Feeding and Nutrition :: Feeding Live Fish/Snails

[dancermdm]

So I got this turtle from a friend after she moved. I'm taking care of him while she is gone, but I want to properly care for him (though after going through the main site, she clearly did not). I was told by her that I shouldn't feed him anything live (whether it be fish or snails), since he's never eaten anything live and he may choke. Is this really the case? She gave me freeze-dried crickets and worms, but the site said freeze-dried stuff isn't as healthy. But if I can't feed him anything live, what should I do?
Also, I've tried feeding him lettuce time after time. The most I can get is maybe a bite before he ignores it. My friend never gave him lettuce before, so I think he just doesn't think of it as food. I tried to make the jell-o shots, but it went horribly wrong. Also, since I don't eat fish, I can't dip the lettuce into tuna or something. So what should I do to get him to eat some greens? I was thinking of going to a pet store and getting some live plants.. any recommendations or tips?
Thanks so much, though I've tried to do a lot of reading on turtles, I'm still struggling to make sure he's having a good life.

[Akikta]

You could try the turtle jello shots for the plants, but I have no problem feeding my turtles live fish. I suppose nothing too big. I wouldn't exactly take my word for it though. Maybe wait for someone who's owned a turtle a little longer than I have.

[ljapa]

Many feed love food. I don't think fish can cause a choking problem. You do have to be careful of snails because some do have very hard shells.

Crickets and mealworms have a much higher fat content than a RES eats in the wild. It can lead to health problems.

You do need to figure out some way to get more of a vegetable diet eventually. But if your turtle has only ever eaten high fat foods, you may want to transition to healthier pellets. If it's used to crickets and meal worms, try rubbing that on the pellets.

For a live food that won't have any choking hazard, consider glass shrimp. They, or any live food, should be considered an occasional treat, not a staple.

What was the Jell-O shot problem?

[Akikta]

It was for the veggies, they said that it took a bite out of it and then left it alone.\

[tjurhs]

I would encourage you start feeding you RES young soft-leaf dandelions, not the older tough or prickly ones. pull the clump out of the ground, wrap a rubberband around the base of the clump and around a cleaned 1/4-20 bolt, so that the bolt is attached to the bottom of the clump. then put it in the tank, the bolt will hold it down to the bottom of the tank where your RES will pick at it to his delight.

You can also go to the grocery store and tear off a small leaf (5 or 6 square inches) of Red Lettuce, and let it float on the surface.

These two "greens" are my RES's favorites, and they are VERY healthy for them.