what to feed pet turtles

What you feed your pet turtle will largely depend on what kind of turtle you have. If it’s omnivorous, your pet turtle will eat commercial turtle food pellets, feeder fish, insects, and fruits and vegetables. If it’s herbivorous, your pet turtle can eat only fruits and vegetables.

Full Answer

How often should I Feed my turtle?

These are:

• Folds of fat around the legs, especially when retracted. They are especially overweight if they have fat around their legs when they are not retracted.
• If the lines around their scutes are looking wider. The scutes are the shapes on your turtle’s shell. ...
• The edges of the shell often lift up when your turtle is overweight. ...

What foods a tortoise can and cannot eat?

• Iceberg
• Romaine
• Boston
• Bibb
• Butter lettuce Spinach Celery Peas
• Bean pods Carrot (chopped or lightly cooked)
• Zucchini
• Broccoli
• Cauliflower Yams
• Sweet potatoes (shredded or lightly cooked)

What turtle should I get?

• Aquatic turtles spend their time swimming and eating in water or basking on land. ...
• To keep the baby turtle happy you need to give fresh water keep the tank clean and yes proper diet.
• You need a large tank,bigger the better. ...
• Place a water heater
• Turtles cannot regulate their body temperature so the heater helps in regulating the the temperature.

More items...

What is the best food for turtles?

What Is The Best Food For Turtle? Food for turtles: Turtles like pellets and frozen or freeze-dried fish food. You can feed turtles crickets or mealworms or feeder fish on occasion for variety of protein sources… You can serve 1 to 2 teaspoons of dark, leafy greens, such as kale, collards, or mustard greens, three or four times a week.

What is the best thing to feed turtles?

The best veggies are chopped dark leafy greens such as kale, collard, and mustard greens, Dr. Starkey says. Shredded carrots, squash, and zucchini are great foods that turtles can eat, too. You can also go with edible aquatic vegetation such as water lettuce, water hyacinth, and duckweed.

What can turtles eat from human food?

They especially like leafy green veggies, so kale, collard greens, and mustard greens are both healthy and delicious for them. They'll also chow down on carrots, squash, green beans, and peas. As far as fruits go, you can give them bananas, apples, and pears, among other things.

What can I feed a wild pet turtle?

Answer: It can depend on the species, but most turtles will eat small fish (feeder fish), crickets, vegetables (like lettuce), and other things. Pet stores also sell turtle food in the form of sticks or pellets, as well as vitamin supplements.

What veggies can turtles eat?

Desirable vegetables to offer include dark leafy greens such as romaine lettuce, collard greens, mustard greens, carrot tops, endive, Swiss chard, kale, parsley, green beans, dandelion greens, turnip greens, and clover.

Can I feed my turtle lettuce?

Is Lettuce Safe for Turtles? There isn't any type of lettuce that should be poisonous to a turtle. They can eat all kinds, and many varieties — like romaine and radicchio — are both nutritious and delicious for them. Iceberg, on the other hand, is basically just crunchy water.

How Long Can turtles go without eating?

A young turtle (less than six months old) can't go a day without eating. A so-called “sub-adult” turtle (six months to one year old) can't go more than a day without eating. An adult turtle should eat, on average, every 2-3 days.

Can turtles eat bananas?

Fruit should be fed more sparingly than vegetables, since they are often preferred by box turtles over vegetables and tend to be less nutritious. Fruits to offer include apples, pears, bananas (with skin), mango, grapes, star fruit, raisins, peaches, tomato, guava, kiwis, and melons. Fruits that are particularly ...

Do turtles eat every day?

In the wild, a turtle usually eats everyday. However, this is not always the case since it can sometimes be hard to find a food source in the wild. Therefore, a turtle usually eats as much as they can when they find food so that they will still have enough nutrients if they don't find food the next day.

Can turtles eat carrots?

Carrots are one of the best vegetables to feed your turtle. Once turtles get used to carrots, they often love to snack on these orange sticks. Most importantly, carrots are considered healthy for turtles. These vegetables are high in vitamin A, fiber, calcium, and phosphorus.

