Recognising an unhealthy tortoise

[Happy_Tortoise]

Hello,

I think my baby tortoise might not be feeling well but it is just a feeling as I dont know enough to know for sure.

She is usually super active and do some ninja stuffs climbing and jumping. But today she slept almost all day, ate a little bit and didn't move much.

I'm worried.
Her enclosure is a bit smelly. The pet store staff said to change about every month and it has been less than 3 weeks so I was waiting for this Sunday to make the new enclosure with the coco peat. Now she has only some kind of small woods stuffs that looks like hamster substrate.

I will try to find some picture of her enclosure organization.

I am also worried by jumping everywhere yesterday if she could have hurt one of her legs preventing her from moving much today.
She is not walking so I cannot see how she walks.

Ah and poo is usually a soft/wet and yesterday her pee was I think red. I didn't think about taking picture. But she didn't eat dandelions recently. Or any flowers. (For about 2 weeks)

Is it normal for a tortoise to act crazy 1 day and be dead the other day?

In the picture is her trying to climb the cave she has to try to run away.
Sometimes she succeeds and sometimes not. She also sometimes jumps head first from the platform... (even though there are stairs)

 

[wellington]

Everything about her enclosure is wrong! You need to change things ASAP
I can't tell what species she is, it's too blurry when I enlarge the pic
But you need to read and follow our caresheet for her immediately and change everything from substrate to heat and lights to size of enclosure. Asap

 

[Tom]

Hello,

I think my baby tortoise might not be feeling well but it is just a feeling as I dont know enough to know for sure.

She is usually super active and do some ninja stuffs climbing and jumping. But today she slept almost all day, ate a little bit and didn't move much.

I'm worried.
Her enclosure is a bit smelly. The pet store staff said to change about every month and it has been less than 3 weeks so I was waiting for this Sunday to make the new enclosure with the coco peat. Now she has only some kind of small woods stuffs that looks like hamster substrate.

I will try to find some picture of her enclosure organization.

I am also worried by jumping everywhere yesterday if she could have hurt one of her legs preventing her from moving much today.
She is not walking so I cannot see how she walks.

Ah and poo is usually a soft/wet and yesterday her pee was I think red. I didn't think about taking picture. But she didn't eat dandelions recently. Or any flowers. (For about 2 weeks)

Is it normal for a tortoise to act crazy 1 day and be dead the other day?

In the picture is her trying to climb the cave she has to try to run away.
Sometimes she succeeds and sometimes not. She also sometimes jumps head first from the platform... (even though there are stairs)

There are some major problems with this enclosure, and tortoises rely on having the correct lighting and environment when kept indoors. The following is intended to help, so please don't feel attacked or offended. If no one tells you what is wrong, you won't know what to fix.

1. The enclosure is way too small. They need at least 60x122cm as little babies.
2. The top should be closed in to contain heat and humidity. Better to use a closed chamber with front opening doors.
3. I can't tell what substrate that is, but you should be using damp coco coir that is hand packed.
4. You have only one lamp over the enclosure. You should have at least 3 and possibly four depending on the ambient temperature of that room. Whatever that one bulb is, it is the wrong type to use for tortoises.

All of the correct care info is here. If you follow this guide and make the changes, the tortoise should be okay if its not too late.

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

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More here:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

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Please feel free to ask questions or ask for help.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Hello,

I think my baby tortoise might not be feeling well but it is just a feeling as I dont know enough to know for sure.

She is usually super active and do some ninja stuffs climbing and jumping. But today she slept almost all day, ate a little bit and didn't move much.

I'm worried.
Her enclosure is a bit smelly. The pet store staff said to change about every month and it has been less than 3 weeks so I was waiting for this Sunday to make the new enclosure with the coco peat. Now she has only some kind of small woods stuffs that looks like hamster substrate.

I will try to find some picture of her enclosure organization.

I am also worried by jumping everywhere yesterday if she could have hurt one of her legs preventing her from moving much today.
She is not walking so I cannot see how she walks.

Ah and poo is usually a soft/wet and yesterday her pee was I think red. I didn't think about taking picture. But she didn't eat dandelions recently. Or any flowers. (For about 2 weeks)

Is it normal for a tortoise to act crazy 1 day and be dead the other day?

In the picture is her trying to climb the cave she has to try to run away.
Sometimes she succeeds and sometimes not. She also sometimes jumps head first from the platform... (even though there are stairs)

Hello!
It's not normal, that she is not active all of sudden and red pee is not good either.

While, indeed, there is a lot to be improved in her enclosure (please, read the links Tom provided above), you need to address some things first:
1. Temperatures - make sure they stay no lower than 75F (24C) day and night. Basking spot should be 35-38C. Low temperatures make tortoise prone to infections and prevent food to be digested properly.
2. If you already have coco coir - change the substrate now. If you "spot clean" after your tortoise and enclosure smells bad - maybe it's rotting substrate. Good thing is that substrate can be changed once in a few months or years (no need to change it every month). Put a layer of coco coir about 6-8 inches (15-20cm) and pack it with your hand to 3-5 inches (8-12cm).
3. Can you make a new photo of her shell bottom (plastron)?

