are beans, carrots, and corn and broccoli - I THINK.

I got this from someone I exchange email with (Jim Harding):

Most of my info on this has come from research on true tortoises. How a box turtle compares is an unknown, since they don't often eat a lot of greens. Basically for tortoises we avoid foods high in purines (wheat, other grains, corn), limit those high in oxalic acid likely to bind calcium (spinach, etc.) and limit goiterogens (cruciferous veggies like broccoli, cauliflower, collards, kale). Basically a little of any nutritious food is unlikely to cause problems; just don't want to over-do it on any one thing.

Wondered what you folks thought.

Mine aren't interested in cruciferous vegetables, for the most part. I do use collards frequently because the calcium content is great.

>>Mine aren't interested in cruciferous vegetables, for the most part. I do use collards frequently because the calcium content is great.

Do you worry about collards being goitrogens, though? Are they such for box turtles as they are in true tortoises?

Many tortoise species are herbivores and therefore eat a lot of vegetable matter. What Jim Harding says about certain vegetables being harmful to tortoises would hold true for box turtles as well, IF all they ever ate were those items. However, if you feed any of those items sparingly and offered occasional vitamin supplementation and free access to calcium-there would be no problem in my opinion and from my experiences. So if you grow fresh spinach-go ahead and give them some once or twice during the growing season. You have left over broccoli from dinner and it's unsalted and not buttered-offer it to your turtles as part of their meal that includes a protein, fruit and leafy green. Variety keeps box turtles from becoming picky eaters and you will have more chances of getting the proper trace minerals into their diet. Tess

I do know that WC EBT male I had years ago had a lot of green grass in his feces when he got diarrhea right after being caught. So they do at least eat a lot of greens at some times.

>>Tess...I coppied this diet from your book. Each time I feed them, I change the veggies and fruit.

No wonder it looks familiar DH always complains that the turtles' food looks better than what I give him. But seriously, variety is the only way we can insure that sooner or later we give our turtles the vitamins or minerals they need. Supplements are tricky to use-some turtles thumb their noses at dusted food.

The thumbing the nose comment made me chuckle at the vision of turtles with opposition....LOL!