How to Feed a Leopard Tortoise
The leopard tortoise is a popular type of tortoise that is kept as a pet. Leopard tortoises can grow to weigh as much as 95 pounds, but they normally top out between 22 to 34 pounds and are usually between 16 and 20 inches long. Leopard tortoises require a diet that is high in fiber and low in protein. The diet is not difficult to provide, but you need to follow the diet closely to avoid health problems.
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Instructions
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Place the leopard tortoise in a pen outside in a grassy area so it can graze. Leopard tortoises are natural grazers and will feed on any grass you can provide.
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Fill a dish with water and place it in the pen. Make sure the lip of the dish is low enough (one-quarter inch or less) for the tortoise to reach the water. You can dig into the ground and lower the dish into the hole to make it low enough for the tortoise. Fill the dish with water from a garden hose every day.
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Supplement the grass occasionally with dark, leafy vegetables. Do not use spinach. You can also give the tortoise squash or carrots.
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Give the tortoise a calcium carbonate supplement. You can use cuttlebone from cuttlefish. You can buy this at most pet-supply stores. Place it in the pen. The tortoises enjoy chewing and scraping at it. You can also chop the cuttlebone in a blender and sprinkle it on the tortoise's food.
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Sprinkle a multivitamin supplement on its food once a week. Ed Pirog of the Reptile Channel website (http://tinyurl.com/m66fex) recommends using Centrum. Grind a tablet into a fine powder and sprinkle it onto the tortoise's food.
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Tips & Warnings
If you are unable to keep the tortoise in a pen outdoors, you can try growing grass in a window on flat trays and allowing the tortoise to graze on this. There are also supplemental diets available from pet stores.
Never give animal proteins to a leopard tortoise. It can cause liver, kidney and bladder problems.
