As a popular pet, tortoises are loveable creatures that crave a good snack. Their slow nature and relatively calm disposition might lead you to think they can eat almost anything, but this isn’t true. As with any animal, they need a specific diet – so can tortoises eat carrots?
This is the question many tortoise owners will ask themselves, and the answer isn’t a simple yes or no. Whether your shelled friend can eat carrots or not will be down to their breed, with some able to digest such chunky veg better than others. Overall, however, it’s not a bad snack as long as it’s given in small amounts.
Moderation is the word we’d emphasise at a top level, but let’s explore the top of tortoises and carrots in more detail. It may be the snack of choice for a hare, but what about their racing rival?
Can all tortoises eat carrots?
This is an excellent question, as we’ve already mentioned that the topic of tortoises and carrots comes down to the breed. This is because, depending on where that particular breed is, their diet may be based on different foods.
If your tortoise is the type that was originally found in countries where leaves and stems were abundant, then it’s better to stick to those foods. More fibre and vitamins should be given to tortoise breeds like the sulcata and horsefield.
On the other hand, if your tortoise hails from more tropical and forested lands, it may be better suited to processing a wider variety of food. The red-footed and yellow-footed tortoises are good examples of this, where a little carrot in their diets may be more acceptable.
All in all, regardless of your tortoise’s breed, you should only give them carrot in small quantities as a treat and as part of a balanced diet. Overfeeding carrots to tortoises can have unwanted implications on their health, something we’ll talk about more later.
Can tortoises eat carrot tops?
Carrot tops – the green bits – shouldn’t be fed to your tortoise because of the high levels of oxalic acid they contain. This can lead to calcium deficiency, something that is very bad for a tortoise as it impacts their bones, while the elevated levels of potassium can further throw off the balance they need.
In short, you should always remove carrot tops before feeding a tortoise carrot!
How to feed your tortoise carrot
First, start by cutting off the top of your carrot, then wash them to rid them of any dirt. You don’t need to cook your carrots, but make sure you chop them up into small, bite-sized pieces for your pet tortoise so that they can get stuck into them without issues.
How big you make the pieces will depend on the size of your tortoise, so keep a close eye on them while they’re eating to make sure they aren’t struggling. Again, this should be a small amount of carrot as a treat, making an effort to vary their diet with the vitamins and minerals they need.
What else should I feed my tortoise?
While every breed of tortoise should have a diet tailored to their needs, there are some alternative veggies and fruits you can give to them. The quantity will depend on whether it’s a staple or a treat, so if you need advice on the right diet for your specific tortoise breed, just ask your vet.
Here are a few plants, fruits and vegetables that many tortoises love to munch on:
- Dandelion leaves
- Curly kale
- Bell peppers
- Clover
- Cucumber
- Grapes
- Strawberries
This is just a selection and it’s important to make sure you mix up the food you’re giving your pet tortoise. You should try to only give a little fruit and, if you can, provide organic veggies to avoid giving them anything with chemicals in.
What are the risks of feeding carrot to my tortoise?
While there aren’t any major risks with carrots – aside from the issue with carrot tops that we’ve already mentioned – it’s just a case of making sure your little friend gets enough calcium. Carrots don’t have a great deal of this so they’re more of a crunchy treat every so often. If fed a diet that relies heavily on carrots, it can lead to malnourishment.
It shouldn’t be too difficult to find a wide variety of vegetables that your tortoise loves, since they’re naturally inclined to eat them as a herbivorous species anyway. If you’re not sure about what is and isn’t good to feed your tortoise, then don’t hesitate to contact your local veterinarian to get professional medical advice that will help your pet live a long healthy life.