P.S. - Also try to find a vet experienced with tortoises and make an appointment. You may not need it if she will become active again but if her plastron is pink/orange or she stays inactive in with corrected temperatures - this might require urgent treatment

 

[wellington]

Hello!
It's not normal, that she is not active all of sudden and red pee is not good either.

While, indeed, there is a lot to be improved in her enclosure (please, read the links Tom provided above), you need to address some things first:
1. Temperatures - make sure they stay no lower than 75F (24C) day and night. Basking spot should be 35-38C. Low temperatures make tortoise prone to infections and prevent food to be digested properly.
2. If you already have coco coir - change the substrate now. If you "spot clean" after your tortoise and enclosure smells bad - maybe it's rotting substrate. Good thing is that substrate can be changed once in a few months or years (no need to change it every month). Put a layer of coco coir about 6-8 inches (15-20cm) and pack it with your hand to 3-5 inches (8-12cm).
3. Can you make a new photo of her shell bottom (plastron)?

P.S. - Also try to find a vet experienced with tortoises and make an appointment. You may not need it if she will become active again but if her plastron is pink/orange or she stays inactive in with corrected temperatures - this might require urgent treatment

Why would you tell them to change the substrate now if they have coconut coir and then you tell them to use it? That's very confusing.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Why would you tell them to change the substrate now if they have coconut coir and then you tell them to use it? That's very confusing.

Right now it's not coco coir. In the first post: "Now she has only some kind of small woods stuffs that looks like hamster substrate." The change to coco coir was planned on Sunday.

 

[wellington]

Right now it's not coco coir. In the first post: "Now she has only some kind of small woods stuffs that looks like hamster substrate." The change to coco coir was planned on Sunday.

The way it's written is contradictory. Do use coir, do use coir.

 

[SinLA]

The way it's written is contradictory. Do use coir, do use coir.

I think English is not their native language. I think Alex is reading it correctly...

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

The way it's written is contradictory. Do use coir, do use coir.

Yes, it is a bit unclear. I was meaning "if you have coco coir at hand", not "if you have coco coir in the enclosure".

 

[wellington]

I think English is not their native language. I think Alex is reading it correctly...

No, the way Alex wrote his is contradictory. I understand after his response what he is trying to to say but it's not coming across that way. For a newbie or a non English person, it can/will come off as confusing.

 

[wellington]

Yes, it is a bit unclear. I was meaning "if you have coco coir at hand", not "if you have coco coir in the enclosure".

Yes, I thought you did. But it doesn't read like that for a newbie or me lol. I do understand what you were saying after your first response to me.

 

[The_Four_Toed_Edward]

Also, if you see red pee again, please send us a picture. It might be blood in the urine.

 

[Happy_Tortoise]

Hello,

For further explanation, yes english is not my first language.
I received the coco peat last Monday but I think I need about 4hours to hydrate it and because I work I thought I could wait until this weekend to do it.


I have a thermometer hygrometer next to the enclosure and the temperature was always around 25/26
The man in pet shop said to keep the heat light on all the time, but reading posts here I read only about 3-4hours is enough so I bought a timer and tuen on between 11am and 4pm.

The tortoise is a Greek Tortoise and about 8/9 months old

I bought this enclosure in the picture. I was also going to install it this weekend with the coco peat.

I will go to work in about 1h is there something I can do until I come back.
Mayne I can do the coco peat tonight but I cannot do 4hours hydratation now

Thank you I will read the post that was sent to me .

 

[Happy_Tortoise]

Hello!
It's not normal, that she is not active all of sudden and red pee is not good either.

While, indeed, there is a lot to be improved in her enclosure (please, read the links Tom provided above), you need to address some things first:
1. Temperatures - make sure they stay no lower than 75F (24C) day and night. Basking spot should be 35-38C. Low temperatures make tortoise prone to infections and prevent food to be digested properly.
2. If you already have coco coir - change the substrate now. If you "spot clean" after your tortoise and enclosure smells bad - maybe it's rotting substrate. Good thing is that substrate can be changed once in a few months or years (no need to change it every month). Put a layer of coco coir about 6-8 inches (15-20cm) and pack it with your hand to 3-5 inches (8-12cm).
3. Can you make a new photo of her shell bottom (plastron)?

P.S. - Also try to find a vet experienced with tortoises and make an appointment. You may not need it if she will become active again but if her plastron is pink/orange or she stays inactive in with corrected temperatures - this might require urgent treatment

Hi,
Here are pictures of the tortoise

 

[Happy_Tortoise]

2 times I think she dropped her water bath making the substrate damped.

