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oneoneone

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Hello,

I have recently purchased a marginated tortoise. However, I haven't previously owned a tortoise before, and have alot of general questions I would like to ask. I've been to alot of pet stores to look for information and looked for books, and searched the web. I was able to find alot of information, but I am still confused about how to properly take care of my Marginated tortoise that was hatched in late June 2008.

I was told, and would like to confirm that:
- to maintain the temperature mid to high 80s during the day, 70s in the night.
- maintain humidity level of 40-50%.
- keep my tortoise in a tank 6 times its body length.
- use a wide, shallow, water dish so that my tortoise can walk into the water if he/she wishes to.
- use forest bark as the bedding.
- have a container with mosh dampened as a humid retreat.
- soak him/her for 20mins.
- mist about 5 sprays with a small spray bottle.
- my tortoise is intelligent, and will eat only want he/she needs.
- it is regular for my tortoise to sleep randomly during the day, anywhere in the tank.
- front legs move when it's sleeping for breathing.
- diet consist of mainly dark greens; kale, dandelion, bok choy.

Also, I have some questions I would like to know if anyone can help me with:
- I received many different recommendations for diet. 1) I was told, and read that his/her diet consist of 100% greens. 2) 80% greens, 10% protien, 10% other, fruits and other stuff in a list in a book I have. I am not too sure what diet I should go by.
- What type of greens are good and which ones are bad? I first fed it on the first day romaine lettuce, but an employee from a pet store told me it was bad, so I switched to kale, but then I just read on this forum that kale was no good. I also read, and was told that dandelions and bok choy are a good choice, however, what does dandelions refer to? the plant itself? and where can I purchase them?
- What type of bedding would be the best for a margenated tortoise?
- What is the best way to maintain a constant moisture level in a tank? (I am having a bit of trouble with this)
- Can my tortoise choke on big pieces of food?
- When it is sleeping, what should it look like, should it be fully inside its shell, or having its legs and head hang out? Currently, my tortoise sleeps with its legs and head not fully in its shell.
- I'm worried my tortoise might be dehydrated when it appears to be randomly sleeping, just lying there with eyes shut. How does a tortoise behave when dehydrated?
- How often do they poo? My tortoise hasn't pooped since I first bought it home, almost 5 days.
- I read that they pee daily, how can I spot if it peed or not?

Any information would be greatly appreciated, Thank you.
 

Josh

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i'll try to hit these piece-wise as you posted them...just to save on typing ;)
- those temps look okay...don't forget a basking area in the 90's
- not sure on overall humidity. you'll want to make his 'hide' area humid... try fixing a sponge inside the hide and keep it wet.
- your tortoise will be happier and less stressed if he can't see out. save your money and pick up a big plastic rubbermaid tote
- you've got the water dish down.
- organic soil and playsand might work better. use what's available and healthy for your tort. someone else can chime in here...
- humid hide - good idea - see above.
- if you always have water available in the shallow dish, soaking shouldn't be necessary. others may have different views...
- misting will depend on humidity requirements. mist accordingly. pick up a hygrometer (measure humidity)
- overfeeding can be an issue. others might chime in here too. make food available. remove toxic plants or things you don't want him to eat.
- your hatchling will probably sleep a lot and hide a lot at first but should become more active. napping is normal. activity and exercise is essential too though
- not sure on the front legs moving while breathing... if its subtle movement then probably yes.
- dandelion is great as is hibiscus, grape leaves, bermuda grass. avoid kale (high in oxalic acid)

other questions:
- a marginated keeper will have to answer this one.
- kale is bad. romaine isn't ideal. dandelion can be obtained from your local grocer by request. you can also purchase seeds online. i made some other plant suggestions above.
- not sure if its different for marginateds but soil/sand will probably be good.
- keeping the bedding moist but not wet will help with humidity. try the sponge in the hide for humid hide. sphagnum will work well too.
- yes your tortoise can choke on food but he will also be able to try to fix it if he choking. keep an eye on him. if something in particular is hard for him to eat, chop it up or remove it from his diet.
- sleeping with his head/legs hanging out is totally normal
- im not sure how he would behave if he was dehydrated. if you think he is, try soaking him and see how much he drinks. another good hydration method is to spray or wash his greens before feeding. mine seem to be more attracted to wet greens and the water is good for them.
- i'm not really sure how often is often enough. keep an eye out. mine usually poo after eating or while in the water dish.
- my tortoises do not pee daily...at least not that i see. sometimes their urine will contain white chalky material called urates..thats usually how i can tell.


good luck. you're asking all the right questions and some of this should give you some answers. congrats on your new tort!
 

oneoneone

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My key concern is the diet, because I've been feeding it kale for the past 3 days, I've been looking for dandelions at all the grocery stores, but I can't find any. When speaking about dandelion are you referring to the flower itself, or is there a specific kind that is edible. Are there any common greens suitable for my tortoise that I can easily find in a grocery store? I'm having difficulty finding hibiscus, grape leaves, bermuda grass as well.

Almost forgot, thank you so much for your quick reply
 

Josh

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dandelion greens is what your grocer will be able to order. its just the leafy greens of the dandelion plant. you can buy seeds online and your tort will love the flowers from those. you can also pick up clover seeds too.
also, i forgot to mention calcium powder supplement (repcal i think) that you should be using at every feeding.
 

oneoneone

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I think I found some places, reading what some people posted in a rabbit forum, that would be local for me to purchase the dandelion greens, I thought the UVB light is suppose to provide the calcium? Anyhow, I will be getting that as soon as stores open. So far, I fed my tortoise Romaine lettuce the first day and Kale on the 2nd - 4th day, will this have any impacts on it's health?

