Baby Leopard Losing Weight, Bubble Nose

Chapstickglue

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Feb 3, 2019
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Dallas, TX
Thanks in advance for replies!

- Leopard tortoise
- ~8 months old
- Male
- Arrived by overnight shipping 1/17/2019
- Arrived with bubble nose
- Currently losing weight

His House:
- Large wood tortoise table from ReptiMed
- UVB light / Ceramic Heater / Blue Heat Bulb / Heat Mat used for heat and light.
- Heat spots vary, 110 degrees, 80 degrees. It's hard to keep a warm environment with an open tortoise table in a drafty home during winter, so he has three hot / warmer spots.
- 2 dark hiding spots
- 1 swimming pool (he has daily soaks before breakfast)
- Paper towel substrate
- No added humidity (60%)
- Cuttle bone available, though he ignores it

*Organic* Diet:
- Dandelion greens with soaked / mashed Mazuri tortoise chow is his staple 5 days a week, with alternating...
- Green kale
- Butter lettuce
- Spinach
- Parsley
- Zucchini
- Broccoli
- Brussels sprouts
- Cactus pads
- Calcium sprinkle once a week

He arrived with a bubble nose and I decided to keep him on paper towel, without added humidity, and increased heat until his bubbles went away. This seems to be resolved now and I am thinking to switch his substrate to cypress mulch with a humidifier next week. I will be aiming toward 75-80% humidity.

He spends most of his time sleeping in a hide spot. He is eating, pooping daily, drinking water (daily soaks), walking around fine, his eyes are clear, his shell is hard, he seems strong. His personality is a little shy, so I try to handle him for a few minutes every other day to help him adjust.

We weigh him weekly:
1/19/19 - 62.68g
1/26/19 - 62.89g
2/2/19 - 62.12g

A loss of 0.77g at this size is very concerning to me. What am I doing wrong?

Thoughts I've had:
- Place him on top of his food more often?
- Feed him fresh food twice a day, not just once?
- Feed more tortoise chow?
- Move the food away from the UVB bulb?
- Add more calcium?
- Soak him twice a day, not once?
- Take out the blue light?
- Add humidity?
- Take him to a vet?

Thank you again for your help!!
-M
 

Chapstickglue

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Dallas, TX
That is a very small amount to lose, do you weigh him at the same time of day, before eating or after? This can effect the weight.

Do you think it's small? Almost 1 gram feels like a lot to lose in 1 week when he is small enough to fit in my palm.

We always weigh him in the morning before he eats breakfast.

Thanks for your help!
 

Yvonne G

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I would try to keep the whole enclosure around 80-85F degrees with no drop in temperature at night, and try to figure out a way to cover the enclosure.
 

Chapstickglue

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Location (City and/or State)
Dallas, TX
I would try to keep the whole enclosure around 80-85F degrees with no drop in temperature at night, and try to figure out a way to cover the enclosure.
OK. I just ordered an infrared thermometer so we can work on making that happen.

Thank you!
 

Chapstickglue

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How’s the nasal discharge at the moment. I would keep an eye on that. :)
I haven't seen a bubble in over a week now... I'm hoping he's clear now! My thought is to increase humidity slowly to see how his system reacts.

Do you like cypress mulch substrate? Or should we try something else?
 

Ben02

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That’s good to hear. Reptile substrate is always controversial but I like using coco coir for the sleeping area (deep layer for digging) and for the main table I use a thin layer of coco coir and a thicker layer of orchid bark on the top (just so it doesn’t stick to food) I think cypress mulch is ok but i haven’t used it before. Hope this helps:D
 

Chapstickglue

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Feb 3, 2019
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Location (City and/or State)
Dallas, TX
That’s good to hear. Reptile substrate is always controversial but I like using coco coir for the sleeping area (deep layer for digging) and for the main table I use a thin layer of coco coir and a thicker layer of orchid bark on the top (just so it doesn’t stick to food) I think cypress mulch is ok but i haven’t used it before. Hope this helps:D
We're going to try this. Thank you so much!
 

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