Hello,
I'm new here as well as a fairly new desert tortise owner. I live in so cal. My tortoises were gifted to me very unexpected but they have grown to be a big part of the family and my heart. Their names are grumpy and lazy, I was told they were a year old when I got them, so now they are, in theory one and a half years old. I got them in September and starting in November they became very slow and I think they were trying to hibernate. From what I researched one year old tortoises didnt need to hibernate so I just kept things "normal" for them. When I got them I knew they were active because their furniture was always rearranged when I got home and their food eaten. And they had runny noses so I took them to the vet and he wasn't too concerned with the runny nose, which did surprise me, but he said they were very healthy and happy. They were very social at the vet and had a great time. Then about nov or dec they stopped eating and never seemed to move, but I would every other day or so, tickle their toes and make sure they were still alive. They alway were, so my theory with this is that they maybe a year or two older than I was told and they were trying to hibernate. I still fed them about once a week, or at least put food in their cage and water soaked them once every 2 weeks or so...I hope this was ok to do...so now as its starting to warm up they are becoming more active. I am a little worried because for the last 2 weeks they have even eating more, and enjoying their water soakings but they have not pooped yet. Is this ok? How long can I wait to be concerned about this...or should I already be concerned about this? Grumpy and lazy thank you for your reply...they are happily roaming around the house right now. I should mention they are kept indoors In a large plastic container with newspaper and a hide box and both heat and sun bulbs. I have done a lot of research on tortises and just taken what I feel to be right and what they seem to respond to well.
Oh yeah, I know that diet is very important to tortise health and growth...but my guys seem to have favorites so that concerns me that they don't eat enough of a variety of foods. Their diet is largely, broccoli, kale, greens, hibiscus flowers, rose petals, and honey suckle. I also put calcium powder on their greens sometimes. They both seem to favor the broccoli and kale over everything. But I wish they would eat the plants more...should I be concerned about this also?
Thanks!
Ps., at the vet they took a stool sample and the vet tested it and found out they have parasites, which he said is common and can be treated and that probably was the reason for the runny nose. They have been treated for this but need to be tested again to make sure the parasites are gone.
Ps, sorry for spelling and grammar errors, I am typing on an I pad, and have never sent a large typed email on this before...I may go back to the laptop...
I'm new here as well as a fairly new desert tortise owner. I live in so cal. My tortoises were gifted to me very unexpected but they have grown to be a big part of the family and my heart. Their names are grumpy and lazy, I was told they were a year old when I got them, so now they are, in theory one and a half years old. I got them in September and starting in November they became very slow and I think they were trying to hibernate. From what I researched one year old tortoises didnt need to hibernate so I just kept things "normal" for them. When I got them I knew they were active because their furniture was always rearranged when I got home and their food eaten. And they had runny noses so I took them to the vet and he wasn't too concerned with the runny nose, which did surprise me, but he said they were very healthy and happy. They were very social at the vet and had a great time. Then about nov or dec they stopped eating and never seemed to move, but I would every other day or so, tickle their toes and make sure they were still alive. They alway were, so my theory with this is that they maybe a year or two older than I was told and they were trying to hibernate. I still fed them about once a week, or at least put food in their cage and water soaked them once every 2 weeks or so...I hope this was ok to do...so now as its starting to warm up they are becoming more active. I am a little worried because for the last 2 weeks they have even eating more, and enjoying their water soakings but they have not pooped yet. Is this ok? How long can I wait to be concerned about this...or should I already be concerned about this? Grumpy and lazy thank you for your reply...they are happily roaming around the house right now. I should mention they are kept indoors In a large plastic container with newspaper and a hide box and both heat and sun bulbs. I have done a lot of research on tortises and just taken what I feel to be right and what they seem to respond to well.
Oh yeah, I know that diet is very important to tortise health and growth...but my guys seem to have favorites so that concerns me that they don't eat enough of a variety of foods. Their diet is largely, broccoli, kale, greens, hibiscus flowers, rose petals, and honey suckle. I also put calcium powder on their greens sometimes. They both seem to favor the broccoli and kale over everything. But I wish they would eat the plants more...should I be concerned about this also?
Thanks!
Ps., at the vet they took a stool sample and the vet tested it and found out they have parasites, which he said is common and can be treated and that probably was the reason for the runny nose. They have been treated for this but need to be tested again to make sure the parasites are gone.
Ps, sorry for spelling and grammar errors, I am typing on an I pad, and have never sent a large typed email on this before...I may go back to the laptop...
