General Care Discussion :: Do you have to peel it??

[Tiny]

Tiny has always eaten the stuff- I have never peeled anything.

I get the Turtle Bonze now instead of bird cuttle- Do they too have to be peeled too?

Why?

[BullDog]

Yes, the turtle bone still has the hard backer on it.
You have to peel it because it's really inedible, or at least really hard on the digestive system. Try to scrape your fingernail across it, the hard side, and you'll see that you can't make a dent in it. Better yet, try chewing on a piece of the backer. You get the idea

[Tiny]

Ok- so- YUK!

I saw in another post that you can soak and peel right?

Or is there a quicker, easier way?

[stray_647]

I've found it easier to soak and then peel with a butter knife. You really don't even need to soak it over night. 4-5 hrs is good. Wait till it's dry and then peel with knife. You'll notice that it's vey easy to get off, it's like peeling paint chips from the wall (well sort of ) .

[BullDog]

I don't think there is an easy way, unfortunately.
Soaking it overnight then letting it dry may help.
Or just chipping it off with a butter knife, or if you're brave, something sharper I have a butter knife with a pointy end, but no sharp edges, and that works well. I usually do it outside too, since it kind of makes a mess

[Tiny]

Yeah- the mess!

Tiny leks that chunk floating in there. She nibbles and nibbles. When it's gone, i give her a new chunk. It's kind of a fake out because she likes to chew the dock when the bone is absent. So I figured the large peice was kinda like the dock. She doesn't eat the crumbles strangely.

I would like to keep it in tact as much as possible to keep her picking at it. I will Try the soak.

I feel bad she's been eating back and all for a while now. I hope she's ok.

Thanks for the tips.