Hello, I want to share with you a bad experience with UVB & UVA light and tortoises eyes.
I bought 2 new Arcadia D3 bulbs ( no coil bulbs ) to give my tortoises enough UVB. Unfortunately I have no UV meter yet but it is on my list to buy next. I have to explain that my tortoises are young and living indoors in a close enclosure. I screwed 4 wooden vievariums together to one big enclosure.
The basking spot of the tortoises which they like most is in a smaller, lower part of the enclosure. In think the bulbs must have been too low above the tortoises. It was not too hot under the basking spot and the tortoises spend much time under the new basking bulbs. After a week I recognized that one of my torts developed a weird thing on her eye.
First I thought that she`s got a bacterial infection but nothing has changed in the enclosure or with the torts, except of the new bulbs !
I put out the new bulbs immediately ! That was 2 weeks ago. The eye of my tortoise is looking much better now. I think it is healing but it needs time. I think that UVB and UVA rays have burned the eye of the tort.
I want to share this experience with you to prevent other tortoise owners making the same mistake like me. The new bulbs had been approximately 7 inch over the tortoises shell. Now I know that the distance was much to short just for new bulbs !
Btw: The tortoise was all the time alert and good eating. Behaves totally normal.
Pictures following:
This is the "burned" eye.
and two weeks later the eye looks much better but healing needs time. The swelling is much better and it is not so red like before
I bought 2 new Arcadia D3 bulbs ( no coil bulbs ) to give my tortoises enough UVB. Unfortunately I have no UV meter yet but it is on my list to buy next. I have to explain that my tortoises are young and living indoors in a close enclosure. I screwed 4 wooden vievariums together to one big enclosure.
The basking spot of the tortoises which they like most is in a smaller, lower part of the enclosure. In think the bulbs must have been too low above the tortoises. It was not too hot under the basking spot and the tortoises spend much time under the new basking bulbs. After a week I recognized that one of my torts developed a weird thing on her eye.
First I thought that she`s got a bacterial infection but nothing has changed in the enclosure or with the torts, except of the new bulbs !
I put out the new bulbs immediately ! That was 2 weeks ago. The eye of my tortoise is looking much better now. I think it is healing but it needs time. I think that UVB and UVA rays have burned the eye of the tort.
I want to share this experience with you to prevent other tortoise owners making the same mistake like me. The new bulbs had been approximately 7 inch over the tortoises shell. Now I know that the distance was much to short just for new bulbs !
Btw: The tortoise was all the time alert and good eating. Behaves totally normal.
Pictures following:
This is the "burned" eye.
and two weeks later the eye looks much better but healing needs time. The swelling is much better and it is not so red like before
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