hi, i'm alex and this is steve

[the_newzie]

He's a real little guy (between 2-3 inches) and has yet to enter his 1st hibernation (that I know of). He lives outside in las Vegas in a pretty sweet habitat of grass, gravel and dirt that (aside from the aforementioned grass) has hibiscus and prickly pear for grazing. Because he's so small, I usually make him a salad of the grass (deer and regular), hibiscus, prickly pear pads, a tiny bit of carrot (he loves like candy) and re-hydrated alfalfa mix. Thanks for providing info and advice. I just posted a question on the north American board. If anyone has any info, it'd be appreciated. Looking forward to learning a lot more about my tortoise!

 

[russian/sulcata/tortoise]

welcome to the forum! what species is he?

 

[the_newzie]

He's (in all fairness Steve could be a she, I'm not sure) a desert tortoise. (just fyi I didn't snatch him from the wild) I had a friend who adopted one through the proper channels and boy was she surprised to find out her adopted tortoise was pregnant. Steve is one of the babies.

 

[tortdad]

Welcome


0.0.1 Redfoot (Spike)
0.0.1 Cherryhead Redfoot (Bruce Wayne)
1.0 Sulcata (Hal Jordan)

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

Welcome to TFO!

 

[the_newzie]

Thanks for the warm welcome TFOers! In the pics, you can see a bit of discoloration on one of the plates on his shell to the left (his right) of his head, anything I should be worried about?

 

[russian/sulcata/tortoise]

how often do you soak him?

 

[the_newzie]

When we first got him, he was getting eye crusties so we were soaking him everyday in a mixture of water and pureed carrots. That cleared everything up real quick, now I move him into his water tray (he's not overly fond of it) every couple days. He doesn't usually stay in there long. Do you thinks it's a hydration issue? His food seems like it has a pretty high water content (from the carrots, prickly pear pads and re-hydrated alfalfa mix) and he has access to his water tray 24/7 (i've hooked up our drip system to fill it up automatically and I wash out the tray every week or so)

 

[Jabuticaba]

Hello and welcome!


May
THBs: Darwin & Merlin
Aussies: Dax, Vegas, & Cricket
IG: @AUSSOMEAUSSIES

 

[Carol S]

Welcome to the Forum. Steve is so cute. Desert Tortoises are so personable. I think Steve would enjoy being soaked in warm shallow water. He looks dry. When I soak my little ones I wet down their shell while they are soaking in the shallow warm water.

 

[russian/sulcata/tortoise]

When we first got him, he was getting eye crusties so we were soaking him everyday in a mixture of water and pureed carrots. That cleared everything up real quick, now I move him into his water tray (he's not overly fond of it) every couple days. He doesn't usually stay in there long. Do you thinks it's a hydration issue? His food seems like it has a pretty high water content (from the carrots, prickly pear pads and re-hydrated alfalfa mix) and he has access to his water tray 24/7 (i've hooked up our drip system to fill it up automatically and I wash out the tray every week or so)

i am unsure about whats wrong with that one scute. maybe ask Yvonne G she owns desert torts

 

[the_newzie]

I will ask her! If I'm not mistaken, she was the one who turned me onto the carrot baths for his eye problem. A wise tortoise sage to be sure. Until I get an answer from her I will definitely increase his soaking schedule.

 

[bouaboua]

Hello and Welcome. You have a very cute little one.

 

[the_newzie]

Which brings up a new question, how do I msg her? I'm viewing on a phone fyi. Edit: before I could even post this question she replyed to my thread in the north American forum. Lol!!

 

[Yvonne G]

Welcome to the Forum, Alex!!

If you want to call someone's attention to a thread, you just put an ampersand in front of their username - like this: @the_newzie

 

[the_newzie]

Oh perfect! Thanks again for the reassuring reply to the other thread!

 

[pam]

Welcome Sooooooooooooo cute

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Hello and welcome to the TFO from AZ. Desert torts Rule !


Sent from my iPhone using TortForum

 

[AZTurtleGuy]

Hi Alex. I've had many desert tortoises over the years. The only thing I notice other than the one acute discoloration is that his whole carapace seems a little dark. Do you know how old he is? They are typically more of an orange/yellow color with dark spots here and there. If he is a little older than his color is probably ok.

 

[AZTurtleGuy]

I saw a desert tortoise this morning on a hike