Picky Boxie

[Samba]

Hello All,

My box turtle, Mike, is being particular about his diet lately, refusing all the 'good stuff' and wanting only Strawberries, Chicken and *a little* Red Meat. Other than that he pays no mind to what is offered.

I have tried rubbing the scents of his favorite treats on the greens and veggies to no avail. I think he may be instinctively trying to 'fatten up' for the coming winter...

What do you guys think? Any suggestions would be helpful... and he will be hibernating indoors this winter. Thanks in advance!

[elfomatic]

That's likely. And if you are planning on hibernating him you may want to give in a little bit. He knows better than you how much fat he will need. You can always try it the other way around and sneak some greens into his more fatty diet.

[Samba]

Thanks! I'm not sure if this applies, but can too much meat in his diet cause him to get visceral gout? (Pardon the spelling... it's still early) =)

Also, the way I've prepared the meat is as follows, please inform me if I'm doing anything incorrect, as it's been quite a while since I've owned a box tortoise...

Beef/Turkey (Ground): Fried in pan w/o oil until dark brown. Serve at room temp.

Chicken: Skin/Bones/Fat removed, baked at 400 degrees (time depends on if it's for both of us or just him). Cooked until no more pink is inside meat.

A friend of mine suggested a few small servings of raw meats... how much more beneficial would this be for Mike, if at all?

Thanks for your help... and any ideas on hibernating him? I have a red-eared slider and she requires nothing to hibernate... she just stops eating and goes dormant for a few months... Again, thank you!! =)

[Linds]

I would recommend trying to replace the chicken/turkey/beef with other meat sources such as earthworms, snails, pinky mice, and other small, whole prey he would be more likely to encounter. These contain far more nutrients, don't have undesirable additives, and are in no way processed.

I cannot comment on preparation, as I believe cooked meats are not the best thing for reptiles. Nobody is cooking up animal parts for them in the wild, right? In contrast, I would never feed raw chicken to anything, in the small chance of salmonella becoming an issue.

[elfomatic]

I agree ... I don't think cooked meats are a bad thing ... but natural is better. At least stick to the lighter meats and cut out the beef. The others contain less fat.

While excessive meats can cause problems as they would with any animal I think it is okay since you are preparing to hibernate him. I would continue to offer greens and I wouldn't offer him so much meat year round but with hibernation around the corner it should be okay ... just get back on a more regular diet after hibernation.

[Samba]

Thanks, guys, for your imput... it has been ages since I've had a box tortoise and now that I'm older and wiser I'd like to take the best of care of him.

I only offered a little ground beef, cooked w/o oil, as stated above and he really went after it. I can't tell if being picky is just his personality, or something he's accustomed to by his former owner... I tried a commercial (I know, I know!) moistened diet but he completely refused to acknowledge it.

I will try the snails (GAG) and worms to see if he's interested. Thanks again for all your help, and, as always, if you have information that I might benefit from, please feel free to share... I hope to post some photos of Mike here soon!! Thanks again!