Feeding and Nutrition :: Sheba (RES) is finally eating veggies/fruits!!!

[industrial_girl_2000]

I have been on this forum for almost a week & read all the info about feeding the RES's fresh veggies/fruits. Well, after 5 days of coaxing & trying to get Sheba to eat romaine lettuce (she would bite at it, but spit it out), she has finally eaten some last night. I got smart & mixed it with a little bit of canned cat food (to give it that meaty smell) and she gobbled it right up! I was very pleased. I think eventually I will be able to use less & less of the "meaty smelling stuff" as she gets used to it.

After dinner, I decided to try to feed her a grape & peeled it first (as you guys suggested). It was a fairly big grape so I thought she might nip it and then leave the rest. Not at all! She smelled it, then snapped the whole thing down! I couldn't believe my eyes. She actually loved it! I am going to go right down that "what-to-feed" list and try all those foods with her. Next up is thinly-sliced (worm-shaped) carrots!

She has been very healthy, but I was happy to read that I can vary her diet past what she has been eating & have started working to do so. Until I found this website, I had been feeding her a varied diet of reptomin foodsticks, canned bugs, canned cat food, some cooked/leftover fish/chicken, salmon caviar, and live worms for the 16 yrs I have had her.

Just wanted to share my good news with y'all.....
Thanks again for the wonderful feeding tips!
Kristin

[TNTurtles]

congrats! i'm so happy that she is eating veggies now! It may not sound like it but i always think of it as a big accomplishment especially after 16 years.

[marisa]

It's good that she's trying new things. You don't have to peel the grape. I wash them well and quarter them, taking any seeds out, if there are any.

[industrial_girl_2000]

Update: Sheba ate carrots this weekend. I got some chinese food for dinner & there were some shoe-string sauteed carrots in my veggie dish. I rinsed a few of them with water & fed them to her. I think she thought they were worms. She loved them!

I'm going right down the list of foods..... Thanks again!

Kristin

[steffali]

my turtles refuse to eat veggies anf fruits
they only eat the freeze dried plankton and gammarus

[sonyj]

my turtles refuse to eat veggies anf fruits
they only eat the freeze dried plankton and gammarus

This is not a balanced or good diet for them. It is up to you as their owner to withhold foods that they want (but shouldn't have) and supply the foods they should. Many times it only takes a couple of days or until they are hungry for them to begin eating what they should. Don't be afraid of them not eating for a few days (unless they are ill) while providing them with the foods they should be eating.

[steve]

Steffali, what have you tried? You need to keep trying even though it is difficult for you and your turtle.

[missibsu]

Another important thing to consider when trying new things...don't reward uneaten food. If you are trying to get them to eat lettuce and they won't, don't give up and give them the other right away. That just reinforces the other snacks. They will just figure out that they are going to get it anyway.

[industrial_girl_2000]

Latest: I tried Broccoli last night (cut it up real fine & fed her mostly the green buds mixed with a tiny bit of canned cat food so it was like a stew, but it was mostly veggies). She LOVED it. I even fed her a few thin bits of broccoli without the cat food and she clamped down so hard, I could lift her out of the water (Makes me glad I was feeding her with a spoon because I swear I would have lost a finger in that deal!)! She ate everything I fed her & I was very excited to share this news with you all today!

So after a week of mixing some meaty-stuff with different veggies, I can say that this has been a GREAT tactic for introducing new foods into Sheba's diet.

FYI: The brand of catfood I get for Sheba is "fancy feast" (they are little cans & inexpensive). There are many ocean varieties which are great for mixing with some veggies to get an RES to try new foods.

[steve]

In small quantities and if rarely used, broccoli should be harmless but it should be avoided. Some veggies in the same family (Brassica) that should also be avoided are cabbage and kale.

[marisa]

I agree with not using broccoli on a regular basis, but I've read that many turtlekeepers occasionally use it without negative effects (the key is using it only occasionally, and not having a diet heavily based with it). One can supplement to counteract its goitrogenic properties if one is concerned that too much has been given. Kale is actually suggested as a veggie to feed, as is collards (in the same class)---again, moderation and in as part of a varied and balanced diet.

[industrial_girl_2000]

I agree with not using broccoli on a regular basis, but I've read that many turtlekeepers occasionally use it without negative effects (the key is using it only occasionally, and not having a diet heavily based with it). One can supplement to counteract its goitrogenic properties if one is concerned that too much has been given. Kale is actually suggested as a veggie to feed, as is collards (in the same class)---again, moderation and in as part of a varied and balanced diet.

Please add broccoli to the "foods to avoid" list at the top of this thread. When I first printed out the list on the thread, it wasn't in there as a food to avoid. Only after I fed it to her did I find it on the "avoid" list in another area of this website. Not a big deal, I figured one/two times wasn't going to hurt her since broccoli is so high in vitamin A & fiber.

Question: what is "goitrogenic...?"

However, I did grab a few other items on the "ok" list this weekend when I went shopping @ Whole Foods market (collards & strawberry) and fed her those items. She ate the fresh collards like crazy (loved 'em) and I am happy to say I didn't have to mix them with anything to get her to eat them. The strawberry piece ("dessert") was a big hit too, and this morning I fed her a small blueberry before I left for work.

I also picked up a large yam which I plan to cook later in the week. We will be *sharing* it since I love cooked yams!!

I put another picture up in the photo gallery (she's basking in the grass). I think she is smiling......I wonder why......LOL!

[steve]

Will do. A goitrogenic is something that will cause a goiter... I believe this happens with land tortoises more than water turtles.

It's good you're both enjoying all the new foods

[industrial_girl_2000]

Goiter on a turtle????? Yikes!!! Never knew they could get that. It sounds terrible!

::shudder::

Well, the foods are all new to Sheba, not to me. I have always LOVED veggies!

[steve]

I meant that you're enjoying giving it to her