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Turtle feeding
What do turtles eat in the terrarium?

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The Turtles they can be carnivorous, omnivorous or herbivorous and there are some species that change their diet as they grow and tend to go from a carnivorous diet to a more omnivorous one.
Turtles in captivity
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TABLE 1

Classification of Some Turtles
Terrestrial according to their Diet

herbivores Omnivores
Sulcata turtle Box Turtles
Leopard Turtle Terrapenes Turtles
Yellow-footed turtle Articulated Turtles
Radiated Turtle Some Asian box turtles
Chilean turtle
Turtles of the species Testudo

Turtle feeding (chelonians)

The pets, which are very popular today, place high demands on people. Especially when it comes to maintaining and feeding, it is very important to know the conditions in the areas of origin of the turtles and to orient oneself on them. although Turtles can live up to very old, unfortunately it is not uncommon for them to live a few years in captivity. The proper feeding of the species is, therefore, an indispensable factor for successful maintenance. In contrast, incorrect nutrition of turtles is the most common cause of illness and death.

Its original habitat consists of arid and dry landscapes. There, the Turtles you will find slow-growing plants very rich in minerals, trace elements, vitamins, crude fibres and fodder. If you look at this habitat, it is clear that our lush, protein-rich meadows, fruits, cultivated lettuce and vegetables are not part of your natural food supply.

The intestines cannot properly digest this overly soft and sugary food. Even the occasional feeding with fruits, Salads and vegetables lead to an altered balance of microorganisms in the gut. This imbalance in the intestine sometimes leads to severe diarrhea. What, Unfortunately, turtles are not able to distinguish between healthy and unhealthy foods, tomatoes, salads and vegetables are tastefully eaten. The drop, constipation, shell and fatty liver deformities and even death are often the result.

The Turtles they can be carnivorous, omnivorous or herbivorous and there are some species that change their diet as they grow (see tables 1 and 2); for example the aquatic turtles of the gender Trachemys tend to go from a carnivorous to a more omnivorous diet as they grow older; becoming adult vegetarians. This is a reflection of changing dietary requirements, from its phase of greatest development to maturity.

An appropriate one turtle nutrition (chelonians) allows adequate growth, shell conformation and reproductive capacity (48).

Turtle feeding (chelonians) omnivorous

TABLE 2

Classification of Some Aquatic Turtles
according to your Diet

herbivores Omnivores carnivores or
predominantly
carnivorous
There are very few aquatic turtles
herbivores like
Indian Roof Turtle
Painted Turtles European Pond Turtle
Adult Emidids of North America Spotted Turtle along with the
other species of Clemmys
Crocodile and alligator turtle
Map turtles Tortuga Mata mata
Swamp Turtles Soft-shelled turtles
Red-eared turtle Shield turtle
Turtles of the genus Phrynops Long-necked turtles
South American turtles
of the gender Platemys

Most of the omnivorous chelonians they are mainly carnivorous during their youth, but as they mature they increase their consumption of plant matter. It is suggested that their diet in captivity contains plant and animal matter in proportions of 75:25 to 90:10 (49).

In the wild, omnivorous species have access to a wide variety of live foods., frequently insects such as earthworms, snails, slugs, one hundred feet, Pupae, worms, mealybugs, crickets, etc. To get a better idea of the components that a diet may contain for these species in captivity it is recommended to see the table 3 and 4 (50).

TABLE 3

Recommended Components for the
Diet of Omnivorous Terrestrial Turtles

Worms, slugs, snails, myriopods, mealybugs, among other invertebrates
Pinkies (newborn mice)
Skinned and chopped adult mouse
Vegetables and pastures (fungi, lettuce)
fallen fruit (bananas, Peaches, tomatoes)
(McArthur et al, 2004).
TABLE 4

Recommended Components for the
Omnivorous Water Turtles Diet

Pellets for turtles (Tortuguetas [Petmmal], ReptoMin®sticks [Tetra])
Green leaves
Fruits
Low-fat canned dog food
Low-fat rehydrated dog kibble
Pellets for pond fish
Raw whole fish
Fresh meat (liver)
Insects (red worms, tubifex worms, artemias)
Prawns

Since insects contain more phosphorus than calcium (especially the larvae), should be supplemented with vitamins and minerals (calcium), to avoid the presence of nutritional deficiencies. So insects should be fed a diet rich in vitamins and minerals especially calcium, 24h before being offered to the reptile; this is known as "gut loaded" in English, and moments before offering them should also be sprinkled. Occasionally they may be provided with a small amount of meat, fish or dog food “LIGHT” (Normal foods are high in fat), in order to maintain a balanced diet (51).

