New arrived baby! Beginner questions!

[Jerry Wang]

So I just got my bank home 2days ago. So far he didn't really do much. First day he just buried himself and stay there for the whole day. I did prepare food for him, but he only took some bites and barely ate anything at all. I gave him warm bath for two nights already. Still no any sign of poop or pee. I know this might be normal but I am new to this and is very concerned! There must be sth that I can do. Also he don't like to go into the nice and moist shelter I prepared for him and alway end up buried himself in the dirt of basking corner. Is it because of the temperature of the shelter is not right or anything? Last but not the least at night the enclosure gets abt 19c. It is kinda cold but my ceramic heater is too hot for night time. Don't know what should I do now. Guys plz help me out!!! I want my baby to live as happy as he can!!!'

 

[Jerry Wang]

This is the enclosure I set up for him. There are tortoise safe grass growing on top of the hill now tho

 

[Jerry Wang]

He ate abt a quarter of a pellet of mizuri only tried some bites of the tortoise-safe dried leaf and flowers. He is so small. So I am not sure if he is actually eating the amount that he should eat or not. For me it looks like he barely eat anything. Also he still didn't poop yet at least I can't find not even when I bath him. However he did pee when I picked him up. Also somehow my basking light is hotter than yesterday. It was over 40 today. I don't know what's wrong with it. Can someone plz tell me what to do? I am soooo lost as a new owner

 

[Bee62]

So I just got my bank home 2days ago. So far he didn't really do much. First day he just buried himself and stay there for the whole day. I did prepare food for him, but he only took some bites and barely ate anything at all. I gave him warm bath for two nights already. Still no any sign of poop or pee. I know this might be normal but I am new to this and is very concerned! There must be sth that I can do. Also he don't like to go into the nice and moist shelter I prepared for him and alway end up buried himself in the dirt of basking corner. Is it because of the temperature of the shelter is not right or anything? Last but not the least at night the enclosure gets abt 19c. It is kinda cold but my ceramic heater is too hot for night time. Don't know what should I do now. Guys plz help me out!!! I want my baby to live as happy as he can!!!'

Hello and welcome to the forum. Congrats for your new shelled friend !
To be shy for a couple of days in a new enclosure is normal for a tortoise. To bury into the substrate for a Herman tortoise too. No reason to worry.
Giving him warm soaks is a good way to keep your bay tort healthy. Please go on with soaks every day. He need it to be well hydrated. I am sure when once he settled in his appetite will get bigger. Give him some time.
How long do you soak the baby ? Poop or pee will come if he stays long enough in the warm water. Make sure that the water stays warm during the soak.
Your night temps should be a little bit higher for a baby. Use a CHE with lower watt if you can. Or set your CHE on a thermostate.
Right temps are:
- 40 C basking spot ( not higher )
- 27 C the whole enclosure
- 24 - 25 C night time
For babies it is important to have warm night temps. They get quick sick when they are kept humid but too cold.

... and my advice for you: Keep calm. Asking questions here is the best way to be a good tort-daddy and I am sure you are !

 

[Bee62]

He ate abt a quarter of a pellet of mizuri only tried some bites of the tortoise-safe dried leaf and flowers. He is so small. So I am not sure if he is actually eating the amount that he should eat or not. For me it looks like he barely eat anything. Also he still didn't poop yet at least I can't find not even when I bath him. However he did pee when I picked him up. Also somehow my basking light is hotter than yesterday. It was over 40 today. I don't know what's wrong with it. Can someone plz tell me what to do? I am soooo lost as a new owner

Sometimes they eat their own poop. That is pretty normal for a baby. Or the poop is so tiny that you haven`t seen it ? To pee on you when you handle him is normal too. Tortoises pee when they are scared. For the first time I would handle the baby not too much. It scares him.
To eat a little bit every day sounds to me like a good beginning.
Basking light over 40 C is too hot. Use a bulb with lower wattage or set your whole heating on a thermostate.

You are not lost.... we are here to help you. We are a big tort loving family. I am glad you have found us.

 

[Bee62]

Btw: Can you please show us some pics of your tort baby ?

 

[Jerry Wang]

Hello and welcome to the forum. Congrats for your new shelled friend !
To be shy for a couple of days in a new enclosure is normal for a tortoise. To bury into the substrate for a Herman tortoise too. No reason to worry.
Giving him warm soaks is a good way to keep your bay tort healthy. Please go on with soaks every day. He need it to be well hydrated. I am sure when once he settled in his appetite will get bigger. Give him some time.
How long do you soak the baby ? Poop or pee will come if he stays long enough in the warm water. Make sure that the water stays warm during the soak.
Your night temps should be a little bit higher for a baby. Use a CHE with lower watt if you can. Or set your CHE on a thermostate.
Right temps are:
- 40 C basking spot ( not higher )
- 27 C the whole enclosure
- 24 - 25 C night time
For babies it is important to have warm night temps. They get quick sick when they are kept humid but too cold.

... and my advice for you: Keep calm. Asking questions here is the best way to be a good tort-daddy and I am sure you are !

Thank you soooo much for respond. I am sooo happy that I am in good hand. I soak him for abt 10 mins. However, I find it hard to maintain the temperature of the water. Do you have any tip for keeping the water warm? Also he doesn't eat the food I provide for him. I bought dried weeds and flowers mix form ATC for him since I don't have time to collect them everyday. But it appears that he only nibble on the mazuri that I mixed in with. What should I do to let him start eating that? Finally can u provide a link of thermostate that u recommend, I am not quite sure how that thing works.

