Behavioral Question

[blackfish707]

Hey all!

Have a quick question about young Redfooted behavior. (She) was born in May, 2014 and I've had her since about September/August. She's been doing great, growing steadily. I'm paranoid about pyramiding, but so far her growth looks (to me) good. My question is about her behavior. Not everyday, but most days, I have her soak in a warm bath. She seems to enjoy these and will drink, dunk her head, lounge, poop, etc. Afterwards she is very "outgoing" and likes to explore around the kitchen table looking at things a biting them. (I usually feed her during this time.) However, when she is put back in her enclosure, she heads straight back to her favorite corner and buries herself in the cypress/sphagnum. She will literally still be there the next day. If a day goes where I don't do a soak/feed, I worry that she's not drinking water. I see everyone else's torts exploring their enclosures.

So my question is: Am I over reacting over something normal? Do they grow out of this?Could it be that by feeding her out of the enclosure, I've trained her to not expect anything inside?

She's a wonderful tort, but I just worry that she's not her best self right now. Also, I've been told by several that re-hydrated cat food is a good protein source. If you use it, what brands do you suggest?

 

[G-stars]

Hey all!

Have a quick question about young Redfooted behavior. (She) was born in May, 2014 and I've had her since about September/August. She's been doing great, growing steadily. I'm paranoid about pyramiding, but so far her growth looks (to me) good. My question is about her behavior. Not everyday, but most days, I have her soak in a warm bath. She seems to enjoy these and will drink, dunk her head, lounge, poop, etc. Afterwards she is very "outgoing" and likes to explore around the kitchen table looking at things a biting them. (I usually feed her during this time.) However, when she is put back in her enclosure, she heads straight back to her favorite corner and buries herself in the cypress/sphagnum. She will literally still be there the next day. If a day goes where I don't do a soak/feed, I worry that she's not drinking water. I see everyone else's torts exploring their enclosures.

So my question is: Am I over reacting over something normal? Do they grow out of this?Could it be that by feeding her out of the enclosure, I've trained her to not expect anything inside?

She's a wonderful tort, but I just worry that she's not her best self right now. Also, I've been told by several that re-hydrated cat food is a good protein source. If you use it, what brands do you suggest?

Why don't you tell us what your temps are: warm side, cool side, basking spot, and night. Also what are your humidity levels at? What kind of dish are you using for her water? Is she steadily gaining weight? Also it's not a good idea to let her walk around on your floor. As you mentioned she goes around nibbling on things. This isn't good as she can find a foreign object big enough to inhale.

 

[HLogic]

The tort's behavior is perfectly normal and it will not grow out of wanting to take a nap after eating. I haven't & I'm older than most of my torts!

 

[blackfish707]

The tort's behavior is perfectly normal and it will not grow out of wanting to take a nap after eating. I haven't & I'm older than most of my torts!

Hilarious. I love it. Will get habitat info soon. Also, she spends very little time on the actual floor. Mostly stays on the kitchen table.

 

[pfara]

I've always kept my tortoises in their indoor/outdoor enclosures (unless for a quick picture or if they're on my lap for a check-up) so I can't comment on the training thing. However, I can tell you that it took about 18 months for them to feel brave enough to roam freely. And this is with large enclosures and with me hardly bugging them other than spot cleaning, feeding, and watering (so, without much disturbance).

 

[newCH]

