Do tortoises like prickly pear cactus?
The best part of having the prickly pear cactus in your yard or along your beach is the gopher tortoises. They love to eat the flowers, fruit and even the spiny plates of the plant. It is a favorite in their diet.
Cactus and succulent plants edible by tortoises and other reptiles. Your pets will just go crazy for these! They are highly nutritious and will make a valuable contribution to your pet's diet.
Tortoises do not have teeth; instead, they have a beak and grind their food. Examples of preferred tortoise forage are prickly pear cactus, primrose, beavertail cactus, white clover, hibiscus, globemallow, desert dandelion, and desert marigold.
So you want to make sure there's no sharp spines on there that could really hurt your tortoises. Now
Although tortoises can eat cacti along with their spines, it is best if you remove the larger ones. If you have a tortoise at home, the Opuntia species is the best to feed them. The pads are not super thorny, so tortoises can feed on them easily.
Cacti aren't too hard to grow and provide great interest to those in the household. There are loads to choose from and established plants can be grown in your tortoise enclosure. Cut off a healthy section from the plant and add that to your tortoise meal. However, you do also need to be careful to remove any spines.
Most succulents should be fed to your tortoise in moderation. While they aren't especially toxic, eating too many succulents could cause laxative effects in your tortoise.
Tortoise feeding guide - how to prepare opuntia cactus ... - YouTube
Although this plant is said to be toxic to cats, dogs and some other mammals, the Aloe is fine to feed to tortoises in moderation but if too much is fed it can have a slight laxative effect.
The preferred species is a spineless cactus, Opuntiaficus-indica, grown commercially for pads and fruit. Tortoises eat pads, flowers, and fruit. New plants can be started by planting pads.
Can tortoises eat tuna?
As with turtles, tortoises can be fed some alfalfa, broccoli bananas, oranges, melons, mixed vegetables, spinach, Swiss chard and sprouts of seeds, beans or alfalfa. We advise also a low fat dog food (dry preferably but canned is adequate) plus some tuna or chicken as 1/4 or less of the diet.
How Do Tortoises Get Calcium In The Wild? A wild tortoise clearly does not need calcium supplements because if they did, there wouldn't be any wild tortoises. They get their calcium from their diet and they do it by consuming vegetation which is rich in the mineral. The plants get their calcium from calcium rich soil.
A mild toxicity has been reported in dogs and cats that have eaten Christmas Cactus, but tortoises have a slow digestive process and are very unlikely to be affected by eating this plant, so it can be fed in moderation and always as part of a wider, varied diet.
Your tortoise can eat cactus 2-3 times per week. Chop the cactus pads, so they don't eat an entire cactus in one sitting. Usually, this will be enough to sate a tortoise. The prickly pear cactus is the best choice, but tortoises can also enjoy a mistletoe cactus if the stem has been cleared of irritating hairs.
This edible plant has oval, gray-green pads that are blushed with purple; vibrant yellow flowers in spring; virtually spineless, but handle pads carefully; no glochids on the pads.
Prickly pears are critical members of wildlife communities. Various parts of a prickly pear provide food for tortoises, iguanas, rabbits, deer, peccaries, and many species of birds.
- Tropical Hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis). These large shrubs are great plants for tortoise pens. ...
- Aloe (Aloe species). ...
- Jade Plant (Crassula argentea). ...
- Spineless Prickly Pear Cactus (Opuntia species). ...
- Yucca (Yucca species).
...
| Common Name | Botanical Name | Toxicity |
|---|---|---|
| Amaryllis | Amaryllis belladonna | 2 |
| Asparagus Fern | Asparagus sprengerii | 2, 3 |
| Arrowhead Vine | Syngonium podophyllum | 1 |
| Avocado (leaves, seeds) | Persea americana | 2 |
Rose leaves and flower petals are fine as a treat but you must never feed the blooms from store-bought bouquets as plants might have been sprayed with insecticides.
Family Name: Boraginaceae
No evidence of any known toxicity. Safe for your tortoise.
Can tortoises eat tomatoes?
The ripe fruit has a high sugar content, low level of calcium and high phosphorus content with almost no fibre, so it is not nourishing and we do not recommend feeding it. Tortoises do find tomatoes tasty though, and the one situation in which it might be acceptable to feed is when it is used to administer medication.
The whole plant has a high carbohydrate content, a high sodium content, and the calcium/phosphorous ratio is also not ideal for tortoises, so although it is not toxic as such, we do not recommend feeding it (although a few nibbles would do no great harm).
