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What Vegetables Can Tortoises Eat Daily? Weeds, Not Veg

Mediterranean tortoises want wild greens and weeds, not salad vegetables. The daily list, the weekly list, and why supermarket veg causes shell problems.

By Zakaria 2 min read Save to Pinterest — opens Pinterest in a new tab
A Mediterranean tortoise grazing clover with its mouth open
Photo: EM80, Pixabay Content License, via Pixabay
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A Mediterranean tortoise evolved on dry, fibrous, calcium-rich weeds. Nearly everything in the vegetable aisle is the opposite of that, which is why so many pet tortoises grow lumpy shells.

Daily, weekly, never

dailya few times a weeknever
Dandelion leaf and flowerRocket, watercressAny animal protein
Plantain (Plantago)Romaine, dark lettucesFruit (Mediterranean species)
Sow thistle, hawkbitChicory, endiveSpinach, chard, rhubarb
Clover, mallowKale, cabbage, pak choiAvocado
Bramble leafSquash, courgetteButtercup, foxglove, bulbs
Hibiscus leaf and flowerCarrot, pepper (treat)Ivy, rhododendron, azalea
Coarse grassNightshades, hellebore

Why supermarket veg goes wrong

propertywild weedssalad vegetables
Fibrehighlow
Calcium : phosphorusfavourableoften poor
Water contentmoderatehigh
Proteinlowlow to moderate
Oxalateslowhigh in spinach, chard, beet

The visible result of getting this wrong is pyramiding — raised, lumpy scutes from growth that is too fast for the bone beneath it, usually alongside inadequate humidity.

Advice for a red-foot will harm a Hermann's

Tropical tortoises are omnivorous and take fruit and occasional animal protein. Mediterranean species are not and must not. Most bad tortoise feeding advice online is correct advice applied to the wrong group — identify the species before following anything.

Calcium and light together

  • Cuttlebone left in the enclosure, taken at will
  • Calcium powder dusted on food two or three times a week for a growing tortoise
  • UVB lighting replaced on schedule — output falls long before the tube stops lighting
  • Natural sunlight outdoors beats any lamp, through unfiltered air rather than glass

Grow the diet rather than buying it

A patch of dandelion, plantain, clover, sow thistle and mallow in a corner of the garden feeds a Mediterranean tortoise better than anything in a supermarket, costs nothing, and is the one piece of tortoise care that gets easier over time.

Common questions

What can a tortoise eat every day?

For Mediterranean species — Hermann's, spur-thighed, marginated, Horsfield's — the daily diet should be wild weeds and leafy greens rather than vegetables: dandelion, plantain, sow thistle, hawkbit, clover, mallow, bramble leaf, hibiscus leaf and flower, and coarse grasses. These are high in fibre and calcium and low in protein and sugar, which is exactly what the species evolved on. Supermarket vegetables are nearly the inverse.

Why are salad vegetables a problem?

Three reasons. They are low in fibre, which matters for an animal built to process coarse dry vegetation. They are high in water and low in calcium, with poor calcium-to-phosphorus ratios. And several — notably spinach, chard and beet greens — are high in oxalates, which bind calcium and make it unavailable. A tortoise raised on supermarket salad grows too fast with weak bone and a pyramided shell.

What should be occasional rather than daily?

Rocket, watercress, romaine and other dark lettuces, chicory, endive, pak choi, kale, cabbage and squash are all fine in small amounts a few times a week. Carrot, pepper and tomato are treats at most. Brassicas contain goitrogens that affect thyroid function in quantity, so they are weekly rather than daily even though tortoises usually like them.

What must never be fed?

Any animal protein — dog or cat food, meat, insects for a Mediterranean species — because excess protein causes rapid shell growth and kidney damage. Also avoid fruit for Mediterranean tortoises, which ferments in a gut not built for sugar; spinach, chard and rhubarb for their oxalates; avocado; and garden plants including buttercup, foxglove, daffodil and other bulbs, ivy, rhododendron, azalea, hellebore and anything in the nightshade family.

Do tropical species differ?

Substantially. Red-foot and yellow-foot tortoises are omnivorous and do take fruit regularly and some animal protein occasionally, which would be harmful to a Hermann's. Advice written for one group is actively wrong for the other, and this is the commonest source of bad tortoise feeding information online. Identify the species first, then find advice for it.

Do they need calcium supplements?

Most do. A cuttlebone left in the enclosure for the tortoise to gnaw at will is the simplest method, plus a light dusting of a reptile calcium powder on food two or three times a week for a growing tortoise. Calcium is only usable with adequate UVB, so lighting and supplementation are one question rather than two — a tortoise with calcium and no UVB still develops metabolic bone disease.

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