The frequency of inclusion of animal matter in the diet, depends on the lifestyle of the animal and the degree of meat consumption of the species, excessive amounts of cat food, dogs or monkey, cause metastatic mineralization problems; as it contains high levels of vitamin D3. Most omnivores will refuse to eat fresh vegetables and fruits., showing preference for mature plant material (52).
As for aquatic turtles, they also develop well with a suitable combination of animal and plant material, dried shrimp lack an adequate balance of vitamins and minerals, while greasy fish in large quantities produce steatosis, fatty liver and vitamin B deficiency due to excess thiaminases. So a proper diet is based on a balance of ingredients, a small amount of low-fat dog food can be given 1 once a week occasionally, and natural ingredients should always be preferred (53).
It should be remembered that high-protein diets have a higher content of phosphorus in relation to calcium, so they should be supplemented with calcium (e.g.. Calciosol with fixative) and some fish contain thiaminases, so you also have to supplement with vitamin B1 (e.g.. Thiaminal B-12, Benerva®. Roche Laboratories), to ensure intake (because the animals feed in the water and the supplements are lost) it is recommended to liquefy all the ingredients and then add grenetin to the mixture, to make a gelatin which prevents the loss in the water of calcium and vitamins ensuring its consumption (54).
The key is to prevent animals from being pigeonholed with one or two foods., as they frequently become addicted to meat or fish; which results in a poor diet. It is important to have a separate tank from the main tank so that the animals are transferred to it at feeding time and thus reduce the contamination of the water in the main tank. (55).

Adequate proportions of a diet for red-eared turtles, painted and swamp turtles and stinky:
Turtle in captivity
Turtle
  • 60-70% animal matter: sofobas, crickets, waxworm larvae, common earthworm, tubifex, Anemias, aquatic snails, small fish, trout pellets or low-fat dog kibble, avoid using raw or cooked meat, especially in juveniles due to its low calcium content, tubifex and snails can bring parasites.
  • 20-30% green leafy vegetables or aquatic plants.

In the wild they feed on snails, slug, insects, crabs, other aquatic invertebrates, Tadpoles, small fish, carrion, algae and aquatic plants, and as mentioned at the beginning, juvenile omnivorous turtles are more carnivorous and become more herbivorous as they mature. Adults can be fed from 2-3 times a week and only give them an amount of food that they can eat in a 30-40 minutes, it is recommended to give aquatic plants such as duckweed, water lettuce, Water hyacinth along with other aquatic plants and swamp plants, which form a substantial part of adult diets (56).

Feeding of herbivorous turtles

Microbial fermentation of intake occurs in the large intestine, microorganisms digest parts of the intake such as cellulose that the host cannot digest and this flora produces additional protein derivatives by modifying the plant material (57).

The diet of herbivorous reptiles should contain:
  • High-fiber vegetables that make up most of the diet.
  • It must be rich in certain minerals such as calcium.
  • Rich in vitamins such as vitamin A and D3.
  • Must have an adequate calcium and phosphorus balance, which must be at least 1.5-2: 1 That: P. wild chelonian diets contain at least one radius Ca: P of 4: 1.
  • Adequate water content.
  • Low phosphorus.
  • Low in fats and oils.
  • low in protein.
  • Low in thiocyanates, oxalates and phytates. (58).
  • Should be high in slow-digesting carbohydrates (e.g.. cellulose) and low-carb, high-digesting (e.g.. Feints)

Requirements are easily met when fed with wild plants, like flowers, pastures and weeds (be sure they are free of pesticides and pests), as store-bought greens are often high in protein and low in fiber compared to natural forages. Turtles can graze on their own if they are provided with adequate space for this., without the presence of poisonous plants, even so your diet should be supplemented, the species that benefit most from grazing are the leopard turtles and sulcata (59).

The Turtles have food preferences and will only eat 1 or 2 food to the exclusion of others, which can bring deficiencies. To reduce selective feeding it is recommended to liquefy the food, which is supplemented with vitamins and minerals (e.g.. Vitafort-A and Calciosol with fixative) (see Fig. 5), diet ingredients should be fresh and raw. Food must be washed very well to remove pesticide residues (60).

Turtle eating a salad
Fig. 5. Turtle eating a supplemented salad.

