Optimal Diet for A Sulcata Tortoise
- Hays and Grasses. The main sources of a Sulcata tortoises’ diet should be from hays and grasses though it’s important to...
- Suitable Greens & Vegetables. When it comes to greens, the top picks to choose from include dandelion greens, turnip...
- Occasional Fruit. The remaining 5% of their diet can be made up of occasional fruit treats...
How much should I Feed my tortoise?
What To Feed A Sulcata Tortoise [The Dos And Don’ts]
- Optimal Diet for A Sulcata Tortoise. The optimal diet for a Sulcata tortoise is a high fibrous and low protein one. ...
- The Importance Of Calcium In A Sulcata Tortoise’s Diet. Calcium is crucial for maintaining your tortoise’s good health. ...
- Finally. ...
How much should my sulcata eat?
How Much Should a Baby Sulcata Eat? When feeding a baby sulcata tortoise up to six months old, offer about 1/4 cup of grasses, weeds and greens every day. Feed sulcatas between 6 and 12 months old about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of food a day. Young juvenile sulcatas can eat about a cup of food a day.
How to care for a baby sulcata?
What We Like
- Burrowing behaviors can lead to lots of damage in your yard.
- Giant size requires a lot of space to roam and graze.
- Need very hot temperatures and a basking spot greater than 100 degrees.
What to to feed my hatchling tortoise?
wheat grass is what i feed my hatchling. hatchlings might not eat grass at first. just chop it up in his food super small and mix it up and maybe add tortoise pellets. hay is for adults so dont bother with hay until he's bigger. make sure the grass has no pesticides too
How often should you feed a baby sulcata tortoise?
The Sulcata is the largest of the African mainland tortoise, with specimens easily reaching 24-30 inches (60-75 cm) in carapace length and 80-110 pounds (36-50 kg). Food and Feeding: Adults should be fed three times per week minimum, and hatchlings fed daily. For every feeding, dust food with a calcium supplement.
What should I feed a baby tortoise?
A baby tortoise's diet should consist primarily of leafy plants and green vegetables, although they can eat some flowers and fruits. You should provide a baby tortoise with a balanced diet of grass, hay, and nutrient-dense leafy greens.
Do baby Sulcata tortoises eat everyday?
For the first year sulcatas should be fed daily,thereafter 3 times weekly. Remembering this tortoise comes from the sub-Sahara where habitat is semi-desert and where food is not always plentiful. Overfeeding these enormous eaters in captivity will cause problems.
How often should I feed my baby tortoise?
once a dayThe general rule seems to be feeding at least once a day for babies and younger torts. You can also feed your tortoise every other day or even three times a week, but this all depends on your particular tortoise and the amount of nutrients in their meals.
Can baby Sulcata eat cucumber?
Cucumbers are low in calories, healthy, and safe for tortoises to consume. They don't contain any toxic compounds that could upset your tortoise's digestion. However, cucumber should only be offered in moderation because it mainly contains water and only small amounts of vitamins and minerals.
Do baby tortoises eat every day?
A baby or a young tortoise should eat every day to help them manage their growth spurt effectively, but older tortoises don't need to eat that often. There are healthy tortoises that eat every day and there are others that skip a day every now and then.
What sulcata tortoises should not eat?
Avoid feeding a sulcata some food items entirely. Never give your sulcata animal-based proteins, including insects, fish or mice. Sulcatas get all of the protein they need from the grasses and other plants in their diet. Avoid legumes, nuts and beans, as they have too much protein for the health of your turtle.
How often should I bathe my baby tortoise?
Hatchling and young tortoises should be soaked daily decreasing this to every other day as they grow older. Older juvenile tortoises should be bathed 2-3 times a week and adult tortoises bathed weekly, but more frequently if kept indoors under heat lamps.
Do tortoises know their owners?
Yes, both tortoises and turtles can learn to recognize their caretakers. This does take time, but turtles and tortoises are very smart. They will learn your scent, sounds, and behaviors. They will come to associate you with food and safety.
How do you give a baby tortoise water?
