Pax's eyes wont open.

[BrinnANDTorts]

Just a suggestion but you could just kinda try everything, I'm only suggesting this because I don't think your ever going to find the exact reason your tortoise isn't feeling well unfortunately cause it could be a combination of things.
Example is that not even hydration with soaks and humidity combined with a powerful 125 watt MVB bulb has lead to dehydration. Not saying this is it just giving an example.
You could do all the things that have been suggested
You already put the bulb away
someone suggested soaking him more often. Everyone on this forum seems to think an 30 to an hour daily in warm water is good.
Someone else suggested soaking him in baby food , I don't know proportions sorry :/
Doing all these things won't hurt your tortoise in any way, it will make him better.
You don't have to get rid of the bulb. A powerful 125 watt MVB will be very useful when your tortoise is too large to live in the house anymore.
I know just how you feel about wanting to be sure that the people on here know what they are talking about and you just don't want to follow them blindly. The one thing you do know is that none of the suggested things will hurt your cute baby
and he is very very cute
and yes I read all other posts very carefully

 

[Tony the tank]

The bulb you mention sounds..good?? How long have you been using it?? The MVB put out a huge amount of UVB during burn in....some manufactures recommend greater distance during that period... Add to that a reflective dome and the UVB output can be damaging...for a couple of weeks...I wouldn't toss the bulb toss the bulb just yet..remove it for a day or two and see if things improve...if they do..then you found your culprit..Then you can either return or exchange the bulb..Just tell the shop what is happening and get another...as it could just be a manufacturing issue with that particular bulb....

The only way to confirm is to have someone test bulb output....Some reptile specialy shops have a meter and can test it for you...or you can befriend a tanning salon to use there meters..it won't be as acurate as a UVB meter (most salons use UVA/UVB meters).. But it should give you enough info to make sure it's safe..

Also if you decide to exchange..check the batch code on the bulb base and try to get a different batch if you can...

Good luck ...

 

[Void1878]

I scoured the attic and found the biggest tub I could, emptied all the old christmas decorations out, and began building his new home. The tub is 14 inches high, 31 inches wide, 19 inches long, 28.8 gallons. I did away with (but still kept for when he gets bigger) the all in one MVB bulb. Instead I got this

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.js...Id=4282557

It is a combo pack basking bulb and UVB compact fluorescent(CF) bulb. The basking bulb is 100 watts, the CF bulb is a Reptisun 5.0 like yours, albeit in a slightly different design. In his tub the basking bulb is projected at a piece of slate for him to crawl on to bask on. The CF bulb is over the other half of his tub. The CF bulb is 20 inches above his substrate which is 6 inches higher than the manufacturer recommends for the burn in period. The burn in should last about two weeks. For heat instead of going out and buying a CHE and dome to put it in I found a small personal heater that I put outside his tub and it is on a cycle where it rotates 150 degrees and heat all of one side of his tub. The heat coming directly out of the personal heater is at about 134 degrees but cools to about 89-90 degrees. He now has about 4-5 sometimes 6 inches of substrate to hold in more humidity and for him to dig in compared to the half an inch of substrate in his old 20 gallon tank. He also has a humid hide shoe box in one corner of his tub like Tom recommended in his guide on how to raise baby sullies. Under the half of the tub with the humid hide and the CF bulb is a large heating pad which will hopefully seep heat through all his substrate and bring the temp to the 80's. I think that's everything that I can think of at least. Let me know if y'all think this will make any kind of difference also what you think.

---

His new enclosure.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Get rid of the bulb...

 

[Pokeymeg]

Alright, first off thank you every one for such quick replies and questions which I will do my best to answer.

Tony the tank, it is, and I am quoting all of this right off the packaging, Exo-Terra professional series 125watt solar glo bulb "The Exo Terra Solar Glo is a lamp that is designed to simulate natural sunlight, emitting optimal levels of UV rays, visual light and infrared heat. The especially high amounts of UVA and UVB rays are among the many beneficial aspects of this new generation herpetoculture lamp. The Exo Terra Solar Glo is especially suited for larger terrariums where reptiles can regulate their exposure. It is also recommended when very high UVB intensity is required, such as breeding programs and for reptiles recovering from metabolic bone disease.Made in China." After reading this a little bit closer I'm thinking that it might just be too strong of a light, emitting too much UVA UVB. Exo-Terra makes the bulb, if by reflector you mean that the fixture it is in has a reflective inner surface than yes, I am. The bulb is not angled, I did not let the light burn for a few days because no where or no one told me that I should. It is at 25" because that is what the bulb manual said to put it at.

Tom, he is actually opening his eyes a little more than he has the past few days but he still prefers them closed it seams. He is not very lethargic really, I mean yes he does stop sometimes for up to fifteen maybe twenty minutes but other than that he is pretty active in walking around and exploring his enclosure, he has yet to wander into his hide on his own although I have put him in there a few times to let him know that it is there.

CtTortoiseMom, I am not around him as much as I would like to be considering I work 12-13 hours a day five days a week but from what I can tell he does eat but not as voraciously as I have read that babies normally eat.

Laramie, his eyes do open when I soak him but usually he wont open them until after about 10-15 min of soak time, which is about how long I've been soaking him. 10-15 minutes every other day. It has been going on since I got him a few days ago but like I told Tom, he has started opening them more although still favoring having them closed.

Candy, the pet store I purchased him from informed me that he was about six months, if this is true or not I do not know. He used to be on half sand half rabbit pellet substrate and it looked like the sand was bothering his eyes. After some reading and researching I did away with the sand and pellets and he is now on coco coir. I will be posting picture of his enclosure and him with the app on my phone after I post this on my computer.

I use the same bulb for my 8 month old Hermann tortoise. I find that it helps to give him a day off from the bulb every week or so, as it will eventually bother his eyes....think about, in the wild it's not sunny EVERY day. Cloudy days are perfectly OK. Giving his eyes a cloudy day every week or so helps prevent any irritation for my little one.

 

[y4433264336]

How close is the light to your tortoise? what is the temp directly under the bulb? what is the humidty like in the cage? have you been giving him warms soaks daily? young hatchlings i like to soak two times a day in warm water changing it out if it gets cold b4 30 minutes is up. his eyes are prolly closed bc it is either too hot and dry and he is becoming dehydrated or possibly he developed an eye infection i would purchace up some terramycin ophthalmic ointment from offine or at a local feed store and put in on his eyes a couple times a day until it is cleared up. terramycin ophthalmic ointment is good to have on hands at all times. so i would order it just to have.

is that the one you talking about?
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002XIYXU/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20