importance of weighing

[immiexxo]

I've had my tort almost a month and haven't yet weighed him, mainly because I'm not sure what to weigh him on.

Tomorrow is my day off so I'm going to buy some sort of scale however I'm unsure of what to go for? Any advice?

After this, how often shall I weigh him and what shall I note down?

How important is weighing?
Also is there any chart of some sort to see how my tort should be doing?

Sorry again for all the questions xx

 

[wellington]

Any type of kitchen scale usually works good. I don't weigh my torts, but I did when I got my first one and when small. It's nice to do at least for a while so you know they are still gaining weight and not losing. Just write down the date, weight and maybe the time of day, so you can do it the same time every day. The weights will fluctuate a little if they just pooped or drank a lot or eaten. So, doing it the same time, like right after a soak, or first thing in the morning before feeding is a good time. You could also measure the straight line length of bottom shell and add that to the notes too. Just measure like once a month or even a few months, they don't grow too fast.

 

[Levi the Leopard]

Yep... A kitchen scale. They are inexpensive and do the job perfectly!

My tort will walk off the scale so I put a cup on the scale first, make sure it's at 0 then plop the tort onto the cup!

I used to weigh everyone each month....now I weigh when I feel like it or it's been a while LOL

Like this:

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Do a couple of weights in a couple of days and use it as an average for the month.
A babies weight will fluctuate from day to day so what you want to see is a steady weight gain month to month. Not day to day. You'll make yourself crazy comparing one day to the next.

 

[christinaland128]

We use a digital scale. I got it on eBay for $11. We make a big deal about "weigh day" here at my house. I keep a notebook dedicated to logging their growth rates. It's very fun to see them grow! Last year.....
This year...

 

[christinaland128]

Also be sure to read the thread about measuring your tortoise properly. http://www.tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/How-to-measure-your-tortoise.6948/

Some people measure along the top their carapace, which is wrong because each tort is domed differently.

 

[FujiBaird]

I think I saw on another thread that you have a hermann's tortoise. If that's correct, you can use the Jackson ratio to determine if your tortoise is a healthy weight for its size. This thread has graphs and calculators (not just for hatchlings):

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/jackson-ratio-for-hatchling-tortoises.799/