RT not eating properly

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3appleshigh

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So the past week cooper just hasn't been herself, she's been off her food, not really interested in walking around in or out of her enclosure, all she seems to want to do is bury under her log hide, she did take a little food earlier, so I feel a little better, but still concerned. I've been soaking her and letting her walk on my kitchen floor (usually her favourite place for a bowl movement!) but so far nothing. Any ideas what could be wrong? She's in a 2.5 ft x 2.5 ft viv ... Which I know is far to small, but it's only temporary, plus she gets lots of outdoor time. Her temperatures are 95f under the hotspot 85f on the cool side. Could she be trying to hibernate? I've only had her since June so I'm not planning on hibernating her this year, she's supposed to be around 9 months, however when I posted a photo of her previously a few people commented she looked bigger/older than that
 

Laurie

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Your enclosure is too hot. Cool side should be more like 70* , night time even cooler. When you do not have a big enough enclosure you cannot create the temperature gradient you need. Your tortoise isnt trying to hibernate, you are over heating her.

Get a larger enclosure ASAP, until then you can try toggling the light on and off to cool it down. I'm unsure of your setup, can you raise the light? Switch to a lower wattage? I would also suggest soaking if you're not already doing so because he/she is probably going to be dehydrated due to overheating.
 

3appleshigh

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Thanks for you reply, I made a typo with the temperature, the cool side is 75f ...which is still to warm, however I was trying to lower the temperature gradually, the petshop I got her from had the ambient temperature at 90F which they say is what the breeder had advised them to keep it at, so I didn't want to lower it to fast she only stopped eating when I started turning the heat bulb off at night the temperature drops to around 65F-68F The past two nights I've left her heat bulb on at night at she is showing an interest in eating again.
Regarding her vivarium, when I got her I had a 4ft x 3.5ft bookcase that my partner attached a hardboard base to and moved the shelves to create a hide area, the instant she was in it she appeared to hate it, was constanly bashing against the perimeter and constantly stalking around it, she also refused to eat, so we tried her in a spare viv I had (the one she's in now) as it was a near replica of the one she was in at the pet shop and she instantly calmed down and started eating after a few weeks, once she was settled into a routine we tried her in the makeshift tortoise table ...and again she freaked out, I know it sounds strange but I think she likes to look out, so eventually we put her back into the vivarium and all was fine until last week when I tried reducing the temperature at night.
The vivarium she's in has a mesh top so heat can escape I have a 2ft UVB 10% strip along the top and a 50 Watt red heat bulb specifically for reptiles in a far corner. Her substrate is mix of 80% top soil 20% calcium sand she has a variety of edible plants in there and a hide in the centre of the viv. I've been soaking her daily, I live in the uk and we're having particularly bad weather at the moment so she hasn't had any outdoor time this week
Laurie said:
Your enclosure is too hot. Cool side should be more like 70* , night time even cooler. When you do not have a big enough enclosure you cannot create the temperature gradient you need. Your tortoise isnt trying to hibernate, you are over heating her.

Get a larger enclosure ASAP, until then you can try toggling the light on and off to cool it down. I'm unsure of your setup, can you raise the light? Switch to a lower wattage? I would also suggest soaking if you're not already doing so because he/she is probably going to be dehydrated due to overheating.





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I know it's far from a perfect set up, but I'm really trying to make it suitable until her larger viv gets here
 

lynnedit

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Sounds like you have worked hard with her. I do think torts can sense the weather outside. Perhaps she is looking for some down time for a few days. If she has been healthy up to now, and nose/eyes/breathing are ok, and she pooped/peed up to recently, perhaps let her be for 3-4 days, then give her a good soak.
Maybe the weather will be better again and she can have some outside time.
Turn off all heat at night, they can tolerate temps down to the 50's at night and seem to prefer the temp gradient. See if you can get the cool side a bit cooler as Laurie suggests.
 

3appleshigh

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She's slowly returning back to her normal self, still no sign of bowel movements but I guess Its possible she's eating them, though that's not something she's previously done. She'll eat if I offer it to her by hand or if I bring the food to her (lazy madam!) I have bought a 25 watt bulb and lowered it, so the coolest area is now 70F I couldn't get a red night bulb with that wattage so settled for a sunglo one.
Also, we have sun in the uk! So she's had a long walk around the garden after her soak this morning that she had alfresco



image-3369602882.png
 

3appleshigh

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Here a few more photos from earlier today :)
03.09.2012.jpg03.09.2012 2.jpg03.09.2012 3.jpg
 
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lynnedit

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She looks good; clear eyed, etc. Giving them some outside time seems essential. Seems to bring them to life.

Do you have 'kiddie pools' or sandboxes at Home Supply stores in the UK on sale right now? Make sure the sides are tall enough, or add a screened lid. Just fill with plain garden soil. If it will be exposed to rain, drill several large holes and raise it up on some wood or bricks to promote drainage. Good time to buy, even if there isn't much time left this year to use it. It will set you up nicely for next year.

She looks older than 9 months. What is her length? (put her up against a wall on the floor and mark the end of her shell, then measure. Not an absolute way to determine age, but you can get a general idea.
 

3appleshigh

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I tried using her homemade tortoise table outdoors, but she hates being confined in it,so at the moment her out door time consists of freerange roaming around the garden, we've secured the fence all around and dug down about 12 inches with wire mesh to hopefully prevent any escapes, We still monitor her whilst she's out, so we can't go out and leave her. I will keep preserving with the tortoise table, and see if she gets used to it, but it definitely appears as though she likes to be able to see out - contradicting the usual Russian rules!
Length wise she is 3" and 114 grams, there is another thread called 'boy or girl?' (imaginative title!) with a few photos with a tape measure
 
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