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Proper Calcium


Anyone who owns a box turtle, tortoise, or herbivorous lizard should be concerned about providing a diet high in calcium. Although supplementing your animal's food with a calcium supplement is generally a good idea, starting out with a diet naturally high in calcium makes even more sense. In addition, many turtle and iguana owners do not realize that a high ratio of phosphorous to calcium in their animal's food will inhibit the animal's ability to use calcium. The tables below should allow owners to select high calcium, low phosphorous foods. The "Meats Calcium" section is provided for omnivorous and insectivorous herps. Although there is a lot of controversy surrounding how much meat protein to feed to green iguanas, it is generally agreed that meat should, at most, compromise a tiny percentage of their diet.

Calcium & Phosphorous Content

Good Calcium Sources

Food-one cup Calcium Phosphorus Ratio
Collards 218mg 29mg 1 : 0 . 1
Rhubard 105mg 17mg 1 : 0 . 1
Turnip 105mg 23mg 1 : 0 . 2
Chinese Cabbage 74mg 26mg 1 : 0 . 3
Dandelion Greens 103mg 36mg 1 : 0 . 3
Parsley 122mg 38mg 1 : 0 . 3
Kale 90mg 38mg 1 : 0 . 4
Cabbage 32mg 16mg 1 : 0 . 4
Leeks 73mg 43mg 1 : 0 . 5
Green Onions 60mg 32mg 1 : 0 . 5



Fair Calcium Sources - use for variety

Food-one cup Calcium Phosphorus Ratio
Celery 44mg 32mg 1 : 0 . 7
Squash 36mg 38mg 1 : 0 . 8
Radish 9mg 8mg 1 : 0 . 8
Green Beans 41mg 72mg 1 : 1
Apples 10mg 10mg 1 : 1
Sweet Potato 29mg 37mg 1 : 1 . 2



Poor Calcium Sources - use for other vitamins

Food-one cup Calcium Phosphorus Ratio
Cucumber 14mg 18mg 1 : 1 . 2
Broccoli 42mg 58mg 1 : 1 . 3
Cauliflower 28mg 46mg 1 : 1 . 6
Bananas 7mg 22mg 1 : 3 . 1



Calcium from Meat

Food-one cup Calcium Phosphorus Ratio
Pinkie Mice 1.6% 1.8% 1 : 1 . 1
Earthworms .95% .95% 1 : 1
Crickets .16% .87% 1 : 5 . 4
Fortified Crickets .77% .88% 1 : 1 . 1
Mealworms .38% .57% 1 : 15
Canned Pet Food .3% .2% 1 : 0 . 6




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