worried about taylor

[jazzywoo]

as you know taylor joined our family yesterday and im already worried

jazzy has sat and watched taylor for hours and hasnt really handled her to give her time to settle, taylor was given a nice warm bath this morning

but she hasnt eaten at all since we got her and has spent most of the time under the lamp sun bathing when we turned that off she went to her house dug a hole and hid now gone to sleep

i did place her in front of all the food but she turned around and plodded over to the lamp again should i be worreid when should i panic

thanks ann xx

 

[ChiKat]

Trust me, I know how easy it is to worry about these little guys!
I wouldn't worry about Taylor not eating. She's still getting settled in and I'm sure she's a little stressed out from all the change! I'm sure she'll be eating in a few days!
What foods have you offered her?
How does Jazzy like her new baby?

 

[Yvonne G]

Well, don't panic, but take the temperature reading all around on the floor inside the habitat. Sounds to me like Taylor isn't warm enough. They won't eat unless they can get their body core temperature upwards of 85 degrees.

You may have to cover part of the habitat to keep the heat inside.

 

[jazzywoo]

Trust me, I know how easy it is to worry about these little guys!
I wouldn't worry about Taylor not eating. She's still getting settled in and I'm sure she's a little stressed out from all the change! I'm sure she'll be eating in a few days!
What foods have you offered her?
How does Jazzy like her new baby?

i offered her the green salad mix , danderlion leaves , even tried cucumber and a tiny bit of tomato she looked at me as if im nuts and went back to sun bathing lol
jazzy totally adore taylor she just sits watching her for hours and reads and tells stories to her she strokes her shell now and agin but hasnt picked her up for a cuddle even though i know she is desperate to

Well, don't panic, but take the temperature reading all around on the floor inside the habitat. Sounds to me like Taylor isn't warm enough. They won't eat unless they can get their body core temperature upwards of 85 degrees.

You may have to cover part of the habitat to keep the heat inside.

under the lamp its been 30c+ if thats any help just been up stairs and its 23c light is off for bed time

 

[Yvonne G]

That's not warm enough. You should aim for the whole habitat to be at least 23c, then directly under the light it should be 43c, and then cooling a bit as you move away from the light. At night its ok for the whole habitat to be around 23c. Try to get your daytime temps up a bit.

 

[jazzywoo]

That's not warm enough. You should aim for the whole habitat to be at least 23c, then directly under the light it should be 43c, and then cooling a bit as you move away from the light. At night its ok for the whole habitat to be around 23c. Try to get your daytime temps up a bit.

how do i do that? i was toldlamp had tobe 30cm above where she sun bathes which it is would lowering it help ?
i know that maybe a stupid question but only thing i could think of

 

[Yvonne G]

No, you are misunderstanding what I'm saying. Your temp under the light, at 30c isn't warm enough. You need to have it be at least 43c under the light. That means to make it warmer, not cooler. Oh wait...you mean to lower the light. Duh...pardon my stupidity!! How far above the floor is it right now? If the package it came in said to have it about 12" above the floor and your are only achieving 30c, then you need a stronger light. What watt is your light?

 

[Stephanie Logan]

I don't know if you already have a Ceramic Heat Emitter in addition to your basking light, but I have to have both fixtures going to heat up Taco's enclosure to acceptable levels.

My 160-watt CHE is screwed into a Fluker's Clamp Lamp fixture, and is clipped to the side of the enclosure. With both fixtures on from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., the ambient temperature throughout the enclosure is at least 70 degrees, but I know babies need it even warmer. Taco's basking spot ranges from 40-42 celcius (105-110 Fahrenheit), directly under her CHE it's 26-27, and then it varies from 21-23 elsewhere in her enclosure. I also have a heating pad fastened to the outside vertical wall of her humid hide so the the temperature inside won't go below 18.

I recently decided that I want it to be a bit warmer so I just purchased another adjustable lamp stand, but the red light bulbs I bought arrived broken, so now I have to order some more. I may look for black light bulbs, since Maggie recommends those for heat without light.

Just keep tinkering and you'll find the right balance yet!

 

[Stephanie Logan]

http://tortoiseforum.org/thread-12747.html

Here is a great thread about "overfeeding"!

 

[jazzywoo]

No, you are misunderstanding what I'm saying. Your temp under the light, at 30c isn't warm enough. You need to have it be at least 43c under the light. That means to make it warmer, not cooler. Oh wait...you mean to lower the light. Duh...pardon my stupidity!! How far above the floor is it right now? If the package it came in said to have it about 12" above the floor and your are only achieving 30c, then you need a stronger light. What watt is your light?

its 30 cm thats what shop said we can lower it is needed if you want i can take photos of set up temps for tonight

 

[Yvonne G]

its 30 cm thats what shop said we can lower it is needed if you want i can take photos of set up temps for tonight

No, 30cm is around 12" and that's usually how far the lights are supposed to be. Any closer and it might cause eye problems. I think a larger wattage light or else a ceramic heat emitter is in order. Either that or partially cover the enclosure to keep the heat inside.