Feeding and Nutrition :: won't eat anything but pellets

[pixiedust]

my turt wouldn't eat anything else but pellets. i tried leaving carrot bits and lettuce in the tank. they stayed there for 2 days untouched. they just rot so i had to take them out. i tried the lettuce with tuna juice but still nothing. so i gave her pellets again and she would start eating them the moment i drop them in the tank. she wouldn't even touch the cuttlebone.

i'm worried. i don't want her to get used to pellets alone but she wouldn't eat anything else.

can anyone give some suggestions on how to get my turtle to eat anything besides the pellets?

[xsavingsaturdayx]

just try feeding your turtle veggies until he or she accepts them, if he or she still doesnt eat them. then try some other veggies,i heard that some turtles can be very picky eaters and only like certain vegetables.so experiment with different food,theyres a sticky about what kinds of veggies to feed your RES.

good luck

[pixiedust]

i checked that sticky already. unfortunately, some of those veggies are not commonly available here in the philippines. the veggies i usually see here are lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, pumpkin, and squash. are there any more veggies that are ok for res aside fom the ones in the sticky?

for now, i'll try pumpkins/squash. i hope she eats them.

[cam722]

What kind of green leafy veggies do you have available over there? There may be some that they can have but most of us aren't familiar with what grows in different parts of the world. If you can give us a list we may be able to help you. For example, what types of lettuces do you have?

[pixiedust]

these are the common green leafy veggies i see in our local markets/groceries. i had to google these coz i'm not familiar with their english names

bok choi (pechay)
spinach (alogbati)
swamp cabbage (kangkong) - another site said this is called water spinach so i'm not really sure
horseradish leaves (malunggay)
sweet potato tops (talbos ng kamote)
asian clelery (kinchay)

we do have romaine lettuce, iceberg lettuce, and another variety that looks a lot like iceberg lettuce. i tried feeding her romaine (both plain and soaked in tuna juice) but she'd just swim past them.

[cam722]

well spinach is out.. I believe bok choi is also.. not overly familiar with the rest.. although I'd think the asian celery wouldn't hold much nutrional value for them either.

You can feed them romaine lettuce .. they love it You'll just have to give her time .. they don't usually take easily to veggies unless they've been eating it from a hatchling. Maybe others will have some more suggestions.

[pixiedust]

i do hope she'll give in. i don't want her getting used to pellets alone. thanks.

[the_orphaned]

Get rommaine lettuce. They are available in supermarkets. If not, go to Santy's located in Timog. They always have a fresh batch there everyday. Anyway, witht he feeding of veggies, leave him on a pellet diet for a month, then start him on lettuce and cuttlebone with the pellets.

Mine at first didnt like the lettuce either but after a week of trying to feed him the stuff, he just couldnt get enough of it. Also solved my cuttlebone problem since Turt just gobbles them up when I drop them in chunks. Just give them time. It wouldnt hurt also if you have a very gluttonous turt like mine. Haha.

Post some pics, I'm really curious as to the turt you got.

[pixiedust]

i tried feeding the romaine but still no luck. i guess it'll take time.

i tried a little experiment with the cuttlebone. i buried it in the pellet bottle for a few days, hoping it'll acquire the smell and taste of the pellets. but it didin't work. but i'm not losing hope. i'll keep trying. mine's a hog too but a pellet hog at that.

here's a link to some of my turt's pics: http://dohteeh.multiply.com/photos/album/45

now, don't get mad at me for the small rock she had for a basking area. that was a temporary set up. i sort of quarantined the real set up coz some of the fish i had in it [before i got my turt] died. i wanted to make sure the tank was disease free before i put her there. but rest assured she's in a more acceptable set up now.

[steve]

Younger turtles will not likely be interested in vegetable matter. In this case, you might want to try some freshwater aquatic plants. If your turtle doesn't want them, they will become tank decorations

[cprcheetah]

What a cute little turtle. Don't give up, my turtle was very stubborn at first too as he hadn't been exposed to greens/veggies in his 5 years of living before I got him. Just be patient, yours is still a baby. I made my turtle a veggie square thing (mixed all his food together and made little squares out of them) and it worked pretty good. He loved them...we just didn't get them in the freezer and they went bad quickly. When we get around to it, will make him some more.

[SpotsMama]

Freshwater aquatic plants have the advantage of not going bad before the turtle gets around to eating them. My Spot likes to munch on anacharis, which is pretty common and really cheap.

[the_orphaned]

Pixiedust, if you find some aquatic plants, tell me where. I have been having a hard time looking for them here. Most petstores here dont really carry them. The ones listed on the safe list anyway.

[SpotsMama]

Here's a place that will sell aquatic plants on-line and send them through the mail. Don't know if it would send to the Philippines, though.

Drs. Foster & Smith's LiveAquaria.com

Do you all have aquarium shops or places that specialize in fancy fish and corals? They should have a good supply of aquatic plants. A pond store should have them to, if you have pond stores.

[the_orphaned]

Hard to find them here. There are suppliers but pet stores are pretty protective of the information on how to contact their suppliers. They do have some plants but these water plants are not listed on the safe list so I dont really know if I should get them for Turt's home.