New baby horsefield tortoise

[Deanlfcladd]

Hi I'm new here and have just got a female (I was told) baby horsfield tortoise I brought her home yesterday and she hasn't eaten or willingly came out of her hide once (over 24hrs) I disturbed her earlier today and placed her near the heat lamp as when I picked her up she felt quite cold underneath she slowly became active and walked straight past her fresh food and straight back to bed I have since let her rest for the rest of the day but later on I gave her a bath in warm water temp checked at 85°f she stayed inactive in the bath for a few minutes then I put her back near her lamp after 5/10 minutes she clambered past her food and straight back to bed being a new keeper I've been abit worried about her health and temps it can get abit cold in the night not sure exactly how cold it got but into the mid 10°c 17°c highest at the moment I only have 1 thermomertor that is meant for measuring room temp and humidity on the cool side ontop of her hide it get to 28°c in the day any advice reassurance or recommendations anyone could give would be amazing (ps ditching the hay pellets ASAP they came with the setup and have read they are not suitable)

 

[zolasmum]

Hello and welcome from Devon. It is perfectly normal for baby tortoises to want to stay hidden (and safe from predators), and the stress of being in a new environment as well, means it is best to just leave her in peace for a few days to settle. You can put some food outside her hide, in the hope she will be encouraged out by the smell - cut it up very small, and some water. But basically leave her be . It might be a good idea to get an extra thermometer to keep a check on different parts of her enclosure. I expect someone with more knowledge than me will be along soon - it would be good to have photos of your enclosure - and of her, because everyone here loves photos of baby tortoises - but don't disturb her to get them !
Angie

 

[TammyJ]

I don't think we can help you much with no information from you with details of her enclosure, type of lights, substrate, diet, humidity level. Could you please post these, and some pictures? Thanks.

 

[Deanlfcladd]

I don't think we can help you much with no information from you with details of her enclosure, type of lights, substrate, diet, humidity level. Could you please post these, and some pictures? Thanks.

I did attach a video to the original post not sure what happened to it lights are off at the moment so will add some pictures tommorow so people can get a better look she is currently in a 120 cm long viv with extra ventilation uv strip light and 150w heat lamp on a timer for 12 hours humidity sits at between 40 to 55 and cool area reaches 28°c max when lights are on bedding at the moment is straw pellet (what the setup cane with) but will be changing it any suggestions on suitable substrate would be great

 

[Deanlfcladd]

Sorry I forgot to add diet she has a mix of leafy greens kale lambs lettuce buterhead ect with a light sprinkle of calcium powder but has not touched it once

 

[zolasmum]

Sorry I forgot to add diet she has a mix of leafy greens kale lambs lettuce buterhead ect with a light sprinkle of calcium powder but has not touched it once

I would leave out the calcium to start with, as it puts some tortoises off - in any case, a tiny pinch twice a week is enough - and rub it into the damp leaves to be less noticeable. Have you tried radicchio ? my tortoise loves it, and so do most others.
Angie

 

[Tom]

I did attach a video to the original post not sure what happened to it lights are off at the moment so will add some pictures tommorow so people can get a better look she is currently in a 120 cm long viv with extra ventilation uv strip light and 150w heat lamp on a timer for 12 hours humidity sits at between 40 to 55 and cool area reaches 28°c max when lights are on bedding at the moment is straw pellet (what the setup cane with) but will be changing it any suggestions on suitable substrate would be great

Hello and welcome. Congrats on the new baby!

Your temperatures are too cool, but the shyness is also a combination of the new environment and also because its winter and the baby wants to be brumating. that you chose a viv. That is best for babies. Tables can work for adults.

Its great

There is a lot of wrong info out in the world. Here is the right info. There is a temperate species care sheet at the bottom too that explains substrate, temperatures and more. Questions are welcome!

