altorts
New Member
Hey there. Recently got a brand new baby eastern Hermann's tortoise who isn't eating super well. I would love opinions on what might be going on as a first time owner.
Got him a few weeks ago. He's approximately 21g. Haven't been able to weigh him consistently enough to provide gain/loss. Looks healthy and gets soaks every day. Substrate is a mixture of soil, coconut fiber, and coconut husk (he loves the husk). Basking spot hovers around 95F, base temp of 81F, cold corner is 77F and whole enclosure drops to 77F at night. Humidity is kept around 60% and he has a UVb light on a timer.
The first few days we had him, he ate amazing and really loved his greens. Now he has gone about 5 days without eating anything except for a few bites here and there. We have offered him all sorts of greens, weeds, and even some veggies and fruit. He just kinda puts his face in it and then walks over the food. He drinks during his soaks so I put a little calcium and d3 in there today so at least he has a tiny bit of that.
He is active on and off. He'll be walking around exploring his entire enclosure and knocking over thermometers for hours for 2 days and then sleep all day for a few days. He loves burrowing and sometimes walks around in his pool.
I've considered getting some mazuri to see if he happens to prefer pellets.
Do I take him to the vet or wait a bit longer? We have made a few changes to his enclosure which I'm sure must have been stressful. What else can I change/do for him? All advice welcome.
Many thanks!
Got him a few weeks ago. He's approximately 21g. Haven't been able to weigh him consistently enough to provide gain/loss. Looks healthy and gets soaks every day. Substrate is a mixture of soil, coconut fiber, and coconut husk (he loves the husk). Basking spot hovers around 95F, base temp of 81F, cold corner is 77F and whole enclosure drops to 77F at night. Humidity is kept around 60% and he has a UVb light on a timer.
The first few days we had him, he ate amazing and really loved his greens. Now he has gone about 5 days without eating anything except for a few bites here and there. We have offered him all sorts of greens, weeds, and even some veggies and fruit. He just kinda puts his face in it and then walks over the food. He drinks during his soaks so I put a little calcium and d3 in there today so at least he has a tiny bit of that.
He is active on and off. He'll be walking around exploring his entire enclosure and knocking over thermometers for hours for 2 days and then sleep all day for a few days. He loves burrowing and sometimes walks around in his pool.
I've considered getting some mazuri to see if he happens to prefer pellets.
Do I take him to the vet or wait a bit longer? We have made a few changes to his enclosure which I'm sure must have been stressful. What else can I change/do for him? All advice welcome.
Many thanks!
