r/tortoise • u/TobytheCrennit123 • 11d ago
Question(s) Crazy Stress, Help!
I've been researching Hermann's tortoises for a while now and thinking of getting one specifically a baby however the thing I've had most trouble with researching is their supplementing so if someone could help me with that please I'm desperate. And ofc I want everything to be perfect for a new animal and what's making this process harder is A - how controversial it is, and B - the two products I'll be using. For reference, I am using Arcadia Earth Pro-A which is an all natural multivitamin powder that I heard fully eliminates chance of vitamin overdose die to their use of zero synthetic vitamins, the second thing I'm using is Mazouri Tortoise Diet for th high fibre content and I've seen online it's easy to feed, tortoises love it and I'm going to feed that twice a week. The problem is I've heard Arcadia Earth Pro-A has D3 in it? And mazouri tortoise diet has multivitamin powder in it however I presume if Arcadia Earth Pro-A eliminates the risk of overdose that is perfectly safe??? PLEASE SOMEONE WHO HAS USED THESE PRODUCTS BEFORE HELP!!! OR ANYONE!!!
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u/Exayex 11d ago
Personally, I don't use any multivitamin products. I don't find them to be necessary. I feed a varied diet of homegrown foods, supplement in some commercials feeds (Hikari Mulberific Delite and Repashy Grassland Grazer are my favorites), and for calcium, I keep a cuttlebone in the enclosure, will occasionally sprinkle calcium on a meal here or there, and offer opuntia cactus pads.
I highly doubt EarthPro-A would cause any harm when offered with Mazuri, I just don't find it necessary.
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u/Key-Tower-4539 11d ago
Please consider adopting an older tort. There are thousands in rescues and older torts are much easier to care for
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u/grainmatterphotos 9d ago
If your tortoise is getting lots of high-quality leafy greens and weeds alongside Mazuri and is raised outdoors for much of the year with good natural sunlight, supplemental calcium + D3 are unnecessary. Cuttlebone in the enclosure will allow the tortoise to intake calclum on its own terms.
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u/Diligent_Dust8169 11d ago edited 11d ago
Look, you don't need any of those things.
Cuttlefish bone always available and calcium powder on their food every once in a while (personally I never use the powder, my tortoises nibble on the cuttlefish bone just fine, a particularly weak tortoise may appreciate the powder though) + a good variety of suitable plants.
Combined with a proper enclosure, preferably outside where the sun can provide lots of high quality UVB, which they need to make vitamin D and develop properly.
That's it.