To prevent dehydration of baby tortoises, always provide a shallow bowl filled with clean water. While it is true that many species get most (but never all) of their water requirements from their food, it never hurts to add a shallow dish, even they seldom use it.
Can baby tortoises eat lettuce?
Dark, leafy greens such as romaine lettuce, kale, collard, mustard and dandelion greens should make up the bulk of the diet. Other greens to try include: bok choy, red leaf or green leaf lettuce, butter lettuce, water cress, escarole, parsley, turnip greens and green onions.
How long can baby tortoises go without food?
Tortoises younger than 6 months old will be growing quickly, so they will need a lot of food. That said, hatchlings and juveniles can only survive for a few weeks to just one month without food.
What can tortoises eat list?
Food ListCollard, turnip, rape, and mustard greens.Kale, cabbage, kohl rabi, chard.Endive, Escarole, green-leaf, red-leaf lettuces.Red or curly lettuces.Arugula, rocket, 'corn salad', 'lamb's lettuce'Parsley, watercress.Carrot or radish tops.Sprouts.More items...
How do you give a baby tortoise water?
To prevent dehydration of baby tortoises, always provide a shallow bowl filled with clean water. While it is true that many species get most (but never all) of their water requirements from their food, it never hurts to add a shallow dish, even they seldom use it.
Can baby tortoises eat lettuce?
Dark, leafy greens such as romaine lettuce, kale, collard, mustard and dandelion greens should make up the bulk of the diet. Other greens to try include: bok choy, red leaf or green leaf lettuce, butter lettuce, water cress, escarole, parsley, turnip greens and green onions.
Can baby tortoises eat carrots?
Vegetables should be about 10-15% of the diet. These can include: grated raw carrots, winter squash, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, broccoli, corn on the cob; greens such as collards, dandelions, escarole, romaine, kale.
What to feed a baby sulcata turtle?
What to feed baby sulcatas? Sulcata turtles should consume concerning 80% lawn and hay. 10% eco-friendlies as well as no greater than 10% reward. This diet regimen coincides for grown-up and for infant sulcata turtles. What to feed baby sulcatas? Sulcata turtles eat the exact same points that an adult sulcata can consume. The only difference is that a baby sulcata will not eat at much.
What hay do turtles eat?
Fewer people recognize hay pellets, but 100% hay pellets are a healthy option for turtles. You can acquire hay pellets as well as hay cubes at a local feed store that provides food for equines. OR you can purchase smaller sized bags online (wonderful for checking your tortoise). When purchasing hay pellets, search for the very same healthy hays that you would certainly feed if you were acquiring loosened hay-- timothy hay as well as orchard hay are the even more typical hay choices. Ensure that the hay pellets or dices that you get are 100% hay. You don't want any type of additives in the pellet.
What is the best pellet for tortoises?
The more prominent as well as frequently known tortoise pellet is Mazuri Turtle Diet Plan. When buying for Mazuri for tortoises, you'll find two variations initial as well as LS. Original Mazuri (5M21) is a bigger pellet that has actually been shown yummy to tortosies. The initial Mazuri pellet is a healthy and balanced pellet regardless of the soybean hulls, ground corn and also dehulled soybean meal, and also it is a wonderful additive for a healthy diet. LS Mazuri (5E5L) is a smaller sized pellet is a low-starch variation of the initial pellet. It includes less corn and soybean than the initial formula.
Do sulcata turtles eat grass?
Sulcata turtles eat the exact same points that an adult sulcata can consume. The only difference is that a baby sulcata will not eat at much. Sulcata tortoise diet regimen should be mostly lawns. You might find that sulcata turtles might not be as enjoyed eat lawn, but it's extremely crucial to add grass to the food bowl.
Can turtles eat hay pellets?
Fewer people recognize hay pellets, but 100% hay pellets are a healthy option for turtles. You can acquire hay pellets as well as hay cubes at a local feed store that provides food for equines. OR you can purchase smaller sized bags online (wonderful for checking your tortoise).
Is Mazuri a good pellet?
