Turtles are beautiful aquatic creatures that have been around for 200 to 300 million years. Turtles are beautiful, dome-like shelled reptiles that can be a great company to keep given their relatively low maintenance, aquatic beauty, and history. Many factors play into taking care of a pet turtle. Omnivorous turtles, meaning a turtle that can eat plant and animal-based foods, can eat commercial pelleted food and insects; however, many people still wonder, can turtles eat watermelons? If so, how much and what other fruits can they eat? What about pet tortoises?
Yes! Turtles can absolutely eat watermelons, as well as many different types of fruit. If your pet turtle is omnivorous, they can eat many other foods such as commercial pellets, fish feeder or insects, vegetables, and fruits such as watermelon! This is because watermelon is a water-based fruit like the turtle is an aquatic-based reptile! However, if you own a tortoise, green sea turtle, or bolson tortoise, they will be limited only to fruits and vegetables.
However, although they can eat watermelon, I would recommend treating it as if you would give chocolate to your children. not too much, give it as a treat.
It contains high amounts of sugar which can cause long-run health issues for your turtle.
Let’s dive into more interesting details on your turtle food and other interesting related facts.
Further Reading: “Can Turtles Eat Corn?“
Table of Contents
Can Red Eared Slider Turtles Eat Watermelon?
Red-eared slider turtles and painted turtles are physically similar in many ways; however, the difference that separates the two is a single line of coloration right behind the red-eared slider turtles’ eye. In contrast, the painted turtle will have much more coloration around its entire shell, as well as the neck. Red-eared slider turtles are omnivorous and can eat watermelons like a regular pet turtle and many other fruit types.
Red-eared slider turtles will eat just about anything you’re willing to give them, and they are incredibly fond of sweet things, similar to a human. Watermelon is a delicious, nutritious, and healthy treat to feed your aquatic red-eared slider turtle; however, it is essential to note that it is a treat, not a full course meal. For healthy, these turtles should mainly stick to commercial fish food or pellet food. However, it is okay to treat them with shrimp or krill, crickets, pinky mice, or leafy greens on occasion.
Further Reading: “Can Turtles Eat Grapes?“
What Other Fruits Can Turtles Eat?
Along with watermelon, there are many types of fruit that your hard-shelled friend can eat and likely love!
According to VCA Hospitals, turtle owners should not feed fruit-based foods to turtles as often as plant-based foods, as plant-based foods such as leafy greens, pellet food, and the fish feeder should take up a big chunk of their daily diet. However, in some circumstances depending on weight, age, and underlying health, there are many good fruits to feed to your pet turtle.
These fruits include apples, pears, bananas (with skin), mango, grapes, star fruit, raisins, peaches, tomato, guava, and kiwis.
VCA Hospitals also suggests feeding your pet turtle high-calcium fruit such as figs, strawberries, raspberries, apricots, and dates. These fruits are an incredibly healthy snack since they all provide a sweet and nutritional taste for your pet turtle. Fruits are much more favored over vegetables such as leafy greens or celery for a turtle.
However, as VCA Hospitals suggests, these fruits should only be treated as a treat and should not become a large part of your turtle’s daily diet. While these fruits indeed taste delicious to a pet turtle, they are much less nutritional than pellet food, leafy greens, fish feeders, or insects and should only be treated as a now and again treat to keep your pet turtle healthy at all times.
Further Reading: “Can Turtles Eat Strawberries?“
Can Tortoises Eat Watermelon?
First and foremost, we will explain the difference between a turtle and a tortoise, as there have been many misconceptions about these two hard-shelled creatures for quite some time. According to Nashville Zoo, a tortoise’s shell is much more rounded and domed shaped, whereas a turtle’s body is more water-dynamic and streamlined to help turtles swim. Adding to that, tortoises are much larger and heavier than a turtle; therefore, they have club-like forelegs and elephantine hind legs to carry their weight. Turtles will have webbed flipper-type feet, although only actual sea turtles will possess real flippers.
So, the question remains, can tortoises eat watermelon? As PetDoc reports, they indeed can, although they say that a tortoise diet should consist of at least 10% fruit, 85% vegetables, and 5% high protein foods. This makes it where watermelon is more an excellent snack now and again for tortoises rather than a meal.
Further Reading: “Can Turtles Sleep At Night?“
Related Questions
Can Turtles Eat Strawberries?
Strawberries are on the list of fruits turtles can eat! They enjoy most berries such as raspberries, blackberries, etc. They are extremely tasty, nutritious, and an all-around great snack for turtles. According to Healthline, like watermelon, strawberries have high water content equaling out to around 91% of their weight, making them an extraordinarily hydrating and perfect fruit for turtles to eat! If you’re ever hesitant to give your pet turtle a strawberry, don’t be! They are perfectly safe.
Can Turtles Eat Bananas?
Turtles can eat bananas; however, it is best to give them to them only occasionally. Bananas are high in antioxidants and fibers and are very good for the heart and digestive; however, they are incredibly high in sugar content. If bananas are fed to your pet turtle often, it could be detrimental to their health and lead to issues. Put simply, yes. Turtles can eat bananas, but not very often.
Can Turtles Eat Oranges?
Turtles can eat oranges in small quantities; however, some pet turtles may prefer sweeter fruits. While oranges are citrus fruits and high in Vitamin C, they can undoubtedly hold benefits for a turtle’s health. Like most fruits, it is best to keep them around as a snack for your pet turtles’ diet, as they could face danger if fed too much daily. Turtles can and will eat just about anything you give them.
Further Reading: “Can Turtles Eat Apples?“
Can Turtles Eat Grapes?
While the rest of the fruits hold many nutrients and fibers, grapes are unfortunately not extraordinarily rich in minerals and are high in sugar content. However, they do retain phosphorus and calcium, which are nutrients turtles need. Grapes are regarded as healthy fruit for turtles, though the high sugar content will not benefit your pet turtle in the long run and lead to health issues. This is why it’s best to only feed turtles these fruits on occasion.
Conclusion
So, can turtles eat watermelon? Yes, turtles and tortoises are more than willing and would surely enjoy a good watermelon from their owners. However, it is crucial to note the difference between the two, as one is a much more aquatic-based creature and more likely to ingest watermelon more often than the other. It is still essential to make sure you never feed your pet turtle too much fruit of any kind, this including watermelon. However, occasionally on a hot day, it should not be too bad of an idea to feed your pet turtle or tortoise a healthy juicy watermelon!
They would surely love it, and if they are not fond of watermelon, they will enjoy different types of fruit. Watermelons are extremely rich in nutrients and hydrating to even human bodies, so imagine all the wonders that it could do for your pet turtle!
