Is it bad if my young Greek eats his substrate?

[GreekGarp]

I got a young Greek tortoise five days ago (about 8months old, or so I was told), we put him up in a nice place with half cocofibre half sand, and it looks to me like he sometimes bites into the substrate. (In the half that is cocofibre). I am firstly not sure whether he is eating it or whether he is doing something else, secondly Im not sure if (and how) bad it would be if he is. We started out with a 100% sandbase, but it seemed that he was doing the same thing there.

Should I worry?

 

[TechnoCheese]

Yes, you need to remove all of the sand. Not only is sand a huge impaction risk, but it is also a skin, eye, nose, and cloaka irritant. It is an outdated substrate option, and shouldn’t be used in any amount.

 

[T Smart]

Yes, remove the sand. It's never a great substrate to use. Additionally, you should soak your tortoise daily. Make sure it is shallow and filled with warm water (90-95 F). This will not only hydrate him, but also help pass the sand in the event he ingested it.

 

[GreekGarp]

Thanks for the tips! We got the sand-recommendation from the shop where we bought it, but we will remove it asap.

How about the eating of the cocofibre? Does it mean he's hungry, stressed, or just experimenting? And what can we do to stop it?

 

[Tom]

What are you feeding the tortoise?
What supplements are you using and how often?
What type of heating and lighting are you using? UV? What type of UV bulb?

 

[Maro2Bear]

Greetings. It might also be helpful if you can upload a picture of your entire enclosure, so Forum can see water/food dishes, substrate, hide, size, describe lighting, etc. Sometimes, it’s the little things that greatly influence the actions of young tortoises.

Good luck , Keep Asking Away

 

[GreekGarp]

Im still looking for two proper stones, one for basking and one to replace the tiny fooddish. The light (behind the black flaps) is a halogen reflector sunspot pro UV-A. Its size is off the top of my head 40x40x70cm.

So far I have been experimenting a bit with food - chicory and coriander so far are favorites, (mainly chicory), Ive got some Andive to try as well. So far I fed him twice a day a little bit, but I think it was waaaaay too little. After reading a bit on this forum I now try to supply him with food all the time so he can just eat whenever he wants. I also think he was a bit dehydrated (we hadn't bathed him yet, as the shopowner told us once a week was enough), and I think his waterdish may have been a bit too high, we dug it in a bit deeper now. After his soak today he looked so much more energetic, and he pooped for the first time (to my relief!)

 

[GreekGarp]

Also, I love how nice everyone is around here <3

 

[Maro2Bear]

Im still looking for two proper stones, one for basking and one to replace the tiny fooddish. The light (behind the black flaps) is a halogen reflector sunspot pro UV-A. Its size is off the top of my head 40x40x70cm.

So far I have been experimenting a bit with food - chicory and coriander so far are favorites, (mainly chicory), Ive got some Andive to try as well. So far I fed him twice a day a little bit, but I think it was waaaaay too little. After reading a bit on this forum I now try to supply him with food all the time so he can just eat whenever he wants. I also think he was a bit dehydrated (we hadn't bathed him yet, as the shopowner told us once a week was enough), and I think his waterdish may have been a bit too high, we dug it in a bit deeper now. After his soak today he looked so much more energetic, and he pooped for the first time (to my relief!)

Yes. It’s very un-natural for a smallish tortoise to “bend” up and over into a food or water bowl. Sinking your waterbowl even with the substrate is very good!

I have some great big old flat stones that are perfect for basking or feeding....but i think shipping would be way too expensive to the Netherlands.

Good luck. Happy Torting.

 

[EllieMay]

Im still looking for two proper stones, one for basking and one to replace the tiny fooddish. QUOTE]

At Lowe’s or Home Depot in the garden section, you can find flat stones that are about 1” thick. They are perfect for basking or feeding. Cheap also!