
How much should I Feed my turtles?
Table of contents
- Should turtles eat everyday?
- How much should I feed my turtle a day?
- How long can a turtle go without eating?
- Can you overfeed a turtle?
- Should I feed my turtle daily?
- What do turtles eat daily?
- How do I know if my turtle is hungry?
- Is it bad to feed turtles everyday?
- Do turtles need daily care?
- Should I feed my turtle everyday?
What can I Feed my turtle Besides turtle food?
What to Feed Wild Box Turtles
- Insects; earthworms, mealworms, crickets, and grasshoppers.
- Vegetables; peas, carrots, squash, okra, sweet potatoes, green beans, turnip leaves, dandelion leaves, romaine lettuce, collard greens and mustard greens.
- Fruit; peaches, blackberries, apples, plums, raspberries, mulberries, pears, mango, bananas, cherries, and melons.
What kind of fish should I Feed my turtle?
- What Do Baby Painted Turtles Eat? 1. Commercial Turtle Food Foods 2. Small Fish 3. Worms 4. Insects 5. Tadpoles
- Quick Tips for Caring for a Baby Painted Turtle
- What Do Painted Turtles Eat?
- Frequently Asked Questions Can Painted Turtles Eat Fruit? What Do Painted Turtles Eat in the Wild? How Often Should You Feed Your Painted Turtle? ...
- Final Thoughts
How often should I Feed my turtle?
- Is your turtle showing signs of hunger, such as stretching its neck forward, opening its mouth widely, or trying to reach food?
- Does your turtle seem to feel full after eating? Do they stop eating when they’ve eaten everything they need?
- Are there any signs that your turtle has had diarrhea?
What kind of food do turtles eat?
What do turtles eat?
What do Wild Turtles Eat in Ponds?
What are some foods that snapping turtles can eat?
Why are sea turtles different from freshwater turtles?
Can you feed a turtle bread?
Do turtles eat land?
See more

What human food can I feed a turtle?
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.
How Long Can turtles go for without food?
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.
How can a turtle survive without food?
What is this? If your pet turtle doesn't have access to food but has access to pure, clean, filtered water, a basking area to dry out its shell and receive healthy UVA and UVB rays, as well as a properly heated habitat, then it would likely survive for several months without any serious consequences.
What can turtles eat and not eat?
Avoid feeding your turtle raw meats, feeder fish and fruits, except in limited cases. Kale, romaine lettuce and anacharis or waterweed are the best vegetable and plant staple foods. Use turtle pellets as your protein staple.
Do turtles need to eat everyday?
turtles don't need to eat every day,except for young turtles one to 3 years old. A turtle is consider adult at 7 years old. Adults should be feed every another day.
How do you know if a turtle is hungry?
Most turtles, especially young ones, should be fed daily. For an adult box turtle, a day's food would be three tablespoons of the vegetable mixture and a couple of earthworms. You know your turtle is hungry when it begins to roam around its enclosure checking the place where you feed it.
How often do turtles need to eat?
How often do turtles eat? If your turtle is still juvenile, feed it every day, advises Dr. Starkey. Once it reaches adulthood (around 7 years old), you can feed it every other day—or about 4 to 5 times a week.
Can you force feed a turtle?
To feed your turtle if it is refusing to eat, try giving it live food, such as mealworms and slugs, instead of dry pellets since turtles are attracted to movement. Alternatively, soak the pellets in canned tuna water to give them a stronger, more enticing smell.
How long can you leave a turtle alone?
Turtles can be left alone for a few days, although there is some risk, so it is best to have a friend and neighbor check on your turtle in your home each day if possible.
How do you make turtle food?
0:362:33How to Make Frozen Turtle Food - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipLet's start by cutting up the carrots into smaller pieces put your large cuttlebone in a ziploc bagMoreLet's start by cutting up the carrots into smaller pieces put your large cuttlebone in a ziploc bag and smash it into tiny pieces. With a hammer mix.
Can turtles eat chicken nuggets?
Your turtle can eat little bits of cooked ground beef, chicken, or pork from the table. They will enjoy using their teeth to tear apart larger pieces of meat.
Can turtles eat bread?
Turtles Can't Digest Bread Since turtles eat animal and plant-based matter, you might not think about dairy being such a bad choice. However, dairy products contain lactose, which your turtles cannot break down in their system, as their bodies do not have the correct enzymes to make that happen.
How often do turtles need to eat?
How often do turtles eat? If your turtle is still juvenile, feed it every day, advises Dr. Starkey. Once it reaches adulthood (around 7 years old), you can feed it every other day—or about 4 to 5 times a week.
Can I leave my turtle for a week?
Turtles can be left alone for a few days, although there is some risk, so it is best to have a friend and neighbor check on your turtle in your home each day if possible.
How do you feed a turtle on vacation?