How much water should be in a turtle tank?

The MINIMUM amount of water in your aquarium would be FIVE TIMES the length and width of your turtle. For example, a turtle with a 10” shell length would need a tank at least 50” long. And if that turtle was 3” high at the tallest point – the water depth would be a minimum of 15”.

What do turtles drink?

All sea turtles drink only seawater all of their lives. They have special glands behind each eye, called "salt glands" that they use to get rid of all the salt from the seawater.

How long do pet turtles live?

With the right care, turtles can live for at least 30 years in captivity and have been known to live for up to 70 in some cases and even longer, depending on the species. This is a massive commitment, and their complicated, expensive, and time-consuming care requirements will need to be maintained for many decades.

What do you feed a turtle?

You can also feed them non-toxic aquatic plants like water hyacinth, water lettuce, and duckweed. How often to feed them. Feed an adult turtle once every day or two, and a juvenile one to two times a day, though this can vary depending on the species.

What vegetables do turtles eat?

Turtles need lots of foods with vitamin A, so choose plants like carrots, squash, bell peppers, and other red, orange, and yellow vegetables. Avoid vegetables with low nutritional value like lettuce and celery. To treat Vitamin A deficiency, a veterinarian may recommend Vitamin A treatments injected or taken by mouth.

What is a turtle pet?

Turtles are unique pets that are entertaining to learn about and watch. Pet turtle care doesn’t involve as much hands-on training as dogs and cats, but turtles have particular needs like appropriately-sized tanks, UVB light, and the right kind of diet. Without an appropriate feeding plan, your turtle could get sick or die, ...

How old do turtles need to be to eat?

Younger turtles between about 7 to 10 years old usually need a larger share of animal-sourced foods. The percentage of animal and vegetable foods your pet turtle needs depends on their species. Animal food sources.

Why are my turtles not eating enough vitamin A?

Symptoms of too little vitamin A in turtles include a decrease in appetite, eyelid and ear swelling, kidney failure, and lung infections.

Why do turtles defecate?

Turtles often defecate while they eat, so keeping their food in a separate container can help them avoid accidentally eating feces. Clean any uneaten food out of their tank regularly so that it doesn’t grow unwanted bacteria and algae. What to do if your turtle won’t eat.

Why is my turtle not eating?

If your turtle isn’t eating enough, it could be a sign of illness, but other factors might be at play. Make sure your tank’s temperature and water temperature, lighting, and size are ideal for your turtle’s species. Hibernation and stress can also lead to lack of appetite in turtles.

What to feed a baby turtle?

So, here are some pointers on how to feed baby turtles: #1 First, Feed land baby turtles, a combination of commercially produced food and fresh leafy vegetables, such as lettuce and cabbage, and make sure you chop the food into tiny pieces. #2 Feed your aquatic baby turtle in a smaller feeding tank. Aquatic baby turtles are sloppy eaters, and they ...

What do water turtles eat?

Water turtles can feed on vegetables and fruits. Also, provide live food to the turtle. This is an integral part of their diet so be sure to have a regular supply of animal-based food for your turtle, including live feed. These live foods include crickets, mealworms, waxworms, and other small grubs and insects.

How to keep baby turtles from eating?

Aquatic baby turtles are sloppy eaters, and they relieve themselves in the middle of their meals. Therefore, they are bound to dirty their aquarium. #3 Give your turtle feeder fish and crickets for some meals. #4 Feed baby turtles two or three times a day. #5 Remember to leave your baby turtle’s food in the tank for half an hour ...

How to feed a turtle live crickets?

Feeding your turtle live crickets can seem a little tricky, but it helps to replicate how a turtle would eat in the wild. Feeding an aquatic turtle small live fish helps to stimulate the turtle and give him some exercise. Using vegetables that float is preferable to those that sink for an aquatic turtle. If you dust your food with ...

