General Care Discussion :: A couple concerns

[Lenzkid10]

I feed him lettuce on a daily basis now with pellets every third or fourth day to be sure that he has a 75% plant based diet. When I am feeding him lettuce, how big should the leaves be? I usually make them pretty big, because he likes to nibble on it. Is there a particular size it should be?

Also, I have noticed that the bottom his shell is becoming to form brown marks. I wish I could post pictures up, but I don't have a camera. Could this just be dirt? I am using a basking platform that I purchased from PetSmart...could it be scraping his shell when he basks?

[steve]

A lot of the percentages don't mean much to me. He should get a fixed amount of pellets regularly (does not need to be everyday, but should be consistent) and the rest of the diet is up to you to determine.

I can weigh the amount I give my RES for you but it's by no means the exact amount a RES should get. They sometimes get less, more or receive something else.

The patterns on the bottom shell do eventually become brown blotches. My male RES's plastron is nearly all brown/black.

It's possible his basking area can be too abrasive, but I would just regularly examine his shell - look for scratches, pits, sensitivity, etc.

[Lenzkid10]

Oh don't worry about the lettuce. I assume the pellets every third day and a decent chunk of lettuce every day, mixed in with some treats every now and again will be just fine. It's relieving to know that this is typical of the shell, though. Thanks for all the help! I wouldn't have a turtle if it wasn't for this site!