What do tortoises eat? Practical tips for keepers
If you’ve read my earlier article on keeping tortoises, you already know how to prepare a proper terrarium and outdoor enclosure for them. Now it’s time to look at an equally important topic—the diet of Mediterranean tortoises. In this article, you’ll learn what to feed herbivorous tortoises to ensure their health, longevity, and excellent condition.
What do tortoises eat in the wild?
The diet of herbivorous tortoises from the Mediterranean region is based on a diverse mix of grasses, herbaceous plants, and flowers. Their digestive system is adapted to this type of food. Of course, there are rare occasions when a strictly herbivorous tortoise may eat carrion or a small invertebrate, but these situations are exceptional. Plant fiber remains the foundation of their diet.
How to feed tortoises at home
At home, tortoises should be offered leafy greens, grasses, and flowers. Excellent foods include timothy hay, Bermuda grass, dandelion, all varieties of clover, alfalfa, broadleaf and narrowleaf plantain, lady’s mantle, field bindweed, and calendula flowers. You can also offer arugula, chicory, cornsalad, and fresh herbs such as thyme, basil, oregano, and mint.
Remember about supplementation—natural foods should be dusted with mineral and vitamin preparations such as Tropical Vigorept Mineral and Tropical Vigorept Multivit.
Ready-made plant-based foods for tortoises should be rich in vitamins A and D₃ and have the correct calcium-to-phosphorus ratio (at least 2:1). They should also be low in fat, protein, thiocyanates, and oxalates. These characteristics are found in plant-based tortoise foods such as Tropical Biorept L and Tropical Reptiles Herbivore.
What not to feed tortoises
Tortoises are adapted to eating plants that are naturally low in water content. For this reason, avoid high-water foods such as tomatoes or fruits, as they can overstimulate the intestines.
Treat fruit as an occasional snack, offered very rarely. The safest options are forest fruits such as blackberries, raspberries, wild strawberries, and blueberries. Also avoid legumes (peas, beans). Cat and dog foods must never be given.
Consequences of a poor diet in tortoises
A tortoise’s diet must not contain animal protein. Overfeeding and an improper diet lead to excessive growth and shell deformities known as pyramiding. Mineral and vitamin deficiencies, in turn, may cause metabolic bone disease (MBD).
For a young, growing tortoise, even a few weeks on an inappropriate diet can result in irreversible developmental changes. This is why regular smineral-vitamin upplementation with the above-mentioned, proven products, Tropical Vigorept Mineral and Tropical Vigorept Multivit, is so important.
Along with calcium, vitamins D₃ and K₂ are equally essential. They enable calcium absorption from the digestive tract into the bloodstream and regulate the processes that incorporate calcium from the blood into bone structure. Avoid supplements that introduce additional phosphorus, as the diet already contains sufficient amounts.
Literature:
- de Boer, M., Jansen, L. & Stumpel, J. (2019) Best Practice Guidelines for the Egyptian tortoise (Testudo kleinmanni), EAZA Reptile Taxon Advisory Group
- Hatt, J M (2008). Raising giant tortoises. In: Fowler, M E; Miller, R E. Zoo and Wild Animal Medicine Current Therapy Ed. 6. St. Louis, 144-153
- Jill Martin Fund, A. C., Highfield, N. (2008) Taking Care of Pet Tortoises, The Tortoise Trust
- www.tortoisetrust.org
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