Feeding and Nutrition :: Live foods...

[sweet_sorrow004]

Can you feed turtles mealworms? silkworms? what else live? guppies? rosy reds? ramshorn (real, not columbian)? What kinds of veggies? and fruits? Crickets? I'm particualrly needing to know if you could feed mealworms, or will they eat through intestines? Thanks!

[missibsu]

Guppies and rosey reds are fine, although should not be the staple item in the diet. Veggies are best if you stick with dark leafy greens...but not spinach. Red leaf and green leaf lettuce are good. There is a complete list of foods on the top of this forum...I've printed a copy and posted it on my fridge. Crickets are ok too, I think some people gut load them with calcium suppliments.

[marisa]

I wouldn't feed mealworms often and not many at one time. I've read about live ones eating through the intestines of some reptiles/amphibians, but never turtles. That said, mealworms offer minimal nutrition (if any) and have a really bad calcium/phosphorus ratio. And the skins are really tough to digest. I've occasionally given my RES the ones that come in cans (Can 'O Worms); I sometimes coat them in calcium powder and hand feed them to him to he gets a big of added calcium. Silk worms are OK, and do contain more calcium than some other insects.

As for fruit, this can be given occasionally, but the emphasis should be on leafy greens. My RES really likes an occasional piece of cantelope as well as quartered red grapes.