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...

tortoiseforum.org

 

[zolasmum]

I'm sure she will be fine when you have got her conditions right. I am always very hesitant to advise on baby tortoises, as we have had Zola for 21 years, and we had little helpful information - this forum didn't exist then. So we did the best we could, and he is very well and strong - he's a Hermann's, by the way. Tortoises are very resilient, luckily. He is a wonderful little friend.
Where in the UK do you live ?
Angie

 

[Deanlfcladd]

Thanks for the replies and info here's a few pictures I captured today she has been out twice already for short spells but has still not touched her food she had a little dip in her water but unsure if she had a drink I'm a little worried about the temp in my viv as the ccol side does get quite warm in the day and cold at night any suggestions on working around this would be great I have just bought a dimming thermostat that is arriving today at some point any other equipment recomandtions? Also I'm not expecting it to be 100% but if anyone could help identify the sex from the pictures that would be amazing thanks again

 

[Deanlfcladd]

I'm sure she will be fine when you have got her conditions right. I am always very hesitant to advise on baby tortoises, as we have had Zola for 21 years, and we had little helpful information - this forum didn't exist then. So we did the best we could, and he is very well and strong - he's a Hermann's, by the way. Tortoises are very resilient, luckily. He is a wonderful little friend.
Where in the UK do you live ?
Angie

I live in wirral there's so much conflicting information out there it's hard to know what to follow

 

[zolasmum]

I live in wirral there's so much conflicting information out there it's hard to know what to follow

The best advice I can give you is to follow information on this forum only. The people here such as Tom have had loads of practical experience and really know their stuff. If you don't understand something, just ask - you won't look stupid. Just ignore advice from elsewhere - which may be based on all sorts of inappropriate ideas. And if you come across any health problems, it is safer to consult this forum than to go to a vet, as there are very few vets with specific knowledge of tortoises


Your baby looks very endearing - I love the little tail, and her bright expression.Do you have a name for her yet?
Best wishes from Angie

 

[Tom]

Thanks for the replies and info here's a few pictures I captured today she has been out twice already for short spells but has still not touched her food she had a little dip in her water but unsure if she had a drink I'm a little worried about the temp in my viv as the ccol side does get quite warm in the day and cold at night any suggestions on working around this would be great I have just bought a dimming thermostat that is arriving today at some point any other equipment recomandtions? Also I'm not expecting it to be 100% but if anyone could help identify the sex from the pictures that would be amazing thanks again

I see the basking bulb over to the right. Where is the ambient heat source and what is it? Where is the UV source and what is that? How about ambient light? With out the right heating and lighting any tortoise will slowly decline. Babies decline faster due to their smaller mass. This is copy/pasted from the link I left for you:
Here is a breakdown of the four heating and lighting essentials:

1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt incandescent floods from the hardware store. Some people will need bigger, or smaller wattage bulbs. Let your thermometer be your guide. I run them on a timer for about 12 hours and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb. You need to check the temp with a thermometer directly under the bulb and get it to around 95-100F (36-37C).
2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species. In most cases you'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT, as long as your house stays above 60F (15-16C) at night. Some people in colder climates or with larger enclosures will need multiple CHEs or RHPs to spread out enough heat.
3. Ambient light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. Strip or screw-in LED bulb types are both fine.
4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. In colder climates, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. I like the 12% HO bulbs from Arcadia. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html A good UV bulb only needs to run for 2-3 hours mid day. You need the basking bulb and the ambient lighting to be on at least 12 hours a day.

You've also got to get rid of the hay and the dry pellets. Neither of those have any place in a baby tortoise enclosure. Its all in the threads. Also in the threads is an explanation for all the conflicting info and what to do about it.

 

[Deanlfcladd]

I have just had my dimming thermostat delivered and went out to look for suitable bedding but unfortunately couldn't find anywhere that had Coco peat or orchid bark here's a few pictures of my heat bulb it's a 150w pro rep I have set my thermostat between 36 and 38°c with the probe directly underneath it has dimmed right down to maintain this temp as for uv I think it's an arcadia bulb it came with the setup and I will probably replace it as soon as I can at the moment I have no ambient lighting or heating I will look further into this I have added a screenshot of some Coco peat I found online could you tell me if its the right stuff and if the price is reasonable please thanks again