Hi Everyone, Zebedee the Hermann

[B3th28]

Hi, I'm Beth and I have a male Hermann who was born October 2019, I've him about 12 months and havent been able to up his weight for hibernation. This year I'll over winter him but I'd like some ideas of how to up his weight maybe to hibernate next year. When I adopted him, I started him on weeds, his main diet is narrow and broad leaf plantain, with a mixture of sow thistle, cats ear, lambs lettuce, snap dragons, petunias, willow herb, clover & loads more which are all a mixture of safe, moderate and occasional feeds...twice a month he has pellets mixed with water and dried weeds....Calcium and nutrobol on top too.
He has a indoor 6ft enclosure with heat lamp (32°c) and uvb lighting, top soil substrate, a 7ft outside enclosure where all his food grows in tops soil, he's only out there on nice sunny days.
I've been keeping a record if his weight and it only fluctuates 0.7g between each weigh in sometimes higher sometimes lower. I dont get what I'm doing wrong
He is under weight according to the Jackson ratio current weight 427.10 Size 17cm

 

[wellington]

How much do you feed and how often?
They should be fed every day and enough that they can graze on and off all day

 

[B3th28]

How much do you feed and how often?
They should be fed every day and enough that they can graze on and off all day

He gets fed every morning and yes like you mentioned he eats on and off all day, when he goes to his cave at night I remove any left overs...usually just stalks

 

[Tom]

Hi, I'm Beth and I have a male Hermann who was born October 2019, I've him about 12 months and havent been able to up his weight for hibernation. This year I'll over winter him but I'd like some ideas of how to up his weight maybe to hibernate next year. When I adopted him, I started him on weeds, his main diet is narrow and broad leaf plantain, with a mixture of sow thistle, cats ear, lambs lettuce, snap dragons, petunias, willow herb, clover & loads more which are all a mixture of safe, moderate and occasional feeds...twice a month he has pellets mixed with water and dried weeds....Calcium and nutrobol on top too.
He has a indoor 6ft enclosure with heat lamp (32°c) and uvb lighting, top soil substrate, a 7ft outside enclosure where all his food grows in tops soil, he's only out there on nice sunny days.
I've been keeping a record if his weight and it only fluctuates 0.7g between each weigh in sometimes higher sometimes lower. I dont get what I'm doing wrong
He is under weight according to the Jackson ratio current weight 427.10 Size 17cm

Your diet and care routine sound excellent. Those Jackson ratios and the other ones are just silly. Tortoises come in too many sizes and shapes for those ratios to have any bearing. Does the tortoise feel dense and heavy when you pick it up? That is a better test. That and actually monitoring the weight weekly or monthly.

If he's holding a steady weight and eating good, he should be fine to brumate. The one thing you didn't mention is the hydration routine. How often do you soak him?

The basking temp should be closer to 36C directly under the bulb, and store bought soil should never be used as a tortoise substrate. Looks like you need much more lighting indoors too.

Give this thread a read through at least twice. There is also a temperate species care sheet and a brumation thread toward the bottom. This thread should explain a lot about what is going on and all the conflicting care info you get:

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...

tortoiseforum.org

 

[B3th28]

Your diet and care routine sound excellent. Those Jackson ratios and the other ones are just silly. Tortoises come in too many sizes and shapes for those ratios to have any bearing. Does the tortoise feel dense and heavy when you pick it up? That is a better test. That and actually monitoring the weight weekly or monthly.

If he's holding a steady weight and eating good, he should be fine to brumate. The one thing you didn't mention is the hydration routine. How often do you soak him?

The basking temp should be closer to 36C directly under the bulb, and store bought soil should never be used as a tortoise substrate. Looks like you need much more lighting indoors too.

Give this thread a read through at least twice. There is also a temperate species care sheet and a brumation thread toward the bottom. This thread should explain a lot about what is going on and all the conflicting care info you get:

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...

tortoiseforum.org

Thank you Tom, i'm trying my best to make this little guy out live me he's already in my will 😊
He has a warm bath 3days a week and I soak his enclosure every morning too...soak he gets a shower too. He does seem dense and heavy to the hand, just worry that he's under weight, though he does get around he's definitely a busy boy. I shall order some more lighting and bulbs now and see about replacing his substrate with what is recommended, I did sieve and bake the soil before I even collected him so there shouldn't be anything nasty in there but I understand why. Thank you for your help you've put my mind at ease.

 

[zolasmum]

Welcome from Devon - we have a Hermanns too, who recently celebrated his 24th birthday. We have had him since he was a baby, and we think he is wonderful. I'm so glad you joined this forum - I wish it had been around when Zola came to us first !
Angie

 

[B3th28]

Welcome from Devon - we have a Hermanns too, who recently celebrated his 24th birthday. We have had him since he was a baby, and we think he is wonderful. I'm so glad you joined this forum - I wish it had been around when Zola came to us first !
Angie

Thank you Angie, Zeb says Hi to Zola 😊