Feeding and Nutrition :: am I feeding too much, or not enough?

[2Daughtry8]

I feed my 4.5" slider RepCal pellets, I would say about 20 pellets, two times a day (they are pretty small) 2 crickets once a day, red leaf lettuce daily. I just recently purchased TetraFauna Reptotreat gammarus 100% natural shrimp that said to feed inconjunction with the the Reptomin, so I thought it would be good. She eats it, but I'm not sure if it's ok for her to have it. I was giving her that also twice a day after she finished the RepCal. She also has a cuddlebone in the tank to munch on.

I was reading on the main site and in this forum about feeding suggestions, and I think that maybe I should cut back to feeding her the pellets maybe once or twice every other day, and then the crickets twice a month. There is still 2 rosy red minnows in her tank as well that she doesnt seem to be interested in.

Any suggestions would be helpful! Thank you!

[BullDog]

Way way too much!

As you now have now found out, a 4.5" RES should be fed a head-sized amount of pellets every second day. If you want to feed her pellets every day, cut it down to half a head size.
Here's a recent post that estimates how many pellets fit in a 4" RES head:
http://www.redearslider.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=18729

Both gammarus and crickets are considered treats, and should be fed no more than once a month (one or the other, not both). The lettuce daily is fine. And the cuttlebone is right on

I would start her new feeding regime ASAP, and don't try to "ween her off". She'll probably beg for more, but don't give in! It's for her own good!

[2Daughtry8]

Ok, so would that be pellets every second day twice on that day, or once?

[BullDog]

A head-sized amount pellets once every second day.
Again, if you want to feed two times a day, every second day, you can feed half in the morning, and half in the evening.

[chrisinva]

What about six (6) Baby repto min pellets a day for a hatchling?

[spaceapple]

Probably ok, but might be just a couple too many, chrisinva. (I know you've been worried about pyramiding, right?) The recommended amount for hatchlings is 4-6; my turtles are just about exactly the same size as yours and I feed 4 a day.