The initial Mazuri pellet is a healthy and balanced pellet regardless of the soybean hulls, ground corn and also dehulled soybean meal, and also it is a wonderful additive for a healthy diet. LS Mazuri (5E5L) is a smaller sized pellet is a low-starch variation of the initial pellet.
What do you feed a baby tortoise?
How to feed a baby tortoise? The first thing a baby tortoise need is water. It doesn’t matter if a tortoise is from a desert or a jungle; you have to make sure that you provide with clean water for your young sulcata tortoises.
What do tortoises eat?
Other foods for grassland tortoises include grass, flowers, and weeds. Keep in mind that in the wild, tortoises graze on the ground which is why grass should also be available.
Can you feed a tortoise?
Feeding your tortoise is not that hard, in fact, you won’t have to worry about it at all. If you happen to have a backyard outside or some plants, your sulcata can live a happy life! But since you took on the responsibility of becoming a reputable keeper or breeder, it’s probably best that you live up to that by providing them with ...
Can tortoises eat iceberg lettuce?
Some vegetables like peas and green beans contain high levels of protein, Iceberg lettuces should also be avoided because it can cause diarrhea to tortoises since it has high water content.
Can a sulcata tortoise eat mustard greens?
You can easily purchase collard and mustard greens in grocery stores, dandelion greens on the other hand can be a bit hard to find but you can always have the option to grow your own. Sulcata tortoises love to eat Dandelion flowers as well as Hibiscus, Rose petals and carnation.
What do sulcatas eat?
In the wild, sulcatas will eat plants found growing in calcium-rich so il, thereby getting the calcium from that. Often they'll eat bits of soil that contains calcium while eating plant roots. They also seek out and eat bleached bones and desert-dwelling snail shells to supplement themselves.
What is the best grass for sulcatas?
1 / 2. Another good grass option in the wintertime is Mazuri Tortoise Diet, a dried grass pellet type food that sulcatas love. You can simply put these pellets in a dish and spray them lightly to soften them up for younger sulcatas if you wish.
How big do sulcatas get?
Sulcatas grow to over 180lbs! To learn more about them before adopting one, check out this article https://pethelpful.com/reptiles-amphibians/Caring-...
What do you feed a dandelion?
Chopped grass dampened with water :) You can also feed him a smaller bit of chopped dandelion greens, ribwort plantain, dandelion flowers and white mulberry leaves. His main diet should consist of grass
What plants can be fed on a regular basis?
Some of these safe foods are listed below. African Violet Saintpaulia. Air Plant Tillandsia.
Can you feed a sulcata a fruit?
To see a complete list, please visit The Tortoise Table. Never feed your sulcata most fruits or vegetables as they have too much water, vitamins, and/or sugars for the sulcata to digest properly!
Can a sulcata eat pumpkin?
Pumpkin is okay as a special treat along with yellow zucchini, grape leaves, and watermelon rinds. Absolutely do not feed your sulcata dog or cat food (yes this happens). While wild sulcatas may occasionally eat carrion, they are herbivores and only need vegetation to thrive. Their bodies cannot break down proteins.
What do sulcata tortoises eat?
Sulcata tortoises are herbivorous, which means that they will eat fruits, vegetables, and plants. A well-balanced diet for a pet sulcata tortoise will be mainly based on pellets, with the occasional fruits and vegetables.
How to feed a tortoise?
The simplest way to put this method into practice is to find a small container, like a medicine cup, a shot glass, or a bottle cap. This container has to be approximately the same size as the head of your tortoise, without the neck. Then you fill that container to the top, and then you feed the food inside the container to your tortoise. And that’s all.
Why do sulcata tortoises eat everything?
This means that they will eat everything that they can in the fastest time possible because they don’t know when they will have the chance to eat again. Even if you feed them regularly they will not abandon this mentality.
How long can a sulcata tortoise go without food?
And if it ever happens that you forget to feed your tortoise once, don’t worry. In the wild sulcata tortoises can go weeks without eating. So your tortoise won’t be affected at all.
Why are fruits not good for tortoises?
