General Care Discussion :: help~~ my turtle is fat

[centrum2k6]

my r.e.s is about 7" and she is about 5 yrs old. okay i want to know what kind of diet she needs and the amount. my turtle is so fat and she cant even walk properly. i used to feed her with raw meats then i found it was wrong so no meat for her about half of yr, but still she is fat and she doesnt poop much.

[Kallistos]

Read

http://www.redearslider.com/index_nutrition.html

http://www.redearslider.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=5

If she's not pooping that may mean her intestines are blocked, do you have any small gravel in the tank?

[centrum2k6]

is bitter melon good for r.e.s?

[rocketright]

Yes, Every once in a while, but if they don't eat it it will leave a guge mess well make the water cloudy. You should feed them tomatoes, peas, carrots, bananas, apples... And many more fruits and vegies.....

[Turtle addict]

Any red ear over 4 inches should get pellets {only enough to fit inside their head if it was hollow} every other - every three days. The rest of the diet should be mixed greens, once a week a TREAT of fruit and veggies is fine.

[industrial_girl_2000]

Not too many tomatos.....only once in a GREAT while. Tomatos can make a turtle's bones soft. I only feed a piece of tomato about once a year.

How big is your tank? If he is in a bigger tank, he will swim more which will also force him to get exercise & slim down a bit.

[BullDog]

Careful what you're saying there Rocketright. Most fruits should be fed rarely as the contain a lot of sugar. Also, I've read a few things that suggest peas rarely as well. Leafy greens are the best to round out your turt's diet. Read the stickies on the feeding page for what and what not to feed.

[marisa]

How do tomatoes make a turtle's bones soft? They shouldn't be fed too often because of their acidic content, which could upset the digestive tract. Too many peas and bananas are also problematic...It's best to concentrate on leafy greens (those that are recommended) and aquatic plants. If a turtle has a balanced diet, occasionally offering some less nutritious foods for variety shouldn't hurt.

[industrial_girl_2000]

How do tomatoes make a turtle's bones soft? They shouldn't be fed too often because of their acidic content, which could upset the digestive tract. Too many peas and bananas are also problematic...It's best to concentrate on leafy greens (those that are recommended) and aquatic plants. If a turtle has a balanced diet, occasionally offering some less nutritious foods for variety shouldn't hurt.

I was trying to find the website where I saw the picture & read about what too many tomatos does to a turtle's bones. At the time I was considering adopting a rescued russian tortoise and was reading up on the dietary/habitat requirements. It was on a tortoise rescue site here in Michigan where they had a picture of a rescued tortoise that was raised on a lot of tomatos. The poor tortoise's hind leg bones had completely dissolved away so he couldn't even use his back legs....he just dragged them along as he pulled himself with his front arms (obviously having very limited mobility with the front arms as well). It was very sad. It came with a warning to *limit* feeding tomatoes to tortoises, saying also that there are so many other things you can feed them that are better for their health (like leafy greens).

Of course, that was tortoises & we are talking about sliders, but because of that story, I won't feed tomatos to Sheba.