Not eating very much.

ctapio1230

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So I have had my sulcata tortoise for almost 3 months and he does eat it’s just not much. He’s a baby and is only 36-39 grams. He isn’t very big yet but I want to make sure it’s normal for him not to eat that much. I’m worried he’s not gaining weight the way he should
 

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Yvonne G

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Hi Caroline:

Have you read the care sheet, checked the temperature of the enclosure with an infra red temperature reader and are offering the types of food items shown in the care sheet for sulcatas?
 

ctapio1230

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Yes we have little dry grass pellets that we wet and he seems to like collard greens and I try some grasses and weeds and stuff out my garden and he seems to only eat a little
 

Yvonne G

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Baby tortoises aren't very interested in eating moistened pellets. You need to be offering moist weeds and greens, maybe cut up a bit and not whole. Here's the list (from the care sheet) that we usually pick from for baby sulcatas:

And here are some grocery stores greens to add to those weeds and grasses:

escarole, endive, radicchio, turnip greens, green/red leaf lettuce, butter lettuce.
 

ctapio1230

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Ok I have a lot of those! So how much should he actually be eating should I weigh his food to see what he’s eating?
 

Yvonne G

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I put down a pile of food as big as the tortoise (I like to chop it up because they eat more that way). If he eats it all and looks for more I know I didn't give him enough. If there's food left at the end of the day, he's either not eating because something is wrong, or I gave him too much.
 

TammyJ

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I usually put the food day right when I get his light on and he usually doesn’t eat right away
You need to make sure you have the right temperature and humidity levels. Crucially important. Let us know what they are in his enclosure.
 

Maro2Bear

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So 80-85 all the time?


Hi.....

This is right from the Sully care info page. Quick response - yes. Read on.....

Heating and Lighting:
I use a 65 watt incandescent flood bulb on a 12 hour timer and adjust the height of the fixture to get a hot spot of around 100 directly under the bulb. Then I use a ceramic heating element set to 80 degrees on a reptile thermostat to maintain my ambient temperature in the enclosure. Sometimes the basking lamp raises the day time ambient into the low 90s. "Ambient should be no lower than 80, but drifting up to 90 during the heat of the day is good…" This is fine and the thermostat will keep your CHE off during these times, but ready to click on after the basking lamp clicks off and the ambient temperature starts to drop at night. I use long florescent tubes when I want to brighten up the whole enclosure and I run these on the same timer as the basking bulb. The above are just what works for me and are suggestions for what might work for you. Every enclosure and home is different, and some customization will usually be necessary to get things "just right".

Good luck
 

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