Sulcata

[Sabrina ramos]

Hi! So my sulcata is about 2 yrs old. Lately he has been making a lot more noise than usual and he poops in his water bowl almost every day. I was just wondering if that's weird?

 

[GingerLove]

I'm pretty sure that pooping every day is fine if it's a normal consistency. However, what kind of noises are we talking about? Banging into things and being loud or actual verbal noises?

 

[Gillian M]

Hi @Sabrina ramos and a very warm welcome to the forum!

I was going to ask the same question that @GingerLove asked as far as the "kind" of noise your tort is making.

Is the water warm enough? Not too hot not cold?

Please post pics of your tort and his enclosure so as to enable us to help you more easily.

In the meantime, please read the "Beginners Mistakes" Thread as well as the different care sheets.

 

[Stuart S.]

Hello and welcome! Does he make the sounds as he's inhaling and exhaling??

 

[Sabrina ramos]

So he makes wheezing sounds sometimes and also kinda like a squeaking noise. He has a kinda small tank right now and I'm saving up to get a bigger one. We turn his light off at night. I usually put warm water in his bowl. And I spray warm water on his dirt every 3 days to keep up the humidity

 

[Tom]

So he makes wheezing sounds sometimes and also kinda like a squeaking noise. He has a kinda small tank right now and I'm saving up to get a bigger one. We turn his light off at night. I usually put warm water in his bowl. And I spray warm water on his dirt every 3 days to keep up the humidity

They need warm temperatures at night. You might be on the verge of a respiratory infection. If you take immediate action, he might be able to fight it off and save you hundreds of dollars on vet bills.

Please read these for more info on what they need:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

 

[Sabrina ramos]

During the day his temp is about 82. When we wake up after his light being off, it only drops to 75

 

[Tom]

During the day his temp is about 82. When we wake up after his light being off, it only drops to 75

82 where?

There are four temps for you to know and monitor: Basking area, warm side, cool side and overnight low.

It should be around 100 degrees directly under the basking bulb. Warm side should be 85-90 during the day, and cool side should be 80-85 during the day. It should not drop below 80 at night.

For a tortoise that is fighting a RI in progress, bump all of that up 5 degrees.

 

[Sabrina ramos]

Yeah like I said he has a pretty small tank right now. So the cool part is 80 during the day. I'll definitely get a stronger bulb though. I thought if it went over 85 that it would be too hot for him. Plus my water bowls dryou up super quick for some reason

 

[Big Charlie]

Yeah like I said he has a pretty small tank right now. So the cool part is 80 during the day. I'll definitely get a stronger bulb though. I thought if it went over 85 that it would be too hot for him. Plus my water bowls dryou up super quick for some reason

You should provide heat at night. You can use a ceramic heat emitter. It is a bulb that produces heat without light. If you get a CHE you can leave that on along with your light during the day, which might bump up the temperatures to what you need.

Do you have the tank covered? That is important in order to keep the humidity up. If your water is drying up, it isn't humid enough. If your tank is glass, there should be condensation on the glass. You need to make sure it is warm along with the humidity. If it is humid and too cold, your tort gets sick.

 

[Bee62]

Hi Sabrina,

can you please show us pics from your enclosure and your tort ? A bigger tort enclosure must not be expensive. Mayby some members here have good ideas of a bigger and cheap enclosure for your tortoise.

 

[Sabrina ramos]

Tanks here are very expensive. The one he's in now is glass and it has a screen top. His humidity is usually at like 50.

 

[Sabrina ramos]

I'm at work now so I can't get pics

 

[Sabrina ramos]

Since yesterday he hasn't really stopped squeaking...it's really worrying me. And the closest vet that would see him is an hour away

 

[Sabrina ramos]

We just bought him this tank.

 

[Big Charlie]

We just bought him this tank.

There are cheaper solutions than glass tanks. They aren't shaped ideally for a tortoise, since a tortoise doesn't need all that height, but does need a larger floor area. A screen top lets out all your heat and humidity. You should have a sealed top. You can use foil over the screen if you don't have anything else. It sounds like he is sick with a respiratory infection. These can be caused by being kept cold and wet. You need to get him warm now.

 

[Sabrina ramos]

We put duct tape on his screen cap besides where the lamp sits now. His humidity has gone up to 70 and his heat on the hot side is at 85. He is sitting in his basking spot now which we got up to 95

 

[Sabrina ramos]

And I gave him a bath and let him soak awhile. He liked that a lot

 

[Edizzle888]

FYI buy a no see through tote from Walmart. Works better and it's cheap.

 

[Edizzle888]