New Hatchling (Four days old)

kbroadway2

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Oct 16, 2014
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Hi!

I have a four day old captive bred EBT hatchling in an indoor enclosure made of a sweater box with coconut coir and sphagnum moss with a paint tray for water and several hides. I also use a heat/uvb light placed 12 inches from the substrate. I keep the light on for 12 hours per day (it's on a timer) because it is a little too chilly to put him outside. I know it takes a little while for them to start eating. The yolk sac is barely visible. I suspect it had been under the substrate for a couple of days before he appeared in the enclosure. I'm offering meal worms set inside a small amount of canned box turtle food in a daily basis. I'm not seeing any of the food gone. I've read that they may take 1 to 4 weeks to start eating. Should I be offering food every day and placing him in front of it? Or should I do it every other day or so? My temperature is 85 degrees under the lamp and 75 on the cooler side. I'm doing all I can, including reading every single resource I could find about hatchling box turtles, to make sure this baby is healthy.

Should I supplement his diet with d3 supplements or is the light enough for now? On days where its in the mid to high 70's I can take him outside for a little while. I do have reptical calcium powder to sprinkle on the meal worms when he starts eating. I've also found an exotic pet veterinarian for a check up when he gets a little bigger. Right now he's a little bigger than a quarter. I have other critters (3 hermit crabs) whose needs are very similar to the turtle, except dietary needs, so I'm pretty experienced at keeping temperature and humidity levels stable.

Is there anything I am missing when taking care of this little guy?
 

Yvonne G

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Hi, and welcome to the Forum!

I think a paint tray is a bit too big for a hatchling box turtle. You want something he can fit his whole body into, however you want a safe 'pool' that he's not going to be able to drown in. Plant saucers work well, and then for such a tiny baby, put little pebbles in the bottom to make it more shallow. Also, sink it down into the substrate so he doesn't have to climb to get in.

Little box turtles are hard to get started eating. I buy the live little black worms sold in pet stores for aquarium fish. When you soak the baby add some of these worms to his soaking water then quickly step out of his sight. They are very shy and need to be alone when they eat.
 

kbroadway2

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Thanks for responding!

The paint tray only has 1/2 inch of water. He gets in and out very easily and he LOVES being in the water. I have it buried down into the substrate so he can climb in and out. I couldn't find an appropriate plant saucer when I was at the store but I can keep looking. I'll try black worms like you said. He isn't at all interested in the meal worms and he just buries his head in the canned turtle food. Could I try low fat canned dog food? I also have very high quality canned cat food and frozen beef heart that I feed my African Dwarf Frog.

He's a pretty active little guy. He buries himself in the substrate but does spend a fair amount of time exploring and swimming in the water. Eventually I'm going to build an outdoor enclosure or buy a plastic sandbox to use in the spring and summer but for how he's an inside turtle. I have a lot of wildlife in my backyard so I don't want him to get eaten.
 

kbroadway2

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Top pic is Pickle checking out some box turtle pellets...that he won't eat. Bottom pic is my enclosure. I just caught him swimming in the paint tray. So far he's a happy turtle.
 

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lisa127

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My boxies never liked any box turtle food, but they loved Reptomin food sticks for aquatic turtles. Also, the red wigglers mentioned above.
 

kbroadway2

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I got Pickle to eat! Meal worms in low fat dog food. I know he shouldn't eat it every day but I'm just so excited he's eating!
 

locolou

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Hi!

I have a four day old captive bred EBT hatchling in an indoor enclosure made of a sweater box with coconut coir and sphagnum moss with a paint tray for water and several hides. I also use a heat/uvb light placed 12 inches from the substrate. I keep the light on for 12 hours per day (it's on a timer) because it is a little too chilly to put him outside. I know it takes a little while for them to start eating. The yolk sac is barely visible. I suspect it had been under the substrate for a couple of days before he appeared in the enclosure. I'm offering meal worms set inside a small amount of canned box turtle food in a daily basis. I'm not seeing any of the food gone. I've read that they may take 1 to 4 weeks to start eating. Should I be offering food every day and placing him in front of it? Or should I do it every other day or so? My temperature is 85 degrees under the lamp and 75 on the cooler side. I'm doing all I can, including reading every single resource I could find about hatchling box turtles, to make sure this baby is healthy.

Should I supplement his diet with d3 supplements or is the light enough for now? On days where its in the mid to high 70's I can take him outside for a little while. I do have reptical calcium powder to sprinkle on the meal worms when he starts eating. I've also found an exotic pet veterinarian for a check up when he gets a little bigger. Right now he's a little bigger than a quarter. I have other critters (3 hermit crabs) whose needs are very similar to the turtle, except dietary needs, so I'm pretty experienced at keeping temperature and humidity levels stable.

