Redfoot Baby hasn’t gained any weight in a long time

TanktheTortoise3

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Hello all,
I have a pet redfoot tortoise named Tank that has not gained weight in a very long time—almost 4 months. I made a similar post a couple of months ago, but most responses said if he keeps eating, being active, and going to the bathroom he should take off soon, and he was doing this, but never did take off in weight. He remains at a weight of 65 grams. However, he seems like a healthy tortoise from what I have read, being very active, eating, solid and brown poop, and no visual discharge. He still eat and drinks daily along with being soaked everyday. He has slightly slowed down pooping, going from once a day to once every other day to now sometimes just 2-3 times a week. This varies by week however and will get on routines going everyday again. One thing I did notice though, was that he ate a lot, but had huge poops about 2x the size of his head, maybe meaning he didn’t fully digest and get the nutrients out of his food. Despite the good things, I feel this weight should still be a red flag. I am no expert on tortoise weights so I wrote a lot trying to see what other experts think about it. Responses would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you,
The owner of Tank the tortoise
 

jaizei

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How old/big was he when you got him? Was there initial growth in your care before the current plateau?
 

TanktheTortoise3

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How old/big was he when you got him? Was there initial growth in your care before the current plateau?
We got him 8 months ago and he was around 4 months. He weighed 48 grams and was growing pretty steadily for 3-4 months before he stopped at 65. However, it stumped me because nothing changed from when he was growing well to now mostly, just the numbers don’t come back the same.
 

TammyJ

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We need to see some pictures of him and his enclosure, and get details of his diet, temps, humidity etc.
 

TanktheTortoise3

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Two lights a mercury vapor bulb and ceramic heat emitter. Has a humidifier to keep humidity. Multiple safe live plants. Coco fiber, spagnum moss and a forest floor bark almost like orchard bark that I don’t remember the name of. 78-85 F during day and 72-78 F at night. Stays high 75% to 90% humidity. Diet of lots of collard greens, sometimes romaine lettuce, dandelion greens, banana, strawberries, Mazuri, mango and other occasional foods I found are safe. 40G tank.0693018B-3F56-484B-9567-B504F6EB9CC0.jpeg720ADCC9-5ECE-41D8-A771-2E25A49C832B.jpegFD269597-9EB9-4ED9-96D1-8603CDD02C0D.jpeg
 

TammyJ

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He is perhaps a bit too cold at night. Put the night temperature the same as the day one. Other than that I can't think of anything but give him more time and maybe more protein in his diet.
 

ZEROPILOT

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That MVB light should be removed and replaced by a T5 ho 5.0 uvb strip florescent lamp.
The MVB doesn't provide reliable UVB. The lighting is super bright/harsh and they desicate tortoise carapace. That's why you see some pyramiding.
Also, the moss is dangerous. It can get eaten and it does not get digested. Causing serious gut issues.

Aside from that aquarium being way too small, your temperatures aren't awful. (The nighttime and daytime temps should be similar).
Its my belief that with Redfoot, a few degrees too cool is MUCH safer than a few degrees too high. With 83 being my target temperature 24/7.
The feeding seems OK and so does the humidity. The fact that he eats and drinks normally is fantastic.
What are you weighing your tort with? Do you have a small, digital scale?
If it were mine, I'd relax about the overall weight gains as long as the tort eats, drinks and seems otherwise healthy
 
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TanktheTortoise3

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That MVB light should be removed and replaced by a T5 ho 5.0 uvb strip florescent lamp.
The MVB doesn't provide reliable UVB. The lighting is super bright/harsh and they desicate tortoise carapace. That's why you see some pyramiding.
Also, the moss is dangerous. It can get eaten and it does not get digested. Causing serious gut issues.

Aside from that aquarium being way too small, your temperatures aren't awful. (The nighttime and daytime temps should be similar).
Its my belief that with Redfoot, a few degrees too cool is MUCH safer than a few degrees too high. With 83 being my target temperature 24/7.
The feeding seems OK and so does the humidity. The fact that he eats and drinks normally is fantastic.
What are you weighing your tort with? Do you have a small, digital scale?
If it were mine, I'd relax about the overall weight gains as long as the tort eats, drinks and seems otherwise healthy
Thank you very much. I removed all visible moss as there wasn’t very much in to start. I do way my tortoise with a small digital kitchen scale. I also believed that a 40 gallon starting tank was not to small for babies ad I saw another member started theirs in one, but I guess I didn’t read or right or took the wrong person information. I will also bring the nighttime temps up. Would this fluorescent strip light work or is it too small, the wrong brand, or too low wattage? I really appreciate the response and criticism to see how I can do better as an owner.6611990C-4E94-4077-B6A8-BA1801DE87C4.jpeg
 

ZEROPILOT

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Thank you very much. I removed all visible moss as there wasn’t very much in to start. I do way my tortoise with a small digital kitchen scale. I also believed that a 40 gallon starting tank was not to small for babies ad I saw another member started theirs in one, but I guess I didn’t read or right or took the wrong person information. I will also bring the nighttime temps up. Would this fluorescent strip light work or is it too small, the wrong brand, or too low wattage? I really appreciate the response and criticism to see how I can do better as an owner.View attachment 345473
Yes
That is a good choice for a Redfoot
I suggest using your CHE day and night since there is no light. Just warmth
 

newt

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ma
Hello all,
I have a pet redfoot tortoise named Tank that has not gained weight in a very long time—almost 4 months. I made a similar post a couple of months ago, but most responses said if he keeps eating, being active, and going to the bathroom he should take off soon, and he was doing this, but never did take off in weight. He remains at a weight of 65 grams. However, he seems like a healthy tortoise from what I have read, being very active, eating, solid and brown poop, and no visual discharge. He still eat and drinks daily along with being soaked everyday. He has slightly slowed down pooping, going from once a day to once every other day to now sometimes just 2-3 times a week. This varies by week however and will get on routines going everyday again. One thing I did notice though, was that he ate a lot, but had huge poops about 2x the size of his head, maybe meaning he didn’t fully digest and get the nutrients out of his food. Despite the good things, I feel this weight should still be a red flag. I am no expert on tortoise weights so I wrote a lot trying to see what other experts think about it. Responses would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you,
The owner of Tank the tortoise
I would try to get it more natural sunlight since outdoor temp has been high enough. But be careful don’t cook it. The large poop is very much likely due to less frequent pooping.
 

Cpassmore

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Mine stalls at weights sometimes..I'd be more worried if they are losing weight compared to not gaining
 

Yvonne G

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See if you can find someplace to buy small quantities of Mazuri Tortoise Diet. That's pretty good for getting a tortoise to gain weight.
 

TanktheTortoise3

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See if you can find someplace to buy small quantities of Mazuri Tortoise Diet. That's pretty good for getting a tortoise to gain weight.
Yes I do have mazuri and that is by far his favorite food to eat. He comes running every time he sees it out. I have been feeding that more as well due to him liking it so much so I will continue. I just don’t won’t to feed it too much to still give him variety in his diet. Also as an update I have been using the fluorescent tube light recommended as well as following all other recommendations made and it seems to already be making a difference with my tortoise Tank being even more active and eating more. He also starting to gain small amounts of weight reaching the 70-75 gram range that he had never been able to get to, after about a month. Thank you all for the advice.
 

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