 

[Jerry Wang]

Sometimes they eat their own poop. That is pretty normal for a baby. Or the poop is so tiny that you haven`t seen it ? To pee on you when you handle him is normal too. Tortoises pee when they are scared. For the first time I would handle the baby not too much. It scares him.
To eat a little bit every day sounds to me like a good beginning.
Basking light over 40 C is too hot. Use a bulb with lower wattage or set your whole heating on a thermostate.

You are not lost.... we are here to help you. We are a big tort loving family. I am glad you have found us.

Yea! He seems very scared and nervous when I pic him up. So I tried not to touch him as much as possible. However he won't walk to the food by himself and only nibble them if I put him in front of the food. Do u think that it is possible that he don't know where the food is just yet? Finally, when is the best time for him to get a warm soak cuz he sleep pretty early. I feel like a jerk just to wake him up and give him a bath. I am sure he hated it too.

 

[Jerry Wang]

Btw: Can you please show us some pics of your tort baby ?

 

[Jerry Wang]

View attachment 228990View attachment 228992

 

[Bee62]

Thank you soooo much for respond. I am sooo happy that I am in good hand. I soak him for abt 10 mins. However, I find it hard to maintain the temperature of the water. Do you have any tip for keeping the water warm? Also he doesn't eat the food I provide for him. I bought dried weeds and flowers mix form ATC for him since I don't have time to collect them everyday. But it appears that he only nibble on the mazuri that I mixed in with. What should I do to let him start eating that? Finally can u provide a link of thermostate that u recommend, I am not quite sure how that thing works.

Hi, you can soak him in his enclosure under the basking lamp. That should keep the water warm.
Have you tried to feed him fresh greens ? What is available in your land ? Can you buy safe greens without chemicals, I mean lettuce ?
Do you know what he was eating before you got him ?
For the enclosure I would buy such a thermometer / hygrometer:
https://www.amazon.de/Reptilien-Tan...7258436&sr=8-4&keywords=reptilien+thermometer

To check the temp of soaking water or other things it is fine to have such a temp gun
https://www.amazon.de/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...hvtargid=kwd-292889687&ref=pd_sl_4z21uge4t3_e

With these 2 instruments you are able to check if temps and humidity is right for your baby tort.

 

[Bee62]

Yea! He seems very scared and nervous when I pic him up. So I tried not to touch him as much as possible. However he won't walk to the food by himself and only nibble them if I put him in front of the food. Do u think that it is possible that he don't know where the food is just yet? Finally, when is the best time for him to get a warm soak cuz he sleep pretty early. I feel like a jerk just to wake him up and give him a bath. I am sure he hated it too.

I think he knows where the food is. Tortoises have an excellent sense to smell their food. I think he is still scared about his new enclosure. Give him some days to settle in. Until then you you can put him in front of his food and watch if he eats.
The morning when the tort awakes is the best time for a soak to my opinion. The warm water will help the body of your tort to get the right temp for activity. Soak him in the morning when you have the time.
When do you switch the lights on in the morning and turn it off in the evening ?

 

[Jerry Wang]

Hi, you can soak him in his enclosure under the basking lamp. That should keep the water warm.
Have you tried to feed him fresh greens ? What is available in your land ? Can you buy safe greens without chemicals, I mean lettuce ?
Do you know what he was eating before you got him ?
For the enclosure I would buy such a thermometer / hygrometer:
https://www.amazon.de/Reptilien-Tan...7258436&sr=8-4&keywords=reptilien+thermometer

To check the temp of soaking water or other things it is fine to have such a temp gun
https://www.amazon.de/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...hvtargid=kwd-292889687&ref=pd_sl_4z21uge4t3_e

With these 2 instruments you are able to check if temps and humidity is right for your baby tort.

Ok! I just went to the store where I got him earlier today and ask what they usually feed him. They feed him mazuri or greens like mustard greens and collard greens etc. however the reason why I want him to eat those dry weeds in the first place is because those greens are safe but don't really make the best daily foods. I bought some mustard greens and he absolutely love it!!! He is spoiled in the shop I guess lol. So I might try to mix them and hope he would start to like the taste of those dry leaves. Also the thermostat I bought can set the to the temperature that I wanted but it goes on and off in order to control the temperature. Not exactly what I was expecting but I guess it works. I kinda don't like how it goes on and off but I think as long as I get used to it it should be fine.

 

[Jerry Wang]

I think he knows where the food is. Tortoises have an excellent sense to smell their food. I think he is still scared about his new enclosure. Give him some days to settle in. Until then you you can put him in front of his food and watch if he eats.
The morning when the tort awakes is the best time for a soak to my opinion. The warm water will help the body of your tort to get the right temp for activity. Soak him in the morning when you have the time.
When do you switch the lights on in the morning and turn it off in the evening ?

Alright, I will try to do that!! The light goes on at 6 in the morning and goes off at 7.

 

[KayLeo7]

I would look for a different enclosure that is either plastic or wood. Tortoises don’t understand what glass is and get frustraited when they can’t walk through it. They can damage their faces and noses by trying to go through the glass.

 

[Bambam1989]

I would look for a different enclosure that is either plastic or wood. Tortoises don’t understand what glass is and get frustraited when they can’t walk through it. They can damage their faces and noses by trying to go through the glass.

Actually, all one would need to do is tape off a few inches along the outside bottom of the glass on an enclosure. Just above shell height. This would provide the sight barrier.