Is there anything I am missing when taking care of this little guy?
Hi There !
I too have 4 day old hatchling. Found them in my pen outside, where I keep Mom and Dad at. I went to go feed them and saw one of the hatching. I went back out and found 2 more, and next day found 1 more. I have seen them mate for 4 years, and nothing, but finally I have the little critters and love them. I will watch your thread if you don't mind, we can compare our babies and see how we do. I live in NE Houston. Thanks, nice to meet you, yur baby have a name? Out of my 4, I named the runt, BUG. That's my nickname because I'm the smallest out of 5 kids. My Mom called me that instead of my name all my life! She passed away last Nov. 4th, I miss being called Bug, so that's how the runt got his name. Lol. I will watch the personalities of the others and name them then. Good luck with your little one.
 

kbroadway2

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My baby's name is Pickle. He's about the size of a half dollar. A week old and still doing just fine. The only trouble I'm having is finding an appropriate uvb bulb for his enclosure. I tried a MVB but it was way way too bright. The temp was fine, but Pickle hid from all the light. Now I have a black infrared heat bulb on him and the temp is staying around 80 on the warm side and 75 on the cool side. I am still able to take him outside for now. He really seems to enjoy the sun--he's most active when I take him outside. His enclosure is a rubbermaid sweater box. I have a clamp lamp, but I read that you shouldnt use CFL bulbs with turtles. I don't have anywhere to put a light strip with a uvb bulb. It's going to get cold soon so I need to figure this out.
 

locolou

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When you take Pickle outside, what do you put him in?
Are you going to keep him inside during Winter?
I always bring my other Boxies inside if under 40 degrees.
My hatching will be inside too.
 

kbroadway2

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I put him in a small rubbermaid container with coconut coir in it. I wet the substrate down before taking him outside and I sit him on the porch. I never leave him outside alone. Sometimes I put him in a shallow bowl of water while he's outside. Being outside seems to stimulate activity and his appetite. He's still only eating dog food. He is scared of the meal worms when they wiggle. he shrinks his head inside his shell. I'm going to try red wigglers and wax worms next.
 

kbroadway2

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I put him in a smaller rubbermaid container with coconut coir in it and i wet the substrate down really well before I take him outside. Sometimes I put him in a shallow bowl of water and let him swim around while he's outside. It stimulates activity and his appetite. Right now he's still eating dog food because he's scared of meal worms.
 

kbroadway2

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Since pill bugs have been suggested, i found a bunch in my yard today. Right now I have them in a small rubbermaid box with coconut coir. Can they live in that? How fast will they multiply if I put them in with Pickle and he doesn't eat them? Do I need to put anything else on/in the substrate to keep them alive? Right now I have about 20. Pickle is still eating very small amounts of dog food but I don't want that to be the only thing he eats. I've tried boiled chicken to no avail. He's scared of meal worms AND wax worms. I'm looking for red wigglers in my yard but have ordered some online too.
 

locolou

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When I was looking for my hatching, I saw alot of pill worms too, and the Wigglers. I put 2 meal worms in yesterday in the water and they didn't eat them, like they did the day before. Did you say yu were feeding Pickle every other day? They ate a little of the moist cat food that day they ate the worms, first time they ever ate since I found them, guess they were hungry! But yesterday nothing would entice them. So I will try again, when I soak them today in warm water......
 

kbroadway2

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Pickle eats about every other day when he's feeling like it. I have started keeping food in his enclosure over night to make sure he has adequate time and privacy to eat. He's doing well on a low fat venison formula dog food. I'm adding in banana and greens too, but he doesn't eat that yet. He's still afraid of meal worms and I have pillbugs coming next week. I felt weird about giving him the ones from my yard because the wife said she sprayed the ground near where i found them with pesticide this summer.
 

locolou

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Well my 4 ate 3 mealworms yesterday, and some of the cat food. I cover their tub when it's time to eat. Yesterday, I peeked under the towel and one of the hatchlings had a piece in his mouth, but dropped it when he saw me. Whoops, won't do that again, the 3 meal worms were gone too. So every other day is working for them.
I found a regular Turtle forum yesterday, went to box turtle.com and read some good things for hatchlings. I know about my adult boxies I have, nothing on the their babies tho.....so any and all info I find is needed. May I ask what type of soil yu are using for the main home he has? Thanks!
 

kbroadway2

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Oct 16, 2014
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Pickle at a few of the pillbugs I found in my yard. I've got them in a rubbermaid tub with potting soil instead of coconut fiber and i put potatoes and apples in there with some fish flakes. I'm hoping they'll colonize there so I don't end up having to buy any. He still won't eat mealworms and I'm trying so hard to find red wigglers but the only place i can find them around my house is at a bait shop. Is it ok to feed them worms from a bait shop?
 

locolou

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I found some Wigglers in my pen outside wen I was looking for the hatching, came across them under the pine needles where it was damp. When I bring the waterboarding out to clean the water dishes and if water ponds anywhere, yu will see them when they come up for air. I didn't know I even had them.
It was raining one day and I looked outside my window checking on the turtles and I noticed all the turtles were digging, I kept watching and I saw one turtle with a wiggler half in his mouth.......needless to say I stopped watching them. Ewwww

I have my 4 in a 10 gallon aquarium. I bought some Loose Coconut Fiber Substrate.
I had to get another 5.5 Dome Light with blue 50 watt bulb. I put turtles in Aguarium, and 2 just stayed where I put them, and they closed their eyes. Is this normal, or should I get a smaller watt bulb? Anyone Chime in Please........Am I using wrong soil??
 

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