Once again, thank you for your reply, it is much appreciated.
 

Redfootedboxturtles

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oneoneone, Get endvie instead of romain. Dont use any bedding that will be dusty. I am not sure about all those things you have listed. I have to marginateds and they both live outside in florida and are adults.

How big is your marginated? What are you keeping him now?
 

Greg T

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Another option for greens you can find at a grocery store in the pre-bagged salad section is called spring mix. It has a variety of greens, all of which are good to feed in the diet.
 

Crazy1

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One, you don't say where you are from. If we know that we can point you in the direction of the best place to get greens. Trader Joes, here in So. CA or Costco carry Organic spring mix, Frazee and some other Organic goodies year round.
 

oneoneone

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Right now I am feeding it Dandelion greens. I still need to buy calcium powder supplement.

I have a one concern at the moment. I noticed that there is slight bubling from her noise, and that there is water on her neck, near her skin and shell, and I'm worried what this is along with the bubling in the noise.

I noticed the bubles once, but it seemed very minor, today it seemed like it was more often.

I really need information about these symptoms and what can I do about it?
 

egyptiandan

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It sounds like your Marginated tortoise has a respiratory infection. A trip to the vets is in order. Try to find a reptile vet in your area, one with tortoise experience is a bonus.
Until you can get to the vet you need to boost the heat to 86F day and night. You can either use a heat pad or a ceramic heat emitter (looks like a light bulb). I would set-up a small hospital enclosure for this.

Danny
 

oneoneone

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Actually, it doesn't seem like bubling, more like she is just blowing water out, and it is very brief. It is not a continual flow of bubbles
 

chelonologist

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I agree with Danny - your tortoise probably has a respiratory infection, and a visit to the vet would be a good idea.

With regard to food from the grocer, you should definitely be able to find chickory endive and escarole - two very good leafy greens for tortoises.
 

oneoneone

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I was recently informed by someone that If it was following a bath it is perfectly normal. Is there someone that can confirm that?
 

egyptiandan

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It is very normal for your tortoises neck to be wet after a bath. It's even possible for some water to be coming out of the nose after a bath.
But thats not good either as he/she could have asperated some water and it was than coming out of it's nose.
Just keep an eye on him and see if his nose is wet at any other time.

Danny
 

oneoneone

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Another very odd thing I've been noticing an odd cracking sound when she is moving her neck, I first thought it might be food that is stuck. I just find it very strange and hope someone might now the reason for the sound.
 

Crazy1

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My Greek had an odd cracking sound when he moved is neck. I took him to the vet and sure enough he had a RI. After 2 rounds of Baytril, sounds were gone and so was the occasionally wet nose.
 

chelonologist

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Crazy1 said:
My Greek had an odd cracking sound when he moved is neck. I took him to the vet and sure enough he had a RI. After 2 rounds of Baytril, sounds were gone and so was the occasionally wet nose.

The evidence mounts that this tortoise needs a vet visit...
 

sushisurf13

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Congrats on the Marginated!!!
I'm so sorry that there are problems. Take her to a good, experienced vet, feed GREAT food and give her plenty of sunshine!!!
I'm sure she'll be just fine.
 

oneoneone

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Thank you all for your reply and useful information.

I'm planning to bring my baby tortoise to the vet, I live in Toronto, Canada. Does any know any vet that is experienced with marginateds?

Also, I'm still working her home. How can I improve on it? I'm switching to a 50W bulb, because I'm worried that the 75W bulb a pet store recommended me is too hot. Is it possible for my tortoise to develop respiratory infection due to hot temperature as well?

This is the layout of my tank right now; 10 gallon critter tank, probably easier to explain it if I divide it into 1/4s and back and front half of the tank.

front
1st quarter - half tree trunk
2nd quarter - empty space
3rd quarter - empty space
4th quarter - food dish

back
1st quarter - basking area
2nd quarter -
-container with moss inside (in the middle)
3rd quarter -
4th quarter - big shallow water dish

My UVB bulb is shinning directly to the middle of the tank.
I was recommended to use forest bark for the flooring.

From what I've been seeing on websites and forums, I am hoping to make some changes. Such as, finding flat rocks to stack to make a ramp and to a higher surface on the left side, using rocks and pebbles for the left half of the floor, switch to soil or substrate for the right half. I was just picturing how a mountainous tortoise, from what I've been reading, to come down from rocky flooring to where food and water is, where it most likely will be more of a soil flooring. On the left side where I am hoping to have it elevated, where the hide is in the front, find a way to have it crater back down so i can put soil or substrate in for her to burrow in.

Still hoping to switch to a larger area for my tortoise.

Just to make sure, these are the signs I'm noticing;
- Water from nose (I thought it seemed very minor, because it was very little and very rare)
- Water around the top part of the neck near shell (I thought it was because I gave her a bath or misted her)
-cracking nose when she open and closes her mouth, as if she was yawning or cracking her jaw.
-She seems to be yawning, opening her mouth really often, doesn't look like she's opening it to breath, but very often, during when she's active she keeps on yawning.
- Her eyes seem to be not wide open, looks like she's half asleep.

-She is still eating a lot, eating every little bit I put in there, I read that I should only feed it after basking and once again at night. I wasn't able to see how much she ate after basking so I left 1 2-3" leaf in the food dish and when I was home only the stem was left.
-When she is active, she is still very active moving about climbing the hide and digging.

I am still trying to figure out what is the state of health she is in.

I found 2 types of calcium powder, one phosphorous free and one with it. I read avoid phosphorous, meaning to get the phosphorous free one? any brand anyone recommends?
 
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