Turtles can be amazing and fun pets to have. Many individuals who are allergic to furry animals are able to have turtles as pets and still get that rewarding experience.
Part of turtle care is providing the proper terrarium, environment and food. Turtles can be served fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as small fish or insects. However, if you do not have a lot of time to get to the store or do not want to deal in live foods you can go for the turtle dry food products.
A well balanced diet is essential for a turtle. You are better off to have some fresh and live foods, along with the dry food. You can offer dry food on days where you run out of live food or will be gone for longer hours than on other days. The dry food is a great supplement filled with the essential nutrients your turtle will need to grow happy and healthy. Still, there are choices in dry reptile food.
Turtle dry food has such a range of options you will need to compare the available food. It is not always possible to get the best nutrients and minerals from dry food, unless you do your research. Do not buy the first dry food you encounter. Instead research the calcium to phosphorus ratio, fibre, and other minerals the dry food contains. High in fat and sugar or a low calcium ratio will not produce a healthy turtle. In fact a low calcium ratio could mean deformities in shell growth or a soft shell that can be dangerous for your pet reptile. The wrong amount of minerals will cause a leaching of colour from the shell and turtle.
Turtles can be aquatic, semi- aquatic, or terrestrial. Depending on the species of turtle you have the dry food will need to vary. A semi aquatic or terrestrial turtle can feed off of pellets. The pellets are high in density, meaning they sink in a tank of water. It can make it more difficult for your turtle to eat. It is better to provide flakes for an aquatic turtle. They will eventually sink, but on the whole the turtle can continue to eat while swimming. Semi aquatic or terrestrial turtles are grazers, which means they will eat most of the day.
You should set the dry food in the tank in the morning and remove whatever they do not eat 12 hours later. The dry food will go through a drying process before it is chopped up and either baked into pellets or canned for flakes. The food will be kept airtight until you open it. At this time the shelf life will change, so ensure you keep the food fresh by keeping it in the refrigerator.
Keep in mind that dry food for turtles is best as a supplement around live food and fresh food. Provide a mixture of food like fresh vegetables at least once a week along with the dry food products you have every day.
