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How to Know What to Feed a Expert

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Pippa Elliott, MRCVS
Veterinarian, Royal College of

Turtle
Veterinary Surgeons

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In this Article: Article Summary Knowing What to Feed Your Turtle Feeding Your Turtle 32 7 weeks ago 405,643
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Turtles can be great pets, but taking care of them requires time and effort. Turtles have varied 100% of readers found this article helpful.
diets including fruit and vegetables as well as insects, worms and fish. To care for your turtle 18 votes - 100%

you need to understand what food your turtle needs and how often you should feed him. The Click a star to add your vote
exact amounts will vary from turtle to turtle, but there are some general guidelines to follow.
You should speak to your vet if you are uncertain about how to correctly feed your turtle.
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Part
1 Knowing What to Feed Your Turtle

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1 Feed him fruit and vegetables. Turtles have a varied diet which includes fruit and
vegetables as well as meat. As a general rule a younger turtle will eat more meat, and
as he gets older he will shift to eat more fruits and vegetables. Of the fruit and vegetables
you provide, around 80-90% of total should be made up from vegetables and flowers, with
just the remaining 10-20% coming from fruit. Generally, green and leafy things should be
the largest part of his diet, while you should avoid fibre-rich vegetables such as lettuce and
celery.

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 Good vegetable choices include kale, parsley, green beans, bell peppers, and
cabbage.
Small amounts of spinach and broccoli are also good choices.
Flowers including carnations, roses and hibiscus can be added for variety.
For the fruit content use apples, bananas, pears, grapes, kiwi and melon.

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 2 Provide live food. Unlike tortoises, turtles also eat meat. This is an important part of
their diet so be sure to have a regular supply of animal-based food for your turtle,
including live food. The type of things you should feed your turtle includes crickets,
mealworms, waxworms and other small grubs and insects.[1] If your turtle is aquatic it will
need to eat small fish such as comet goldfish, mosquito fish, or even aquatic snails.[2]
You can buy live worms and crickets from your local pet store, as well as pre-
packaged dead ones.
Feeding your turtle live crickets can seem a little tricky, but it helps to replicate how
a turtle would eat in the wild.[3]

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3
Eat Feed a Baby Turtle
Use high quality pellets. An easy way to provide food for your turtle is to use
specially prepared turtle pellets which you can buy in your local pet store. These will
be designed to provide the range of minerals and vitamins your turtle needs.[4] If you are
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trying to replicate how a turtle would feed in the wild, however, the pellets are less authentic
than fresh greens and insects. If you use pellets try to make them part of a balance with
fresh food. Think of pellets as forming the only the foundation of the diet.[5]

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 4 Get the right balance of food and vitamins. For a creature with a diet as varied as
a turtle, getting a good balance of all the different dietary elements is important to
maintain your turtle's health and well-being. There is no absolute fixed ration of plant-based
feed to animal-based feed, and each turtle will vary, but aim to provide equal amounts of
each of these main food types.
Using supplements can help to ensure your turtle gets all the necessary vitamins
and minerals. Consider dusting food with calcium and vitamin supplements before
offering it to your turtle.
Add the calcium supplement to his food twice a week.[6] If you are unsure about
the right balance for your turtle speak to your vet.

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 5 Provide constant access to water. As well as feeding your turtle you need to ensure
that he has constant access to a water source for drinking. Ensure there is always
fresh water in a bowl that the turtle can easily access and not easily knock over. Take care
to make sure that the water stays clean and replace it if gets contaminated.

Part
2 Feeding Your Turtle

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 1 Feed young turtles often. Juvenile turtles need lots of food, and need to be fed more
often than mature turtles. Feed juvenile turtles every day. Turtles are generally
considered juvenile until they reach around seven years of age. You may find that his
appetite will change before he reaches this age, and he eats less. In this case you can
switch to feeding him less frequently, but be sure to check with your vet first to see if there
is any other reason for his diminished appetite.

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 2 Don't feed adult turtles every day. Once your turtle becomes more mature his
eating habits will change and you should not feed him every day. Appetite will vary
from turtle to turtle but as a general rule you should feed an adult turtle every second day,
or four to five times a week.[7] You may find that your turtle is frequently begging for food.
They will do this whether or not you feed them, so you should be sure to stick to a good
feeding programme.[8]

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3 Provide the right amount of food. No two turtles will eat exactly the same amount of
food, so recommendations on the amount to provide have to be generalised. There
are, however, some good guidelines to keep in mind. Smaller turtles will eat less than larger
ones, and this is reflected in the idea that you should feed your turtle about as much food
as would fit in his head and neck.[9] This is quite imprecise, but can be a useful reference
point.

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 Another way to judge the amount of food to provide, is to offer all he can eat in a
set time. The recommended times vary from 5 to 15 minutes.
Try feeding him until there is a noticeable falling-off of appetite and then removing
any non-live food.[10]
Removing excess food will help avoid over eating, and prevent decomposing
leftovers which can impact on the water purity for an aquatic turtle.

