Turtle enthusiasts have long debated about what is the best food for their pets. Do Red-Eared Sliders prefer lettuce or carrots? Should you give your Eastern Box Turtle kale or snap beans? Dr. Elize Segar, a professor of Herpetology at the College of the Albemarle, refuses to be drawn into the preference debate, but he does warn turtle owners about one food they should not to feed their hard-shelled friends: spinach.
“Spinach dramatically affects a turtle’s metabolism,” said Dr. Segar. “It causes a rapid increase in respiration and heart rate and triggers a continuous adrenal dump into the animal’s bloodstream.”
Dr. Segar said turtles fed spinach gain incredible temporary strength and are able to shatter the glass sides of terrariums, lift other household pets many times their size, and leap several feet in the air.
“This is not a lethal threat with our local box and Slider turtles,” said Dr. Segar. “The most a Yellow Belly Slider is going to do to you on Spinach is break a few bones, but can you imagine the damage a giant Loggerhead might cause? They weigh over 800 pounds. That would be like three John Cena’s landing on you from the top of the turnbuckle all at the same time. Serious injury would be inevitable; death very likely.”
In response, Kill Devil Hills has instituted a no spinach policy at their turtle pond, and hired a retired drug canine as a spinach sniffing dog to make sure the park goers are not holding this dangerous leaf. So far there have been no attempts at turtle doping, but the dog seems very interested in the guys at the skate park.
Turtles inadvertently fed spinach should be placed in a quiet environment where they will not be easily startled or incited to violence. The metabolic effects from the spinach can last anywhere from 5 minutes to several hours. Dr. Segar said his team is studying various remedies to spinach consumption and has found some promise in a olive oil based topical cream.