Gopherus agassizii diet questions - TIA!

[aznewmom]

Hi everyone.
I've posted in "intro" and "photo" threads, so I won't repeat the story here.

I was just informed that our little guy (gal?) is a Gopherus agassizii.
The little thing seems to not want to eat what we have tried to feed it so far.
We have now had it for nearly a week and I am getting a bit worried.
Some friends who have tortoises have told us that Organic Romaine is good for them. Also that occasional 'treats' such as a small piece of watermelon or a berry can be fed to them as well. We have tried the Romaine and the fruit and it seems like he/she is not eating at all. My DD thinks that he/she MAY have eaten the tiny piece of watermelon. I would guess that this is a good sign. He/she also pooped (I was surprised at the size!! LOL) the first day and maybe once more......which I would think would be a sign that maybe it ate.

We are VERY new to all this.
Could it be that this particular tortoise just doesn't "like" this lettuce?
Do they just eat very infrequently?

I guess that's it for now.
Thanks!

Cheers,
Stacy

 

[Yvonne G]

If I'm remembering correctly, your new little guy is fairly young. Try offering him the Spring Mix (a packaged mixture of baby greens) that you buy in the produce section of the grocery store. When they're babies they don't go so much for grasses and weeds, however that's the best diet for them. So, spring mix, dark leafy greens such as endive, escarole, turnip greens, mustard greens, etc. The organic romaine is ok for once a week, but not as a steady diet. You can also offer bits of zucchini or yellow squash occasionally.

Yvonne

 

[tortoisenerd]

In addition to that, for that species, I would say no fruits ever. My opinion though. I'd get the spring mix all the time, and one or two other things per week to start out. Maybe even grow some of your own organic tort greens?

There are lots of different tort species so what may be good for one may not be good for another. Also, many people sadly may not feed their tort an ideal diet as we on the forum think we try to feed.

 

[Madortoise]

My Gopherus Agassizzii is approx 3 yo 9 months. S/he is cautious when you give her something new; but eventually get them after staring at it for a few days (replenished w/new ones of course.) So far, s/he loves eating red hibiscus, dandelion, grape leaves, cactus, rose petals, spring mix...probably in that order. She's also eaten parsely but have heard mixed review about it. I've given her occasional small sliced up apple sans seed when I thought she needed hydration; she loves it. I've also tried to give her some weeds, hays, grass, and things that they supposed to thrive on but she's not going for them yet.

 

[aznewmom]

Thanks guys. We have a lot of cactus here, so maybe I will go get some prickly pear and chop it up.
Yikes on the fruit. I thought it was okay to give them fruit......if in SMALL doses.
I gave two blueberries all chopped up yesterday. I will have to ask my DD, but I think it was not even touched. :-(
I am trying the Spring Mix too, but still it looks like Rico isn't eating. :-(
Hopefully I will hit on something soon.
Cheers,
Stacy

 

[Yvonne G]

If you have access to something yellow (hibiscus, squash blossoms, etc) or something red (hibiscus, rose petals, etc.) these colors usually entice them to eat. Especially the yellow. You might also try chopping up a yellow crook-neck squash and offering that to him. Or nuke a piece of banana squash until its soft and offer that. Once you get him interested in eating, then you can go back to the basic dark leafy greens.

If enough time goes by and you really don't think he's eating, then you can try soaking him in baby food water. I like to use the red baby foods like squash, carrots, sweet potatoes, because they have the highest content of vitamin A. Mix it half and half with water. I knew a lady who raised baby desert tortoises and that's all she offered them for the first few months of their life...baby food water. Only she used all the different veggie flavors. I'm talking Gerber human baby food. I'm not advocating that regime, however her babies lived.

Yvonne

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Their metabolism needs to be really warm for them to have the desire to eat. The temp under the basking light should be 95 to 100 degrees. You baby might not be warm enough to eat. I also cut up the spring mix into small pieces for their small mouths. But test the temp and make sure she's hot enough...

 

[tortoisenerd]

I think it's best to completely avoid the fruit due to the sugars, etc, but others will disagree with me. That's something for you to research and make up your mind about. There are enough very healthy foods to feed my tort that he loves that I don't feel the need to give any treats.

My little tort personally does better with food not chopped or torn at all or else he can't pick it up. I'd watch the tort eat to see how it reacts, and also make sure it feels secure to spend time in a warm area to digest, as Maggie said. Not until I added a hide to the warm area did my little guy bask and his appetite picked up.

 

[aznewmom]

Hi again guys. Thanks for all the tips.
This forum is great and I'm so glad I found it!!

Rico never did touch the cut up blueberries.
We have upped the heat a bit more.....currently the thermometer is showing about 85F.
I have also contacted a local vet to get some more info and, hopefully, an appt.
Rico is very active, but just not eating, that we can see.
We will also do a soak later today.
Cheers,
Stacy

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Please up his temperature to 95 or 100 degrees. His metabolism needs to be that hot in order for his body systems to metabolize his food, and if he's not hot enough and not processing the food he won't get hungry. I am not explaining it very well, but they are cold blooded creatures not warm blooded like us. For his body systems to metabolize the food he needs to be around 95 degrees. He will move in and out of the hot area to thermo regulate his body temperatures. They are not like dogs and cats, their body systems are totally different then any other animal, so nothing you know about raising pets will suffice for his care. Hatchling and young Gopherus agassizii are very fragile and if you can't get him eating soon he will be in trouble.
Also his kidneys and pancreas don't process sugar the way ours does, so if you give him too much fruit it will upset the enzymes in his digestive tract and he'll have diarrhea. The pancreas secretes a digestion enzyme, but does not process sugar the way ours does. So feeding too much fruit can make a very sick tortoise. I offer my big Sulcata strawberries as a treat in a training session and several days after he gets the berries he will have soft cow pie like poops instead of well formed cigar shaped poop, but he is almost 100 pounds so I figure some won't hurt him, but that is NOT the case for a small tortoise like Rico.
One last word of caution...I was raised to believe that a Veterinarian would know most everything about animals, but when it comes to reptiles that just isn't true. They have to take specialized courses to become an exotic Vet and even then most times they just aren't that good with tortoises. Many times I have experienced vets telling a tort keeper things that can and do harm the tort, so if your vet is telling you something that most of us know is wrong...you might need to look for another vet...Sorry I have gone on so long...

 

[aznewmom]

Thanks Maggie! No worries. I appreciate the help very much.
I will go turn up the lamp some more then. Right now.
Do I need to leave it that high at night too? I'm guessing just during the day.

I agree w/the assessment of vets. I found two places in town where they have tort/reptile specialists.
I will make sure they have experience. I will also run anything I learn there, by the good folks here.

 

[tortoisenerd]

You just need light/heat during the day. At night, if your temperatures are at least 65 F, you shouldn't need anything on at all. In winter when the house temperature may be low, you can use a heat bulb such as a black light or ceramic heat emitter.

Listen to Maggie about the heat. I agree with her. That is one of the very typical reasons a tort will not eat besides stress or illness.

Hope you are off to the vet in the next day or two. That is very important.