5:5410:02turtle care and feeding while on VACATiON?!? and how to transport ...YouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipThe tank for them to eat while you're away you can also try things like ram's horn snails. And maybeMoreThe tank for them to eat while you're away you can also try things like ram's horn snails. And maybe even live shrimp if you wanted to so that is also another option.
What happens if my turtle doesn't eat?
If the turtle is female and has stopped eating, it's possible she has dystocia, which means she cannot properly pass her eggs out of the body. Turtles with dystocia can seem fine at first, other than lack of appetite, but will develop lethargy and lose weight over a short period of time.
What is the best way to feed an aquatic turtle?
Feeding an aquatic turtle small live fish helps to stimulate the turtle and give him some exercise.
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?
You should understand that feeding an aquatic turtle is not the same as feeding a land turtle.
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 keep turtles from knocking over?
There should always be freshwater in a bowl that the turtle can easily access and not easily knock over. Take care to make sure that the water stays clean and replace it now and then .
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.
What is the best food for a turtle?
Meat is an excellent source of protein, which is an essential nutrient, highly necessary in the first couple of years of your turtle life.
What do turtles eat?
Turtles are omnivores which means they can eat pretty much everything. In other words, they’ll eat most of the foods you have in your home. Meat, fish, vegetables, and fruits, are all types of human food that your turtle will gladly accept and eat.
Why is my turtle pyramiding?
Pyramiding is a metabolic bone disease that causes building up keratin in the scutes. It’s caused by too much protein and not enough calcium in the turtle diet. There is another reason why you should not overfeed your turtle with meat. In general, meat is high in fat, therefore it may affect your turtle overall health.
Why do turtles eat fruits?
Giving fruits on a regular basis to your turtles is a great way to improve their overall health and reduce the risk of disease.
Can turtles eat vegetables?
Vegetables should be part of every turtle diet. Especially for adult turtles where vegetables make a majority of their diet. Turtles can eat almost all the vegetables people usually eat, however, avoid giving them vegetables that don’t have nutritional value.
Is it safe to feed a turtle fish?
As you can see, feeding your turtle with fish can have a positive impact on its health.
Can you feed a turtle milk?
You should avoid feeding your turtle with dairy or milk products. Turtles lack certain enzymes to break down those nutrients and feeding with those may cause severe indigestion.
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.
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.
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. This is because it can be highly challenging for turtles to find food that has settled at the bottom of the tank.
What Food Can You Give A Turtle?
For pet turtles, you can provide protein, vegetables, greens, fruits, and flowers. Some of them are crickets, earthworms, beans, carrots, spinach, lettuce, grapes, dandelions, etc.
How To Entice My Turtle To Eat?
When your turtles are refusing to eat, you need to check their temperature. Provide more UV light so that their appetite increases because turtles need 10-12 hours in UV light or sunlight.
How Long Can A Turtle Survive Without Food And Water?
How long do turtles live without food and water? Not a long time. Water is essential for a turtle. Water is everything for turtles because it is used for metabolism, hydration, and other regulatory processes.
How Long Can A Box Turtle Go Without Eating?
Why do many pet owners ask about how long can a turtle live without food? Because each type of turtle has a different resistance without eating, from their habitat and behavior.
How Long Does It Take For A Turtle To Starve To Death?
Turtles begin to starve to death if they don’t get food for more than 160 days. It will be faster if the turtles don’t get water because they need water to soak themselves and keep hydrated. If the turtles are not getting water, they will lose weight little by little and die faster.
What Are The Signs Of A Dying Turtle?
Your turtle will lack appetite and begin to lose weight. This is different from how long can turtles go without eating because turtles that don’t eat during hibernation can still eat normally if they have food nearby.
How Do I Know If My Turtle Is Hungry?
If you are used to giving a schedule for their time to eat, they will approach the place to eat when they are hungry.
What Do Pet Turtles Eat?
If it’s omnivorous, your pet turtle will eat commercial turtle food pellets, feeder fish and insects, and fruits and vegetables. If it’s herbivorous, your pet turtle can eat only fruits and vegetables.
What do turtles need to survive?
All animals need protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals, says Dr. Starkey. Calcium is an especially crucial part of your turtle’s diet due to the extra needs in its shell, which is mostly bone. “That’s why it’s important to supplement with calcium and mineral powders,” he says.
How frequently can I expect to buy turtle food?
That varies with the size of your turtle, but generally a portion of pelleted food may last 4 to 6 weeks, depending on supplemental feeding and pet size, says Dr. Starkey.
Where Can I Buy These Foods?
Turtle pellets can be purchased at most large pet stores as well as many online stories, says Dr. Starkey. Feeder fish and crickets should be available for purchase at pet stores too, while fruits and vegetables can be bought at your local grocery store.
What should I look for on the nutrition labels of pelleted foods?
