I am frequently asked where I buy food for my turtle. When I first started out, I bought my tank from a local PetSmart, along with some decorations, food, UVB light, and a filter. While I was able to get started with just this material, I quickly realized that keeping a turtle happy and healthy would require a lot more. One of the main reasons I started browsing online for turtle supplies was because of food. Read below to see why I only buy my turtle food on Chewy now.
For starters, I realized that my red eared slider was a picky eater. I quickly found out that all turtle pellets are not the same. There are a bunch of different qualities you should look for when deciding on turtle pellets for your turtle. If your turtle is a picky eater like mine, you want pellets that don’t quickly get soggy once they touch the water. You also want pellets that are high in calcium in order to promote the healthy growth of your turtle’s shell. On top of all that, there are usually different types of pellets for the different stages of life for a turtle (from hatchlings, to juveniles, and to adults). For example, younger turtles require more protein than adult turtles in order to grow properly.
After returning the Petsmart to search for different pellets, I quickly realized that their pellets were inadequate. They only had 3 types of pellets, and they were all from the same brand. I’m not sure if PetSmart had a distribution deal where they only carried that one brand, but regardless it meant my options were limited.
Order turtle food online
After my second trip to the Petsmart, I realized that I needed to order turtle food online. This is when I stumbled upon the pet website called Chewy. I was familiar with the site from buying stuff for my previous dog, but I wasn’t aware that they carried turtle products. Our friends at Doggiedesigner.com have a great article comparing Chewy vs Amazon for pet food and we would recommend that you read if you are trying to decide between the two.
Why I buy my turtle food on Chewy
After a simple search for “turtle pellets”, I realized they had a very wide offer in terms of brands and types of turtle food. Below you can see some of their options when you just type in turtle pellets. They have some cheap turtle food that costs as low as $2. They also have more gourmet food and larger quantities that last longer. Aside from pellets, they also have some cool options for turtle treats. You can click on the picture below to take you to the same search.
I ordered two different brands of pellets, the Fluker’s Buffet Blend and the Zoo Med Natural Aquatic Formula. While my turtle would eat both of them, it was clear that he preferred the Zoo Med. I am a strong proponent of ordering turtle food online so that you don’t get stuck with the limited options of a pet store.
Another reason why I buy my turtle food on Chewy is because they have a wide selection of vegetable pellets. My turtle refused to eat the leafy vegetables that I gave her. Since vegetables are essential for a turtle’s diet, I knew that I had to find an alternative. I was able to find a vegetable and fruit mix that my turtle loved. Now she even prefers that mix instead of her regular pellets. You can click on the picture below for more details on the Turtle Vegetable Mix.
Autoship
The absolute best part about buying from Chewy is the Autoship component. In short, Chewy allows you to sign up for autoshipping, where you can decide to get the next batch of food sent to you automatically. The great part about auto shipping is that it allows you to get the food at a discounted price. For example, when you buy something from Chewy and choose Autoshipping, you will immediately get 30% off your order. Additionally, you will get 5% off every order after that. The autoshipping period is very flexible. You can choose to have a new order shipped as frequently as once a week. You can also choose to only have it shipped every 8 months.
I strongly recommend signing up for Autoship after you have ordered the food at least once. This way you can make sure that your turtle actually likes the food. It will also give you a test run to see how quickly your turtle goes through the food, so you know how frequently you should get it autoshipped. After I determined that my turtle loved the Zoo Med Natural Aquatic Formula, I signed up for it to get shipped every 6 weeks. Autoship saves me so much time, and the food arrives on my doorstep right before I run out of food.
Another great component of autoship is that there is flexible scheduling. You can cancel or change your next order if you still have enough turtle food and don’t need another shipment. They also have the option to edit your shipment to come sooner. They also allow you to cancel your auto shipment whenever you want, and they don’t charge any cancellation fee.
Other turtle food items from Chewy
I have also used Chewy to get other items for my turtle. I recently bought a calcium bone supplement and it only cost $3. It floats on the top of the water, and my turtles chews at it all day. According to the packaging, the calcium helps your turtle maintain a strong and clean shell. You can click on the picture below to see the product. Here is a good online review of the product.