Most fruits are good to eat, but there are some that aren’t good for tortoises due to the high amount of phosphorus or citric acid that they contain. Citric acid irritates the stomach of a tortoise, and phosphorus blocks the absorption of calcium shock is essential for a healthy bone structure and shell.
Why do baby tortoises eat so much?
Out of all the age groups, baby tortoises need to eat the most often. This is because they need a lot of energy to grow. When tortoises are at this stage in life they experience the fastest growth rate. And to be able to grow so fast they will need a lot of energy that they will get from eating.
Can you overfeed a tortoise?
One of its biggest disadvantages is that you can easily overfeed your tortoise, and this can lead to two serious problems, one is pyramiding, and the other is an unbalanced diet. Like all animals tortoises have their preferences, and if you present them with different types of food they will instantly go for the tastiest one each time, and the tastiest option doesn’t always contain all the necessary nutrients.
What are some good foods to serve with escarole?
If you must use grocery store foods, favor endive and escarole, but use lots of variety. Cilantro, collard, mustard, and turnip greens, carrot tops, celery tops, etc…
What is the best supplement for opuntia pads?
This being the case, you'll need to amend the grocery store greens with some blended grass hay, ZooMed Grassland tortoise chow, or fresh grass. Mazuri is a good supplement too. Also look for spineless opuntia pads (Nopales). Those are great tortoise food too.
Can tortoises eat pellets?
No need to make to more appealing. Some of them just don't seem to like it much. If that was the first time you've offered it, keep trying. Tortoises seldom eat new things the first few times they see it. You can try mixing one soaked pellet into the tortoises favorite greens once in a while.
What Type of Food Should I Feed My Baby Tortoise?
This would mean the majority of your pet tortoise’s meals should consist of grasses and hay, a small part of fresh green vegetables, and occasional fruit.
What is the best diet for a baby tortoise?
It can seem tricky to choose the right diet for your baby tortoise, but as long as the ratio of 75:20:5 of plants : vegetables : fruits is maintained, they should have access to most of their needs.
How Much Should I Feed My Baby Tortoise?
Each meal should be about the size of your tortoise’s shell and should not be made up of only one plant or vegetable but a variety. A tortoise salad, if you please.
What Should I Feed a Baby Grassland Tortoise?
Replicating their wild diet would mean providing mainly grasses and hays, with the occasional vegetable like broccoli or zucchini. They may enjoy a fruit now and then, too.
What do baby tortoises eat?
Tortoises are vegetarians. Their diet consists primarily of leafy plants and green vegetables, although they can eat some flowers and fruits. You should provide a baby tortoise with a balanced diet of grass, hay, and nutrient-dense leafy greens. If your baby tortoise is kept indoors, it is crucial to provide it with a Vitamin D3 supplement.
How long does it take for a baby tortoise to eat?
Allow your baby tortoise around four hours to eat its fill, then remove remaining food scraps from its enclosure. Eating old produce may cause your tortoise to become sick.
Why do tortoises need vitamin D3?
Vitamin D3 is necessary to allow normal absorption of minerals like calcium and phosphorus by a tortoise’s body.
What do African Spurred Tortoises eat?
At least 75% of their diet should be given as grasses and hays, along with some edible weeds and flowers. Small amounts of other leafy green vegetables are okay, but avoid foods high in oxalates.
How big can a sulcata tortoise hatch?
The most useful form of indoor accommodation for a sulcata tortoise hatchling is a tortoise table. A reasonable size for a hatchling is 2 foot by 2 foot , however, they will outgrow this very quickly (at 3 years old they can exceed 12 inches). As the animal grows the size of its habitat needs to be increased. Holes can be cut into the bottom of your tortoise table to allow for the sinking of food and water dishes, making them flush with the surface for easier animal access.
How big do leopard tortoises get?
Adult leopard tortoises grow from 10 to 18 inches long depending on where the tortoise comes from (what geographic subspecies it is from). The Giant South African subspecies, Stigmachelys pardalis pardalis, can grow up to 24 inches and the leopard giants from Ethiopia and Somalia can grow up to 30 inches. Most of the time you will find the females outgrowing the males, however depending on the geographic origin of the leopard tortoise baby this may be reversed, or male and females may be of similar size. Remember that the males will have a concave plastron, and a longer tale, where females would have a much shorter tail and convex plastron.
