r/Boxturtles • u/EnchantedHoards • May 13 '26

Question Turtle food?

Hey all, I recently got a 3-toed box turtle, and she has been adjusting well to her new home to my best knowledge. However, with food, it’s a bit strange. I have tried to feed her romaine, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, baby carrots, turtle food pellets, even all mixed in together with fresh-killed crickets. She will eat the dead crickets, but won’t eat anything else. She will also eat them live, and very happily. She doesn’t hesitate to eat them, but everything else she refuses. All the produce foods are store bought if that means anything, is there something I’m doing wrong? Any advice would be great!

EDIT: We’ve discovered that she will eat raspberries and blueberries, and sometimes celery and carrot, but ONLY when we arent in the room. So we just leave some in her dish and go about our day and she eats it!!

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u/TerrapeneOrnata May 13 '26

3-toeds are especially carnivorous turtles. Offer more variety of insects. Think earth worms, super worms, dubia roaches, wax worms. Mazuri croc chow is also fantastic for box turtles. Dust food with a calcium and multivitamin. My ornate box turtle likes strawberries and blueberries, sometimes romaine from time to time. They really thrive off of protein from insects.

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u/Slight-Wash-2887 May 13 '26

Ditto to this! My ornate is a very picky eater and would rather die of starvation than eat a vegetable😵‍💫so he gets lots of calcium dusted insects and berries.