Basking rock

LittleLove

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Tom, I had gotten a nice-sized rock for Fred. I wanted to ask you, is there a certain kind of basking rock I am supposed to get him?

One more question: I had been soaking Fred for a few days, and he wasn't going poop so I thought he was constipated. It seemed like he didn't want to be in there; he was trying to get out. So of course I took.him out. Well today he was soaking for awhile, ( I go in there and Change his water every couple of minutes because it doesn't stay warm, do you do that?) and thank God he finally went he finally went poop the first two little ones were very hard, then after those two he went normal it wasn't hard it was normal. Scared me.
Should I be posting these questions to everyone or is it ok to be asking you.
 

Ink

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If you want to contact a member use @ in front of their name. Welcome to the forum
 

wellington

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Well, you can just do the @ alert to Tom or you can ask just in general. There are many more than just Tom that can answer most questions and may get you an answer faster. However, if you are only going to listen to Tom, then you could just do the alert or pm him. Usually if ankther member can't answer the question, they will send an @ alert to who they think can best answer it
Now as for the rock, any flat rock. As for the soaks, it doesn't matter if they want out, you keep them in. It is good for them to scramble wanting out, that helps keep things moving inside.
As for changing the water every so often, I used to do the same with my leopard. I actually soaked in the bathroom sink. Would drain them add more.
Some people put the soak container in the enclosure off to the side of the basking light and some do it outside in the sun.
 

LittleLove

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Well, you can just do the @ alert to Tom or you can ask just in general. There are many more than just Tom that can answer most questions and may get you an answer faster. However, if you are only going to listen to Tom, then you could just do the alert or pm him. Usually if ankther member can't answer the question, they will send an @ alert to who they think can best answer it
Now as for the rock, any flat rock. As for the soaks, it doesn't matter if they want out, you keep them in. It is good for them to scramble wanting out, that helps keep things moving inside.
You too gave me alot of good suggestions and advice, No, I Want your input to. do you think he was constipated? Also the rock I put in his house, it doesn't get warm?? 🤔
 

wellington

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Yes, he may have been a little constipated which is why it's important to keep them in the soak for at least a half hour or even until he poops, hour tops.
If the rock isn't getting warm/hot, the basking bulb may be either too high or not a big enough wattage. Set a thermometer in the rock under the basking and let it set there for an hour and see what it reads. You want it to be around 90 that would make the top of the tortoise 90-95. Basking temps should be 95-100
 

LittleLove

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Thank you so much, I appreciate it. He is really stubborn. Eventually if I leave him in the water will he settle down. So you change your tortoises water every couple of minutes?
 

wellington

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Thank you so much, I appreciate it. He is really stubborn. Eventually if I leave him in the water will he settle down. So you change your tortoises water every couple of minutes?
Yes, he will settle down. But even if he doesn't that's not a bad thing
Yes,when I did it in my sink, I would run warm water to keep it warm. But when the level got as high as it could in the sink, I would drain it and add more.
 

LittleLove

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Yes, he will settle down. But even if he doesn't that's not a bad thing
Yes,when I did it in my sink, I would run warm water to keep it warm. But when the level got as high as it could in the sink, I would drain it and add more.
Thanks again. I know you already have given me a list of things to feed him, I had talked to this lady the other day and I asked her about the organic kale and a she that I could feed him that everyday and as much as he will eat???
 

Littleredfootbigredheart

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Thanks again. I know you already have given me a list of things to feed him, I had talked to this lady the other day and I asked her about the organic kale and a she that I could feed him that everyday and as much as he will eat???
I wouldn’t feed kale everyday no, like wellington suggests above, sparingly and part of a large variety🙂
 

LittleLove

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I know you already gave me a list. And said Its better if I don't go to a grocery store. But I am going to go to the grocery store to buy Fred food. I have tried dandelion, collard greens and regular kale. What do you personally use
 

wellington

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Not a lot of collards either. You want to go for escarole, arugula, endive, spring mix remove most of the spinach.
Mix it up. One day maybe give two items. Then next day the other two then next day give one item and mix in a little kale. Next day give a different item and add some of the collards or even mustard greens. Spring mix is a mix so one day feed just that. Try to add in as much natural weeds and flowers as possible. Also add in some soaked tortoise pellets.
 

