Feeding and Nutrition :: Calcium

[Luciano]

Ok so just after a recent post, I want to make sure I'm doing this right - I have calcium powder that my reptomin sticks are dusted with and some cuttlebone without the backing floating in the tank. Is this the way to do it? ...the last thing I want to do is give my Juliet too much calcium. I would hate to see her go to town on that cuttlebone like she does anything else, and be unhealthy. Any advise would be very much appreciated. Thanks.

[Raphulk]

i dont know about the calcium powder as i have never used it myself. but with the cuttlebone, your turtle will only eat as much as it wants. so if its full on calcium and there is still a half a bone left, your turtle wont eat it.

[Luciano]

Nice -- that's what I was hoping someone would say - Thank you.

[Luciano]

Is it ok to use flavored cuttlebone - they have grape and orange.

[LeslieMW]

also, i'm not really sure that can have too much calcium. i'm pretty sure they would just pass on the extra calcium.

[Daniel3507]

i guess it wouldnt hurt them to use the flavor kind but i think i saw a post on here about someone who tried it and they said it didnt change the way their turtle acted about it

[PcBuilder14]

My turtle has taken only one bite of the cuttlebone the whole time I've had him. He only eats crickets, grasshoppers, and pellets.

[Luciano]

Juliet loves that cuttlebone --she's almost finished a whole one..

[fishyfingers]

I think too much calcium is not a problem since they need Vitamin D3 to use it, so they will just pass it.

[HomerJTurtle]

I give mine cuttlebone all the time. Its usully gone in a day or less.

[zoologist]

ive heard before that the flavored ones are not as good as the original.

and youre just wasting your money if you dust the pellets with calcium. i did the same thing until i realized that literally *all* of it washed off once the pellets hit the water. now i just reserve the calcium powder for my box turtle.

[marisa]

For the (non-phosphorus) calcium powder, if you moisten the pellets first, then coat them with it and let them dry before giving them to your turtle, the powder will adhere better (and some will be absorbed). You can also moisten the pellets, dip them in the powder and handfeed them to your turtle. Some will come off (it can look like he's breathing smoke), but he'll get a fair amount of it into him.

I'd stick with plain cuttlebone (fewer additives), although I have read of someone whose turtle liked the banana-flavored kind.

[PcBuilder14]

My turtle rarely ever eats cuttlebone but I'm working on it.