Concerned Father Of Russian Tortoise Not Eating

[Steven Schultheis]

Hi Guys,

My Russian Tortoise Rammus (2 years old) is not really eating and my concern grows deeper every day. Here is some bad story:

I recently moved from Massachusetts to Maine (where my family is) for a month and than road tripped to Colorado with Rammus in a decent sized bin. I used to have 2 Russian tortoises . I lost 'Yortoise the tortoise' at my moms when they were playing in a flower bed. Yortoise was just hanging out exploring. I went inside for 15 minutes and came back and he vanished. My brother and I tore up the flower bed and looked for hours. We couldn't find him anywhere! He must of smelt the freedom and took off! He always was the resistant one that tried to escape his enclosure multiple times a day. He is in a very healthy part of Maine and he may survive if he can self hibernate in the winter. He can forage for months. Wishful thinking! Hopefully he will show up at my moms one day soon.

Anyways...

Maybe Rammus is sad Yortoise is gone...they lived together in an enclosure and I would catch them sometimes cuddling.

I have been trying to feed him for weeks and he doesn't seem interested in the slightest. I think he is sick of Kale, so I stopped buying that. I have tried to feed him over 15 different types of foods. BUT I have spotted him foraging on dandelion leaves. Rammus has a 66 QT bin that he sleeps in at night and a huge back yard with a bunch of cool hiding spots. I usually let him hang out here all day while I work from home and retrieve him before it gets to dark. He digs himself to sleep and doesn't touch any food. Inside he has plenty of comfy bedding and I usually leave food inside at night so in the morning he can eat but he rarely does. He did snack a few bites of carrot today. I also bought Red lettuce, Red Chard and a cucumber. I put a tiny bit of calcium powder mixed in.

Rammus is mildly energetic when he is awake. He loves to hang outside and sometimes I think he rather forage than eat what is provided. But he just isn't getting enough nutrients. I soaked him today (which I do regularly) and no potty which he usually does in the water and afterwards he just dug himself a sleeping place. Complete disregard to the 4 different types of food I had out for him. He just walks over it like it doesn't exist. I have never been able to hand feed him either.

Oh jeez sorry for the long post. I just my Rammus and I wish he would eat regularly. I have plenty of time to take care of him during the day...

Thanks for reading!

P.S. His shell looks healthy to me. Does it look fine?

P.S. He is sleeping a lot which makes me very nervous.

 

[wellington]

What are your temps inside and out? Can he bask under a 90+ heat source? They have to warm themselves up past 85 in order to digest their food. If he will eat/graze outside, then feed him som greens outside, along with his grazing. Kale should never be his only food. He should be fed as wide a variety of broad leafy greens as possible. Also, at this time a lot of Russians seem to have slowed down, mine included. In fact, mine has just start picking up on his eating again after about a month or so of barely eating. Keep him hydrated during this time.

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

As Barbara said, too low a temperature is often the cause of not eating.
However, you mention eating dandelion and foraging, so it is possible he is just eating the healthy garden flora and not accepting your unwanted offerings!
This has a nice diet section : http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/
http://www.chelonia.org/Articles/nutrientanalysis.htm is also good.

 

[Melissa101]

I know given the choice, my tortoises are much happier foraging for their own food than being given anything I can offer, so if you've seen him eating dandelions don't be too concerned! Torts can go a whole without eating without there being any major problems (look at the fasting before hibernation). Keep observing him, and see how it goes.

Is there any 'treat' food you could give him every now and then to see if it excites him? Mine used to enjoy the occasional tomato or banana, and it often made them carry on eating the healthy stuff once they were finished! A little treat once in a while is ok, especially if it means you know he's eating.