Feeding and Nutrition :: Can veggies make them fat?

[biomanz]

I'm wondering since my turtles have all grown a bit fatter when I'm feeding pellets every other day, sometimes less, and only as much as their head sizes (I hand feed all pellets). I also feed Bokchoy, Yuchoy, and some other greens from Chinese groceries, including a bit of carrot once a week.

Oh, haven't yet but is it OK to feed them Bamboo Mustard Cabbage? They're a bit bitter to me, so I'm second guessing it.

They're 3-4 inches long so still growing. I already cut a bit from their diet to lighten their bellies, but lately the five guppies that survived are now living there as well, so I'm tossing a couple fish pellets here and there every other day. I don't think that's enough to fatten Big, Small, Pretty, and Fat if they're stealing them (yes I call em that ).

[TheComputerGremlin]

The short answer is, yes, too many veggies of the sugary type can make them fatter. However, other than carrot, you don't mention sugary veggies. If they are still 3-4 inches long, they should be getting pellets every day still, until they actually reach 4 inches. However, it may be that you are giving them too many pellets. What type of pellets are you feeding? With ReptoMin, for a 3-4 inch turtle, I'd say 4-5 pellets a day is sufficient.

Can you post some pictures of this fat and we can tell you if they are fat or not? And fish, like guppies, should be fed in moderation, no more than once per month, because your turtles will get fat on that diet.

[biomanz]

Here are some pics I just took. Other than Pretty I can't get the others to tuck their heads in, even when I try to (gently!) shove them in! They have pretty strong necks it seems.

Fatty



Pretty (not so much in this pic)


Big - The shell doesn't slope down perfectly smooth - should I worry about it? A couple scutes in front are bumpy from some unknown injury it seems.



Small - Oh, he's getting chubbier for sure.

[TheComputerGremlin]

Hmm, from your photos, I don't think your turtles are chubby at all! They all look excellent, their shells are beautiful, smooth, and they don't seem to have excess flab. Remember, a lot of what you are seeing is skin. In chubby turtles, instead of just skin, you will see pillow of chub. The biggest places you'll see this is around their legs, it actually looks like puffy flesh being squeeze out of their shell. You can try taking some photos of the area around their leg holes, but I think they are looking great!

As for the one's shell, it doesn't look too bad. The damage looks like it's healed and healthy, now you just have to wait for a few sheds and maybe it will start to look better, but it may be permanent.

[yan]

I remember reading that bokchoy is not good for turtles. Can't remember exactly why, probably something to do with oxalate.