And put some sphagnum moss that I humidify everyday to keep some humidity.

 

[Happy_Tortoise]

Update:
At the moment she is exploring the room well and her pee was very clear I couldn't even see it.

I will make the new enclosure tonight

I am thinking if I should leave her in the room or in the enclosure for the day

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Hi,
Here are pictures of the tortoise

Good, she looks pretty healthy to me (but I can overlook something because not very experienced).

Never let her roam free in the room - it's unsafe. She can eat wrong stuff, get stuck somewhere can be hit by door and such. Also, floors are usually too cold and slippery.

When you put coco peat in the enclosure - remove the moss. Coco peat will provide enough humidity by itself and sometimes tortoises eat moss and get constipated.

 

[Happy_Tortoise]

Good, she looks pretty healthy to me (but I can overlook something because not very experienced).

Never let her roam free in the room - it's unsafe. She can eat wrong stuff, get stuck somewhere can be hit by door and such. Also, floors are usually too cold and slippery.

When you put coco peat in the enclosure - remove the moss. Coco peat will provide enough humidity by itself and sometimes tortoises eat moss and get constipated.

Oh I see. I thought it would be good for her to have a big space to walk.

I usually let her walk for maybe 30min in the morning before I go to work. And I blocked the space to the stairs so she doesn't fall. And I was usually here but sometimes I left her while taking shower.

I was also worried about the floor being cold and slippery. So because I noticed she liked carpet I got her ,her own bamboo carpet and another carpet.

I will stop doing that then.
I also read about people leaving their tortoise free in the house so I thought it would be okay.

How about when she is fully adult and less fragile. Maybe around 2yo. Can she move around. Or is it better to always leave in the enclosure?

I read they are explorers so I tried to let her explore

Oh and also I am not sure about this... but I cannot find poop in her enclosure... but somehow everytime I put her out for 30min she pees and poops. Not sure if this is good or not.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Oh I see. I thought it would be good for her to have a big space to walk.

I usually let her walk for maybe 30min in the morning before I go to work. And I blocked the space to the stairs so she doesn't fall. And I was usually here but sometimes I left her while taking shower.

I was also worried about the floor being cold and slippery. So because I noticed she liked carpet I got her ,her own bamboo carpet and another carpet.

I will stop doing that then.
I also read about people leaving their tortoise free in the house so I thought it would be okay.

How about when she is fully adult and less fragile. Maybe around 2yo. Can she move around. Or is it better to always leave in the enclosure?

I read they are explorers so I tried to let her explore

Oh and also I am not sure about this... but I cannot find poop in her enclosure... but somehow everytime I put her out for 30min she pees and poops. Not sure if this is good or not.

Yes, I understand your reasons to let her out in the room. And many people do the same. However, on this forum you can find a lot of threads with accidents happened while tortoise was roaming free.

Of course, it's better to keep her in the enclosure with controlled temperatures and humidity, proper substrate and safe from accidents. But the enclosure should be large enough. You can make a temporary pen for her in the room to let her stretch her legs safely (like a kiddy pool or something like that) and remove it after returning her to the enclosure. A hamster wheel in the enclosure can also work (potentially she can flip over but I haven't seen that yet). Much better if you have a balcony and can set her an outdoor pen there.

She poops and pees when walking because that's how their digestion system works - walking helps to move things through intestines. Keepers with hamster wheels can confirm

 

[MesoTank]

Oh I see. I thought it would be good for her to have a big space to walk.

I usually let her walk for maybe 30min in the morning before I go to work. And I blocked the space to the stairs so she doesn't fall. And I was usually here but sometimes I left her while taking shower.

I was also worried about the floor being cold and slippery. So because I noticed she liked carpet I got her ,her own bamboo carpet and another carpet.

I will stop doing that then.
I also read about people leaving their tortoise free in the house so I thought it would be okay.

How about when she is fully adult and less fragile. Maybe around 2yo. Can she move around. Or is it better to always leave in the enclosure?

I read they are explorers so I tried to let her explore

Oh and also I am not sure about this... but I cannot find poop in her enclosure... but somehow everytime I put her out for 30min she pees and poops. Not sure if this is good or not.

I am not the most educated on the site, but when she is older you will need a lot more space indoors and preferably an outdoor enclosure to compliment that. It is not recommended to have tortoises roam freely in the house. Also, since this tortoise seems to be a hatchling (I believe) you will need a closed chamber (not screen top) to have more control over humidity and temperature. As to the bathroom problem, I assume it has to do with inadequate lighting and temperatures, tortoises cannot process food if temps are too low and UV is not there. Make sure you are also soaking this tortoise in lukewarm water twice or more daily to avoid dehydration which is more common in hatchlings. You will need a tube light (I recommend arcadias UV bulbs) and various heat sources depending on the enclosure you decide. Please take a look at the complete tortoise care guide for your specific species on the forum.