Baby tortoise not opening his eyes??
- Thread starter Bennie
- Start date
Please give us a lot more info in order for us to be able too help. Species, temps, humidity, lighting, heating, soaks per day, etc.
Bennie, be sure of the temperatures. Do you have temp gun? You would be amazed at how much we can be off in guessing temperatures. My temperature gun is vital to me for my tortoises. I am guessing your baby is cold. But it's a guess. Can you tell us for sure what your enclosure is reading? Remember, babies need hot and humid! Keep us posted. : )
What kind of bulb are you using? If it's a coil type, get rid of it, they cause eye problems.
I don't have a temp gun! But I will look into getting one they seem useful! I don't know the exact temperatures but the reptile person said that the light is hot enough for the tortoise. I am just really worried because he moved a little earlier but that's about it he's very inactive and not eating well! And I haven't seen his eyes open, whatever I try to feed him he refuses to eat! 
This is my heat lamp!
This is my heat lamp!
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I've got the same problem with my hatchling Chaco tort. I bought him/her from a friend in Czech. After 2 moths in my hands the hatchling doesn't have the eye problems. The humidity is very import!! Also you have look that the substrate is a little bit wet not to much!!
What I also did is that I gave my tort a warm bath 3-4 times in week.
What I also did is that I gave my tort a warm bath 3-4 times in week.
It's Reassuring to know I'm not the only one, nev is about 4 weeks.. How long was it until your tort stopped having the eye problems? Yes it's very warm in the viv, I do bathe him everyday but not for very long as he doesn't have much reaction and doesn't poo. He has just now buried himself slightly in the substrate?? My substrate is like a woodchip sort of thing. How would I make it slightly wet? Thanks for all your help everyone by the way, I'm a new tort owner and just worried about Neville!
So the problem with his eyes are still there but not so much. Only when the terrarium is to dry. The substrate isn't optimal I think. I'm not a friend of any wood substrate. I think normal substrate like earth are the best solution. You go in the market and buy earth WITHOUT fertilizer or other chemical stuffs. Or you go in the garden and there from there some earth.
The substrate which you use at the moment isn't very good for holding moisture. So take earth. You can take a watering pot or spray bottle.
The substrate which you use at the moment isn't very good for holding moisture. So take earth. You can take a watering pot or spray bottle.
Bennie, babies need moisture/humidity. When they are born in the wild, they hide from predators and that usually means in plant pallets and burrows. It has been said that babies are very hard to find in the wild because they are that good at hiding. They know they can be someone's lunch. Like the next bird that flies by. And those hidey places tend to have high humidity micro climates. That, with the heat from the desert, is vital for them. So your habitat almost needs to be like a terrarium in captivity. Mine has water condensation on the sides almost always. It measures at 80-85% humidity and I keep the ambient temps at no less than 80 degrees. Must be 80 or higher because of the humidity. We do not want them to catch a cold.
The wood chips and pellets have to go ba-bye, so long. No good. Also, the temp gun or a temperature gauge in the enclosure will help you. Guessing might surprise you. Might be to too cold. Which was my first guess. Also, babies are very fragile so you need to makes changes sooner rather than later. I use coco coir for substrate but yes, regular top soil or bagged planting soil with NO fertilizers and NO perlite or vermiculite added. Be sure to check the ingredients on the bag. Peat moss is also a good thing to mix in.
Soak the baby twice a day for now, to be sure he is hydrated. Warm and cozy under , or a little to the side, of his basking area. Supervised, for at least 20 minutes. Keep us posted. Everyone wants your baby to thrive! : )
The wood chips and pellets have to go ba-bye, so long. No good. Also, the temp gun or a temperature gauge in the enclosure will help you. Guessing might surprise you. Might be to too cold. Which was my first guess. Also, babies are very fragile so you need to makes changes sooner rather than later. I use coco coir for substrate but yes, regular top soil or bagged planting soil with NO fertilizers and NO perlite or vermiculite added. Be sure to check the ingredients on the bag. Peat moss is also a good thing to mix in.
Soak the baby twice a day for now, to be sure he is hydrated. Warm and cozy under , or a little to the side, of his basking area. Supervised, for at least 20 minutes. Keep us posted. Everyone wants your baby to thrive! : )
Okay thanks. Where can I buy the substrate required? I will buy asap. Do you think he will be okay till then and that this will benefit his health? He has burrowed into the substrate slightly. I'm still worried about his eating..? I bathe him but not for long so maybe i will try doing it for a longer period of time
Thanks for all the help
Oh and is hemp substrate okay??
Thanks for all the help
Oh and is hemp substrate okay??
Where are you located? Home Depot or Lowe's nearby? Or a plant nursery? Longer soakshelp. They like little tortoise spa time. Make sure the water stays warm and cozy. This is where a temp gun really helps. Here is a link you want to read:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-83628.html
Also, I got my temp gun at Harbor Freight. Do you have one of those. I got a crazy deal for Black Friday but they have coupons online. Also, the coil light bulbs suck big time. Like Wellington said above, NO coil light bulbs. It does hurt their eyes. If you have one, get rid of it right now.
Also, you can add baby food to the soaks. To get some nutrition in to baby. Get carrots or squash baby food jars. Add half to the soaking water, mix with the water and soak baby in that. It helps. A lot.
If you have not read this already, here is the care sheet that Tom out together, to read and study, also. Yay! http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-80698.html
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-83628.html
Also, I got my temp gun at Harbor Freight. Do you have one of those. I got a crazy deal for Black Friday but they have coupons online. Also, the coil light bulbs suck big time. Like Wellington said above, NO coil light bulbs. It does hurt their eyes. If you have one, get rid of it right now.
Also, you can add baby food to the soaks. To get some nutrition in to baby. Get carrots or squash baby food jars. Add half to the soaking water, mix with the water and soak baby in that. It helps. A lot.
If you have not read this already, here is the care sheet that Tom out together, to read and study, also. Yay! http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-80698.html
About the hemp substrate. Not familiar with that. Cowboy Ken, one of our experts, says this: When in doubt, leave it out. It might have oil residue or baby may eat it and it can cause impaction. Is it made from the seeds or from what? Love hemp fabrics. Never seen or heard of substrate from it. The coco coir rocks in my opinion.
Bennie said:
Nope. If you walked on wood chips barefoot and then I gave you yummy soft coco coir instead, wouldn't you be a happy Bennie? : )
Oh and Bennie, I forgot to say that you just got this baby recently and they do need time to adjust to being with you. Same thing as what I said about them being in the wild. They simply do not know if you are going to eat them, so they withdraw/stress. Want to make sure however that everything is optimal to make baby come out of his shell for you sooner. Again, because babies can be fragile so you want the best for them as soon as possible, so they can be acclimated and thrive in your care. : )
Baby food like in jars for little human babies. If you add that to the soak water, it gives them some nutrition since they drink or also absorb through their cloaca (their butt bum). Carrots or squash is best for tortoises. No fruits, no meats. Sometimes the eyes may have a Vitamin A deficiency and the carrot soak will help for that, too. Squash is good also. I know, I know. Nutty. But do a search, above right, on the forum search feature "baby food soaks" and you will see all the threads on how helpful baby food soaks have been for some folks. Aren't you glad you found this forum? Yep, it rocks for tips and help! : )
