Help new tortoise won’t eat

MsBijou

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5 Year Member
Joined
Apr 2, 2014
Messages
70
I could be wrong but his shell development makes me think that he’s a wild caught tortoise. If so, he’s been through a LOT. Huge changes, illness, possibly parasites. And it’s likely that he will only eat what he grew up eating in the wild.

I have what my vet thinks is a wild caught eastern Hermann’s and a captive bred Ibera Greek and the Greek will eat almost ANYTHING. He loves to eat and was offered a large variety of foods as he grew up. The Hermann’s is really picky and would live on soaked tortoise food and Romaine lettuce if I didn’t chop up and sneak other stuff into his food bowl.

My Greek
also had an URI. He just stopped getting injections about a week ago. He was on Cephalexin. And he was also getting ofloxacin eye drops for 2 weeks. He’s 100% better now. Hoping you get good results as well. The daily warm water soaks (make sure that the water temp stays warm by taking out cold water and adding in warm while he’s soaking), the temperatures and humidity and medication should really help him. Hoping he gets an appetite once he’s feeling better.

One thing that I have noticed about my tortoises is that noise stresses them out. They aren’t crazy about the sound of the tv but they are much less crazy about the sounds of multiple people talking loudly. Especially noisy children. They go hide when the kids come over. The kids aren’t allowed to touch them so they don’t really pay any attention to the tortoises but the torts still don’t want to be out and about when the kids are here.
 

Abila10

New Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2022
Messages
27
Location (City and/or State)
Visalia
I could be wrong but his shell development makes me think that he’s a wild caught tortoise. If so, he’s been through a LOT. Huge changes, illness, possibly parasites. And it’s likely that he will only eat what he grew up eating in the wild.

I have what my vet thinks is a wild caught eastern Hermann’s and a captive bred Ibera Greek and the Greek will eat almost ANYTHING. He loves to eat and was offered a large variety of foods as he grew up. The Hermann’s is really picky and would live on soaked tortoise food and Romaine lettuce if I didn’t chop up and sneak other stuff into his food bowl.

My Greek
also had an URI. He just stopped getting injections about a week ago. He was on Cephalexin. And he was also getting ofloxacin eye drops for 2 weeks. He’s 100% better now. Hoping you get good results as well. The daily warm water soaks (make sure that the water temp stays warm by taking out cold water and adding in warm while he’s soaking), the temperatures and humidity and medication should really help him. Hoping he gets an appetite once he’s feeling better.

One thing that I have noticed about my tortoises is that noise stresses them out. They aren’t crazy about the sound of the tv but they are much less crazy about the sounds of multiple people talking loudly. Especially noisy children. They go hide when the kids come over. The kids aren’t allowed to touch them so they don’t really pay any attention to the tortoises but the torts still don’t want to be out and about when the kids are here.
Yeah he’s very picky, he still hasn’t tried any foods, but I got a few more to try out and he just ignores it all still. Iv been making sure the water is warm whenever I soak him in the morning to get his appetite, but today is the first day he’s actually not in the corner! He’s literally running around his enclosure but still doesn’t eat? But he does seem like a new tortoise with all those energy. I just wish he’d eat more, but I’m going to look up foods that he most likely had in the wild and hopefully it’ll help him out. The only thing he has actually taken bites of is carrot. We have a son, but he knows not to bother herb or be to loud around him because of stress, so maybe he was getting used to us. Do I need to ask the vet if he was wild? Or would petco have that knowledge
 

mb1212

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Apr 15, 2022
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Location (City and/or State)
Bakersfield
He was also sick when I got him and he’s on medicine which I know can cause him to not eat as well, but is there anything I can do to help?
They sold you a sick animal? And you bought it? In the wild they go weeks or even months without eating but one this young may not be able to do that. Try to Do what the members suggest they are your best source of info
 

