Getting Concerned

Kookie

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I have a female newborn hatchling who’s roughly 6 months old. I have been monitoring her terrarium (stays between 85-90° F and I spray it to keep up the humidity), I’ve been doing warm bathes daily. I’ve been offering grass, collards, romaine, & mustard greens, blueberries, blackberries, & mushrooms to her. I got her 4 days ago and she has not eaten at all. What else can I do to encourage her to eat?
 

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Toddrickfl1

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I have a female newborn hatchling who’s roughly 6 months old. I have been monitoring her terrarium (stays between 85-90° F and I spray it to keep up the humidity), I’ve been doing warm bathes daily. I’ve been offering grass, collards, romaine, & mustard greens, blueberries, blackberries, & mushrooms to her. I got her 4 days ago and she has not eaten at all. What else can I do to encourage her to eat?
This looks like a baby gopher tortoise and if it is it's illegal to keep it. Where did you get this tortoise?
 

Tom

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I have a female newborn hatchling who’s roughly 6 months old. I have been monitoring her terrarium (stays between 85-90° F and I spray it to keep up the humidity), I’ve been doing warm bathes daily. I’ve been offering grass, collards, romaine, & mustard greens, blueberries, blackberries, & mushrooms to her. I got her 4 days ago and she has not eaten at all. What else can I do to encourage her to eat?
Does the tortoise have a basking lamp? How about a UV tube? Lots of hiding areas and plants for security? Can we see a picture of the enclosure?
 

Kookie

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She was found this past Thursday taking shelter at the base of a tree in an open field, so we took her in to give her a better chance at life. That being said, I’m working with things that I had on hand for her enclosure until I can purchase better equipment. My pet snake of many years passed away two months ago, so she is currently in my snake’s old terrarium. I currently do not have a UV lamp, so I do need to purchase one of those. I’ve been thinking about what live plants I could put in her terrarium that she may eat from as well as take shelter under, but I haven’t decided on any yet. I’m open to any suggestions. I’m also trying to figure out exactly what types of weeds that she may like, so that I can offer her those as well. She currently only has a small log hide, as she would not be able to get in and out of my snake’s old hide. So I will be shopping for more hides as well. I’ve also added our natural soil here to make up her substrate, which is fairly deep so that she can safely dig around and burrow in. Since I have a screen top, I’ve covered it with a thick blanket to hold in as much heat as possible. Again, I’m working with supplies that I had on hand and making the best setup that I can with what I have.

Side note: I see you’re a dog trainer. I am as well. :)
 

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ZenHerper

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It is illegal to take the species from the wild in Georgia. The best thing is to return her to the exact spot where you found her.

Tortoises hatch out 100% able to care for themselves. She will eat the proper foods once she is taken back home.

And you won't be breaking the law.
 

wellington

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Totally agree with ZenHerper. They should never be taken from the wild unless they are not native.
Please put it back where you found it.
 

Kookie

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This looks like a baby gopher tortoise and if it is it's illegal to keep it. Where did you get this tortoise?
It is illegal to take the species from the wild in Georgia. The best thing is to return her to the exact spot where you found her.

Tortoises hatch out 100% able to care for themselves. She will eat the proper foods once she is taken back home.

And you won't be breaking the
That's a wild Gopher Tortoise then and it's super illegal to keep. You should release it close to where it was
Totally agree with ZenHerper. They should never be taken from the wild unless they are not native.
Please put it back where you found it
Thank you all for the help in identifying this baby. We will release her today! Much appreciation for the help!
 

Yvonne G

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I agree with all that's been said before me. Put the tortoise back exactly where you found it. They hatch out of the egg knowing what to eat. And he's much better off back where he belongs.
 

Kookie

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Thank you all again for your help!! I will go on and delete this post to not raise more unnecessary concern for group members. We will release her back to her shade tree in the field today and wish her well in her journey. :)
 

ZenHerper

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wellington

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Ok, I can’t figure out how to delete the original post, so I will just share pictures of her release.
A mod would need to delete it for you. However, if you don't mind, it would be great to see pics of the release and of her in her natural surroundings.
This thread would also be great for others finding themselves in your same situation. So would love to have it not deleted.
 

Kookie

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There are lots of tortoise species that can be kept as pets in Georgia...the Redfoot being one of them.

You can read more about their care here:

This is a good-quality breeder:
Thank you so much for this information! We are definitely interested in tortoises now that we have been actively learning about them this past weekend. It has definitely been a fun experience for my kids. Hopefully one day we will be able to have one legally to love and care for.
 

TeamZissou

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There are lots of tortoise species that can be kept as pets in Georgia...the Redfoot being one of them.

You can read more about their care here:

This is a good-quality breeder:

Agreed, there are a lot of great tortoise species out there to choose from that you can legally have. Gopher tortoises numbers in the wild are not great, so it's better to leave them there. Georgia is also a great state to be in for tortoise keeping. This forum is your place for info.
 

Kookie

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A mod would need to delete it for you. However, if you don't mind, it would be great to see pics of the release and of her in her natural surroundings.
This thread would also be great for others finding themselves in your same situation. So would love to have it not deleted.
I’ll definitely share pictures with everyone. Like you said, maybe my experience will help others in a similar situation.
 

Kookie

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Agreed, there are a lot of great tortoise species out there to choose from that you can legally have. Gopher tortoises numbers in the wild are not great, so it's better to leave them there. Georgia is also a great state to be in for tortoise keeping. This forum is your place for info.
I am VERY thankful that I stumbled across this forum while googling for care information. I’ll definitely be reading up on other species of tortoise for sure!!
 

Kookie

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We returned the hatchling to her former shade tree and she was so excited! She took off exploring and SHE ATE!!! :D We stayed with her for a good hour and then a storm began to roll in, so we returned home. I noticed that she keyed in on the weather change because she headed closer to the tree trunk to take shelter. It was so cool to see her natural instincts guide her. I wish her a happy life!!….Now to do more research and find a tortoise that I can actually keep! We already miss her!!
 

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