BassMaster4379
Member
I recently soaked my Russian hatchlings and I weighed them at the same time. Over the last month, one of my hatchlings has lost weight, about 2 grams.
This had me concerned, so I checked him out and didn't see any signs of illness or injuries; however, when I checked his shell by VERY gently squeezing him on the sides and then again on the top and bottom, I noticed his shell has a lot more "give" to it compared to the other two.
Obviously, I didn't apply a lot of pressure because I certainly didn't want to hurt, but there was a noticeable difference in how "flexible" his shell was compared to the other two.
I see him eat every day and I have the necessary UVB and heat lights for them. I also use a calcium supplement with D3 on their food 2-3 times per week.
Does anyone know if this is something I should be concerned about? His shell is hard to the touch if I just pet him on the top shell and it feels the same as the other two.
Maybe I'm worried about nothing, but his weight loss is a little concerning as well. I feed them dark leafy greens and rotate between, mustard greens, turnip greens, collard greens, kale, and dandelion greens. We also give them Mazuri Small Tortoise Diet LS 1-2 times per week.
Does he need a vet visit or am I doing something wrong that I need to fix? He used to be the most active of all three hatchlings and it seems recently that he has become the least active now. I'm really worried about the little guy...
This had me concerned, so I checked him out and didn't see any signs of illness or injuries; however, when I checked his shell by VERY gently squeezing him on the sides and then again on the top and bottom, I noticed his shell has a lot more "give" to it compared to the other two.
Obviously, I didn't apply a lot of pressure because I certainly didn't want to hurt, but there was a noticeable difference in how "flexible" his shell was compared to the other two.
I see him eat every day and I have the necessary UVB and heat lights for them. I also use a calcium supplement with D3 on their food 2-3 times per week.
Does anyone know if this is something I should be concerned about? His shell is hard to the touch if I just pet him on the top shell and it feels the same as the other two.
Maybe I'm worried about nothing, but his weight loss is a little concerning as well. I feed them dark leafy greens and rotate between, mustard greens, turnip greens, collard greens, kale, and dandelion greens. We also give them Mazuri Small Tortoise Diet LS 1-2 times per week.
Does he need a vet visit or am I doing something wrong that I need to fix? He used to be the most active of all three hatchlings and it seems recently that he has become the least active now. I'm really worried about the little guy...