General Care Discussion :: problem with poo

[jameshermanto]

often i see Lot bask and kicking the water, i dont know what is he gonna to do, but he keep kicking stone, his tail, anything. its weird, what happen to him??
also i give them this Lactuca sativa is it good for turtle, its says its lettuce

[theartbook35]

My turtles kick things they don't like. They did that to the artificial hair grass I bought, and when I removed it, the kicking stopped.

I would just stick to normal romaine lettuce for now.

[SpotsMama]

I looked it up and Lactuca Sativa is the scientific name that encompasses all the lettuce types we typically find in the US - romaine, iceberg and leaf lettuces, so it sounds pretty good. It's more of less recommended depending on the specific cultivar. The kind we call "iceberg" (tightly wrapped, round heads, pale green color) is not recommended simply because it lacks nuitrition. The kind we call "romaine" (long, straight fan-like leaves, firm texture, dark green) is recommended only in moderation as it contains a substance that can interfer with calcium absorption. The kind we call "leaf lettuce" (long, wide, frilly leaves sometimes tipped with dark reddish brown, not as firm textured as romaine) is highly recommeded for turtles.

[theartbook35]

I looked it up and Lactuca Sativa is the scientific name that encompasses all the lettuce types we typically find in the US - romaine, iceberg and leaf lettuces, so it sounds pretty good. It's more of less recommended depending on the specific cultivar. The kind we call "iceberg" (tightly wrapped, round heads, pale green color) is not recommended simply because it lacks nuitrition. The kind we call "romaine" (long, straight fan-like leaves, firm texture, dark green) is recommended only in moderation as it contains a substance that can interfer with calcium absorption. The kind we call "leaf lettuce" (long, wide, frilly leaves sometimes tipped with dark reddish brown, not as firm textured as romaine) is highly recommeded for turtles.

I looked up a website that had nutritional facts about romaine lettuce, and it said that romaine has some calcium in it. I'm not saying you're wrong, or anything like that, this is just what I've read and I find it kind of interesting. But, how does lettuce have calcium and interfere with calcium absorption at the same time? Or is that something that really affects turtles only?

I give my turtles romaine or leaf lettuce, by the way. They do digest both very well, and their shells look healthy in my book.

[TheComputerGremlin]

I believe the substance is called oxalic acid, and it interferes in turtles with the metabolism of calcium. Romaine lettuce can be given more often when you supplement with additional cuttlebone, and spinach should never be fed due to the high levels of oxalic acid. This substance doesn't appear to affect humans the way it does turtles.

[SpotsMama]

Oxalic acid is one thing that interfers with calcium absorption, phosporus is another. Phosporus binds with calcium so it isn't available to the body. Generally, foods containing more phosporus than calcium are to be avoided or used only in moderation because calcium is so important for turtles. Romaine, for instance, contains more phosporus than calcium (though only slightly more) and that's why it's not highly recommended. And TheComputerGremlin is right - making sure the diet contains cuttlebone for extra calcium helps.

One more thing James, a turtle sometimes kicks his/her tail area when he/she is constipated. Is your turtle pooping normally?

[jameshermanto]

yeah spotsmama, he poo normally. and the water is 28-29 celcius. i must tried cuttlebone first.