Greek Tortoise has lost appetite, eyes aren't fully opening

BKWrigley

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Nov 13, 2018
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Baltimore, MD
Hello tortoise community. My wife and I have a Greek tortoise named Gouda here in Baltimore, MD. We got her in October 2017 from a breeder when she was about a month old. She has been doing really well until the past month or so (when temperatures/humidity here really started dropping).

Lately she has not been eating much at all and hasn't seemed like her spunky self. She has been sleeping more and when she does seem to want to eat, she "misses" her food often, like she can't see it or her perception is off. We have been holding her lettuce for her which helps (romaine, spring mix). She also used to love eating her tortoise food pellets which she has stopped eating.

In regards to her eyesight, it seems her vision is impaired in some way. We have noticed her extra eyelid isnt opening all the way. Otherwise, her eyes still look healthy (they are not puffy, no discharge). She does however react less to movement, sometimes not at all, but seems to still see things fairly well as she can still walk around her habitat fine when she is up and about.

Her habitat has UVB lights and a heat lamp. Temps range in areas from high 70s to high 90s during day. At night, we keep our apartment around 70. Her substrate is made of peat moss and play sand. We have a hygrometer that is showing humidity is low: in the 20s. We have been giving her warm baths about 3x a week and misting her habitat a few times a day for about a week.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. We have been worried for the past few weeks and would love to gather your ideas. I will post some pics. Please let us know if any other info would be helpful. Thanks so much.
 

BKWrigley

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Here is Gouda and her habitat. My wife handmade our tortoise table which is also our coffee table.
 

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SweetGreekTorts

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Have you always used those lights in her enclosure? Is one of them the coiled type (in the upper left corner)? I would recommend changing them out.

A fluorescent tube UVB light (I use and recommend the Arcadia T5 12%). And either a flood light from the local hardware store, or a "basking" bulb from a reptile brand (I personally use Zoo Med) for the UVA light.

Your lights are all currently at angles, so they cannot distribute heat and light evenly. The fluorescent tube UVB will cover most of the enclosure, and then use a dome light fixture with a stand that allows the basking bulb to point downward evenly from above.

That would be my first recommendation. Other members will provide insight and advice as well. Cute tortoise. I'm a major Greek lover. Hope yours gets better!
 

wellington

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The bulbs you are using aren't really doing much in the sideway position you have them. The one bulb I can't tell what kind it is, the glare in the pic doesn't allow me too see the actual bulb. If it's a coil/cfl bulb then it should be side ways or not used at all. I personally don't know much about the bulbs you are using except I would worry about them being too harsh on the eyes. I would switch too Che's for heat and a tube flourescent for uvb.
You also need to add a bigger variety to its diet.
 

BKWrigley

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Also, if anyone has a Greek tortoise care sheet that they have found helpful and accurate, that would be much appreciated.
 

JoesMum

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JoesMum

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Thank you again @wellington and @JoesMum. Another question: what do you like to feed your torts in the winter months when fresh greens arent available?
Few of us manage through the winter without store bought greens supplemented with a pellet feed like Mazuri softened with water.

Write a list of the greens that grow around you and those that you can buy and look them up on The Tortoise Table Plant Database for suitability to feed. It's a great online search facility that tells you why something is or isn't suitable to feed and how often you can feed it.
https://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk
 

SweetGreekTorts

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Here is a link to the best place I've found for the UVB fluorescent tubes. Cheapest prices online!

http://www.reptilebasics.com/arcadia-desert-12-uvb/

And the fixtures too
http://www.reptilebasics.com/t5-light-fixtures/

I live in the southern Arizona desert where we don't have much of a winter, but I know that Mazuri can be a variety feed once or twice a week. It's a kibble food for tortoises. Just soak it in warm water for about 5 minutes and it becomes a delicious mush.

At the grocery store, good choice greens are: red leaf lettuce, green leaf lettuce, escarole, endive, dandelion greens, turnip greens, collard greens, and radicchio. Kale and Romaine lettuce can be served sparingly. No spinach, no fruit.
 
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