My 8month of sulcata doesn't eat as much.

[Squirts]

Hello everyone I'm actually concerned about my 8 month old sulcata. the last couple of weeks he hasn't been getting up in the morning to eat. he will eat very late inithe day and he will eat at night but he sleeps all morning. He never used to do this so I want to know if iishould worry or this is normal.im doing what I'm suppose to when it comes to his tank. We have an open wood home for him,big and I have a place where he can go in and hide, I have the humidity where it's supposed to be (about 70) and the temperature (90-100). So I hope theres nothing wrong with him.

 

[Squirts]

So my 8month old sulcata loves romaine, red leaf and butter leaf lettuce. Now I have grown Bermuda grass because I hear that grass should be their main food source but he won't eat it. I have tried Timothy hay and he doesn't like that either. I want to mix it up so he doesn't get bored of the same ol things and I have looked into other things like fruits and veggies but there's only so much of that I can give him. So any suggestions on what I can give him daily besides those lettuces I mentioned above? So I should just stick to those?

 

[Minority2]

Sulcatas are a grazing species. Greens should not be a main staple for their diets. Weeds and grasses is what they need daily. Fruit, like greens should only be fed moderately. Bermuda, timothy, and orchard grass are good sources of fiber for your Sulcata. Mix them with a small amount of greens/fruits to try to get your tortoise interested in eating them. Consult the care sheet/hatchling guide in the Sulcata tortoise section of the forums to get better insight on their care.

100F basking. 80F cool side of the enclosure. 80% humidity. Many people on this forum will recommend "closed chamber" type enclosures for hatchlings. It's simply a more efficient setup to control your temperature and humidity needs.

 

[daniellenc]

Hay and grass should be finely chopped, soaked in warm water and mixed in the greens he likes. Check out the sulcata care sheets on here for good greens to feed in addition. I’d also recommend a closed chamber if your tort is in doors. There is no way to maintain the proper temps and humidity in an open tank.

 

[Squirts]

Thank you so much for that info. And I'll have to look into getting his home closed up. @Minority2 @daniellenc

 

[Tom]

Here is the care info and what to feed them:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

See what you are doing differently after reading these, and then come back with all your questions.