Abila10

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Apr 20, 2022
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27
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Visalia
They sold you a sick animal? And you bought it? In the wild they go weeks or even months without eating but one this young may not be able to do that. Try to Do what the members suggest they are your best source of info
Yeah I got him from petco, and made an appointment right away because he wasn’t eating, but he still hasn’t eaten yet, but yesterday he was pretty active and not just sleeping in his corner
 

Lyn W

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Hi and welcome.
I don't know if anyone has already posted this link, but this is the caresheet you need for your tort which will give you a list of good foods
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/the-best-way-to-raise-any-temperate-species-of-tortoise.183131/ and you'll find www.thetortoisetable.org.uk helpful. Even though it's based on UK plants you'll have many of them in the US.
The medication will suppress his appetite and the fact that they hate change and will sulk sometimes for ages could be affecting him. Do you know what he was fed at the store?
Sometimes you have to introduce new foods gradually by adding it to food he's used to, and then gradually increasing the variety - a lot of patience is needed!!
Check his temps on the caresheet to make sure he is warm enough - they won't eat if they are too cold.
Give daily soaks and make sure he has fresh water in his enclosure because they can go longer without food but must be kept hydrated.
If you post pictures of his whole enclosure and tell us what lamps you are using we can check he has everything he needs to improve his health and appetite.
Also follow Tom's advice in post 15.
 

mb1212

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Joined
Apr 15, 2022
Messages
7
Location (City and/or State)
Bakersfield
Yeah I got him from petco, and made an appointment right away because he wasn’t eating, but he still hasn’t eaten yet, but yesterday he was pretty active and not just sleeping in his corner
That's a good sign.
 

Abila10

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Apr 20, 2022
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Visalia
it’s normal for him to run around his enclosure for a while? Or should I not let him? He pretty much moved his log into the middle and just ran around everywhere
 

Abila10

New Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2022
Messages
27
Location (City and/or State)
Visalia
Hi and welcome.
I don't know if anyone has already posted this link, but this is the caresheet you need for your tort which will give you a list of good foods
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/the-best-way-to-raise-any-temperate-species-of-tortoise.183131/ and you'll find www.thetortoisetable.org.uk helpful. Even though it's based on UK plants you'll have many of them in the US.
The medication will suppress his appetite and the fact that they hate change and will sulk sometimes for ages could be affecting him. Do you know what he was fed at the store?
Sometimes you have to introduce new foods gradually by adding it to food he's used to, and then gradually increasing the variety - a lot of patience is needed!!
Check his temps on the caresheet to make sure he is warm enough - they won't eat if they are too cold.
Give daily soaks and make sure he has fresh water in his enclosure because they can go longer without food but must be kept hydrated.
If you post pictures of his whole enclosure and tell us what lamps you are using we can check he has everything he needs to improve his health and appetite.
Also follow Tom's advice in post 15.
Hi and welcome.
I don't know if anyone has already posted this link, but this is the caresheet you need for your tort which will give you a list of good foods
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/the-best-way-to-raise-any-temperate-species-of-tortoise.183131/ and you'll find www.thetortoisetable.org.uk helpful. Even though it's based on UK plants you'll have many of them in the US.
The medication will suppress his appetite and the fact that they hate change and will sulk sometimes for ages could be affecting him. Do you know what he was fed at the store?
Sometimes you have to introduce new foods gradually by adding it to food he's used to, and then gradually increasing the variety - a lot of patience is needed!!
Check his temps on the caresheet to make sure he is warm enough - they won't eat if they are too cold.
Give daily soaks and make sure he has fresh water in his enclosure because they can go longer without food but must be kept hydrated.
If you post pictures of his whole enclosure and tell us what lamps you are using we can check he has everything he needs to improve his health and appetite.
Also follow Tom's advice in post 15.
I didn’t know about that link! Thank you! And the vet didn’t really check anything they just saw his bubble in his nose and said it was severe bubbles and that he had a respiratory infection. I called after I read that post but tommorow is the soonest they were able to get me in and I feel it took a while. They told me he ate the colorful pellets, but he hasn’t touched those once. Iv tried multiple different greens, and different fruit, but he hasn’t tried anything except for a piece of carrot like the first day. Iv been soaking him every day in the morning, and even putting baby food in the water to help make him hungry, but it doesn’t help. His enclosure is 97 under his basking light and 80 around the rest except at the very right where his hide is and it’s always at 76 never below because I like my house alil warm. I keep his humidity at 60 and spray his enclosure in the morning if the humidity isn’t at 60 or right above. So I have a Combo Deep Dome Dual Lamp Fixture a ReptiSun 10.0 UVB Compact Fluorescent Bulb and a 100 watt Repti Basking Spot Lamp. He loves to go under the log and sleep which is under the lamp as well. It’s his favorite spot, and I know I need to get something that’s not glass but I was waiting for him to get better before changing it
 