You have some of the same concerns that I did at first. I estimate my
little Sheldon was hatched July 2014. Some things I dont think you mentioned in your post was time you turn on the lights and what you feed him.
That was my main concern at first was if he developed a routine of
eating, drinking, exploring on his own & that he had instincts to thrive in the enviorment I provided.
A few things that helped for my little guy was turning the lights on same time daily. He likes sleeping in one back corner, when the lights come on his little head pops out of the substrate for a few minutes. By that time I am feeding the dog and preparing Sheldon's food.
In the beginning I used to mix his food together, but to figured out his likes and dislikes, I now feed him with the foods seperate.
So, his routine is to wait maybe 10 minutes to leave the corner to see whats for breakfast. If he smells or sees chopped mango or grated carrot he comes out faster. At first he will leave the greens for later. He will return to his corner after eating the first time. He will walk a bit, sleep a bit seems to be his routine.
Thats what I notice when I am home all day with him.
I soak him in the evening & give him a soaked Mazuri. He has yet to finish an entire chunk yet. Then he puts himself to sleep, goes to his corner and stays there until we put the lights on in the am.
Maybe try a different food. Sheldon doesnt like strawberries and will
pass by and leave it uneaten. Guess not all strawberries are sweet.
Mango is a big hit with him.
Good luck with your tort.

 

[newCH]

Almost forget Sheldons temps are 72-82 degrees.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

My RFs prefer 80-84 degrees. I agree with newCH. It is very common for a baby RF to sleep all day long. The one thing that I'm not too sure about is having him/her on the kitchen table....Or any were else that human food might eventually be. Make sure you wipe it (the table) with bleach afterwards. I very infrequently give my tortoises some high end dog food. I have a dog, also. Mazuri is the food preferred by all three of my RF. But I only feed it at about 20% of their diet. Try some....And see the reaction!

 

[stojanovski92113]

Hello Babies hide...a lot! But I never mess with my two babies. I let them be tortoises. I only pick them up daily to soak them & inspect them. I only look at them a zillion times a day if I'm home and not at work to make sure they are ok. But please don't let your baby walk around the house, it's not their environment, temps change, no lighting, & they can eat foreign objects, and many times they can get hurt!! It has happened way too many times!

 

[crimson_lotus]

Don't worry too much about not catching him/her drinking. Soaking helps a lot to keep the tortoise hydrated (sometimes they sneak a few drinks in, too) and they also absorb some fluids through their cloaca. If kept in a dry environment (humidity is necessary for redfoots, so they really shouldn't be) soaking is key.

As for the cat food, I personally do not feed it to my tortoise however I have read on this forum that diet cat food is the best. I feed my tortoise shrimp, chicken, egg, and bugs like snails or worms.

I move things around in my tortoises enclosure every once in a while too if it seems like she's bored. She gets pretty active when I do this, and she starts trying to push everything around to explore her semi-new surroundings.

 

[Telid]

You have some of the same concerns that I did at first. I estimate my
little Sheldon was hatched July 2014. Some things I dont think you mentioned in your post was time you turn on the lights and what you feed him.
That was my main concern at first was if he developed a routine of
eating, drinking, exploring on his own & that he had instincts to thrive in the enviorment I provided.
A few things that helped for my little guy was turning the lights on same time daily. He likes sleeping in one back corner, when the lights come on his little head pops out of the substrate for a few minutes. By that time I am feeding the dog and preparing Sheldon's food.
In the beginning I used to mix his food together, but to figured out his likes and dislikes, I now feed him with the foods seperate.
So, his routine is to wait maybe 10 minutes to leave the corner to see whats for breakfast. If he smells or sees chopped mango or grated carrot he comes out faster. At first he will leave the greens for later. He will return to his corner after eating the first time. He will walk a bit, sleep a bit seems to be his routine.
Thats what I notice when I am home all day with him.
I soak him in the evening & give him a soaked Mazuri. He has yet to finish an entire chunk yet. Then he puts himself to sleep, goes to his corner and stays there until we put the lights on in the am.
Maybe try a different food. Sheldon doesnt like strawberries and will
pass by and leave it uneaten. Guess not all strawberries are sweet.
Mango is a big hit with him.
Good luck with your tort.

PS. If you have not already, I keep my enclosure lights on a timer. You can get variations on the one linked below at almost any hardware store.

http://www.google.com/shopping/prod...-JaQodNDoANw&gclid=CJW-o5yVvcMCFY-JaQodNDoANw