Sick pancake

rrhoblit

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Mar 5, 2020
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California
I have a pancake hatchling hatched late Feb I think. I have owned a couple months now and she has been sick for three weeks or so. She looks very dry and has a lot of what looks like hard water around her mouth. Her eyelids are swollen. I have taken her to a very knowledge reptile vet who said she had an upper respiratory and put her on antibiotics. She has had four doses of injectable fortaz so far with no improvement. We recently added meloxicam and eye drops which still haven’t change much. She is in a 48x32 terrarium with a full tank T5 10.0 UVB bulb, CHE and a night heat bulb. She is on ecoearth substrate. Heat on the hot side is mid to low 90s. I originally had heat around 95-98 when she first got sick but was advised to lower the temp. Temp at night is around 72. Cool side is between 72-75. Humidity was around 60% when she got sick. I bought a misting system which I have set to go off twice a day raising the humidity to 75-80%. I have a humid hide and multiple regular hides. I soak her everyday for 45 minutes. She gets calcium 4 times a week and vitamins once a week. Since she has been sick, she has been getting calcium everyday per the vet. She is still fairly active and is still eating well. My vet is not sure what to do next. I need some advice. Trying to schedule an appt with UCD but it is slightly difficult with COVID. 8DADDCC5-B945-44EB-A51D-75B21AC45F88.jpeg5215998A-D3B7-47DC-AD48-D9CDD6F5F11B.jpegC1822A5A-B717-43C6-B35D-17CC62EA98DF.jpeg
 

Tom

The Dog Trainer
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Cool side and night temps are too low. Minimum 80 day or night, and dark at night.

You mentioned your UV tube, a CHE and a night bulb. You are missing the basking bulb.

There are four elements to heating and lighting:
1. Basking lamp. I recommend a low wattage flood bulb set on a timer and over to one side. Adjust the wattage and bulb height to get the correct temperature of 95-100 directly under it. This should be on a time for about 12 hours a day.
2. Ambient light. I like LEDs for this. You can use strips or screw in type LED bulbs. Choose LEDs in the 5000-6500K color range. The 2500K ones look too yellowish. This can run on the same timer as the basking bulb.
3. Ambient heat. CHE or RHP on a thermostat should cover this. Use more than one, if needed.
4. UV. If you can get your baby outside in a safe outdoor enclosure a couple of times a week for most of the year, you don't need indoor UV. If you want it anyway, get one of the HO types. I'd do this on about half of the enclosure. In your 6 footer, I'd get the 22" HO tube and mount it over to one side. I'd run it for 3-4 hours mid day. When used in this way, I like to get a UV index reading from a Solarmeter 6.5 of around 5-7. This simulates the mid day UV spike that happens every day outside.

The care is the same for pancakes:
 

Yvonne G

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Until the tortoise is better, and during the administering of antibiotics, you should set the tortoise up in a smaller, hospital tank. . . something you can cover. Bump up the temperature to 85F day and night all over the whole tank, and keep the environment moist.
 

rrhoblit

New Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2020
Messages
21
Location (City and/or State)
California
Cool side and night temps are too low. Minimum 80 day or night, and dark at night.

You mentioned your UV tube, a CHE and a night bulb. You are missing the basking bulb.

There are four elements to heating and lighting:
1. Basking lamp. I recommend a low wattage flood bulb set on a timer and over to one side. Adjust the wattage and bulb height to get the correct temperature of 95-100 directly under it. This should be on a time for about 12 hours a day.
2. Ambient light. I like LEDs for this. You can use strips or screw in type LED bulbs. Choose LEDs in the 5000-6500K color range. The 2500K ones look too yellowish. This can run on the same timer as the basking bulb.
3. Ambient heat. CHE or RHP on a thermostat should cover this. Use more than one, if needed.
4. UV. If you can get your baby outside in a safe outdoor enclosure a couple of times a week for most of the year, you don't need indoor UV. If you want it anyway, get one of the HO types. I'd do this on about half of the enclosure. In your 6 footer, I'd get the 22" HO tube and mount it over to one side. I'd run it for 3-4 hours mid day. When used in this way, I like to get a UV index reading from a Solarmeter 6.5 of around 5-7. This simulates the mid day UV spike that happens every day outside.

The care is the same for pancakes:
Thank you for the info. The UV bulb is an HO. My CHE is my basking bulb. I’ll add another heating element to the cool side to get it to 80 degrees and get a higher wattage for the hot side.
 

Tom

The Dog Trainer
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Thank you for the info. The UV bulb is an HO. My CHE is my basking bulb. I’ll add another heating element to the cool side to get it to 80 degrees and get a higher wattage for the hot side.
CHEs are for maintaining ambient temperatures. Basking lights need to emit light.
 

rrhoblit

New Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2020
Messages
21
Location (City and/or State)
California
Cool side and night temps are too low. Minimum 80 day or night, and dark at night.

You mentioned your UV tube, a CHE and a night bulb. You are missing the basking bulb.

There are four elements to heating and lighting:
1. Basking lamp. I recommend a low wattage flood bulb set on a timer and over to one side. Adjust the wattage and bulb height to get the correct temperature of 95-100 directly under it. This should be on a time for about 12 hours a day.
2. Ambient light. I like LEDs for this. You can use strips or screw in type LED bulbs. Choose LEDs in the 5000-6500K color range. The 2500K ones look too yellowish. This can run on the same timer as the basking bulb.
3. Ambient heat. CHE or RHP on a thermostat should cover this. Use more than one, if needed.
4. UV. If you can get your baby outside in a safe outdoor enclosure a couple of times a week for most of the year, you don't need indoor UV. If you want it anyway, get one of the HO types. I'd do this on about half of the enclosure. In your 6 footer, I'd get the 22" HO tube and mount it over to one side. I'd run it for 3-4 hours mid day. When used in this way, I like to get a UV index reading from a Solarmeter 6.5 of around 5-7. This simulates the mid day UV spike that happens every day outside.

The care is the same for pancakes:
I am confused on the ambient light. My UVB bulb emits light. What is the goal of the ambient light? Plus the basking bulb will emit light? Is that not good enough?
 
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