Afedorenko
New Member
Hello, my name is Alex, and I have a 2 month old Eastern Hermanns tortoise His name is Marvin, even though it might turn out to be female This is my first tortoise and I have been following the care sheets that the breeder provided me and he is doing very well. He is active and eats his food and he is noticeably less shy than the day I got him.
I have been told that he needs daily soaking to stay hydrated at his age for 10-15 minutes minimum. I have been soaking him in his enclosure water dish in luke warm water. Some days he is calm and will stay in the dish, but most days its a battle just to get him to soak for 5 minutes. I have tried changing the water temperature, providing him some food (which he completely ignores) and a dish with sides he can't climb out of, but that seems to stress him out more than me constantly picking him up to move him back into the water. He will crawl through it himself when he makes his "rounds" each day in the enclosure, but he will not sit in it on his own.
Is there something I can do to make soaking more enjoyable for him? Or a way that I can keep his hydration up without soaking as often?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
I have been told that he needs daily soaking to stay hydrated at his age for 10-15 minutes minimum. I have been soaking him in his enclosure water dish in luke warm water. Some days he is calm and will stay in the dish, but most days its a battle just to get him to soak for 5 minutes. I have tried changing the water temperature, providing him some food (which he completely ignores) and a dish with sides he can't climb out of, but that seems to stress him out more than me constantly picking him up to move him back into the water. He will crawl through it himself when he makes his "rounds" each day in the enclosure, but he will not sit in it on his own.
Is there something I can do to make soaking more enjoyable for him? Or a way that I can keep his hydration up without soaking as often?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!