What are some captive bred tortoises?
Some of our most popular captive bred tortoises include: Sulcata tortoise for sale , captive bred Russian tortoise , red foot tortoise , Hermann’s tortoise , leopard tortoises, and Indian star tortoises. If you are looking for an extremely large tortoise, choose the Sulcata ( African spur-thighed tortoise) or the Giant South African Leopard ...
What are the different types of giant tortoises?
Our large- giant sized tortoises include the african suclata tortoise (also known as the spur thigh tortoise for sale) as well as the leopard tortoise, giant leopard tortoise, burmese mountain tortoise, and giant aldabra tortoise.
How tall should a leopard tortoise table be?
You should make sure the tortoise table walls are at least 16-18″ tall and can be made of wood, block or other material that prevents the tortoise from seeing beyond or through the wall. Leopards are very calm and do not try to dig, or escape like some other breeds of tortoise may do. Be sure to provide plenty of hiding places, a hide box and if outdoors plenty of shrubbery to provide cover to the leopard tortoises.
How big is a sulcata?
The sulcata is the largest of the African mainland tortoise, with specimens easily reaching 24-30 inches (60 -75 cm) in carapace length and 80-110 pounds (36-50 kg).
How to care for a tortoise?
remove all harmful chemicals. Wash all foods gotten from the wild or organic farm to remove all harmful bacteria. The Mazuri and Zoo Med have essential vitamins and minerals but the plants you substitute may not have the essential items. When feeding your inside dwelling tort other acceptable foods, always add fine Calcium powder with vitamin D3. By the time your tort reaches Stage 2, it could be eating more from “The List of Edible Plants for Sulcata”. If you are a relatively new tortoise owner/keeper, you may not realize that lighting conditions are extremely important to a tortoise. In this care sheet will only touch on visible light and UVB light. Both of these are components of natural sunlight. Visible light and the ratio of daytime and nighttime help trigger the torts instinctive determination of seasonal responses. I suggest providing a 16 hour daytime lighting. Less than this, the tort can become more lethargic and more than this came interfere with the amount of natural sleep the tortoise requires. UVB lighting being absorbed into the tort’s body is the most important way the tort is able to naturally produce vitamin D3 within its own body. Vitamin D3 is the chemical enzyme that their (and our) bodies must have in order for chemical Calcium to be transformed into bone material. In other words, without vitamin D3 bone cannot be formed. The UVB produced by the sun at sea level is 5 to 10 times stronger than the artificial UVB lighting we provide that is commercially available in the pet trade. Noonday sunlight provides much more UVB than does morning or late afternoon sunlight. I suggest providing a 16 hour on time for the artificial UVB light source. The artificial UVB lighting we provide is not enough for the tort to develop as they would in natural unfiltered sunlight. If a tort does not get a very significant amount of natural unfiltered sunlight or kept outside in the higher latitudes where the UVB intensity of the natural sunlight is diminished, the supplementing of its diet with Calcium with vitamin D3 is essential. The Sulcata’s present natural territory is between the south latitudes of 13 and 18 degrees. A UVB meter is a recommended tool that is necessary to determine the amount of UVB exposure your tort in getting. Since most UVB artificial lighting available has a limited life cycle (approximately 6 months), this meter can be used to determine when this lighting needs to be replaced. I do not suggest that a Stage 1 tort be allowed to go outside. But, if certain precautions are taken, a trip outside is possible. Here are the conditions that must be met to allow a Stage 1 tort to go outside. The temperature should be between 75 and 90 degrees F. There needs to be easily accessible shade (shade within 2 feet) for the tort to go to if it gets over-heated by the sun. The tort must be watched at all times to protect them against predators such as house or stray cats, some dogs, coyotes, hawks, owls, squirrels, rats and in the evening, foxes, raccoons, possums, armadillos, etc. to name a few. You need to make sure the tort does not eat anything it is not supposed to (Rubber bands, candy wrappers, poisonous weeds, etc.). There is no telling what harmful intestinal parasites they could accidentally ingest including but not limited to intestinal worms. They have been known to get infested with ticks as well. As you can see, there is a myriad of things in your back yard that would love to do harm to your tort. A Stage 1 tort is still too vulnerable to be left unprotected outdoors. A Stage 2 or higher tort is better suited for the outside life. If you adequately control the above mentioned danger factors, then a short supervised trip outside for a Stage 1 tort is possible.
