In order to maintain a high fiber diet during the winter months when grass is dead or frozen, offer your sulcata hay. Not all tortoises will readily eat hay, but it’s important to get a sulcata to eat hay.
Baby sulcata tortoises are less likely to eat hay, but in order to raise a baby tortoise into a healthy adult tortoise, it’s important to introduce them early on. The earlier your sulcata starts eating hay, the easier it is
How to Get a Baby Sulcata to Eat Hay
The easiest way to get a baby sulcata tortoise to eat hay is to follow the below steps. It takes time, so don’t expect answers overnight.
- Cut up hay with scissors into very small pieces.
- Place the chopped hay in a blender and blended until it is a powder.
- Soak the blended hay in water for 10 minutes.
- Drain the excess water.
- Chop up greens or grasses that you have available into very small pieces.
- Mix the chopped hay with the chopped green and grass mix. Mix very well.
- Give it to your tortoise.
Overtime, your baby sulcata tortoise will get used the flavor of the hay. The smaller your chop the hay, the harder it is to pick it out of the bowl. It may take months, but this method is tried and true for getting a baby sulcata tortoise to eat hay.
Different Types of Hay
Also try different types of hay. Because different types of hay have different textures and flavors, you may find your tortoise just doesn’t like what you’re offering.
You may find that younger tortoises prefer softer hays, like orchard hay, whereas older tortoises may like the crunch of Timothy hay.
You can even try different cuts of hay, like a second cut Timothy hay that has more softer pieces and fewer stems.
Hay Pellets and Hay Cubes
If your sulcata tortoise will eat Mazuri or grassland, you can try tricking him to eating a hay pellet instead of loose hay. Soak the pellets in water, mix a few in with Mazuri or whatever pellets you’re already feeding. Over time, increase the number of hay pellets and reduce the other tortoise pellets.
You may find that hay pellets are easier than dealing with loose hay. And, if your sulcata will eat it, then it’s a great alternative to hay.
Popular hay pellets include Timothy hay pellets or orchard hay pellets.
