# Hasn't eaten properly in weeks!!



## mikey~t (Dec 29, 2013)

Our little Russian tortoise, Mikey hasn't eaten in nearly 3 weeks. We got him in June and he's always had a decent appetite, we give him a variety of purchased foods, and also bits from the garden (dandelion, strawberry and raspberry leaves) 
He went through a phase a few weeks ago of spending about 21+ hours sleeping, which I later discovered that we shouldn't let him do if were not hibernating him.. So with that we make sure lid comes off his bed in the indoor enclosure we keep him in, and now an extra lamp goes on too for a spot of extra warmth.. When we did this, he's the most active he's ever been, crawling around and climbing anywhere... We let him roam around the dining room ( which we've always done) and he's now a turbo tortoise, all over the place. 

However, we offer him food and there's just no interest, I've researched and tried him on all manner of different stuff he's not had before, and nothing. In the last 3 weeks I've seen him take 3 nibbles of something and then leave it alone, which in the past he'd have wolfed down and be waiting for a bit more..

The fact he's so full of beans tells me he's not unwell, but he has lost 50grams since I weighed him in October, (he puts on about 20grams every two to three weeks)

Anyone got any ideas? Is he ok? I'm guessing it must be body clock/hibernation related, but he's only young (3/4 yrs old) and I'm guessing he hasn't been hibernated before.
Any advice would be gratefully received... Thanks. Rob


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## Yvonne G (Dec 29, 2013)

Hi, and welcome to the Forum!

When a tortoise scurries around the house when put down on the floor, its usually because he's afraid and is frantically trying to find a safe hiding place. Tortoises are territorial, and they need to be in their own territory where they know the landscape and they know they are safe.

You can try offering Mikey some of the prepared lettuces that come in packages. Here in the states we use Spring Mix and Santa Barbara Mix. Over in the UK there's different types under the name Florette. Just don't use the ones containing iceburg lettuce.


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## bigsteaks (Dec 29, 2013)

Hi there. Ours just did the exact same thing. I was worried to pieces. I increased his temps slightly. Increased the timing on his lights to be on for 15 hours daily.
I soaked him often. Then I soaked him daily in a baby food slurry. Eventually he became less sleepy and more hungry. He is eating and actually gained all his weight loss back. Stay at him and keep up with his care and he will be back to normal soon.


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## Jlant85 (Dec 29, 2013)

First thing you really want to check... what is the temperature of the enclosure? Im assuming he is indoors so day temp (Basking and cooler end temp) and night... One thing that he probably did was sensed winter is here and if the temperature is not maintained correctly, he'll just want to go to sleep... 
Second thing is, how long do you keep the lighs on? Summer time we tend to have longer hours of light so you want to imitate this as much as possible. Also, how often do you soak? To keep you from worrying too much, tortoise can last a long time with out feeding but one thing i would do in a situation like this is soaking as often as possible... and if they refuse to eat.... i would begin the baby food soak... this is where you add baby food (I really mean baby food that you feed your baby) to the water when soaking... this way you still can give them some nutrients... i like to use carrots... that or i would use my juicer and juice veggies that they would usually eat and put that in the water while they soak....


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## ascott (Dec 29, 2013)

> First thing you really want to check... what is the temperature of the enclosure?



This was the first thing that came to mind here too, especially since you said you added additional light/heat....

If the temps all work out...perhaps find a smooth larger river rock (about female tortoise size) and place it in the enclosure and see if your tort takes interest???? If he had a short siesta and is now feeling as though he just woke up....well, he may have other visions dancing through his little tortoise head


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## mikey~t (Dec 31, 2013)

Thanks all..

Ok, we've had him about five months, and he's only ever lived in the same room, we take him out of his box and he regularly goes exploring the room, so nothing has changed in that respect..

The thermometer in his box usually reads around 29-30 Celsius after its warmed up, the extra lamp we put on, is perhaps not the hottest, but used more as a ploy to trick him into thinking the sun is out (we take the lid of his little bedroom section and put the lamp on, and usually an hour at the most, we can hear him moving around and usually popping out to say hello) he gets bathed at least once every 3 days.. But usually more often.. We'll try and make this everyday now, particularly while he's not eating, we do buy the florette packs of salad for him (lambs lettuce on its own, or the one with ruby chard), but we also get him romaine lettuce, pak choi, cress, rocket, occasional bit of apple, and try bits out of the garden.. But I can try either liquifying this, or put it in the smoothie maker, with a bit of water to make a baby food type pulp, and put some of that in the bath with him.

I'm wondering if there is something temperature related we're missing.. We do have an infra red thermal gun, and after he's been basking he usually reads around the 30degrees mark..


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## WillTort2 (Jan 1, 2014)

You may need to post pictures of your enclosure to determine the problem.

But I think the previous replies have touched upon the problem. It's not just temperature, it's range of temperatures. 

You need a basking spot that's about 95 degrees F (35 degrees C). Your cool side needs to be about 70 to 75 degrees F (21 degrees C). This will allow the tortoise to self regulate it's temperature.

Avoid allowing him to roam the floor, during winter the floor temperature is much lower than the actual room temperature. If the enclosure is sitting on the floor elevate it to about the 1 meter off the floor level.


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