Feeding Leopards in the winter.
 

Hello All,
I have a 10 year old rescued leopard tortoise called Darwin.
All summer he has lived happily on a diet of grass and weeds, but I was just wondering what all of you other leo owners do for food when it comes to winter? I grow big tubs of grass and weeds for him, but at the moment it seems like the cold weather is stunting the growth of my weeds/grass somewhat, and consequently Darwin is eating the food faster than I can grow it!
It is not so much of a problem now, but I can foresee this becoming quite an issue in Jan/feb time when there is snow everywhere!
My real question is, is do you add anything else to their diet in winter to bulk it up a bit? For instance curly kale? Or maybe those grass pellet things for tortoise that I sometimes see in the shops (these look rank in my opinion but are they worth a try?)

Thanks!

Clare

Hi Clare. I keep two Leopards, grass is available for mine most of the time. weeds/plant's untill they run out plus i feed pellet's along with the other diets, twice a week, if everything else is hard to come by, it is just a tortoise pellet diet, untill the other plants/grass returns again. Occasionly dark leafy greens and Romaine Lettuce, Pak Choi, can be fed to get them through. Mine are kept in there outdoor heated shed and can go out and graze for an hour or so, weather permitting in winter. Realy cold they can still slow down and not eat as much.

hi Clare when i feed my adult leopards i use a large tray to feed them on before i add their mixed food i fill the bottom of the tray with graze-on this is dried grass similar to the readi grass sold in the sw shop.they dont eat dried grasses readily but a certain amount is ingested when they eat the rest of their food, so i hope will contribute to the fibre content in the overall diet.if you really are having problems with what to feed perhaps you could adapt my leopard hatchling diet to suit your situation and what plants are available overwinter in your area.http://www.tortoise-island.com/my-ha...diet-t447.html
terry

for our leopard hector we use,
http://zoomed.com/db/products/EntryD...=2&EntryID=228
from,
http://www.surreypetsupplies.co.uk/z...oise-food.html

Hi,

My Ralph is not happy this winter, we have pellets, pak choi, aloe vera, romaniane lettuce, butternut squash, broccoli, grass and any weeds we can find ( we are ok for clover and dandelions at the moment).

We rotate between the above so its in moderation.

It is very difficult and Ralph is not liking pellets but we will preserver :)

Wow thanks all, very informative! I have bought some of that natural grassland tort food and I will get some 'graze-on' stuff too I think!
Terrypin, thanks for the link, I have just spent the last hour reading through all of the info on that forum too! Great stuff!
I think Darwin will be pleased too :)
As I have got several leo owners in one place , I also have a general question for you all!
I live in the UK (Norfolk), so the weather is pretty changeable, and I was wondering at what age/size your leo's make the transition to permanent outdoor living spaces? Darwin is 10 and he is about 21cm long from the edges of his plastron. He is currently living inside for this winter but I have been seriously thinking about adding an outdoor heated shed to his outside space. I have got a lot on inspiration from this site and other sites on the web and think I know how to set this up correctly, but I am not sure how big he actually needs to be before he can comfortably live out there!

Thanks a lot for the advice!

Clare

My smallest out grew his table after about a year of owning him, that made him about 2 years, the shed was ordered and every thing put together, he has been outside for 2 years. The rehomer i required, his mate had lived inside for about 7 years, so to go outside in his own come and go spot, he did not like it at first and sulked for lack of a better word for about 3-4 months.

Oh wow, so he should be fine to go out now then?I did not know that! I had better get building! He does go outside every day for an hour or two (as long as its not too cold) to have a munch on the grass and to have a bit of a trot about, but I did not realise I could have him out there all the time! At this time of year do you still let them have access to the outside grazing area all day or do you regulate when they can go in and out of their homes?
I must say that I am so glad to have this forum to come and ask questions! You guys really are a wealth of good, applicable information and I am very grateful for your input!

Thanks!
Clare.

I live in Cornwall so the weather can get really bad and very damp, and for leo's that isn't great but...........
If I had a large, heated and insulated shed Ralph would definitely be outside for the whole spring, summer and autumn months, but I couldn't do it in the winter lol

A purpose built large hut or shed, this should be insulated, sides roof and floor, most use a tubular heater on a thermostat this will kick in at a set temp usualy 21c when the temp drops to this. Lamp is also used usualy between October through till April. The hut/shed can lead to an enclosure mainly used in the good months but they can go out for an odd graze weather permitting in the winter months, sometimes if too bad can be shut in and fed in there hut/shed. The outside building should be large/long enough to include a cool end and high enough to suspend a lamp with relative height gap's, and be able for you to have room to clean it.
If a shed is used for a small Leopard one side can be used and partitioned off and the main heat in this area, this will be easier and cheaper to heat, what is sometimes called a hot box, this must still have a cool end of about 21c.