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 4 Feed an aquatic turtle in the water. Aquatic turtles are a little different to ordinary
land turtles, as they feed in the water. It is essential for an aquatic turtle to feed in the
water. This can lead to problems if leftover food decays in the water. Because of this, some
people recommend having a separate tank for feeding which can be cleaned more easily
after mealtimes.[11] If you don't do this be sure to pick out any leftovers and keep the water
quality high.
Feeding an aquatic turtle small live fish can help stimulate him and give him some
exercise.[12]
Using vegetables that float is preferable to those that sink for an aquatic turtle.
If you dust your food with a vitamin supplement, be aware that this can rub off in
the water. Using pellets can be a way to tackle this.

Veterinarian Pippa Elliott makes this suggestion: "Turtles are messy eaters.
Consider having a separate container used just for feeding, so that the larger tank
doesn't become contaminated with stale food."

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Community Q&A

Question

Can I feed the turtle pieces of bread?

Pippa Elliott, MRCVS

Veterinarian, Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons
Expert Answer

No, it's best to avoid feeding bread or other cooked/ processed foods to turtles. Also be
aware your turtle might eat the bread if you offer it, but this is not a sign it is safe to do so.
Helpful 73 Not Helpful 20

Question

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 What kind of fruits and vegetables can an aquatic turtle eat?

Pippa Elliott, MRCVS

Veterinarian, Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons
Expert Answer

Whatever you offer the turtle be sure to cut it up into small chunks so the turtle can crush it
with his beak. Vegetables that provide good nutrition include grated carrots, zucchini, or
squash, plus peas and green leafy vegetables. Fruits include such tasty things as berries
(strawberries, raspberries, blueberries) grapes, and tropical fruits such as guava, pawpaw,
and bananas.
Helpful 73 Not Helpful 21

Question

Can baby painted turtles eat cut up apple pieces?

wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer

You can feed them apples or almost any other type of fruit on moderation (with the pits
removed and chopped into small pieces to prevent choking). Fruits contain a large amount of
sugar, so don't your turtles feed too much -- about once a month, fruit is a very enjoyable
treat for them.
Helpful 38 Not Helpful 4

Question

Can water turtles eat apple chunks? Do you take the skin off the chunks?

wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer

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 If the turtle is young then give it small slices and if it is big then chunks will be alright. You do
not need to take the skin off.
Helpful 22 Not Helpful 3

Question

Can I give them fresh carrots?

wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer

You can, but make sure you feed them in moderation.

Helpful 62 Not Helpful 14

Question

What should I do if my baby aquatic turtle will not eat greens or fruit?

wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer

Baby turtles are suppose to eat more protein and fewer greens. Offer a small amount of
veggies first, when it is hungry. After a few minutes, scoop out whatever is left, and offer the
turtle its normal protein-based food. Turtles will naturally start eating more veggies on their
own when they become adults.
Helpful 64 Not Helpful 22

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 Question

Should the turtle be in the water all the time?

wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer

The turtle may need to bask, meaning to dry themselves, so you'll need to have a rock or
something that's not in the water for them to climb up on.
Helpful 5 Not Helpful 0

Question

What kind of food does a land turtle eat?

wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer

What a turtle eats depends on its species — specifically, what kind of jaw it has for
masticating (chewing) food, where it lives and what food sources are available to it.
Research your type of turtle to find out exactly what meets its criteria.
Helpful 46 Not Helpful 17

Question

How do I know what type of turtle I have and what to put in the tank?

wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer

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 Bring your turtle to a veterinarian, preferably an exotic veterinarian and get it identified. For
the tank you need a large rock that won't fall over easily, semi-submerged so the turtle can
crawl on top of it. You also need large aquarium rocks along the bottom of the tank, large
enough that the turtle can't choke on them, and a light.
Helpful 33 Not Helpful 11

Question

Can I keep a wild turtle I found?

wikiHow Contributor
Community Answer

It matters on where you are living and you should check whether it's legal or not.
Helpful 3 Not Helpful 0

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Unanswered Questions

Can I just drop crickets and other insects in the water from them to eat?

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Can my turtle eat dried worms?

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Tips

If you do any research online or in a library or bookshop, remember that in the UK, the term
'Terrapin' is used for pet turtles.

Related wikiHows Edit

How to How to
Keep a Turtle Healthy Tell If a Turtle Is Male or Female

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 How to How to
Feed Your Turtle if It is Refusing to Eat Feed a Baby Turtle

Sources and Citations

1. ↑ http://pets.petsmart.com/guides/turtles/nutrition.shtml
2. ↑ http://happyturtle.ms11.net/feeding.html
3. ↑ http://www.tortoisetrust.org/articles/live.html

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Article Info

Categories: Feeding Turtles and Tortoises

In other languages:

Español: saber qué darle de comer a una tortuga, Italiano: Sapere che Tipo di Cibo Dare a una
Tartaruga, Português: Alimentar uma Tartaruga, Русский: узнать, чем накормить
черепаху, Deutsch: Wasser und Sumpfschildkröten richtig füttern, Français: savoir quels
aliments donner à sa tortue, Bahasa Indonesia: Mengetahui Makanan Penyu, Tiếng Việt: Xác
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