General Care Discussion :: Taste

[Evelyn]

Hi,
How well do the turtle taste ? To they taste the food or do they use their nose to smell their food gather then taste. Do they have taste bugs.
I fed my two older turtles salom the other night and now they will not eat the pellets, so I know they like one food over the other, they have done this for years. Feed the meal worms they won't eat pellets of days.
So is taste the reason or smell.
Now Baby turtle will not eat any other food but pellets, give her fish it just sits in the tank.
I raised my two turtles on Pretty Pet Pellets and that was there main diet.
The pellet smell good and are colorfull, but I bought them because of the many ingredients that are in them. The protein has been lowed in recent years.
Evelyn

[adam85491]

I think it is taste because I was giving my turtles this one brand of pellets because they are made of various fruits and vegetables and they like them a lot. I tried mixing in the Nutramin pellets which are good for vitamins and things but smell worse to me and are less appealing (color-wise) than the other kind of pellets and they wouldn't eat them at first. Now I give them both and I think I have a winning combination pellet-wise. And it sounds like you give them a lot of fish, isn't that bad?

[industrial_girl_2000]

Do they taste? YES! Very much so, and they have a strong sense of smell too.

There have been times I fed Sheba when she would see/smell something & think it was good to eat, then bite down, only to spit it out. Then other times she smells something and attacks it with a vengence, gobbling it down! Those are the times I have to use a spoon to feed her because she gets so excited about eating that she will literally take my hand along with the food!

[marisa]

The senses of taste and smell are intimately connected (for humans anyway). Turtles do have a very keen sense of smell, however, (my RES won't eat anything before he smells it first) and since they gulp most food down whole, if they had taste buds, I don't think they'd have a chance to be used. I think it's more the smell that they're responding to (turtles like smelly foods).

[industrial_girl_2000]

(turtles like smelly foods).

That might explain the time that Sheba came up to me & bit my big toe!!! OUCH!!! I was like "ok, OK, I get the message! I'll go WASH my feet!!!!"

[KalinaBallerina]

For sure turtles can taste - my turtle is on oral antibiotics, and the vet said that they are bitter. You should see the face she makes after I make her swallow them - she's definitely not impressed!

[steve]

That might explain the time that Sheba came up to me & bit my big toe!!! OUCH!!! I was like "ok, OK, I get the message! I'll go WASH my feet!!!!"

ewww

[marisa]

During the summer when I'm barefoot, Tilly will come up to me and smell my toes as well. He doesn't bite, he just likes to smell, breathing deeply in and out. He'll deliberately start with one end and sniff between each toe, breathing deeply in and out. I have to say it's a very strange feeling. Kind of....erotic.

[industrial_girl_2000]

Ok, Marisa, now I am worried about you.....

[steve]

Since the subject of feet won't go away, my male RES also enjoys smelling feet but not as meticulous as Tilly seems to be or as aggressive as Sheba

[marisa]

Yeah, Tilly really likes to smell things.

What does that say about our feet???? (I can assure you, I keep mine clean.)

[SpotsMama]

Poor Spot. He's been deprived. I always wear shoes!

[marisa]

Well, give him a treat when summer comes.

[SpotsMama]

[steve]

I could be wearing shoes or be barefoot... he still insists on smelling them.