tortoise not eating...

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SirSkinksAlot

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Hey everyone, I'm new to these forums because Saturday I bought a male and a female home's hing back tortoises. :) (at least that's what the lady said) They both seem to be healthy, they both feel heavy and solid and don't have bubbles coming from their eyes or noses. The reason I'm posting this is because I'm just wondering when they should start eating. I know they are very stressed right about now. The female did eat some strawberry. So any replies would be great. (By the way, don't ask about the name lol). I can try and post pics of their encloser. Its a 40 gallon. I'm just keeping them in there till I can get their outdoor encloser set up.

Thanks,
Tanner
 

Redfoot NERD

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Tanner they are very unique tortoises.. requirements: very humid.. temps LOW 70's.. NO LIGHTS - they DO NOT bask.. piles of leaves etc. to hide in.

Kristina will be along soon with her caresheet.

NERD
 

Yvonne G

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Hi Tanner:

(What's with the name? :p )

Welcome to the Tortoise Forum!!

May we know where you are?
 

Laura

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post pics when you can so we can be sure what you have....
Have you tried worms? But they probably just need to adjust...
keep it quiet and they may come around...
 

SirSkinksAlot

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Thanks for the replies. I can post pics but I'm positive they are home's. I live in north eastern kansas. And I have piles of leaves, I do have a basking spot light that gets to about 85. I have uvb/uva and a hide for them. I will try worms. I have a black light I put on them at night. Should I keep that on them all the time? And do I need uvb/uva? And btw I have I have kept turtles/tortoises before so I'm not a complete noob at this I just haven't been able to find a complete care sheet.
Thanks,
Tanner
 

Laura

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Ive heard that these guys like it wet and darker...no need to bask.. someone told me that thier eyes are so big because they 'hunt' at night. I dont really know... but go dig a night crawler up and see if he likes that!
 

SirSkinksAlot

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Ok ill try to make it wet and humid but if there's no basking spot what sould I do for heat? A ceramic heat emitter? I just put a night crawler in there for them. They don't seem to be interested yet but ill give them some time. Also what should their diet be? More vegies less meat or more meat less vegies?

Thanks,
Tanner
 

SirSkinksAlot

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Bath time is the only time I've seen both come alive. The night crawlers don't seem to be interesting them. I'm working on making their outdoor encloser. Its getting to about 100 degrees every day though. Is that to hot? If you were to keep your Home's indoors what type of lighting would you use?

Thanks,
Tanner
 

SirSkinksAlot

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I'm not handling except to give them a warm bath.

Ok so no lighting. I have a heat emitter and a uvb light. Do I need a uvb light?
 

egyptiandan

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No you won't need the UVB light. :) and at this time of year you won't need the heat emitter (save that for late fall, winter and early spring).
Make sure they can hide from each other in your enclosure. For hingebacks thats a bit to hot to be putting them outside. But keep building your outside enclosure and you can use it when temperatures are in the mid 80's or lower. Make sure you plant it well so there is lots of cover to hide in and under. You can go with a diet of 40% vegetables, 40% fruit and 20% protein. I would go more with a large water dish in the enclosure as opposed to baths. This way they aren't picked up much (if at all) and it will add humidity to your enclosure (all good things for hingebacks :D)

Danny
 

SirSkinksAlot

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Ok much better reply than the other person, thank you. I have a large water dish that they can easily get in and out of. its about mid 60's in my basement (where I'm kepping them) that's not to cool is it? Ill keep up with offering food. Ill work on getting another hide so they both have one.

Thanks a lot,
Tanner
 

SirSkinksAlot

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I forgot to mention, when I gave my male a bath he defecated and it looked slimey or like mucus with green in the center. What could this be?
 

Redfoot NERD

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SirSkinksAlot said:
Ok much better reply than the other person, thank you. I have a large water dish that they can easily get in and out of. its about mid 60's in my basement (where I'm kepping them) that's not to cool is it? Ill keep up with offering food. Ill work on getting another hide so they both have one.

Thanks a lot,
Tanner

Tanner I showed you what Danny just said earlier by the link to the thread.. did you not look at it? All of your questions have been answered and even told you what not to do - giving them a bath for example just scares the poop out of them! Provide a water source and leave them alone.

