So I got my Russian tortoise about a week and a half ago and at first he was very timid, dehydrated, and not eating but then after a few days of hand feeding and soaking daily, he seemed to be doing really well! He was active, he liked to go outside, and just seemed overall healthy. But then about 2 or three days ago he seemed to not be doing as well. Now he seems to just lay under his heat lamp, and from what I can tell from his food amounts he isn't eating too much. We went to the vet a few days after I got him and he said that he is perfectly healthy except he is a little dehydrated and needs to gain some weight so he can eat as much as he wants. Is something wrong with him? Or am I just being overly cautious?
A little worried about my Russian!
- Thread starter zlake
- Start date
First if he is always under the heat lamp the heat proably isn't high enough also what are your Temps/humidity also what are you feeding
Also post some pics so we can see for are selves
Also post some pics so we can see for are selves
The heat on the hot side of the enclosure is 93° and on the cool side is 72°. I spray his bedding every morning. He gets a type of leafy green (mustard greens, collard greens, spinach (only once), or kale) and then a small amount of vegetable with it (red pepper, cactus pad, or squash). When we were outside he did eat some sowthistle leaves and when he was at the vet they did give him a small amount of peach to make sure that he would eat. 
Russians tend to be more active during dawn and dusk. Night is too cool and high-noon is too hot. Do you have a CHE (ceramic heat emitter) for ambient warmth? If you have a CHE run thru a thermostat set to 80F then you don't have to worry about temperatures. Good luck!
First of all, do not let your vet feed him fruit. Russians should never eat fruit. If you are trying to feed him some sort of treat, try a cucumber or Romain lettuce. Make sure your enclosure is nice and bright. I would be worried if he never moves out from under the heat lamp. That means the rest of the enclosure is too cold. And yes, you could be missing a lot of the act of time if you are gone all day. How big is the enclosure? Are you still soaking daily? And instead of just spraying the top of the substrate you should pour water in and stir it with your hands so that it all gets slightly damp.