Tom

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I know you already gave me a list. And said Its better if I don't go to a grocery store. But I am going to go to the grocery store to buy Fred food. I have tried dandelion, collard greens and regular kale. What do you personally use
From the care sheets:
10. Grocery store produce: In short, avoid grocery store produce when possible. Grocery store greens are not the best tortoise foods. They tend to lack fiber, calcium, and some of them have deleterious compounds in them. If you must use foods from the grocery store, favor endive and escarole as the main staples. Add in cilantro, arugula, collards, turnip and mustard greens, lettuces and many others for variety. You will also need to add some sort of amendment to improve the quality as tortoise food. Calcium is good to add a couple of times per week and soaked horse hay pellets are a good way to add fiber for any species. Soaked ZooMed tortoise pellets of any type are good to add, as is Purina Organic Lay Crumbles for chickens, oddly enough. When possible skip the expensive grocery store greens and use a wide variety of weeds, leaves, flowers, and succulents, that are all free.

So much contradictory info on this subject. Its simple. What do they eat in the wild. Grass, weeds, leaves, flowers, and succulents. Feed them a huge variety of these things, and you'll have a healthy tortoise. All of these species are very adaptable when it comes to diet and there is a very large margin of error, and many ways to do it right. What if you don't have this sort of "natural" tortoise food available for part of each year because you are in the snow? You will have no choice but to buy grocery store food. What's wrong with grocery store food? It tends to lack fiber, some items are low in calcium or have a poor calcium to phosphorous ratio, and some items have deleterious compounds in them. All of these short comings can be improved with some simple supplementation and amendments. A pinch of calcium two times per week will help fix that problem. You can also leave cuttle bone in the enclosure, so your tortoise can self-regulate its own calcium intake. What about fiber? Soaked horse hay pellets, soaked ZooMed Grassland pellets, Mazuri tortoise chow, "Salad style", "Herbal Hay" both from @TylerStewartand his lovely wife Sarah at Tortoisesupply.com, or many of the dried plants and leaves available from Will @Kapidolo Farms. If you must use grocery store foods, favor endive and escarole as your main staples. Add in arugula, cilantro, kale, collard, mustard and turnip greens, squash leaves, spring mix, romaine, green or red leaf lettuce, butter lettuce, water cress, carrot tops, celery tops, bok choy, and whatever other greens you can find. If you mix in some of the aforementioned amendments, these grocery store foods will offer plenty of variety and fiber and be able to meet your tortoises nutritional needs just fine. I find it preferable to grab a few grapevine or mulberry leaves, or a handful of mallow and clover, or some broadleaf plantain leaves and some grass, but with the right additions, grocery store stuff is fine too. Grow your own stuff, or find it around you when possible. Tyler and Sarah also sell a fantastic Testudo seed mix that is great for ALL tortoise species and also super easy to grow in pots, trays, raised garden beds, or in outdoor tortoise enclosures. When that isn't possible, add a wide variety of good stuff to your grocery store greens to make them better.

Supplements:
I recommend you keep cuttle bone available all the time. Some never use it and some munch on it regularly. Some of mine will go months without touching it, and then suddenly eat the whole thing in a day or two. Sulcatas and leopards grow a lot. This requires a tremendous amount of calcium assimilation over time. A great diet is paramount, but it is still a good idea to give them some extra calcium regularly. I use a tiny pinch of RepCal or ZooMed plain old calcium carbonate twice a week. Much discussion has been given to whether or not they need D3 in their calcium supplement. Personally, I don't think it matters. Every tortoise should be getting adequate UV exposure one way or another, so they should be able to make their own D3. I also like to use a mineral supplement. "MinerAll" is my current brand of choice. It seems to help those tortoises that like to swallow pebbles and rocks. It is speculated that some tortoise eat rocks or substrate due to a mineral deficiency or imbalance. Whatever the reason, "MinerAll" seems to stop it or prevent it. Finally, I like to use a reptile vitamin supplement once a week, to round out any hidden deficiencies that may be in my diet over the course of a year.

You can refer back to these for more care info:


You too gave me alot of good suggestions and advice, No, I Want your input to. do you think he was constipated? Also the rock I put in his house, it doesn't get warm?? 🤔
The flat rock is supposed to go directly under the basking bulb, and the tortoise lays on it to get say belly heat while simultaneously getting warmed from above, just like basking in the sun.
 
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