Everytime you touch them it just takes that much longer for them to adjust to their new surroundings! Handling them stresses them which upsets their system and does allow their immune system to deal with anything that could compromise their health.

Kristina has written a caresheet about her Homes-- I've looked and can't seem to find it.. PM her here and ask her to send you a link to it [ tell her I suggested it ] - http://www.tortoiseforum.org/private.php?action=send&uid=1743

NERD
 

SirSkinksAlot

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I dd look at the link but that wasn't answering my questions. I'm only trying to provide the best care possible for them and if that means not handling them then I would like someone to tell me but not like the way you told me.
 

Redfoot NERD

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SirSkinksAlot said:
I dd look at the link but that wasn't answering my questions. I'm only trying to provide the best care possible for them and if that means not handling them then I would like someone to tell me but not like the way you told me.

Must have been too straight forward and to the point? - maybe you just need to accept things as face value.. not everyone is going to explain everything - because there are too many variables! 'Spose it would be best to listen to someone who actually cares for them.. here and now? I'm the only one that has replied so far that actually cares for them.. others [ at best ] maybe in the past. My replies were based on you claiming you had experience.. so I showed you.

Since there are so few keeping the Kinixys there is very little written on them - do your homework and SEARCH Kinixys homeona.

Like others have said also [ again ] keep them quite and hands off.
 

Yvonne G

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SirSkinksAlot said:
I dd look at the link but that wasn't answering my questions. I'm only trying to provide the best care possible for them and if that means not handling them then I would like someone to tell me but not like the way you told me.

Please don't take offense at the way Redfoot Nerd posts. He's very passionate about his tortoises and doesn't mince words. We'd rather have you stay here and get good advice, then be offended and leave. I don't know why Kristina or Jacqui haven't posted here, but I'll send them a PM to be sure they see this thread.
 

Jacqui

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Hi! Sorry for the delay, I haven't had computer usage for a bit.

First off welcome to the great world of tortoises and even better one of hingebacks. :D I live in Nebraska, so sorta in the same general area.

Just give me a few minutes to read back over your questions and most more for you, ok?


SirSkinksAlot said:
Hey everyone, I'm new to these forums because Saturday I bought a male and a female home's hing back tortoises. :) (at least that's what the lady said) They both seem to be healthy, they both feel heavy and solid and don't have bubbles coming from their eyes or noses.
Welcome Tanner! If you post pictures down the road we can perhaps help you make sure they are a pair, most likely the Homes ID will be correct. They sound good so far! Are they your first ever tortoises? Figure you may have skinks?

SirSkinksAlot said:
The reason I'm posting this is because I'm just wondering when they should start eating. I know they are very stressed right about now. The female did eat some strawberry.
Good she did eat something! These guys can be at time hard to get eating, so be prepared to celebrate small steps. However, maybe you will get lucky and yours will quickly start eating. a lot depends on how much stress they have had along the way and another biggie to me is how well kept they have been since captivity (such as high humidity and ability to soak).

First off, make sure you have them in a quieter location in your home while they are adjusting. Place their feed dish right outside their hide for them to feel even more secure. These guys tend to be more active and eat better in the early morning and later evening hours. Spraying them down (and the enclosure) just before feeding can help. If soaking them doesn't bother them too much, you could soak them first too. That's kinda a judgement call, which I would base a lot on if they are using their water dish on their own right now.

They tend to prefer low light, like you would naturally have in your home. Shop lights with the bright kitchen light bulbs are what I mainly use, when and if I feel they need them. Usually they get by without added lights.

Start with offering them the most common normal favorite foods: mushrooms, worms, cooked sweet potato, muskmelon, and papaya. They tend to like their fruit ripe, so keep that in mind. A little banana is okay, but be sure not to let them get hooked on it. Certainly also wont hurt to try some baby foods, once more the ones like sweet potato and carrots. Bright reds, oranges, and yellow foods tend to catch their eye better.




