Questions about my tort

[bignasty]

Hi again!

I just wanted ask some questions regarding my 4" leopard tortoise.

1. Does he need a humid hide?
2. How often should I feed him? everyday? every other day?

I feed mine everyday, twice (once in the morning and another in the afternoon), but it doesn't seem to eat a lot. It defecates regularly, but I'm worried it's a weak eater.

He's very active, runs around a lot but is very shy and would hide in his shell when anyone approaches. The only thing worrying me right now is his weak feeding.

 

[Az tortoise compound]

Most tortoises will benefit from a humid hide box. There are some great examples on this forum. What do you mean by weak eater? What do you feed and how much at each time. We feed our little ones once a day. We give them enough so they can't finish it all in one sitting. They usually come back to pick some more in the afternoons.

 

[Tom]

1. Yes. It can't hurt and it does help.
2. I feed every day sometimes twice a day for babies.

His behavior seems normal for a typical leopard. That's how they got the nickname, "Pretty rocks". What are your temps? Cool side, warm side hot spot and night? What is your soaking and spraying routine?

Here's what I'm doing for all of my pardalis pardalis hatchlings and they are all very active and eat like little piggies. The sheet was written for sulcatas, but I'm doing it exactly the same for my leopards. It may be reviewing some stuff you already know, but there are some tips in there that might make a difference for you.
http://tortoiseforum.org/Thread-How-To-Raise-Sulcata-Hatchlings-and-Babies

 

[Neal]

With you being in a humid environment I would say that you don't "need" a humid hide as much as some of us in desert climates. But, like Tom said, it couldn't hurt.

I see grass in the picture, does your tortoise have access to that grass at all times? A tortoise that size that has access to grass all the time I personally would feed every other day to encourage grazing.

They all look good from the top, but man you've got a GREAT looking tortoise there.

 

[bignasty]

Most tortoises will benefit from a humid hide box. There are some great examples on this forum. What do you mean by weak eater? What do you feed and how much at each time. We feed our little ones once a day. We give them enough so they can't finish it all in one sitting. They usually come back to pick some more in the afternoons.

I feed him a handful of kangkong leaves (it's a native veggie here in the Philippines) and some grass (but he just nibbles on them). What i meant by weak eater is that he doesn't finish his food. I think I give him enough so he can't finish it all but he doesn't even finish half of it. I'll try to further observe his feeding patterns.

1. Yes. It can't hurt and it does help.
2. I feed every day sometimes twice a day for babies.

His behavior seems normal for a typical leopard. That's how they got the nickname, "Pretty rocks". What are your temps? Cool side, warm side hot spot and night? What is your soaking and spraying routine?

Here's what I'm doing for all of my pardalis pardalis hatchlings and they are all very active and eat like little piggies. The sheet was written for sulcatas, but I'm doing it exactly the same for my leopards. It may be reviewing some stuff you already know, but there are some tips in there that might make a difference for you.
http://tortoiseforum.org/Thread-How-To-Raise-Sulcata-Hatchlings-and-Babies

I don't monitor the temps but its fairly warm here around 31C. He doesn't have a warm side or cool side though. At night I don't think it gets below 25-26C. Right now I'm not soaking him because he's under the betadine-canesten treatment for his shell rot, but prior to application I let him soak for 5-10 mins in the morning.

Thanks! I'm relieved he's acting normal. It's a bit humid now because it's typhoon season, but it also gets very dry. I'll try making a humid box using your guide just to be safe.

With you being in a humid environment I would say that you don't "need" a humid hide as much as some of us in desert climates. But, like Tom said, it couldn't hurt.

I see grass in the picture, does your tortoise have access to that grass at all times? A tortoise that size that has access to grass all the time I personally would feed every other day to encourage grazing.

They all look good from the top, but man you've got a GREAT looking tortoise there.

Not all the time because the side of the box with the grass isn't very elevated and he might fall out, but that's where I let him exercise for 30 mins. He runs around a lot there and sometimes nibbles some grass. Thanks!

 

[davy89]

Hi bignasty,

Do you know how old your Leo is? I have two that are roughly the same size but I have no idea what age they are

 

[bignasty]

Hi bignasty,

Do you know how old your Leo is? I have two that are roughly the same size but I have no idea what age they are

Hi Dave. I'm afraid not. I just got him a few days ago and the seller didn't tell me the age. Looking at the shell pattern, I'm thinking this one's maybe a year and a few months old? I'm not really sure.