Tortoises should eat a very varied diet of weeds and flowers with calcium supplement. Safe weeds/plants include; plantains, dandelion leaves and flowers, hawkweeds, mallow, sow-thistle, chickweed catsear, hibiscus flowers, nasturtiums, pansies and violas.
Not all species of chelonia are fruit eaters, so the fruit of the Pear should be only offered as a small part of the diet to tortoises and turtles that would naturally have fruit in their diet. Pear pips/seeds, like the pips/seeds and stones of other fruit should be avoided.
The pads can be sliced and pickled, but cannot be stored fresh in a refrigerator for more than a week. Most prickly pear tunas and nopales can be eaten plain. Prickly pear are used for a variety of foods, especially the fruit for syrups, candies and jellies. However, the pads can also be cooked or eaten in a salad.
Are Apples Bad for Tortoises? No, apples are not bad for your pet tortoise. Moreover, they have many benefits for your pet reptile: it is a fruit rich in antioxidants, fibers, vitamins, and minerals. It has a relatively low content in sugars and calories compared to other more “fattening” fruits.
How much and how often should I feed my tortoise? As a general rule, you should offer an amount of food equivalent to the size of your tortoise's shell. They should be fed once a day, 5 days a week. The 2 starve days can be implemented at any time, in any order.
Safe ornamental plant which is fine planted in the tortoise enclosure and will do no harm if it is nibbled.
The preferred species is a spineless cactus, Opuntiaficus-indica, grown commercially for pads and fruit. Tortoises eat pads, flowers, and fruit. New plants can be started by planting pads.
Various parts of a prickly pear provide food for tortoises, iguanas, rabbits, deer, peccaries, and many species of birds.
Can Russian tortoises eat prickly pear cactus?
If it's opuntia (also known as prickly pear, nopales), then it's fine. Lots of tortoise species like to eat opuntia cactus pads, and also other succulent plants (but not all of them are good).
Tortoise feeding guide - how to prepare opuntia cactus ... - YouTube
...
| Common Name | Botanical Name | Toxicity |
|---|---|---|
| Amaryllis | Amaryllis belladonna | 2 |
| Asparagus Fern | Asparagus sprengerii | 2, 3 |
| Arrowhead Vine | Syngonium podophyllum | 1 |
| Avocado (leaves, seeds) | Persea americana | 2 |
Most succulents should be fed to your tortoise in moderation. While they aren't especially toxic, eating too many succulents could cause laxative effects in your tortoise.
Although this plant is said to be toxic to cats, dogs and some other mammals, the Aloe is fine to feed to tortoises in moderation but if too much is fed it can have a slight laxative effect.
Thick infestations of prickly pear (drooping) can form a barrier that obstructs the movement of stock and will reduce agricultural productivity. The fruits have been known to host fruit fly. Spines and barbs of the plant may damage mouths of grazing animals.
Prickly Pear (Opuntia) is a very flexible food source. Both the pads (nopales) and the fruit (tunas) are edible, but caution should be taken with both harvesting and preparation.
Prickly pear cactus — or also known as nopal, opuntia and other names — is promoted for treating diabetes, high cholesterol, obesity and hangovers. It's also touted for its antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties.
Safe ornamental plant which is fine planted in the tortoise enclosure and will do no harm if it is nibbled.
This edible plant has oval, gray-green pads that are blushed with purple; vibrant yellow flowers in spring; virtually spineless, but handle pads carefully; no glochids on the pads.
Can tortoises eat celery?
The whole plant has a high carbohydrate content, a high sodium content, and the calcium/phosphorous ratio is also not ideal for tortoises, so although it is not toxic as such, we do not recommend feeding it (although a few nibbles would do no great harm).
Tortoises often eat cactus and other succulents in the wild, gaining nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and hydration. The prickly pear is the most common cactus to feed tortoises. The spines (glochids) should be burnt off the cactus before feeding, but your tortoise will enjoy the treat.
A mild toxicity has been reported in dogs and cats that have eaten Christmas Cactus, but tortoises have a slow digestive process and are very unlikely to be affected by eating this plant, so it can be fed in moderation and always as part of a wider, varied diet.
- Tropical Hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis). These large shrubs are great plants for tortoise pens. ...
- Aloe (Aloe species). ...
- Jade Plant (Crassula argentea). ...
- Spineless Prickly Pear Cactus (Opuntia species). ...
- Yucca (Yucca species).