How long do sulcata tortoises live?
Sulcata tortoises can live to be over a hundred years old. They can get to be well over a hundred pounds, although it will take many years for them to grow that large. They are found in the wild in equatorial Africa. For the last several hundred thousand years, this area has alternated from seas to lakes to rainforests to desert to grassland and back to rainforest and then desert, etc., etc. During this time, the Sulcata tortoise has adapted to the changes in their environment. This constant and extreme adapting process has made the Sulcata tortoise the hardiest tortoise on the planet. The Sulcata tortoise (Centrochelys sulcata), although being only the third largest tortoise species on the planet, is the largest of all the mainland tortoises. The two larger species, the Galapagos and the Aldabra species, achieved their size by a process known as insular gigantism. Insular gigantism is a process that allows a species to grow to an enormous size by creating a perfect stable environment for the species. This environment is characterized by ideal weather conditions, no predators, and no exposure to diseases and parasites. The only competition for resources comes from members of its own species. These conditions are usually found on isolated islands in the oceans. The Sulcata tortoise, on the other hand, evolved in the worst place for these same conditions. How impressive is that! Its hardy constitution, its ability to overcome adversities and ability to thrive on grasses makes an adult Sulcata a very easy animal to provide for. Most people acquire their Sulcata tortoise from either pet stores or from reptile expositions. The overwhelming majority of these are baby tortoises. Older tortoises are almost never acquired from those sources. In fact, adult Sulcatas are seldom sold. When most people buy baby Sulcatas, they do not know how to care for them. This is not entirely their fault. The pet store people seldom have experience in raising Sulcata tortoises from a hatchling to an adult. Their knowledge is based upon what the manufacturers of the tortoise products they sell say is good for the tortoise. A lot of people who sell baby torts at reptile shows have, themselves, never raised a Sulcata tortoises from a hatchling to an adult. Their knowledge is based upon what they know are the needs of an adult tortoise or those of newly hatched babies. Then there are the Care Sheets that can be found on the web. There are many care sheets addressing the care of adult tortoises
How to protect neonates from predators?
When the neonate’s egg sac is still exposed, the tort is still receiving nourishment from the egg sac. During this time, no attempt should be made to provide food or drink. The exposed egg sac is extremely delicate and needs to be protected against cuts, tears or attacks from all predators, including ants and flies. It is suggested that the egg sac be coated with Neosporin antibiotic gel to help protect against all of the above issues. During this stage of development in the wild, neonates would be hiding in the underground nest the mother dug to deposit her eggs. This environment not only helps protect the neonate from predators, but it also provides the correct humidity and temperature. The neonates requires temperatures between 78 and 88 degrees Fahrenheit. They also require high humidity. It is suggested that the neonate be kept on top of 3 layers of moist paper towels in a small container with small breathing holes on the side of the container. The container should have an air-proof lid to help lock-in the micro-environment’s humidity. This container should be kept at the correct temperatures and not be disturbed except to check daily the paper towels’ dampness, adding water to maintain the proper amount of dampness and to check-out the tort’s egg sac. The paper towels should be replaced every other day. This stage can last for up to 2 weeks long. When the tort has completely absorbed the egg sac, the tort has graduated to Stage 1. If the container is built as described above and the temperature is kept at the temps described in the previous paragraph and the paper towels are kept wet, the humidity in the container will be correct. Do not rely on a cheap relative humidity gage to keep the humidity high. Near the end of the neonate stage, the tort may try to feed on its own. If so, it may try to eat the damp paper towels. If this happens, remove the paper towels and begin caring as prescribed for a Stage 1 tort. Stage 1 Since most baby Sulcatas are sold when they are in Stage 1, this is the stage that most new tort owners must start at. This stage starts when the baby tort loses all of its egg sac and has little or no “belly button” showing. At this point, the baby tort is no longer receiving nourishment from the egg sac. Your baby tort is now relying on you to provide the nourishment it requires. Also, at this point, since the tort no longer has a delicate egg sac that can be damaged, the tort can be moved to accommodations that best matches this stage of development. Before moving the tort to a new environment, you must first get its feeding responses working properly. When baby torts are sold too early, their feeding responses may not have kicked-in yet. The constant change of environments (from incubator, to mass hatchling groupings, to shipping, to pet stores, to you) has stressed-out the little boogers and they don’t know what to do. This is why it is best to get your baby tort directly from an experienced and
What is the dry faction of the Sulcatas?
