FRT feeding problem

[AroW]

My frt back home won't each the gelatin based food I made for him(which I mixed in reptile calcium and vitamic d3 powder and other vegetables) also the food breaks down pretty badly and fouls up the whole tank while its tankmates steal chunks of food from it

It only likes to eat the occasional box turtle pellets(I heard they were good and low protein and I got 3 different variety for it) and sometimes some fresh vegetable. Also, it really likes the cichlid pellets that I throw in for its tankmates and that probably makes up 50% of its meal.

What should I do? I dont want it to have shell curl. Is the current diet okay? I was thinking of maybe feeding the gelatin food once a week instead of daily so that it will learn to love it more.

 

[Oddball]

As to whether or not your current gelatin-based diet is OK...if the turtle isn't eating it, I'd say find another approach to feeding it.

I fed my young FRTs on a variety of fresh and prepared foods. The bulk of their diet (when young) was rabbit pellets. The pellets don't have too high of a protein level, hold together fairly well until consumed, and are inexpensive ($16 for a 50lb bag). The turtles received fresh foods on alternate days including, wedge-cut kiwi fruit, red/green grapes, brussel sprouts, corkscrew vallisneria., frozen peas, frozen corn, lima beans, apple, pear, etc. On pellet days, along with the rabbit pellets, they received a mix with earthworm sticks, veggie sticks, and spirulina sticks.
My older FRTs get this same diet but, also receive the occassional cut raw shrimp, earthworm, and trout fillet pieces.

BTW, the corkscrew vallisneria plant is in the list because this plant is on the FRT menu in the wild. I started culturing it in several tanks and bins just to feed to my FRTs.

 

[aro-man]

Try some iguana gelatin cubes as well. I think nature zone makes them.They sink, hold together underwater and the frts love em (well mine anyway). Supplemen fresh veggies/fruits and occasionally, some fresh fish or shrimp.

 

[AroW]

No, it is feeding. It just eats everything except the gelatin food. It used to take them but now it just refuses for no reason.