My sulcata only gained 3 grams in 2 months. Is that normal?

[Lifeoftorto]

My baby sulcata eats fine but when i weight him he is only around 42gr. I got him around 2 months ago. He was 39gr. Is it normal? Im worried he might get the bladder stone or any other diseases. Or is it because he only eats veggie. He doesnt really like eating mazuri or repcal.

 

[JoesMum]

At this age/size a pee or a poop can make a massive difference to weight and growth appears very slow.

What you are looking for is steady growth over a long period of time. It is easy to get neurotic and weigh daily. What you actually need to do is weigh no more than once a week at roughly the same time of day on each occasion for consistency; straight after the morning soak is good.

As long as your tort is eating well, active and has bright eyes then there is little to worry about even if you don’t see any weight gain. Like humans, some torts will grow in spurts and some will grow slowly and steadily.

Be sure your setup is correct, that you are feeding a good variety of weedy greens (pellets are not necessary) and that your tort is getting the soaks and humidity needed.

If you haven’t already then please read these guides on how to raise a healthy Sulcata written by TFO’s species experts...

Beginner Mistakes
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

How to raise a healthy Sulcata
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/

For those that have a young Sulcata
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

 

[Lifeoftorto]

At this age/size a pee or a poop can make a massive difference to weight and growth appears very slow.

What you are looking for is steady growth over a long period of time. It is easy to get neurotic and weigh daily. What you actually need to do is weigh no more than once a week at roughly the same time of day on each occasion for consistency; straight after the morning soak is good.

As long as your tort is eating well, active and has bright eyes then there is little to worry about even if you don’t see any weight gain. Like humans, some torts will grow in spurts and some will grow slowly and steadily.

Be sure your setup is correct, that you are feeding a good variety of weedy greens (pellets are not necessary) and that your tort is getting the soaks and humidity needed.

If you haven’t already then please read these guides on how to raise a healthy Sulcata written by TFO’s species experts...

Beginner Mistakes
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

How to raise a healthy Sulcata
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/

For those that have a young Sulcata
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

He looks fine but doesnt grow as fast as my other torts.

 

[JoesMum]

He looks fine but doesnt grow as fast as my other torts.

Are your other tortoises Sulcatas?

Are they kept together?

If they are kept together, how big is the enclosure and are all the torts the same species and size? How many are in the enclosure?

 

[JoesMum]

Are your other tortoises Sulcatas?

Are they kept together?

If they are kept together, how big is the enclosure and are all the torts the same species and size? How many are in the enclosure?

The reason I ask is because species shouldn’t be mixed as what one tolerates can kill another.

Sulcatas are one of the more territorial and less tolerant species from a very early age. If kept together, bullying is common and smaller torts fail to thrive as they should and can become very sick indeed.

To be honest, yours sounds fine but it is always worth checking out answers to these questions. All humans grow at different rates and so do torts.

 

[Lifeoftorto]

The reason I ask is because species shouldn’t be mixed as what one tolerates can kill another.

Sulcatas are one of the more territorial and less tolerant species from a very early age. If kept together, bullying is common and smaller torts fail to thrive as they should and can become very sick indeed.

To be honest, yours sounds fine but it is always worth checking out answers to these questions. All humans grow at different rates and so do torts.

He lives alone i used to put them together but already moved him alone a while ago after people on this forum suggested me
Heres a picture of him while eating chopped veggie and aloe

 

[Lifeoftorto]

At this age/size a pee or a poop can make a massive difference to weight and growth appears very slow.

What you are looking for is steady growth over a long period of time. It is easy to get neurotic and weigh daily. What you actually need to do is weigh no more than once a week at roughly the same time of day on each occasion for consistency; straight after the morning soak is good.

As long as your tort is eating well, active and has bright eyes then there is little to worry about even if you don’t see any weight gain. Like humans, some torts will grow in spurts and some will grow slowly and steadily.

Be sure your setup is correct, that you are feeding a good variety of weedy greens (pellets are not necessary) and that your tort is getting the soaks and humidity needed.

If you haven’t already then please read these guides on how to raise a healthy Sulcata written by TFO’s species experts...

Beginner Mistakes
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

How to raise a healthy Sulcata
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/

For those that have a young Sulcata
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

Here are some photos of him

 

[Maro2Bear]

Greetings, is it me, or does it look like this little Sully has eye issues, which might indicate improper overhead lighting, or worse? From the pix the eyes look puffy and swollen shut.

So, if you can examine eyes and send some pix for us to look at.

Good luck, Happy Torting.

 

[daniellenc]

The look swollen in the first pic but he is looking down eating and the pic was taken from overhead. In the last pic they look blurry but it could be the flash. Better pic needed though to be safe.

 

[Maro2Bear]

Yeah....i zoomed in a bit on that last pix....eyes look puffy/closed. Updated pix from the OP will help.

 

[Lifeoftorto]

The look swollen in the first pic but he is looking down eating and the pic was taken from overhead. In the last pic they look blurry but it could be the flash. Better pic needed though to be safe.

He was sleeping on that photo.. i will take a better pict as soon as i got back home

 

[Maro2Bear]

He was sleeping on that photo.. i will take a better pict as soon as i got back home

Great...just wanted to check on that (and your lights). Good to know, Happy Torting.

 

[Tom]

My baby sulcata eats fine but when i weight him he is only around 42gr. I got him around 2 months ago. He was 39gr. Is it normal? Im worried he might get the bladder stone or any other diseases. Or is it because he only eats veggie. He doesnt really like eating mazuri or repcal.

This is not normal. It is usually an indicator of damaged kidneys due to chronically dry conditions soon after hatching. Most breeders mistakenly thing this is a "desert" species and needs dry conditions. The opposite is true.

If this is the case, all you can do is offer the best conditions possible, soak daily, and wait and see. No amount of vet care or money can change what has already happened.

Read this for more explanation:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/hatchling-failure-syndrome.23493/

Do you know how your baby was started? Warm and humid, or hot and dry?

 

[Lifeoftorto]

This is not normal. It is usually an indicator of damaged kidneys due to chronically dry conditions soon after hatching. Most breeders mistakenly thing this is a "desert" species and needs dry conditions. The opposite is true.

If this is the case, all you can do is offer the best conditions possible, soak daily, and wait and see. No amount of vet care or money can change what has already happened.

If i keep soaking daily and keep his enclosure around 80% of humidity. Will he get better?

 

[Tom]

If i keep soaking daily and keep his enclosure around 80% of humidity. Will he get better?

Some of them survive and do just fine, and some do not.

 

[Lifeoftorto]

Great...just wanted to check on that (and your lights). Good to know, Happy Torting.

Heres the photo

 

[Lifeoftorto]

Some of them survive and do just fine, and some do not.

What should i do now?

 

[Lifeoftorto]

Some of them survive and do just fine, and some do not.

But i can see that he is getting wider and he is doing fine.. he loves to walk around the enclosure. I hope he is okay

 

[Sue Ann]

He looks fine but doesnt grow as fast as my other torts.

he is really beautiful