I feel the breeder didnt take care them at all

[New Desert Tortoise Mommy]

I hoenstly feel they didnt care for theses ones and thats why I have them. Idk what this is but there shells have dents and one looks like its caving in

please and thank you

 

[BeeBee*BeeLeaves]

Your little babies are very young and I believe what I have read in other posts was that they can have those indentations because of the way they were in the eggs. As they get older and "stretch out" I believe I read the creases will smooth out. More folks will chime in soon, but that is what I remember when it was asked about a sulcata baby. I think they are perfect darlings. Look how cute they are! Love 'em!

 

[laney]

Aww he is gorgeous!!!!!!!!
I'm sure others will be along to help soon, I'm not the most experienced but I will try to help
Do you have UVB or access to outdoors with them? Do they get calcium?
Also maybe try changing your substrate to top soil or coir to help hold some humidity and they like digging in it.

---

Do you know how old they are?

 

[Yvonne G]

Ah! Finally!!! This is what we were trying to get across to you on your first thread. Quite a few "back yard breeders" are using old school methods of raising babies. In their way of thinking, if it works, why change. And it obviously works, because they get babies every year. The only thing is, as you are finding out now, it really ISN'T working. Those babies need totally different care from what they were getting at the breeder, and what he told you to do. Thank goodness you've got an open mind and are now readjusting your way of thinking. It is only good for the babies!!!

Hooray!!!

I'm sure, when payday comes around and you're able to buy some better substrate and get rid of the pellets, you'll see a marked improvement in the babies. They need more moisture in their habitat, that's why you're seeing what you think is a sunken in look. I really like orchid bark. You can keep it moist and it doesn't get sour or moldy. If you have an orchard supply hardware in your town, a big 1cuft bag is around $10. Get the bark that comes in small pieces, not medium or large.

 

[New Desert Tortoise Mommy]

Aww thank u my 3 babies r too cute haha they have such a character. But I hope it smooths out when they grow im not too worried since I barely got them just felt like sharing their pictures of it. and yes they have calcium get sun and they have baths so I think we r doing everything right

please and thank you

 

[BeeBee*BeeLeaves]

Yvonne, the indentations happen because of dry conditions? Oh. I thought it was because of the way they were coiled in their eggs.

 

[Yvonne G]

Both, actually. But they tend to plump up when exposed to the humidity and moisture they require.

 

[ShellyTurtlesCats]

When I take my little guy out for sun exposure, he gets flatter and shell appears dented and dry. When he is inside in humid conditions, he looks almost bloated and his shell looks nice, colorful and moist.



_________
~ Shelly ~

 

[sibi]

Hi, what's happening to your babies are a result of dry conditions in your enclosure. Even though the babies have water and you spray their enclosure, the humidity levels must be so low that the babies are not benefiting from any sprays. He looks like he may be pyramiding. This could be stopped by covering the top of their enclosure so that the heat and humidity could stay in. That's why there are humidifiers, misting devices, foggers, etc. Tom has a thread on how to keep babies warm and humid. It's called a closed chamber. You should read about it. Anyway, for now, your setup looks good. Does it have a top or screened top? If so, you cover most of it to keep the humidity in. Do you have a gauge to measure humidity? If not, you need to get that too. It's not expensive either. Any reading under 80% is too low. Babies need 80% humidity in their hide or enclosure. So, keep their enclosure warm and humid. That should stop the pyramiding

 

[New Desert Tortoise Mommy]

well i believe alot of what you guys say trust me. we are doing what we can, but today i was with a vet and they told me that i need to keep the humidity at 10% and they need dry but to soak them and give them sun as much as possible which i know. well another thing im going to try is recycled shredded paper i know that alot of reptile owners use it and when they spray it and put something on top it keeps it moist and humid and still hot for the little babies. Today they slept alot, idk why. They didnt seem sick or that they were hibernating they honestly just acted like little kids who were lazy today haha also they were up all night because we all were and they couldnt sleep with the lights off hahaha so once the lights went off they all went to bed so i think its just them being up all night like little babies and didnt get sleep so slept all day. temps were 89 and never got below 84 towards night time. so i hope its going good. i think ima go up a wattage. i think on payday i might just ditch what i have and go get a Power sun Mercery bulb its 100 w i hope thats okay for them. i dont want them to cook. haha they kept waking up a little walked around then acted hungry so i fed them a little but only Scooby ate. the others didnt really just 2 bites and was done. but thats okay they ate yesterday but scooby is are weakling so he gets to eat when his hungry

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they were all up when it started getting night time though. but of course 9 o' clock bed time. back to scheduled haha so they finally went to bed after the lights were out. OH BY THE WAY WHEN I SAY LIGHTS OUT I DONT MEAN JUST IN THEIR TANK. LIKE THE WHOLE LIVING ROOM HAS TO HAVE LIGHTS OFF hahaha

 

[mainey34]

I had tried the shreaded paper with my sulcata. That did not work so well for me. I could not keep the humidity up. And was fearful of catching on fire. Also my little one was caught eating the paper. My personal opinion, is that it is not a good choice.

