Feeding and Nutrition :: Diet Help Needed

[myersj42]

I have a 6 yr old male slider and all he ever eats are pellets and meat. I've tried rosy red minnows and an assortment of aquatic plants, but none of this even interests him. He won't touch any kind of veggie I've tried so far either. Is this ok, and what can I do to get him to eat other things? Thanks!!

[Vivi]

all you could really do is keep on offering him veggies. eventually he is going to go for it. just dont stop offering him his veggies.

you said that he eats meat. right?? what kind?? at first i thought you meant fish but by what you wrote he doesnt even eat that.

[myersj42]

He seems to really enjoy cooked turkey and chicken, sometimes we'll give him cooked beef as well.

[erinemcgreevy]

Have you tried blueberries? My turtles LOVES them.

[Vivi]

try to decrease the meat by A LOT. this will cause him to pyramid. cut out the protein from his diet.

[marisa]

I'd try to cut out the meat, period. (Once in a very great while, you could give him some boiled white chicken or turkey meat as a treat, but other than that, no meat.) What kind of pellets does he get?

What veggies have you tried to give him and in what form were they given (a carrot peel vs a small whole carrot, for example)? You could try to get the scent of something he likes on a carrot peel, for example. Or, soak a piece of red-leaf lettuce or dandelion in some tuna juice and see if he'll nibble on that.

If he's healthy, and expecially if he's a little overweight, you could withhold the meat and pellets, offer him veggies and wait him out until he's hungry enough to eat them.

Just curious, do you have a picture of your turtle that you could post?

[FLhaven4strays]

Ditto on omitting the meat. The first year I had Liza I didn't know any better & fed her lots of krill because that was her favorite food...now she has mild pyramiding and though it doesn't take away from her looks (in my opinion, anyway...) I've learned that health complications are created right along w/ the pyramids. I'm also convinced she's more of a beggar & less of a veggie eater because of her early protein addiction. Try floating or water plants in hopes they'll entice him? And all different kinds of veggies / fruits...you never know when he'll decide to try 'em.

[mikee]

My 42 -- Mine had me going to a local restaurant and getting boiled shrimp and lobster. I had to rethink this and stop the catered food until they decided that maybe after a few days those veggies are not so bad. It is amazing what they will eat when they are hungry. Too much protein is not good for them long term. Mine got up a petition and tried to make me feel guilty but it did not work.

[industrial_girl_2000]

Mix some chopped up lettuce with a tiny bit of something stinky like canned tuna. Feed with spoon. If the food "smells" like something he likes, he is more likely to give it a try. I was able to wean my big turtle Sheba onto eating veggies by doing this. Once she got used to the texture of the plant foods, LOOK OUT! Now I don't even need to mix tuna with the veggies anymore & she eats them plain. She LOVES veggies now, and blueberries/raspberries are her favorite desserts.

It takes about 2 weeks worth of feedings. Start off with chopped 50% veggies, 50% tuna, then slowly decrease the tuna at each feeding. This works great.

Don't mix sweet fruits (like blueberries) with the tuna. That would be gross, LOL. Sweet fruits make a great "dessert" once in a while.