Animal protein should not be offered (see table 5) to herbivorous reptiles as it can affect the intestinal flora and predispose to hyperuricemia and therefore to gout, In addition to causing accelerated and abnormal growth in juvenile reptiles (61).

TABLE 5

Foods to Avoid
herbivorous reptiles

Cat food
Meat
Dog food
Bread
Milk
Cheese
Refried beans
Bacon
Ham
Recovery diets for mammals (a/d Hill’s)
Insects: worms, sofobas, tenebrios
Meat
To mention a few
(McArthur et al, 2004; Walls, 1998).

Although pellet-based diets are very popular, some authors do not recommend them as the majority part of the diet, especially in juvenile animals since they provide them with accelerated growth as most are high in protein (>45%), which is detrimental to growth in juveniles, as the shell is deformed; its use in adults is also of dubious benefit to some; however it all depends on the quality and quantity of the ingredients (62).

As mentioned earlier in the green matter section, care should be taken with vegetables containing oxalates and thiocyanates (see table 6), since depending on the amount of these in the diet mineral deficiencies can occur (iodine and calcium) (63).

The herbivorous turtles differ from each other regarding their preferred intake of fiber, Mediterranean turtles are ramoneadoras so they will be better off if they are allowed to ram in gardens with herbaceous plants; While the leopard turtles and sulcata are better off with a diet high in grasses and hay (70-75%) because they require a higher intake of fiber, although it has been seen that in the wild some eat a greater amount of herbaceous plants, it has also kept a record of growth in freedom that can serve as a captive turtle guide, young and subadults grow 7mm/month, adult females grow 5.7mm/month and adult males 3.2mm/month (64).

A diet recommendation for herbivorous tortoises is:

  • Mediterranean turtles: 25% rubiaceae (Nubia, white gallium, coffee family), 22% legumes (bean, peanut, broad bean, lentil, soy, pea and chickpeas), 10% asteraceae or compounds (lettuce, Sunflower, endive, chicory, daisy, chamomile and safflower), 8% ranunculaceae (be careful with these because many are toxic like aconite, knight spur and adonis), these can be grown at home to ensure they are pesticide-free and it is recommended that it be in calcium-rich soils to ensure that the plants have a high content of this mineral..
  • Leopard and sulcata turtles: their diet is similar to that of Mediterranean turtles, but with a higher proportion of pastures (20%) such as achicalada alfalfa and good quality Timothy grass hay (65).

In general, the food should be provided ad libitum per meal. The newly hatched specimens and up to their juvenile stage should eat 2 times per day, chopping the food to obtain particles of the appropriate size. Juveniles and adults can be fed once a day and both juveniles and adults should have access to fresh water for both drinking and bathing. (66).

Canned and dehydrated herbivore diets are commercially available and a small portion may be used in the omnivore diet. (67).

Sources:

Corral Gutiérrez, Karla Marina. (2009). “Development of a manual and interactive disc on food, installations and common diseases in reptiles used as pets”. (Bachelor's Thesis). National Autonomous University of Mexico, Faculty of Higher Studies Cuautitlán, UNAM. Retrieved from https://repositorio.unam.mx/contenidos/3449228
Bibliography:
(48) (Alderton, 2002; Beynon and Cooper, 1999; McArthur et al, 2004).
(49) (Alderton, 2002; Girling and Raiti, 2004; Mader, 2006; Merck Veterinary Manual, 2007; McArthur et al, 2004).
(50) (McArthur et al, 2004; Wissman M. A., 2003).
(51) (McArthur et al, 2004; UNAM Diploma in Medicine and Wildlife Management, 1993).
(52) (McArthur et al, 2004).
(53) (McArthur et al, 2004).
(54) (Girling and Raiti, 2004; McArthur et al, 2004).
(55) (Girling and Raiti, 2004; McArthur et al, 2004).
(56) (Girling and Raiti, 2004; McArthur et al, 2004).
(57) (McArthur et al. 2004).
(58) (Girling and Raiti, 2004; McArthur et al, 2004).
(59) (Mader, 2006; McArthur et al, 2004).
(60) (McArthur et al, 2004; Wissman M. A., 2003; Syria et al., 2002; Walls, 1998).
(61) (McArthur et al, 2004).
(62) (McArthur et al, 2004).
(63) (Mader, 2006).
(64) (Girling and Raiti, 2004).
(65) (Girling and Raiti, 2004).
(66) (IMFAC, Practical Medicine Course in Non-Conventional Companion Species, 2006; McArthur et al, 2004).
(67) (Wissman M. A., 2003).

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