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Lyn W

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I didn’t know about that link! Thank you! And the vet didn’t really check anything they just saw his bubble in his nose and said it was severe bubbles and that he had a respiratory infection. I called after I read that post but tommorow is the soonest they were able to get me in and I feel it took a while. They told me he ate the colorful pellets, but he hasn’t touched those once. Iv tried multiple different greens, and different fruit, but he hasn’t tried anything except for a piece of carrot like the first day. Iv been soaking him every day in the morning, and even putting baby food in the water to help make him hungry, but it doesn’t help. His enclosure is 97 under his basking light and 80 around the rest except at the very right where his hide is and it’s always at 76 never below because I like my house alil warm. I keep his humidity at 60 and spray his enclosure in the morning if the humidity isn’t at 60 or right above. So I have a Combo Deep Dome Dual Lamp Fixture a ReptiSun 10.0 UVB Compact Fluorescent Bulb and a 100 watt Repti Basking Spot Lamp. He loves to go under the log and sleep which is under the lamp as well. It’s his favorite spot, and I know I need to get something that’s not glass but I was waiting for him to get better before changing it
CFL type bulbs aren't generally recommended now because there is a risk they could cause eye damage (others also found to cause problems with eyes or shells are the MVB bulbs which give heat, light and uvb in one, and any coiled type). The T5 HO uvb tube kits are used by many of us now, with a separate flood basking bulb, and a CHE - which must be controlled by a thermostat - for night heat. (They just give heat so that torts have the darkness they need to sleep).
Do you moisten the pellets? They are OK to use occasionally but leafy greens and the foods suggested in the caresheet should be the main diet when his appetite picks up.
Romaine lettuce isn't very nutritious without a much more varied diet, and they also usually love cucumber, but again it has very little nutrional value. I sometimes just use the juice of cucumber so that the smell encourages my tort to eat something new, or I feed very thin slices of the flesh (no skin or seeds) with new food - I use a veg peeler to get thin slithers. However cucumber can have a laxative effect so should not be overfed. Those may kick start his appetite so that you can then add better foods.
It's good that he's been active, so I wouldn't worry about that, just keep up the soaks so that he's hydrated.
You could cover the outside of 3 sides of the tank with something to make it less open for your tort which may make him feel more secure, and then follow the caresheet to make sure everything else is as it should be.
 

Abila10

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Ahh ok I’ll get rid of the lights and switch to those you recommended. I was going to get something for the night but I wasn’t sure on what to get. I figured since I keep my house at 75 and his enclosure hasn’t got lower then 70 at night I was fine for a short while. Yeah I soak them a little first, but honestly I haven’t used them much because he hasn’t taken to anything other then the carrots the first day sadly. I just want to make sure he gets all his vitamins and the calcium for his shell. This is my first tortoise and I’m just stressing out that I’m not doing a good job. I’ll go grab some more covers for his glass so he’s more comfortable in the morning. I went out and got a few different foods from the list, but he still isn’t taking it
 
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