Feeding and Nutrition :: When is it time for big kid food.

[slapjack413]

My RES is about 1 year old and I have been feeding him Reptomin-baby. I feed him every day about 5 pellots. When can I switch over to the regular turtle food, and when should I start feeding him every other day instead of every day. Also he is about 2 inches if that helps. Thanks!

[PinkyTurtle]

Reptomin-baby, I think is the same thing as the larger Reptomin sticks. Cause Ive read some posts where people say the just break the bigger sticks in half. So just keep feeding him the baby version until there gone, increaseing if needed. Then buy the larger ones and break them in half if they still need to be small. Hope i helped.

[slapjack413]

ahh thank you that is good advice!

[scripta_elegans]

i believe Reptomin baby has slightly lower protein than regular. i like the smaller size and less mess, and will keep feeding it to my turts until they're 50.

[marisa]

My painteds are over two years old and I still buy Reptomin Baby for them when I can find it. The protein content is lower than regular Reptomin and it contains slightly more calcium. The smaller size makes it easier to regulate amounts, and the shape is easier for my turts to grab and eat.

I really don't think there's a time when you have to switch to "regular" turtle food---it's all turtle food. The goal is an overall healthy diet.

[SpotsMama]

Hi Marisa. What do you think of the quantity of reptomin baby? This little turtle is a year old but only two inches long. Would he grow better if he got more pellets?

[marisa]

I prefer the Reptomin Baby to the regular Reptomin (see above), but feed it to my painteds, not Tilly (my res) because my painteds are smaller than Tilly. But none of my turtles gets the same pellets all the time.

Slapjack, does your RES appear to still be hungry after those 5 pellets? If so, it wouldn't hurt to experiment a little and give him a few more at a feeding.
You said in another post you were going to increase the amount of romaine he's eating. I'd try other foods besides romaine (which has some nutrients, but isn't all that great if that's the only veggie he's getting). I'd also consider rotating another brand of pellet into his diet. You want variety in the diet.

I remember the pic you posted of him elsewhere, and I commented that his shell looked like he was living in not-so-great conditions before and that he hadn't had a very good diet. I also asked you about his lighting. Does he have both a UVB light and heat light (or a combination mercury vapor bulb)?

[slapjack413]

I just bought some pellets from zoo-med, so i was going to incorporate some of those into his diet. Also everyone always says, dont feed him too much, or "dont overfeed him" so i thought 5 pellets was enough. I will def start giving him more...how many do you think? As far as lighting goes...I use the zoo-med basking spot lamp (75watt). Let me know what you think.
Thanks!

[4Lancer4]

Eh... i feed my baby, grown up food sometime. They just hold it in their mouthes and claw at it till it breaks apart. Its quite entertaining to see them. Thats only once in awhile tho because im scared that they might break a nail or hurt themselves.

[industrial_girl_2000]

My 2" hatchling doesn't have any probs with the "big kid" reptomin. The "big" sticks I feed my baby don't even have a chance....gobble, gobble, done, w/no leftovers.

I actually had to go buy some fish food for the guppies in the tank because of the lack of leftovers!

[scripta_elegans]

Wow! I wish my kids were so neat! They rip Reptomin sticks apart, and then have an all day brawl (no biting just jostling) for any tiny morsel left on the tank floor that the rosies hadn't reached. On the other hand, the zoo med is a real mess when I give that to them, because they seem to be way less fond of it than the Reptomin. It seems far more prone to quick disintegration. Even the Rosies don't seem to keep it clean. I usually give them 10 pellets or so of Zoomed, and then they stare at me, like "Where's the good stuff mom?"

[marisa]

A little late here, but better late than never, as they say...

slapjack, just experiment with a few more, you don't have to even give more every day (imagine your turtle's heat without anything in it and estimate how many pellets it would take to fill it).

BTW, the 75-watt Zoo-Med basking spot lamp doesn't provide UVB rays. Your turtle needs both a basking light (but in the future you can just use a regular lightbulb when the one you're using burns out) and a UVB light. Both of them, next to each other, positioned over the basking area. A basking area temp of 88-90F is good.

[slapjack413]

Thank you! I have been feeding him a tiny bit more and he seems really happy!