SirSkinksAlot said:
Thanks for the replies. I can post pics but I'm positive they are home's. I live in north eastern kansas. And I have piles of leaves, I do have a basking spot light that gets to about 85. I have uvb/uva and a hide for them. I will try worms. I have a black light I put on them at night. Should I keep that on them all the time? And do I need uvb/uva? And btw I have I have kept turtles/tortoises before so I'm not a complete noob at this I just haven't been able to find a complete care sheet.
the leaves will be a nice addition for them! I keep no loghts on mine at night. You might want two hides in there, as they do use them a lot. You may even want to put those leaves into one of them. You could no doubt go without the UV. Is it a high wattage? If not, you could still use it one on end. Some of them do actually enjoy basking a little, but the key is to keep the overall level of light down. Pretty much what we have naturally in our homes (if the curtains are kept open) tends to work well for them. Good you have had tortoises before, what kind(s)? Redfoot maybe? They are fairly close to them in needs.



SirSkinksAlot said:
Ok ill try to make it wet and humid but if there's no basking spot what sould I do for heat? A ceramic heat emitter? I just put a night crawler in there for them. They don't seem to be interested yet but ill give them some time. Also what should their diet be? More vegies less meat or more meat less vegies?
IF your temps are too low, then yes, a ceramic heat emitter works well. Often depending on your house's temps, you may need little or no outside heating especially this time of year.

I would always offer them some greens, but it often not something they tend to like to eat. I believe I recall seeing Danny gave you what would be an idea percentage amount to strive for. Right now, until they are eating good, the most important thing is getting them to eat and not worry about balancing the diet at all.




SirSkinksAlot said:
I have a large water dish that they can easily get in and out of. its about mid 60's in my basement (where I'm kepping them) that's not to cool is it? Ill keep up with offering food. Ill work on getting another hide so they both have one.

Good, the water dish is one of the most important things for them to have. You will find they naturally go there often and soak for a considerable amount of time each day. So it needs to be deep enough to allow them to soak well along with easy in and out.

60s in a bit on the cool side. If you use your CHE (ceramic heat emitter) what temp does it get it up to? Once more use this on one end, not in the middle.






SirSkinksAlot said:
I forgot to mention, when I gave my male a bath he defecated and it looked slimey or like mucus with green in the center. What could this be?

It could be caused from stress and his diet. It also could likely be from parasites, but I would want to get my hingebacks eating and accumulated a bit before stressing them with worming meds, if possible. It would be a good idea in the near future to have a stool check done by your Vet.



SirSkinksAlot said:
I dd look at the link but that wasn't answering my questions. I'm only trying to provide the best care possible for them and if that means not handling them then I would like someone to tell me but not like the way you told me.

Nerd is correct, with hingebacks especially, handling them may cause more stress. I am sure tho you are keeping handling down to the basics, such as when you soaked them (if you even need to soak them).

Tanner keep in mind you haven't had them for long and they have been thru a lot. Give them time to relax. The female is eating which is a very important step, eating more and a wider variety will come. The male is just being a bit slower. Just keep trying.

If he still isn't eating in another week or two (you did said they are good weight, right?), then start using the babyfood in the soaking water.

Tanner we all want these guys to do well for you and we are all trying to help each in our own way. Be patient with us and with your tortoises.
 

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Keep in mind that when Jacqui says that your tortoises have been through a lot she really means it. First they lived in the wild where they had to worry about all sorts of predators; several of my hingebacks have damage from being chewed on. They were unceremoniously scooped up out of the wild by large primate predators (people). Before they were sold for export they could have been "stored" by hanging them by a string from one of their back legs. http://www.arkive.org/serrated-hinge-back-tortoise/kinixys-erosa/image-G28506.html Then dozens of them were packed up in tiny boxes for shipping. Many sustained physical damage, often lethal, from being poorly packed. Others succumbed to dehydration or diseases/parasites exacerbated by stress. The ones that survive to be sold as pets are tough little critters, but it should come as no surprise if they don't want to have anything to do with you for at least a little while!

Keep following the advice you have been given thus far. Hingebacks are great little tortoises. And I apologize if I sound a little like a nutty animal rights activist... I do wish the importation process was more pleasant, but I think it is important for you to understand why you have been emphatically urged not to handle your tortoises.
 
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