older Russian not eating

[stinax182]

my 5+ year old Russian has not eaten a substantial amount in a couple weeks. maybe a couple bites of mazuri, but no greens. i usually feed him every other day but recently I've been offering it everyday. he comes out for it but then hides again. i haven't changed what i offer for food except for adding mazuri, which he seems to like. his enclosure is always 75°+ with a basking spot of 100° always has a water dish and plenty of hides. any ideas?

 

[mctlong]

How long have you owned him? Has he changed enclosures recently?

Can he be getting sick? Does he have any signs of illness such as a runny nose or lethargy?

 

[stinax182]

I've had him for 4 years and his last enclosure change was in November. also that was the time i separated him from another Russian he had been paired with for many years. he did lose his appetite then a bit, but i counted it off as the changing weather. as for him getting sick, no other signs except a little lethargy but he still fights and kicks in his soaks which i give him twice a week.

 

[WillTort2]

I find my Russians eat best when the pm temps drop into the 60's. What are your night time temps?

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Might be good to increase the variety of his diet. I find that my tortoises get bored if they eat the same kind of food for a while, even if it's something they love. I change it up by trying different types of greens from the grocery store, several different weeds from outside, and two different commercial foods: Mazuri and ZooMed Grassland. This variety seems to keep things interesting for them.

Sometimes I let them out to forage for themselves. Another trick I do is when they're in their outdoor pen, I scatter greens over the floor so they feel like they're foraging. After all, that's how tortoises feed in the wild: by nibbling or chowing down on whatever they can find.

Russians in a good home are often really well-fed, because they have such a healthy appetite and eat a lot. That's great, but I think it's okay for a healthy tortoise to skip a day of feeding every once in a while to get a little hungry again.

 

[stinax182]

thank you for the responses! he is in a room with my other tortoise, a chameleon and a snake so i know the room temps never drop below 75° , so maybe he's too hot? and i will definitely change up the food again, i believe it's time for a change as well. and i always felt comfortable feeding him every other day when he ate well.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

thank you for the responses! he is in a room with my other tortoise, a chameleon and a snake so i know the room temps never drop below 75° , so maybe he's too hot? and i will definitely change up the food again, i believe it's time for a change as well. and i always felt comfortable feeding him every other day when he ate well.

Yes, Russians prefer daytime temps in the high 70s, but they prefer nighttime temps in the 60s. A nice cool-down period at night might help your guy get back on track.

You said he's in the same room as your other tortoise. Does that mean they are in separate pens, or are they in the same pen? If they are in the same pen, then one of the tortoises could be hyperdominating the other one and hoarding the food. In that case, the subordinate one might not be able to assert himself, or might be too stressed out to eat. If they are not already separate, I would separate them. That might be all a subordinate tortoise needs to start eating again.

 

[stinax182]

oh no, every animal is in a separate enclosure, just in the same room in my house...on the second floor, so it's hot in there. and for that reason, I'm not sure how to drop his night time temps...

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

oh no, every animal is in a separate enclosure, just in the same room in my house...on the second floor, so it's hot in there. and for that reason, I'm not sure how to drop his night time temps...

Put him on the first floor.

 

[stinax182]

i wish i had that option, haha. but i don't...is there any other way?

 

[WillTort2]

To drop his night time temps, you might try putting a freezer pack into the area above his pen. One of those plastic things that you can refreeze to keep drinks, etc. cold. Or take a cloth bag or a sock and fill with ice then let it drip down into the enclosure. That would drop the temperature and add moisture. I don't know how much to advise, you would have to try a little and monitor the temps.

Do you have a recording thermometer?

 

[stinax182]

yeah i was thinking about am ice pack...I'll try it out. and i only have a temp gun and another one with a temp and hydo probes.

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