Foul odor

[Nexustortoise]

hey everyone, ive had my sulcata hatchling for almost a month now and everything has been near perfect. Today however as i went to pick up my tort i noticed a foul odor coming from the tortoise itself. I did a little research on the forums and now ive got myself spooked he may have an infection or be overly hydrated to the point of death. Im giving him a 10min warm water soak and then going to give him a gentle brushing. The odor has seemed to go away on its own for the most part and his enclosure doesnt have any lingering smells. Pics of tort/enclosure. I have a long uvb bulb that burnt out but ive been substituting the light by taking him outside for atleast 15mins a day of direct sunlight. His basking temp is at 105F and i soak him daily. Hes fed grasses, dandelion greens hibiscus leaves and flowers and occasionally collard greens and mazuri tortoise food. Does anyone have any ideas for me to try, or what may of caused the odor in the firstplace? I

 

[Nexustortoise]

Forgot to add photos whoops

 

[Maro2Bear]

Hard to really say. A good soak/ scrub & then spot cleaning daily should fix things. I’m wondering about the purpose of the glass jar in ur enclosure?

 

[ArmadilloPup]

Have you got a really good whiff of tortoise poop yet? This is my first thought because it's a pretty rank/alarming smell until you get used to it. Sometimes I'll give my buddy an extra short soak because it sticks to him, or it's a sign that he needs to drop a load.

 

[Nexustortoise]

Hard to really say. A good soak/ scrub & then spot cleaning daily should fix things. I’m wondering about the purpose of the glass jar in ur enclosure?

Its a humid hide incase he feels the need to move to a higher humidity. I was under the impression it was correct to give them one.

 

[Maro2Bear]

Its a humid hide incase he feels the need to move to a higher humidity. I was under the impression it was correct to give them one.

Yep, you need a “humid hide”, but I’m guessing you never saw your tort go inside that jar.

Here’s a better example of a humid hide...courtesy of YouTube’s “Primitive Predators”



Also, take a read & look here on @Tom ‘s Care Guide under enclosures. He has some good pix of humid hides posted there.

The Best Way To Raise A Sulcata, Leopard, Or Star Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. Babies hatch during the...

www.tortoiseforum.org

 

[Nexustortoise]

He actually seems to like the cup for right now. I know ill need something more practical when he gets larger. the culprit seemed to be his water dish. He must of urinated in the water or something because it smelled foul. Ive since replaced the entire dish with a small clay planter bottom that is a little wider and more shallow. After soaking him he had no odor and continued to eat and move around durring the day.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

I've encountered an increase or a new bad smell withva tortoise due to two things:
Poop with dead parasites in it.
And
A dead tortoise.
Can you describe or photograph the next poop?
Tortoises generally have no smell

 

[Yvonne G]

Sometimes poop gets stuck between the shell and the tail, and just keeps piling up more and more as the tortoise poops. You need to soak him to soften that stuck poop then pick it all out of there.

 

[Toddrickfl1]

Tortoise farts?

 

[Nexustortoise]

I've encountered an increase or a new bad smell withva tortoise due to two things:
Poop with dead parasites in it.
And
A dead tortoise.
Can you describe or photograph the next poop?
Tortoises generally have no smell

This was his next bm. I havent noticed the stench since the one time and he seems to be eating and drinking healthily