My Tortoise WILL NOT EAT

[Gillian M]

Welcome to the forum! Sorry to have heard that your tort has been giving you "trouble." I have had a Greek tort for more than three years. Recently I've been having difficulty with its food...it used to eat only lettuce (Roman) and now it won't even eat that! I've tried other food but....NO WAY. As for the temperature well it's still quite warm here, so I don't think it's the weather and time for hibernation. I don't know what on earth is wrong.
Goodluck with your tort.

 

[johnsonnboswell]

There is a very real possibility that this turtle will die. You are right to worry. But don't let the vet medicalize the problem, because it won't help. Meds depress appetite. The problem is elsewhere, & the vet can't help.

Many turtles do not make the transition from wild to captive and die within the first year. This time of year is particularly difficult. They survive in an environment that they can no longer access. Mine didn't recognize grocery store vegetables & fruits as food, only eating home grown or farmers market produce. That is not to say sit back and do nothing because it's hopeless, but it is a dangerous thing to take turtles from the wild.

Can you release it? Or give it to a nature center? Or wildlife rehabilitater? You did the first step in its rescue. Now to continue, you may need to pass it on.

If you absolutely must keep it (think really hard about that) keep it outdoors. There you can both take care of it & let it take care of itself.

Trying to keep it up indoors for the winter & treating it as a long term captive is not working. Maybe it can be done - but ask yourself if it should be done. It belongs in the native wild breeding population. You are fortunate that there is one where you live.

 

[LeeAnn Alexander]

This is just my opinion...not written in stone. I think that someone found this BT and kept it for a while and it either escaped or they let it go. The reason I think this is because if you look at her beak you can see it's starting to grow a bit. Most WC turtles have a very short beak. Just an observation...I don't know anything about Florida box turtles but if they do slow down during this time, then no matter what you do they won't eat for a while. They can go a long time without eating, but do need to be soaked if they aren't eating. I would put her in a small tub with some warm water to soak for a while and throw in some worms or turtle brittle, or even some venison (dog food) She should have high humidity and low light during this time. Hope this helps a bit.

I have been putting her in water and she has been responding. Will sit for a while, sometimes longer and when she's ready she will leave. Today was a beautiful day and I took her outside and let her walk about in the grass, in her outside habitat. She was definitely excited to be outside. However, it got very chilly this evening and I brought her in. She seemed to be in better spirits today. I usually take her outside when it's not too cold.

What is WC?

 

[leigti]

Wild caught. taken from the wild and made into a pet.

 

[johnsonnboswell]

Try putting food in the water. Bugs, slugs, aquatic pellets.

 

[johnsonnboswell]

What kind of temperatures are you talking about? She can be out at night into the upper 40s as long as the days are warm.

 

[Ciri]

I have been putting her in water and she has been responding. Will sit for a while, sometimes longer and when she's ready she will leave. Today was a beautiful day and I took her outside and let her walk about in the grass, in her outside habitat. She was definitely excited to be outside. However, it got very chilly this evening and I brought her in. She seemed to be in better spirits today. I usually take her outside when it's not too cold.

What is WC?

This is an encouraging sign – very glad to hear it. I have a three toed box turtle who is always in better spirits when she can get some time outside. Sometimes, however, the weather just doesn't allow for that. Anyhow, she obviously is doing pretty well at adjusting. And she is obviously not wild caught, she never would've allowed her head to be rubbed otherwise. I have had a couple of box turtles who had been taken from the wild and were in immediate need of medical treatment. After healing, since it is not possible to release them back into the wild once they've been in captivity for certain period of time, I adopted them. (And I was not the one who took them from the wild.) When they are wild they naturally avoid human contact as much as possible. It's a long slow adjustment. She sounds very much like a box turtle who has been captive born or in captivity for a long time already. She was very lucky to have found you, as you obviously are looking out for what is best for her.

 

[Tom]

LeeAnn,

What type of indoor UV light are you using?