Can Turtles Eat Blackberries? Are There Any Side-Effects?
Diet is one of the key elements to making sure your turtle stays healthy. Yet, their different dietary needs to be fulfilled with their age. When it comes to berries, blackberries are surely the ones that you have at home, and wondering whether it’s good for them or not.
Can Turtles Eat Blackberries? Blackberries are fine as long as you give them in proper amounts and enough varieties. The turtle’s breed also plays a huge role. However, blackberries contain Vitamin A and C which is extremely helpful. Contrarily, too much of this fruit will cause health problems.
Nevertheless, then comes the question of how much blackberries to give them and should you peel off the skin or not. Don’t worry, we covered everything that you need to know.
Can You Feed Blackberries To Your Pet Turtles?
Contents
The first thing that you want to be doing before thinking of feeding your pet turtle some berries is to find out their breed. Not all turtles are fruit-friendly and it certainly depends on their type. For example, red-eared turtles will not like blackberries as their ancestors weren’t in the condition to consume them.
Type of Blackberries
Not all blackberries are supposed to go inside your pet turtle’s stomach. You need to identify what kind of blackberries are you giving. As there are wild blackberries present, you need to be extra careful here. One common tendency is that wild blackberries are generally smaller than normal ones.
Nevertheless, 144 grams of blackberry contains 7 grams of sugar which can be considered too sugary for turtles. This is where feeding them the right amount accordingly takes place.
Young vs Old Turtles
Turtles that are young or less than 10 years old should be fed only a moderate amount of blackberries. We are talking twice or thrice a month. Whereas, an adult turtle should be fed only vegetables and avoid fruits. This only applies to omnivorous turtles.
Herbivorous turtles should be fed less than a moderate amount of blackberries. Once a month or every two months is the ideal choice here. Whether it be an adult or a young one, keeping their diet busy with various vegetables is what should be done.
Anyway, there’s no point in talking about carnivorous turtles. They heavily depend on insects rather than fruits.
Maintaining Diet
Overfeeding blackberries is a risk you don’t want to take. As a pet keeper, your responsibility is to give your turtle the environment that it belongs. Turtles were never a big fan of any sorts of berries and thus their body is not made for it.
Blackberries are rich in sugar and acids like pesticides that are not good for your pet. Overfeeding treats include kidney and digestion problems.
You should use blackberries as treats rather than making them a part of their diet. They are a great source of vitamins that will empower their health.
Do Turtles Like Blackberries?
Not all turtles will like blackberries. You have to find out whether your turtle likes it or not. You can do that by simply putting some berries in a bowl and putting the bawl in front of them. If the turtle tastes it and doesn’t want it anymore, then you can consider not giving berries again.
Your reptile probably couldn’t take the high sugar level that blackberries contain. Forcing them to eat will cause intestinal problems.
Health Benefits For Turtles Eating Blackberries
Blackberries contain a decent amount of vitamin A and vitamin C. 214 IU worth of vitamin A is present in blackberries which helps turtles to grow healthy skin. While also ensuring better mucous membranes and ducts within the kidneys.
Additionally, vitamin A is a great antioxidant that provides turtles with a better immune system that helps them to fight bacteria.
How Much Blackberries Should Turtles Eat?
There’s no specific number of blackberries that you should feed your turtles. However, all we can say is that a very small amount. You can stack five to six blackberries in a bowl and give them in front of them. The rule here is to take away the berries after half an hour so that the turtles don’t overfeed themselves.
Also, make sure that you add other nutritious food along with it so that it’s not all calories.
How Do You Prepare Blackberries For Turtles?
Start by washing the berries properly with clean water. Cut each blackberry in half, put them in a bowl and that’s it. You do not need to worry about peeling it off. They are ready to be served.
Can You Feed Blackberries To Baby Turtles? If So, How?
Baby turtles deserve to taste the different sorts of food out there. Moreover, blackberries provide more benefits to a baby turtle than an adult one. It doesn’t apply for carnivorous baby turtles though.
Nevertheless, feeding them is as simple as feeding any turtle with blackberries. The only difference is that you need to cut a blackberry into four pieces rather than two.
Video Of A Turtle Eating Blackberries
Here’s a video of how turtles eat their blackberries:
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Blackberries or any kind of berries are favorites for box turtles. They will choose berries over vegetables any day of the year. However, that doesn’t mean you should feed them every day. There are numerous health threats and certainly less nutritious.
As a result, feeding them with blackberries in a thrifty manner is advised.
When it comes to red-eared slider turtles, you should avoid blackberries. They are the most common pet turtle yet there is an anomaly when it comes to berries.
The primary reason is that they will typically get affected by diarrhea and have digestion issues that you don’t want to come across.
As young painted turtles are carnivorous, they will not have any fruits or berries in their diet. However, as they grow old, they start to get hungry for plants more than meat.
Consequently, you can try giving them blackberries at a later stage. There is a better chance of them not eating blackberries.
Outro
That’s all you needed to know before you fed some fresh blackberries to your pet turtle. After finding out your turtle’s type, be sure that you do not feed them too much. Moreover, ensure it’s firm enough for your turtle to devour.
Nevertheless, it’s more beneficial and suggested that you feed berries to young turtles. An old one will not like it and will prefer plants.
Do you want to know if turtles eat ants or bloodworms? Read our articles about it to learn more.
