Sulcata age??

Celiagg

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Hello!
My sulcata Sheldon weighs only 3.1 oz and about 3.5 inches. When we Bought him the seller had no idea how old they were he only knew they were just born. Does anyone know how old he might be based on his weight and length?
Thank You
 

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Levi the Leopard

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Unfortunately, it's not that easy.

So many factors can affect their growth, hydration being one of them. I've seen dehydrated tortoises that were 8 months old with a known hatch date, yet they were still the size of a fresh hatchling. In contrast, I've seen properly hydrated tortoises that passed 3.5" in size very quickly.

The fact that your seller did not know the hatch date is unsettling and makes me wonder about your tortoises start in life. Was it housed on rabbit pellets? Was it soaked daily? Hmm..

Regardless, you have this cute little one now. So, congratulation! You've embarked on the journey to raise a living bulldozer. :tort: There are many sulcata keepers on TFO that share what they do and why. People have had great success raising them in warm humid conditions. It's worth looking into doing the same if you haven't already.
 

TammyJ

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Hi and welcome to the forum. Coming here was the best move you could have made to see your tortoise thrive!
 

Celiagg

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Thank you! I’m a happy tortoise parent. I’ve been reading non stop to Give him the best care I can possibly give. I know she doesn’t matter but if I can get a estimate it would be great that way I know if he is on a healthy path according g to weight and length..
 

Tom

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Hello!
My sulcata Sheldon weighs only 3.1 oz and about 3.5 inches. When we Bought him the seller had no idea how old they were he only knew they were just born. Does anyone know how old he might be based on his weight and length?
Thank You
I don't know ounces so I had to do the conversion to grams. 3.3 oz. is 93 grams. That tells us several things: This tortoise has roughly triple its hatch weight. This is a GREAT sign, and you are well past the point where they stall and eventually die. This tortoise should live a long happy life. The new growth looks pretty good, so it hasn't been kept overly dry. I would guess this tortoise to be around 3-4 months old.

They grow at wildly different rates, so any comparison to anyone else's growth rate is fruitless and frustrating. Just do your best to offer a good varied diet, house the baby the best you can, and keep it well hydrated. If you do these things, you should see steady growth weekly and monthly. Your growth rate is likely going to be different than mine or anyone else's, and that doesn't mean diddly squat.
 

Celiagg

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Yay!! I’m happy to hear that my Sheldon seems to be on the right path. I soak him daily and started planting some weeds/grasses in seedling trays for now since he is still small eventually that will
Change. My other question is does
This look like it’s ready for
Him to eat..
 

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ryan57

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PA
Hello!
My sulcata Sheldon weighs only 3.1 oz and about 3.5 inches. When we Bought him the seller had no idea how old they were he only knew they were just born. Does anyone know how old he might be based on his weight and length?
Thank You
I will guess about 2.5 months from my weight records (Sheldon is about 88 grams) if they told you it was relatively new. My 8.5 month sulcata was hatched early March 2022 and shipped to me 3 weeks later. Stump was 88 grams mid May 2022 which would be 2.5 months. On 11/8 Stump was 719 grams. One week later 11/15 801 grams. Today 11/17 819 grams. 18 grams in two days and at least 80 grams per week from this point on.
 
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