Redfoot hatchling- all okay?

[Hjmledman]

I have a few questions. I've read multiple posts and watched videos about how to handle a hatchling during the first week. I'm on week 2 and wondering what's next... here's the progress.

- Kept him in an incubator with the other eggs for the first week. Humidity around 80-90% using a hygrometer. Temps at 86.
- Placed in a plastic container inside the incubator with damp paper towels, one of which made a "donut." Several days in, I added a hide. Changing paper towels daily.
- His yolk sac almost totally absorbed and he ate some lettuce yesterday. Gave him a quick bath/soak, but didn't leave him in too long. Not sure if that's bad for the remaining yolk sac. He ate one of the varieties of lettuce and left the other.

My questions...

1) Can I soak him now or will it hurt the little bit of remaining yolk sac?
2) Is the yolk sac in this photo looking good?
3) Should I move him out to his own habitat this week and add UV? I've read some places that say to keep them in the incubator for a month.
4) He seems to have a wrinkle in his shell near his head. Is this normal or caused by excess humidity or something else? Will it grow out straight?
5) Can I host a supervised visit with his mom? 😆 She just laid some more eggs and seemed depressed after I took them out of her substrate (3rd clutch). Thought a visit with her new (first) baby might cheer her up. I would not leave them alone together.

Grateful for any help you experienced breeders can offer!

 

[mojo_1]

I have a few questions. I've read multiple posts and watched videos about how to handle a hatchling during the first week. I'm on week 2 and wondering what's next... here's the progress.

- Kept him in an incubator with the other eggs for the first week. Humidity around 80-90% using a hygrometer. Temps at 86.
- Placed in a plastic container inside the incubator with damp paper towels, one of which made a "donut." Several days in, I added a hide. Changing paper towels daily.
- His yolk sac almost totally absorbed and he ate some lettuce yesterday. Gave him a quick bath/soak, but didn't leave him in too long. Not sure if that's bad for the remaining yolk sac. He ate one of the varieties of lettuce and left the other.

My questions...

1) Can I soak him now or will it hurt the little bit of remaining yolk sac?
2) Is the yolk sac in this photo looking good?
3) Should I move him out to his own habitat this week and add UV? I've read some places that say to keep them in the incubator for a month.
4) He seems to have a wrinkle in his shell near his head. Is this normal or caused by excess humidity or something else? Will it grow out straight?
5) Can I host a supervised visit with his mom? 😆 She just laid some more eggs and seemed depressed after I took them out of her substrate (3rd clutch). Thought a visit with her new (first) baby might cheer her up. I would not leave them alone together.

Grateful for any help you experienced breeders can offer!

I can't answer any of the breeder questions. To the best of my knowledge I don't think reptiles of any Species care for a Vist from there offspring. In most cases they try to kill or eat them.

 

[Maggie3fan]

Please separate the male and female, it is not healthy for her to keep laying clutch after clutch. That is simply my personal opinion.
The wrinkle will flatten out as the carapace hardens.
You are putting human feelings on an animal. She doesn't care about any offspring....
Are you selling or giving away the hatchlings? Not being nosy. If you are selling the babies and that is working out for you and the babies, guess you won't separate the parents. But be careful of her health...

 

[Hjmledman]

Please separate the male and female, it is not healthy for her to keep laying clutch after clutch. That is simply my personal opinion.
The wrinkle will flatten out as the carapace hardens.
You are putting human feelings on an animal. She doesn't care about any offspring....
Are you selling or giving away the hatchlings? Not being nosy. If you are selling the babies and that is working out for you and the babies, guess you won't separate the parents. But be careful of her health...

Thank you, yes, I'm concerned about her as well. We've separated them at different times when he seems overly "interested." I've read that we should have 2 females to every male, but I don't think our indoor setup is big enough for that. So, I'm not willing to add another tort until we can expand our space or finalize a huge permanent structure outdoors. We are working on that now, and I'll probably be able to add another tort later this year. That said, she has plenty of places to hide in their existing setup, and I work from home so I can keep tabs on when he's getting crazy and she needs a break. I have a second space to put him in for times like that.

We are giving away the babies to a couple of friends, not trying to start a business. We just wanted to add extra torts to hang with our male since they are generally communal.

She only lays 2 eggs per clutch, but this time, her clutches were laid back to back! I didn't know they could do that every 14-16 weeks until this last one surprised me. Previously, they were about 6 mos or a year apart. How many are too many clutches per year?

 

[Maggie3fan]

Hmmm Tortoises are not "communal". They are solitary animals getting together only to breed, then the male moves on...they make 2 to 5 clutches a year with 8 eggs or less...

 

[Hjmledman]

Hmmm Tortoises are not "communal". They are solitary animals getting together only to breed, then the male moves on...they make 2 to 5 clutches a year with 8 eggs or less...

Thanks for the info on the clutches. I guess I should have looked that up! Lol! Also, I agree that most tortoise species are not communal, but redfoots are unique in that regard, at least as far as I've read and researched. They are communal and social. In the wild, they are frequently found living and traveling in groups. Our male exhibits extremely social behaviors, which is why we decided to get him a "friend" when I started working more and handling him less.

Do you know anything about the yolk sac or the soaking him at this stage? 😬 Thanks for all your insight so far!

 

[mojo_1]

Thanks for the info on the clutches. I guess I should have looked that up! Lol! Also, I agree that most tortoise species are not communal, but redfoots are unique in that regard, at least as far as I've read and researched. They are communal and social. In the wild, they are frequently found living and traveling in groups. Our male exhibits extremely social behaviors, which is why we decided to get him a "friend" when I started working more and handling him less.

Do you know anything about the yolk sac or the soaking him at this stage? 😬 Thanks for all your insight so far!

In close quarters I don't think that's true. Redfoots are little A-holes just like the rest of the tort nation when it comes to personal space. All tortoises do tend to get along when there's more then 2 of them. But they don't need a friend to talk with.