My Russian tortoise cannot poop

[Yesisepictorts]

When I soak my 8 month old Russian tortoise I keep seeing him trying to poop. I feed him a tiny bit of watermelon every 2 weeks, watercress, collard greens, kale, parsley, dandelions, and Romain lettuce every day, and give him calcium a supplement every day. He also gets multivitamin supplements every week. his basking temp is at 32 C and I've tried soaking him in warm water for 3 days now. I do not have access to a vet. What should I do?

 

[LeahK]

In case you haven't seen it, here's the care sheet: https://www.tortoiseforum.org/threa...ise-any-temperate-species-of-tortoise.183131/

The greens you are feeding him are okay, but make sure you're changing it up pretty frequently too. And at 8 months old, you should always be soaking him every day.

How can you tell he's trying to poop?

What's your tortoise's substrate? Some of the poorer ones can cause impaction, but you'd need a more experienced member to advise you on that. Also, are you sure he's not pooping directly in the enclosure? Sometimes it's easy to miss, if it gets covered by the substrate.

How long are you soaking him? Russians act like they hate baths, but you can keep him in there for up to 30 minutes as long as you keep the temperature of the water warm. Usually that should help loosen them up. My tortoise frequently won't go in his bath, unless it's been at least 15 minutes or so.

The other thing you can try is prickly pear / opuntia cactus. I am not sure how easy that is to get in Canada, but that will usually get them moving too!

 

[Yesisepictorts]

In case you haven't seen it, here's the care sheet: https://www.tortoiseforum.org/threa...ise-any-temperate-species-of-tortoise.183131/

The greens you are feeding him are okay, but make sure you're changing it up pretty frequently too. And at 8 months old, you should always be soaking him every day.

How can you tell he's trying to poop?

What's your tortoise's substrate? Some of the poorer ones can cause impaction, but you'd need a more experienced member to advise you on that. Also, are you sure he's not pooping directly in the enclosure? Sometimes it's easy to miss, if it gets covered by the substrate.

How long are you soaking him? Russians act like they hate baths, but you can keep him in there for up to 30 minutes as long as you keep the temperature of the water warm. Usually that should help loosen them up. My tortoise frequently won't go in his bath, unless it's been at least 15 minutes or so.

The other thing you can try is prickly pear / opuntia cactus. I am not sure how easy that is to get in Canada, but that will usually get them moving too!

It's hard to explain but he is going in his shell and his tail is up and I see the urate almost come out but then it just goes back in. My substrate is cocofiber and reptibark on top. I've done a whole search of his enclosure. I'm soaking him for 15 - 20 mins. Thank you for the advice

 

[Yesisepictorts]

Also how would I feed prickly pear to my tortoise? Asking cause it seems sharp.

 

[LeahK]

When I've fed prickly pear, I have just cut off the spines. I know some people here burn them off, but I have not tried that. You can just cut it up and feed it. I tried that with my tortoise, and he did not even touch any of the pieces, so I ended up cutting it up fine with the rest of his food and mixing it together.

 

[Yesisepictorts]

Thanks! I'll try feeding him prickly pear. And continue giving my tort warm soaks and I'll see how it will turn out. There will definitely be an update in a few days

 

[Cathie G]

When I soak my 8 month old Russian tortoise I keep seeing him trying to poop. I feed him a tiny bit of watermelon every 2 weeks, watercress, collard greens, kale, parsley, dandelions, and Romain lettuce every day, and give him calcium a supplement every day. He also gets multivitamin supplements every week. his basking temp is at 32 C and I've tried soaking him in warm water for 3 days now. I do not have access to a vet. What should I do?

Hello and welcome to the forum. I'm not an expert but I don't think you should be giving the calcium supplement everyday. Maybe only a few times a week. The links to the threads that others have been giving you may answer that for you. Best wishes.

 

[Yesisepictorts]

Hello and welcome to the forum. I'm not an expert but I don't think you should be giving the calcium supplement everyday. Maybe only a few times a week. The links to the threads that others have been giving you may answer that for you. Best wishes.

Thanks for the advice

 

[Cathie G]

Thanks for the advice

I'm not saying to take my advice. I would take a look at the dosage of calcium and D3 though from the more experienced members. Just to make sure it's not too much of a good thing. ?

 

[Maggie3fan]

When I've fed prickly pear, I have just cut off the spines. I know some people here burn them off, but I have not tried that. You can just cut it up and feed it. I tried that with my tortoise, and he did not even touch any of the pieces, so I ended up cutting it up fine with the rest of his food and mixing it together.

Take a handfull of newspaper and squish it up and rub away the spines, most adult tortoises don't need them removed

 

[MenagerieGrl]

With the prickly pear, just de-skin it like an apple and slice it up. As far as the D3, if it's getting any sunshine, I would also back off on the calcium supplements to once or twice a week

 

[MenagerieGrl]

When I've fed prickly pear, I have just cut off the spines. I know some people here burn them off, but I have not tried that. You can just cut it up and feed it. I tried that with my tortoise, and he did not even touch any of the pieces, so I ended up cutting it up fine with the rest of his food and mixing it together.

Hi Leah, Greetings to Berkeley Ca from El Sobrante, Ca...a neighbor....

 

[TammyJ]

What are the multivitamin supplements you mentioned that you give him every week? Maybe they are causing his constipation. I would stop them, and stop the calcium supplements too for a while and see what happens. Seems like he is getting too much different stuff too often.

 

[Yvonne G]

How big is his enclosure? Tortoises' digestive systems need for the tortoise to do a lot of walking in order to work properly.

 

[TammyJ]

How big is his enclosure? Tortoises' digestive systems need for the tortoise to do a lot of walking in order to work properly.

Great point!

 

[Yesisepictorts]

How big is his enclosure? Tortoises' digestive systems need for the tortoise to do a lot of walking in order to work properly.

My tortoise enclosure is 1.33meters by 80 cm

 

[Yesisepictorts]

My tortoise is straining to get the urate out and lethargic. He only sits under his basking spot. However he is eating normally but getting chubbier. I have been considering using mineral oil. If I should use it how much should I give him and where? I've tried feeding my tortoise prickly pear but no results yet. He also goes outside for about 30 mins a day and manages to walk about 30 meters

 

[Yesisepictorts]

What are the multivitamin supplements you mentioned that you give him every week? Maybe they are causing his constipation. I would stop them, and stop the calcium supplements too for a while and see what happens. Seems like he is getting too much different stuff too often.

I'll try that too and here are pictures of the supplements.
Calcium: https://ca.miscota.com/reptiles/zoo...GqUwWBfV7GHg1eoMbZmFKRWsQo6SDcjxoCXCAQAvD_BwE

Multivitamin: https://www.tortoisesupply.com/products/Rep-Cal-Herptivite-Multivitamin-Supplement.html
Sorry for the low res.

 

[Yesisepictorts]

My Tortoise just pooped out a tiny bit of urate however it feels like a marshmallow.

 

[Yesisepictorts]

my tortoise is getting more active. I think he may have just pooped