Sulcata Baby any info?

[pouncethecat2002]

Hi,
I recently got another tort,this one is a sulcata baby,has been eatting ok,soak him every day,seems to perk up more after i have soaked him,then eats some,the thing i notice differnt lately is his rubbing of his eyes,does any one know what could be wrong?,ive looked it up and alot seems to be signs of dehydration,but he doesnt really have any other symtoms.His area stays right around 80 degrees,and he doesnt hide in his burrow any more,i see him more out in the middle of his place now.He is around 4 or 5 monthes old,just a tiny guy still,and when i soak him it is in luke warm water,has been eatting dandelions,grass and grass hay,and some leafy lettus.I been sprinkleing some calium powder too on his greens once a week.Here is pic of him below,thank's.......

 

[Josh]

thats one cute tortoise.
check for wheezing. he could be developing a respiratory infection. do his eyes look irritated?

 

[pouncethecat2002]

thats one cute tortoise.
check for wheezing. he could be developing a respiratory infection. do his eyes look irritated?

I do hear i lttle clicking noise when i put him up to my ear,his eyes look to be a little puffy looking.Hmmmmm i hope he isnt getting respiratory infection!. ; (

 

[Iluvemturts]

Hi Pouncethecat, sounds like your doing a GREAT job in the food area.
Your tort needs a basking temp of 90 degrees and an area that is a cooler...
The clicking sound would concern me.. Boost up the basking spot and see if that helps.

http://www.chelonia.org/Articles/sulcatacare.htm

 

[pouncethecat2002]

Thank's for the info!,i will try that,do you know where i could get some eye drops?,he has puffy eyes too and keeps rubbing them.

 

[Iluvemturts]

you can use more warm soaks... I think you should take him in just in case.

 

[hulbertzoo]

I would take this little one to the vet. Once reptiles get sick, they loose ground pretty fast. Do you know a vet that specializes in reptiles? That is really important. Good Luck.

 

[Crazy1]

Hi, I don't have any sulcutas, but my Greeks (adults) started having some minimal eye swelling and runny noses. My Reptile vet could find nothing wrong. After three visits he told me to try a different substrate and that did the trick. I put them on turtle carpet and all the symptoms went away.
But I would definitely take him to a Rep Vet. Better safe than sorry.
Congratulations on your new tort, and I wish him/her all the best.

 

[pouncethecat2002]

Well the vet i took him to doesnt see anything wrong with mine either,and of course he was real lively when i took him in,he doesnt have a runny nose,his eyes are puffy still,says he could be allergic to something.The substrate i first used for him was timothy hay,then i added some grass hay,i wanted to start him on the grass hay because during the winter time here there wont be any grass for him to eat.I dont think i could use the turtle carpet because this little guy likes to burrow under the grass hay(right under the basking lamp),he seems to like that area better now.He has to hiding boxes to hide in but he perffers the hay to hide under.All i can think of is there was something in the grass hay that i added later on,so i guess all stick to the timothy hay for now.Thanks for all the info you guys,you were alot of help!.

 

[Bansh88]

Is he getting sunshine? Sunlight is the absolute best for ANY reptile.
Instead of constantly soaking him, let him have access to a shallow dish of water. Tortoises should stay dry.
Sometimes when tortoises soak (especially a forced soak) their eyelids can get kinda swollen and puffy, then thet rub them.

 

[pouncethecat2002]

Yes mine live mostly outside,excpt for the baby sulcata,i let him out for around 30 minutes a day,i soak him once a day,and he has free roam to water all the time,but yet have seen him drink out of his dish.Someone told me to soak him more,but i was told only to soak once a day for hatchings,so they dont become dhydrated.

 

[pouncethecat2002]

Hi,
Thanks for your info!,mine seems doing to be doing better now too,i give him a soak every day,and since ive had him i havnt seen him drinking yet,unless he is sneaking drinks in the morning when i am still sleeping!.What are you feeding yours Larigh?.