Why should you clean your turtle's food?

Whenever you give them food, you should make sure to clean the feeding area. This is because leftover food decay, and this is not healthy for a turtle.

Do turtles eat the same amount of food?

No two turtles will eat the same amount of food, so recommendations on the amount to provide have to be generalized. In that case, it’s important to note that young turtles should be fed often. Juvenile turtles, a term that most describes baby turtles, need lots of food and need to be fed most often than mature turtles.

Can turtles eat yogurt?

First of all, don’t feed them the same food over and over again because they can easily get attached and refuse other foods. You should also avoid giving dairy products such as milk, yogurt, or cheese to turtles. They cannot digest dairy, and this may cause illness.

How Much Food Should You Give Your Pet Turtle?

Pets like cats and dogs walk usually walk away when they have eaten enough. In contrast, turtles can keep eating until you start to wonder how much food is enough. Since turtles don’t have access to food all the time, like in the wild, they compensate by eating nonstop when you feed them.

How Often Should You Feed Your Turtle?

Once you work out how much your pet turtle should eat, you now need to figure out how often the shell-carrying reptile should be fed. A feeding routine ensures that you give a turtle the rightful supply of nutrients when it needs them most.

What Food Do Turtle Pets Eat?

The food your turtle eats will be based on whether it’s a herbivore, omnivore, or carnivore. Luckily, most aquatic turtles are omnivores and will munch on both plant-and animal-based foods.

Is There a Specific Way to Feed Your Turtle?

Aquatic turtles and terrestrial turtles differ in how they prefer their food served. Sea turtles like to eat their food underwater; hence food should be placed inside their water tank. If you’re not feeding them live prey such as small fish and worms, ensure that the food you choose can float on the surface.

Common Concerns When Feeding Turtles

When it comes to feeding your pet turtle, there are a few things that you should keep an eye on to avoid taking a toll on your turtle’s overall well-being.

Conclusion

One of the most significant ways to ensure that your turtles stay happy and fulfilled is to ensure that they are well fed. However, you need to remember that these shell-carrying creatures are opportunistic feeders. Therefore you must regulate how much they eat if you don’t want them to be obese.

What do turtles eat?

But in general, it is safe to feed most wild turtles earthworms, grasshoppers, crickets, peas, chopped up apples, carrots, pears, romaine lettuce and most leafy greens (like collard, mustard, and parsley). Different types of turtles need different diets ...

What are some foods that snapping turtles can eat?

Here are some foods that are safe for wild snapping turtles; Aquatic Plants: duckweed, water hyacinths, water weeds, water fern, water lettuce, yellow pond lilies, and bog moss.

What do painted turtles eat?

What to Feed Wild Painted Turtles. Wild painted turtles eat mostly animal prey when they are young and eat more vegetation as they grow older. They are still omnivores, so they need a balanced diet of animal prey and vegetation. Here are some foods that are safe for wild painted turtles;

Why are sea turtles different from freshwater turtles?

Sea turtles are like freshwater turtles because they too have a unique diet for each species, but they are also very different. Some sea turtles keep the same diet throughout their entire life while others change what they eat when they grow into adulthood. A sea turtle’s diet varies by age and species.

Can turtles eat carrots?

Carrots are an excellent vegetable for turtles! If you are feeding a wild turtle or a pet turtle, you should grate the carrots into bite-size pieces so they can eat them. Be careful not to feed too many carrots to a wild turtle though.

Can you feed a turtle bread?

NO! You should NEVER feed a wild or pet turtle bread, or any processed foods for that matter. Man-made foods that are high in sugar and flour (like candy and bread) are very bad for a turtle’s stomach. Turtles are not adapted to eating processed foods and eating them can do serious damage to their digestive system.

Do turtles eat land?

Aquatic turtles have a hard time eating on land, and if you leave the food on land, they will probably drag it to the water anyway. You also need to make sure the food is cut into bite-size pieces, and any fruits with skin (like melons and grapes) need the skin removed.