Baby Egyptian tortoise not eating

Washingtonpost77

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Hello. I have a baby Egyptian tortoise who has stopped eating. It is colder now and he has slowed down eating. I am currently housing him in a zoo med tortois house. He has both a UVB bulb and a heat lamp. I am looking for some advice from anyone who experience with or owns baby Egyptian tortoises. Thanks.
 

naturalman91

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there are some basic info needed to help what is your temps what type of uvb and pictures of the tortoise lights and enclosure are generally helpful
 

Washingtonpost77

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Hello. The thermometer inside the enclosure reads 80 degrees. I am using either a zoo med or reptisun coil bulb for UVB. I am using a red 50 watt heat bulb and a 100 watt heat emitter to heat the enclosure. I have attached pics of the lights and enclosure.

IMG_20151126_221039.jpg IMG_20151126_220910.jpg
 
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Tom

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I don't keep Egyptians, but there is some general info that pertains to all tortoise species that may help you:
1. Red bulbs should never be used. Torts have good color vision and those bulbs make things look funny to them, day or night. You should use a white like for basking and day time heat.
2. The cfl type bulbs frequently burn their eyes. I would turn it off ASAP and return it. Use an MVB or a long tube type florescent for UV.
3. 80 degrees is not warm enough. They need a warmer basking spot in the neighborhood of 95-100 degrees.
4. Is that hay on your substrate? I would not mix hay and other substrates. Multiple problems can come from that practice.
5. I'm generally not a fan of those tortoise houses. Too small, too open, to large of a closed side…
6. Cooler weather outside should not be affecting the temperatures inside your indoor enclosure. You are supposed to be monitoring those temps and making adjustments when needed.

I can't give you specific advice for this species, but this might help with the general stuff:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
 

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Hello. I have a baby Egyptian tortoise who has stopped eating. It is colder now and he has slowed down eating. I am currently housing him in a zoo med tortois house. He has both a UVB bulb and a heat lamp. I am looking for some advice from anyone who experience with or owns baby Egyptian tortoises. Thanks.
Hi I have 12 of these wonderful species. (post under easingpaw.com). babies should not be kept in such large enclosure. it is easier to see them having issues in a smaller tank. I use zoo med only for my outdoor tortoises 5 inch up. I'll post some pics, please revise your enclosure. Egyptians are endangered species and not kept well are going downhill pretty fast. I use a 20x14 plastic tub, oyster shells, a 40 watt warm light heating lamp, a 10uvb repti-sun, no bulb with uvb whatsoever. what i experience over the years is a sunshine tube with no uvb, that makes the enclosure brighter in light and stimulates normal behavior better. When it is at night cold and I have no heater in the tortoise room i offer a seed heating pad, under the tank. Hope it helps.
 

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Hello. I have a baby Egyptian tortoise who has stopped eating. It is colder now and he has slowed down eating. I am currently housing him in a zoo med tortois house. He has both a UVB bulb and a heat lamp. I am looking for some advice from anyone who experience with or owns baby Egyptian tortoises. Thanks.
I forgot to share that you have to look for worms in poop, any parasite will have an impact on proper growth.
 

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Hello. I have a baby Egyptian tortoise who has stopped eating. It is colder now and he has slowed down eating. I am currently housing him in a zoo med tortois house. He has both a UVB bulb and a heat lamp. I am looking for some advice from anyone who experience with or owns baby Egyptian tortoises. Thanks.
this is another view of the cage. Another very important part is the soaking in warm water. they defecate in the water and you can see based on the consistency and and smell, shape whether there are parasites in. The good gut digested poop looks like a base ball bat. any not shaped poop can have parasites. One of my 1 inch babies was loaded with worms.
 

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Washingtonpost77

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Hello. Thanks for the advice. You mentioned in your reply that the zoo med tortoise house is too large for baby tortoises. I think that the zoo med tortoise house is perfect for baby tortoises. The best thing that I like about it is that seems to hold heat in. I also think that it was created for baby tortoises and does not seem that large to me.
 

bigbeaks

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My Egyptians like their basking temp 120 degrees. I use a Mercury vapor for basking. Maybe you aren't warm enough? I wouldn't use the coil UVB. They had problems when they first came out for sure.
 

Washingtonpost77

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Hello. My baby Egyptian tortoise passed away a couple of weeks ago. I think that you were right. The enclosure I had him in was too large. I moved my baby pancake to a plastic bin and he seems to be more active. Thanks for the advice.
 

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sorry, but a red 50 watt heat bulb and a 100 watt heat emitter to heat the enclosure cooks baby tortoises. Egyptians can be very hardy, but you need to know about a tortoise species before you get them. it is also an endangered species, which should be taken care of appropriately. Don't go here often, late comment. I use a 10uvb light reptisun and a max watt of 29W. for babies...
 

Washingtonpost77

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Hi. I would live to see a front picture of your enclosure for your baby Egyptians. I want to be sure that I am housing it correctly. Thanks
 

Washingtonpost77

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I just got another Egyptian tortoise and I have attached pics of its enclosure. I just wanted to know if this is a suitable enclosure for hatchling Egyptian tortoises. Thanks
 

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Yvonne G

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I just got another Egyptian tortoise and I have attached pics of its enclosure. I just wanted to know if this is a suitable enclosure for hatchling Egyptian tortoises. Thanks
Annett in her answer to you said that she uses oyster shell for substrate.

I'm so sorry to hear that the baby in your original post didn't make it. Hopefully this one fares better.
 

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