Not growing

[Gregor]

14 days ago I got two baby tortoises. One was much smaller than the other, but in these 14 days the smaller one has outgrown the other. Meanwhile, the other hasn’t grown or gained any weight. It also eats much less and sleeps more.
The tortoises are kept separately, so they don’t disturb each other. The temperature in the terrarium is constantly between 82°F and 90°F, with humidity at 80% or higher.
I soak both of them every day for half an hour and then let them walk on the grass in the sun.
I feed them various grasses from the garden, and twice a week I sprinkle calcium.
What could be the reason that one is growing while the other is not?

 

[The_Four_Toed_Edward]

How much do they weigh? Any other symptoms? Do you have a photo of the belly?

I will tag @Tom here, he has more sulcata experience.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Do you feed weeds and greens too? Are they separated by a visual barrier or are they able to see one another? Hopefully Tom sees this thread

 

[Yvonne G]

The smaller one's shell doesn't look real thrifty. I don't know if that has anything to do with growing or not. Does this baby have a good appetite?

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

The smaller one's shell doesn't look real thrifty. I don't know if that has anything to do with growing or not. Does this baby have a good appetite?

The wrinkles caught my eye too, was curious about those

 

[Gregor]

How much do they weigh? Any other symptoms? Do you have a photo of the belly?

I will tag @Tom here, he has more sulcata experience.

The smaller one is about 29 grams and the other one around 37 grams

 

[Gregor]

The smaller one's shell doesn't look real thrifty. I don't know if that has anything to do with growing or not. Does this baby have a good appetite?

It has appetite but not as much as the bigger one. Poops normaly, eats and sleeps. But sleeps more than the other.

 

[Gregor]

Do you feed weeds and greens too? Are they separated by a visual barrier or are they able to see one another? Hopefully Tom sees this thread

Weeds, grasses, greens... They can't see eachother.

 

[The_Four_Toed_Edward]

Does the shell feel rough? It looks odd in the photo. Can you post a picture of the underside of the shell? Particularly how the umbilical scar is looking.

 

[Gregor]

Does the shell feel rough? It looks odd in the photo. Can you post a picture of the underside of the shell? Particularly how the umbilical scar is looking.

A few scutes are wrinkled. I guess that is how it was hatched.

 

[Gregor]

Funny thing is that now that it is still warm and sunny where I live, I soak both outside and after soaking I put them on glawn to roam. And both are active, smaller one even grazes grass. But as soon as I put them back in smaller goes to sleep.

And the smaller one is about a week older. Both were hatched start of August.

 

[Tom]

Funny thing is that now that it is still warm and sunny where I live, I soak both outside and after soaking I put them on glawn to roam. And both are active, smaller one even grazes grass. But as soon as I put them back in smaller goes to sleep.

And the smaller one is about a week older. Both were hatched start of August.

This indicates a problem with the indoor enclosure. How are you housing them indoors? What size enclosure? What type of enclosure? What are the four temperatures? What heating and lighting equipment are you using to achieve and maintain those temperatures?

 

[Gregor]

This indicates a problem with the indoor enclosure. How are you housing them indoors? What size enclosure? What type of enclosure? What are the four temperatures? What heating and lighting equipment are you using to achieve and maintain those temperatures?

This is what I was thinking, but the other one is fine and active.
I use ceramic heat emitter for heating( day and night) on thermostat set to 90F.
UVB t8 bulb and another ceramic heat emitter for basking. I also have automated misting system that mists a couple time a day. Humidity is 80-90%. In attachement is a snapshot of my webcam tha I have in enclosure.

 

[The_Four_Toed_Edward]

This is what I was thinking, but the other one is fine and active.
I use ceramic heat emitter for heating( day and night) on thermostat set to 90F.
UVB t8 bulb and another ceramic heat emitter for basking. I also have automated misting system that mists a couple time a day. Humidity is 80-90%. In attachement is a snapshot of my webcam tha I have in enclosure.

Are they set up in a closed chamber or is the enclosure open top?

 

[Gregor]

Are they set up in a closed chamber or is the enclosure open top?

Fully closed, with all equipement inside

 

[Tom]

This is what I was thinking, but the other one is fine and active.
I use ceramic heat emitter for heating( day and night) on thermostat set to 90F.
UVB t8 bulb and another ceramic heat emitter for basking. I also have automated misting system that mists a couple time a day. Humidity is 80-90%. In attachement is a snapshot of my webcam tha I have in enclosure.

I tried doing sulcatas with just arm ambient temps and no basking lamps, and they survived, but didn't really thrive the way they should. They need a basking lamp. A regular incandescent flood bulb. Those are hard to find anymore... The CHE isn't great for basking because it gives off no light.

Also realize that the T8 tube is giving off almost no UV at all.

What about ambient lighting? Is it bright and "sunny" in the enclosure?

Your enclosure sounds pretty good. This makes me suspect that the breeder may not have started them well. Most breeders don't. Why is one okay and the other not so much? We can only speculate.

 

[Gregor]

I tried doing sulcatas with just arm ambient temps and no basking lamps, and they survived, but didn't really thrive the way they should. They need a basking lamp. A regular incandescent flood bulb. Those are hard to find anymore... The CHE isn't great for basking because it gives off no light.

Also realize that the T8 tube is giving off almost no UV at all.

What about ambient lighting? Is it bright and "sunny" in the enclosure?

Your enclosure sounds pretty good. This makes me suspect that the breeder may not have started them well. Most breeders don't. Why is one okay and the other not so much? We can only speculate.

I will replace ceramci for normal bulb for basking. For UV will T5 be better?

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

I will replace ceramci for normal bulb for basking. For UV will T5 be better?

They will still need ceramics somewhere in the enclosure for added ambient heat and night heat. Yeah t5 are the recommended uv bulbs, either Arcadia proT5 12% or zoo med 10.0

 

[Tom]

I will replace ceramci for normal bulb for basking. For UV will T5 be better?

Yes, the T5 HO type bulbs are the best. I prefer the Arcadia 12% Pro T5 kits.

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.

 

[Gregor]

I suspected that smaller one is just picky at eating. As it turned out so far I am right. I noticed that she likes to eat clover flowers. Grasses not so much.
I also gave her for test some lettuce and she eats without a problem.