The Dry Faction points to the natural environment of present day Sulcatas as being a dry grassland area and that millions of years of evolution has made the Sulcata a desert tortoise. They say that surely the proper thing to do is to duplicate their dry environment in the captive areas their keepers have provided for them. The Humid faction counters those arguments by pointing out that these grassland homelands for the Sulcatas do have a rainy season and that the adults, as well as the juveniles, spent the vast majority of their time in relatively humid burrows during the dry season and the adults spent a significant part of their time in wet shallow mud wallows in the rainy season. Is the only thing we can do is to pick a faction and live with the results? Will our tortoises suffer or even worse case die because we chose the wrong faction? I say perhaps the answer as to which is the proper way to raise our tortoises is to determine what the DNA of the tortoises are designed for. To do this we need to determine what environment(s) the Sulcata lived and evolved in for at least the last 100,000 years or so. Present North Africa is relatively dry but the Africa the Sulcata evolved in was very wet in cycles of about 23,000 years. Here is a brief view of the climate history of North Africa: The Abbassia Pluvial was a wet and rainy period of North Africa. This period ran from about 120,000 years ago to about 90,000 years ago. The Mousterian Pluvial was a wet and rainy period of North Africa. This period ran from about 50,000 years ago to about 30,000 years ago. The African Humid Period was a wet and rainy period of North Africa. This period ran from about 14,800 years ago to about 5,500 years ago (3,500 BC). During these 3 periods there were no deserts anywhere in Africa. Where was the Sulcatas during these times? Since there were no deserts, they were not in deserts. How could they be desert tortoises? They were in humid grasslands and neighboring forest/jungles. On the other hand, during the times in between these wet periods, there were deserts and we assume Sulcata environments were similar to what we see today which is grasslands with a wet season and a dry season during each year. So, what is the answer? The answer is that the Sulcata can survive in both wet and dry times and that during the dry times it spends most of its time in a humid burrow to prevent from being dried out. This analysis points to a conclusion that the Sulcata is primarily a warm and humid tortoise but has evolved the ability to survive even during times of little rainfall. This is also supported by the fact that the Sulcata is highly resistant to body or shell rot. Why would a desert tortoise be highly resistantto shell rot? This conclusion suggests the Sulcata ismakingmerelya subsistent living during the dry periods
What is natural for a sulcata?
The answer to, “What is natural for a Sulcata?”, must be everything from tropical jungle to tropical forest, to tropical grasslands and finally to dry grassland. During the last 120,000 years, the Sulcata has lived in each of these environments spanning thousands of years at a time. The Sulcata’s exposure to these diverse environments occurred many times throughout their evolution. This was more than adequate time to fine tune their DNA to master their survival skills for each of these environments.
Can tortoises eat lettuce?
As mentioned before, continue the daily soaking and feeding of your tort. You can add or substitute other food s such as Romaine lettuce or other leafy plants that are on the tortoise menu list (see “The List of Edible Plants for Sulcata”) along with an occasional berry (remove any large seeds that can cause impaction). Wash all foods gotten from a grocery to
