not eating?!?!

[hermanhelp]

hello, my hermann tortoise hasn't eaten her food for around 3 days. I hand fed her a leaf and she ate a little but I am worried she may be ill/unhealthy. I got her in in feb 2010 when she was 6months old. i bathe her about once a week in warm water and put her in the garden when the weather is hot.( she is kept in a tortoise table) I have also noticed when she wakes up she rubs her eyes with her forelegs, is this normal?

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

hello, my hermann tortoise hasn't eaten her food for around 3 days. I hand fed her a leaf and she ate a little but I am worried she may be ill/unhealthy. I got her in in feb 2010 when she was 6months old. i bathe her about once a week in warm water and put her in the garden when the weather is hot.( she is kept in a tortoise table) I have also noticed when she wakes up she rubs her eyes with her forelegs, is this normal?

Soaking her every other day is not too often.

What's the temperature in her environment?

After waking and rubbing, do her eyes remain open? Any mucous/goo?

Hear any noise when breathing?

What all are you feeding her?

Answering these question may help us help you/your tort.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

I would agree with soaking every other day. What type of light bulb are you using? If it's a spiral bulb stop using it immediately. The cause eye damage in reptiles...

 

[hermanhelp]

I would agree with soaking every other day. What type of light bulb are you using? If it's a spiral bulb stop using it immediately. The cause eye damage in reptiles...

she has a UVB and spot lamp the spot lamp area is usually 30-35 degrees and the main area is around 25 degrees I think.

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her basking spot is usually 30-40 degrees and the other area is around 25-30. she keeps her eyes open once she rubs them. I feed her dandelion leaves, spinach, cucumber, clover, lettuce, tomato and pellets.

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hello, my hermann tortoise hasn't eaten her food for around 3 days. I hand fed her a leaf and she ate a little but I am worried she may be ill/unhealthy. I got her in in feb 2010 when she was 6months old. i bathe her about once a week in warm water and put her in the garden when the weather is hot.( she is kept in a tortoise table) I have also noticed when she wakes up she rubs her eyes with her forelegs, is this normal?

Soaking her every other day is not too often.

What's the temperature in her environment?

After waking and rubbing, do her eyes remain open? Any mucous/goo?

Hear any noise when breathing?

What all are you feeding her?

Answering these question may help us help you/your tort.
[/quote


she has a UVB and spot lamp the spot lamp area is usually 30-35 degrees and the main area is around 25 degrees I think.

---

her basking spot is usually 30-40 degrees and the other area is around 25-30. she keeps her eyes open once she rubs them. I feed her dandelion leaves, spinach, cucumber, clover, lettuce, tomato and pellets.

---

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Of your pet's diet:

dandelion leaves - very good

spinach, cucumber - not good, unless fed very rarely

clover - very good

lettuce - not iceberg, but other lettuces occ. are fine. Look for an organic spring mix, but check for/remove spinach.

tomato - rarely..1 - 2X a month...fruits are hard on their digestive system.

pellets - depends on the pellets (some are OK, some are useless!)

Add sow thistle, opuntia cactus, plantain (the weed, not the banana), chickory, various other weeds. Turnip, polk salad, collard and beet greens are good.

Try to get your tort at least an hour or so of unfiltered sunlight every day...on days you can't, try for 2 hours the next day. Artificial lights are a poor substitute for real sunlight, and many lights lose their effectiveness after 6 months, so you'll need to repkace them at least that often.

Hope this'll help your little buddy.

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Just got a 1-lb. bag of the red tortoise sticks that Coastal sells...my 4 Hermann's torts go crazy over it, so I recommend that you try your pet on those...soak 4 or 5 pieces 'til they're soft and offer them...once your tort takes a bite, I expect he/she'll go crazy, too.

Then, just mix other things in w/ the "red stuff".