 

[BeeBee*BeeLeaves]

With all due respect to the vet for being a vet, but, a lot of vets do not have much reptile experience. Very few out there. Most baby tortoises are hiding in the desert in burrows, under plants, to stay alive and not be lunch for some bird or fox ... in burrows and underground. The humidity is higher than 10% for sure. So many pets are lumpy and crackly and all wacky deformed because they are in essence desiccated, bone dry, and they are not getting the hydration to be able to grow smooth and big. On TFO a lot of people are providing evidence based smooth babies with the warm and humid. That's what is so cool about this forum. It is disproving the old timey thinking. Which is good for all the tortoises being kept as pets. Happy healthy tortoises. Yay!

 

[New Desert Tortoise Mommy]

Yah his a reptile only vet. But believe me I 100% understand u guys. Like I said theres a few barks nd moss I want to try nd thats a good point with the paper. Thank u

please and thank you

 

[Yvonne G]

Everyone must realize that a vet goes to school and learns how to care for ailments and injuries. Unless they also keep tortoises as pets, they aren't up on current husbandry practices. Husbandry and health care are not the same thing, and your vet hasn't given you correct husbandry info.

It must be very difficult for brand new tortoise keepers to get the facts when they are pulled in so many different directions. I'm so sorry, but eventually you are going to get it all sorted out. You can trust the info you get here on the Forum.

 

[CourtneyG]

A lot of vet schools do not offer much in the husbandry of exotics animals unless they are doing a specialized career path in zoo medicine, and even that does not offer much on reptiles, just more Mammals like lions and elephants.

 

[ShellyTurtlesCats]

Look at it like human doctors:

If you see a doctor that practices in plastic surgery, they aren't going to be able to diagnose or treat lung cancer. If you see a cancer specialist, they can't perform a nose-job.

Each person/doctor has their specialties, not all doctors are created equally. They can PRACTICE what they THINK might be right, but it doesn't mean they are right based off their title, alone.

I hope you come to realize this sooner than later and I hope you'll eventually take everyone's advice, here.

_________
~ Shelly ~

 

[New Desert Tortoise Mommy]

Oh no trust me I am taking ur guys advice. I just wanted to share with u what I found out nd im not trying to be mean but when it comes to vets and doctors they are just guessers with everything. I hate human doctors dont even start haha I can go on forever!! Lol but yah I am i really want to try that moss stuff but for the coco coir nd soil nd dirt its just not my babies thing they are wwaayyy to little for it I guess. I want to do the bark nd moss.

please and thank you

 

[TommyZ]

Re: RE: I feel the breeder didnt take care them at all

It must be very difficult for brand new tortoise keepers to get the facts when they are pulled in so many different directions. I'm so sorry, but eventually you are going to get it all sorted out. You can trust the info you get here on the Forum.

Yep Yvonne, it is extremely difficult. As ya know im as green as they come, and before I luckily stumbled upon TFO and all you folks, I too was mislead and would have probably had problems by now.

New mom: from one noob to another, they all really know their stuff on here. I follow what im told here to a T, and IMO my tort is healthy as can be. Dont worry.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using TortForum mobile app

 

[New Desert Tortoise Mommy]

Haha yah ive noticed that im not gona listen to what people here tell me unless they have torts that they have raised nd r still old now nd healthy lol but yah I am listening to them thank u

please and thank you

 

[ashleym]

10% Humidity? I've only had my Sulcata for a month and just in that small time frame, i've done enough reading to not trust that advice at all. And I know alot of people have already mentioned the pellets still in use so I won't say anything about that. I use a coco coir substrate. It's soily and can get dirty, yes, but if you clean them every 1-2 days it's not a big deal. After all, getting dirty is pretty expected of a tortoise anyway. We also have Creeping Jenny (which he has consumed almost all of the leaves now lol) and St. Johns Wort also to help raise humidity. I spray inside 1-3 times a day.. on top of his rock hide, on the inside walls of his enclosure, and where the plants are. We use some kind of oversized plastic sheet for the "lid" with a hole in one corner for plenty of his UV bulb to enter all day for when he is inside. At night, UV light is off and black light hanging over inside the enclosure goes on for heat all night. I cover the hole all night. This is our current temp set-up and his humidity never goes below around 84.