Look for protein levels between 40-45%, and fat between 6-8%, advises Dr. Starkey. “Semi-moist foods will have a lower percentage of protein and fat due to the higher moisture content of the food,” he says. You should also look for fishmeal to be one of the top three ingredients listed on the label, and for added vitamins and minerals to be called out in the ingredient list, says Dr. Starkey. Sill unsure what to choose? Consult a veterinarian.
How often do turtles eat?
Starkey. Once it reaches adulthood (around 7 years old), you can feed it every other day—or about 4 to 5 times a week. Stick with around 1 cup of food per day, then increase or decrease that amount depending on how your turtle responds.
What is the most common pet turtle?
You likely have a red-eared slider, which is the most common pet turtle in the U.S. “These animals are omnivorous, meaning they eat both animals and plants,” says Simon Starkey, BVSc, PhD, D.ABVP (Avian), Education Veterinarian and Technical Services Manager for PetSmart. Like red-eared sliders, most water or aquatic turtles eat an omnivorous diet. Follow the guidelines below and your turtle will be in great shape.
What is the best food for rabbits?
Popular in Italian and Mediterranean cuisine, basil of any variety makes a great snack for your rabbit. Not all rabbits love the smell equally, though, so let your bunny decide before buying extra for them.
What is the best herb to grow in a rabbit's yard?
Aromatic but not unpleasantly pungent to your bunny’s nose, common mint is an amazing herb to plant inside your home or in your yard. It grows quickly and establishes itself almost immediately, providing an ongoing (and free!) source of fiber in your rabbit’s diet.
Can rabbits eat Romaine lettuce?
Hardier and with a much better nutrient profile than iceberg lettuce, Romaine (as well as red and green lettuce varieties) is a useful addition to your rabbit’s diet. You’ll want to feed it to them in moderation, as its abundant water content can lead to diarrhea if overconsumed. Avoid iceberg lettuce entirely, as it provides almost no nutritional value.
Can you feed dried rabbit food?
If you have plenty of hay and water for your rabbit, dried rabbit food is truly more of a luxury than a necessity. When it turns out that you’ve run out of their kibble prematurely, don’t sweat it – just feed them a little bit extra of any of the vegetables on this list, and they’ll stay satisfied until more dried food arrives.
Can rabbits eat broccoli?
Fed in moderation, broccoli’s high fiber content and dense nutrient profile can make it an excellent supplement to your rabbit’s diet, stem and all. Be careful not to overdo it, though, as this brassica family vegetable can be stressful for some rabbits’ digestive systems.
Can rabbits eat hay?
Your rabbit can get along quite well just with plentiful sources of fresh hay and water, but fruits and vegetables will fill out vitamin and mineral requirements that hay might miss out on. You’ll need to be careful not to overfeed these nutritionally dense alternatives to your rabbit, limiting vegetables to a daily feeding and higher sugar fruits to only an occasional treat.
Is spinach good for rabbits?
Incredibly healthy thanks to its wide array of vitamins and minerals, spinach is also high in fiber and will help to naturally regulate your rabbit’s digestion.
What kind of food do turtles eat?
Pellets: when you identify the type of turtle you found, you can check pet stores (in-store and online) for pelleted food made specifically for that kind of turtle! Pellets can be a great food because they contain both plant and animal matter!
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 do Wild Turtles Eat in Ponds?
Again, this depends on the type of turtle and the habitat it lives in. Turtles are omnivores and will eat almost anything they can get their mouth on.
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.
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 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.

Fish
Meat
- Every person that has kept turtles knows that they enjoy eating meat. Giving your turtle threats once in a while is never a bad idea. Meat is an excellent source of protein, which is an essential nutrient, highly necessary in the first couple of years of your turtle life. Even though meat is good for turtles, it can cause negative effects, as well....
Fruits
- Giving fruits on a regular basis to your turtles is a great way to improve their overall health and reduce the risk of disease. Why are fruits so valuable to turtles? Not only that they are full of vitamins and minerals, but they are also high in fiber, as well. Include fruits in your turtle diet and remember to always wash the fruits before you give it to the turtle.
Vegetables
- Vegetables should be part of every turtle diet. Especially for adult turtles where vegetables make a majority of their diet. Turtles can eat almost all the vegetables people usually eat, however, avoid giving them vegetables that don’t have nutritional value.
Human Foods to Avoid
- Not every type of food people eat is necessarily good food for a turtle. In a matter of fact, not every food that people eat is good food for the people themselves. But, that’s a completely different subject. Let’s just focus on the turtles. Let’s see what’s bad for turtles and why you should avoid feeding them.
Final Thoughts
- Your pet turtle deserves the best food. And I am confident that you will provide it. In order to grow into healthy individuals, turtles need to have a diverse diet. You can give them food from your household on some occasions, or when you are out of turtle food. However, don’t overdo it. Stick to certain types of food that are healthy and beneficial for your turtle, and follow that schedule.