health

Hi guys. I'm new to posting to this site but I read it daily it's an amazing resource. I have 2 horsfields that I've had about a month. Both about a year old. One of them is really straining to poop this week. She is going multiple times per day but really struggling and when she does go it's...

I have a smaller female Herman’s tortoise, who normally gobbles up everything in her food dish. This past month someone else has been taking care of her since I’ve been sick with pneumonia. I’ve had no contact with her to make her sick, and it’s been an overnight change. She didn’t eat any...

Just come on the forum for a bit of advice. Had my russian for almost a year, he's my first tortoise. He's housed in a vivarium with coco coir and orchid bark which is sprayed with water to keep the humidity at about 70%. Basking temp is 33C. Warm end is roughly 31C and cool end 23C. I let him...

Hello everyone! I have a Russian tortoise named Ollie. I am unsure how old he is, but I have had him for about four years now. Recently (for the past few months), my sister has been taking care of him. I have noticed in the past few weeks (probably around 5-6 weeks) that he has been sleeping a...

Hi, I've tried to contact the site owners to see if this is OK to post using the "contact us" page, but had no reply, so I hope it is and apologies if it isn't. I wrote an app last week for tortoise owners to check the Jackson or Donaghue ratios as my wife noticed there wasn't one in the Play...

So our 26 year old desert tortoise has been doing a lot of head pumping in his sleep at night lately: Video1 Video2 Anyone know what this is? Is this weather related (it's been hot lately)? Digestion? Breathing? Aside from this behavior (that he's just started the last couple days) he seems...

My husband bought me a baby sulcata for my birthday in May. We did take it to the vet for an initial check-up and it was fine. It slept a lot and was a finicky eater. It also would not eat food with calcium added. About two weeks ago I tried making a homemade calcium block with the calcium...

Hello everyone, I'm new here and have come for a bit of advice regarding my Russian :):tort: Shes about 2 years old and shes been to the vet recently for a few stones which the vet put down to the warmer weather and not being hydrated enough! She has daily baths now and shes doing better not...

Hi everyone. My four year old, male Burmese Star tortoise has had diarrhea that I found in their enclosure. We cleaned him up and he drank some water in the bath for dehydration and was awake, alert, and wanted to run around and eat. His tail was all matted in poop though. There was no...

Hello! Is Terry's shell damaged or is this normal growth?

Hello everyone! I've owned my Russian tortoise, Ivan, for around 3 years now (he's the first tort I've ever owned). Maybe 3 weeks ago I noticed that a small spot of his lower shell, on his belly, had an odd reddish-brown color. I assumed it was a small abrasion of some kind, I didn't think much...

We have 2 CDT that are almost 2 years old. During their soak time, I dripped some water on their shells and they looked very different from one another. Should I be concerned? Coloring and pattern seem so different

Sorry this so lengthy, I'm just trying to be thorough... I work at a pet store and have been extra concerned for a male Russian Testudo tortoise, especially over the past 1-2 months. He is likely 2-3 years old has been so very unlucky. He was housed in a 20-ish gallon terrarium (our biggest...

Help! My Jackie was stuck in his Burrow. I think it collapsed around him. After Middle of March I got very worried he still had not come out! And when I looked in his burrow it was filled with Dirt where a tunnel use to be. I couldn’t get a shovel in there So for a few days I dug out the dirt...

Hey everyone, we've had our three toed, Clem, for almost two months now. I've been worried about her recently because she literally stays buried under her substrate all day (and I think night too). At first I thought she might just be nervous in her new habitat, but its been almost two months...

Hi everyone! I have an 8 year old Hermann's tortoise (Chompy). I've noticed some weird discoloration in the back of his shell in the past year. It seems to be a dusty brown color and I am not sure why. (I did switch from substrate to soil as he seemed to prefer it, and thought maybe the soil is...

Hello. I recently redid my ornate eastern box turtle’s enclosure and messed up big I’m afraid. I put in a blend of coco fiber and natural soil but unfortunately planted golden pothos as well. Upon learning it’s potential to irritate eyes I removed it after only one day of being in the enclosure...

So I am watching my friends baby red foot for a bit and I’ve been doing it for about a month and I just am so worried I’m doing something wrong. I feed her spring mix every morning and some at night. In the morning i put spring mix a little bit over the top of the bowl pictured below and just...

My Russian tort Hank is in cypress mulch. I spot clean her enclosure (a wooden Zoo Med Tortoise House) daily after work. I will occasionally see very small whiteish almost light beige colored little bugs on remaining lettuce scraps or poop. I don’t see them in large quantities, usually a few...

Hello all, Didn't know where to post this so sorry if in the wrong place! I'm a bit confused about the Jackson Ratio weight-length chart/calculator. I have been using the calculator on https://www.tortoise-protection-group.org.uk/site/171.asp for the last 6 weeks of having my Hermann's tort and...