Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 1:11 am My 20yo RES has become an extremely fussy eater
I have an RES who's about 20 years old this year. He has always been a voracious eater and will happily accept his pellets. He was extremely crazy about carrots and bananas, and while he has always hated the greens, he will accept stuff like maize and tomatoes.
This changed some time in April this year. He went off food for about 3 weeks and his skin started shedding and he became extremely lethargic. It was the first time in all of 20 years that he got like that and we were afraid and thought he had reached the end of his life. We took him to the vet, who said there was nothing wrong with him when he examined him physically. He prescribed a change of pellets which he said was more nutritious than what we are currently providing, and more sought after by RES owners. (I can't remember the brand at the moment. I think it's American and starts with M). My terrapin accepted it happily for a couple of weeks and he also started eating some of his favourite foods (though he avoids carrot like a plague for whatever reason)
About 2 weeks later, he went off food AGAIN for weeks and started shedding skin and getting all lethargic. Out of desperation, we offered him cooked meat (pork, chicken, fish). To our surprise, he accepted them. But he will not touch food pellets or any fruits and vegetables now. He is also very picky about the type of meat we offer, and doesn't really beg for food like he used to. We're very concerned that he is not getting enough vitamins and fibre. He hardly poops these days compared to before when he was on the pellet diet and we're worried about him constipating. We give him vitamin drops but I'm sure that's not sufficient.
I'm literally at my wits' end. "Tough love" (letting him go hungry) apparently doesn't help. He hates veggies and pellets now and turns his back on all the food he used to be crazy about.
For background info, there has been no change in his living environment. He is apparently healthy, no pyramiding, no fungus, no mouth injury.
I'm from Singapore, a country that's tropical all year round so it's not the weather either.
Live bait is not an available option in my country.
Any advice is much appreciated!
ETA: I forgot to state the first time round, but I can't even try to trick him into accepting veggies/pellets by wrapping meat in the veggies or putting the pellets/veggies together with the meat for a day. He will ignore the veggies/pellets or spit them out if they get into his mouth.