Feeding and Nutrition :: Overwhelmed Turtle Newbie

[mspugh5298]

This forum (and overall website) has a LOT of great info. So much info that I am a little confused about feeding my 1" baby beyond pellets & lettuce.

*Specifics on how to prepare veggies would help me out. Chopped, sliced, raw, cooked, warmed, cold, etc? Dropped into the tank, fed in a separate container, hung with a veggie clip, etc?

*How often? I've seen posts that say all at once, 2-3 times a day, every other day, as much as they can hold, only lettuces & pellets for now, etc.

The "Feeding List" topic was a great idea, but the posts were all from 2007. And there weren't that many for a 1.5" baby. Can anyone send me their feeding schedule like that for their babies with the extra information, please?

Thanks a million times over!!!!

[adam85491]

The number of times per day is up to you, really....

The veggies should be raw, as far as I know. They obviously need to be in manageable pieces if they are hard like carrots, and the veggie clip is optional, but can be very helpful.

A separate container for veggies isn't really useful since they probably will eat them throughout the day, but you can use one when you feed pellets. I don't, because they don't really eat when I tried and it isn't worth the effort...it is supposed to keep your tank clean.

[tammi]

Let's see adam covered most of it. But I have a 1 inch eastern painted and a 2 inch RES. Neither really eat veggies.
So I just make sure they have aquatic plants. And I am also having a hard time getting them to eat pellets. So here's my feeding for them.
Monday - bugs (mealworms, earthworms and crickets)
Tuesday - I try pellets (usually) no luck
Wednesday - tuna with pellets mixed in (the don't seem to notice the pellets when I do it this way)
Thursday - bugs
Friday - pellets
Saturday - tuna with pellets
Sunday - bugs

Keep in mide I have aquatic plants in tank all the time so the veggies are available just not in my feeding schdule.

[wiccabrat]

For a baby RES I wouldn't count on him actually eating many vegis, he might so try but don't get discouraged if he doesn't. Their taste can change over time so what he won't eat now he might love in 6 months.
My baby slider is 3" now so he's on an every other day schedule which he doesn't agree with. lol
So far mine likes zucchini, strawberries, grapes (sometimes), and Romain lettuce (sometimes). Zucchini and strawberries he'll always eat, the others if he feels like it. I do 1/2 slice zucchini, chunk strawberry, 1/2 grape, and a small leaf of Romain, just raw toss them in. I feed mine all at once, when he was on everyday I did vegis & pellets one day meat the next. Mine loves blood worms, snails and ghost shrimp, he catches a few guppies but most just hang out in his tank cleaning up after him.