eating

Question
hey i have 1.1/2 year star tortoise...he eat only cucumber and hibiscus...i try to feed him different food but he dont wana eat that...what to do?? and how much i have to put hin under the sun iin a day?? because he dont like to be under the sun....

Answer
Hi Hemali,

Hibiscus is a good food, but your tortoise should be eating other greens.  Cucumber has almost no nutritional value, so don't bother feeding it.  Star tortoises should be given a diet of grasses, leafy greens and weeds, and cactus.  Ideally your tortoise should be living in an outdoor pen in your garden so it can graze naturally, but indoors you can offer it grass/hay, greens (mustard, kale, collards, dandelion, etc.), cactus, hibiscus, etc.  If you're not providing your tortoise with a UVB bulb indoors, it should spent at least 3-4 hours outside daily, BUT it must ALWAYS have shade and sun areas.  DO NOT PUT YOUR TORTOISE OUTSIDE IN DIRECT SUN WITHOUT ACCESS TO SHADE!  Tortoises can overheat and die if they have no way to cool themselves off, which is probably why he tries to get out of the sun.  There's UVB penetration even in shade or on cloudy days, so as long as he's outside he's fine.  He doesn't have to be in direct sunlight.