Baby sulcata size

[Csalazar250]

Hello there I’m new to the forum, recently I just got two baby sulcatas however not at the same time (about 3 weeks apart) and the smallest named Talullah we bought from a pet store and they told us she was about 5 months when we got her (it’s been a bout a month and a half since) and she still hasn’t grown much. When we first got her she was very soft but we started giving her vitamins and calcium supplements and shortly after she started showing signs of improvement.. now the second tortoise named Clementine is bigger than her but the owner we got her from also said she was 5 months... since we got her we noticed a change in Talullahs behavior such as not being as active and eating pekishly and her shell is becoming soft again (although to be fair we have been slightly neglectful on sprinkling calcium on their food as often as we used to)... I’m just wondering if she’s showing signs of an illness and why. Their diet is dark leafy greens such as kale, collard greens, and cactus. Their enclosure is set up in a 50 gallon tank and kept under a uvb and uva light throughout the whole day... here is a picture of their size difference.

 

[Maro2Bear]

Greetings!

And a quick hello and welcome. Id suggest you quickly check out the How to Care for Young Sulcata under the Sully section.

I'm going to quickly guess you have them housed together....and whst you are seeing first hand is Bullying going on.

You need two separate enclosures....or things will get worse...

 

[Clamhandsmcgee]

They look tiny. I'm not so sure that the people you got them from know their actual age. I didn't think that hatchlings really bullied. I thought that they didn't actually bully until they got a little bigger. If I were to guess, I'd say that whoever sold him to you didn't start them right. Follow the guide for raising healthy sulcatas on this forum. Make sure heat and humidity is good.

 

[Maro2Bear]

Greetings!

And a quick hello and welcome. Id suggest you quickly check out the How to Care for Young Sulcata under the Sully section.

I'm going to quickly guess you have them housed together....and whst you are seeing first hand is Bullying going on.

You need two separate enclosures....or things will get worse...

• Starting: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
• Bullying: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/b...ta-bad-for-the-small-one.161320/#post-1534243

 

[Csalazar250]

They look tiny. I'm not so sure that the people you got them from know their actual age. I didn't think that hatchlings really bullied. I thought that they didn't actually bully until they got a little bigger. If I were to guess, I'd say that whoever sold him to you didn't start them right. Follow the guide for raising healthy sulcatas on this forum. Make sure heat and humidity is good.

I’m fairly new to raising sulcatas but I did a lot of research before hand and new their previous environments were so wrong... at the pet store:
Tiny hide for 3 babies, hay as substrate, diet was a lot of fruits and no uvb light. From previous owner: chunks of wood for sub. , very dry, diet was lettuce and iguana food... At first Talullah which is the smaller one I got from the pet store seemed to show signs of improvement when we took her home and gave her a better enclosure, she was active, alert, HUNGRY and overall she seemed happy but ever since we got her a new roomie she’s been acting different and her symptoms seem like she’s getting sick... maybe it was something I did or am not doing ?? I did soak her once in warm water in the kitchen and I forgot to turn off the ac but I dried her off when I took her out and it was only for like 10 min. Maybe I got her sick ??

 

[Csalazar250]

• Starting: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
• Bullying: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/b...ta-bad-for-the-small-one.161320/#post-1534243

The bigger one doesn’t seem to harass her at all though, they pretty much leave each other alone from what I’ve noticed.

 

[Big Charlie]

The bigger one doesn’t seem to harass her at all though, they pretty much leave each other alone from what I’ve noticed.

It is very possible that two tortoises obtained from different sources may have different pathogens and could get each other sick. As you've already been told but you don't seem to believe, what you have is a case of bullying. Two tortoises should not be put together. Bullying in tortoises is hard for us to see but obvious to them. The bullied tortoise can't get away because it is trapped inside your small tank. You need to keep each tortoise in a separate enclosure. Unless you separate them, the weaker one will worsen.

 

[Maro2Bear]

Greetings again....and back to the topic of bullying. Here's info from your first Post:

• since we got her (larger one) we noticed a change in Talullah's (smaller one) behavior such as not being as active and eating pekishly and her shell is becoming soft again (although to be fair we have been slightly neglectful on sprinkling calcium on their food as often as we used to)... I’m just wondering if she’s showing signs of an illness and why.

I think the WHY is pretty clear:

• With the arrival of the new larger sully, the current smaller one has displayed two symptoms:
  • 1. Not active and
  • 2. Not eating

There are tons of articles and anecdotal stories and warnings here on the Forum that torts like this are solitary, don't appreciate or need a friend. Hiding, not eating, not being active seem to be classic displays of being bullied.

Hope this helps, good luck, keep us posted.

 

[Clamhandsmcgee]

I'm not saying that you guys are wrong, but what I got from reading the OP is that she hasn't had them for very long, and the "sick" one has a soft shell. This leads me to believe that something else is going on here. I do agree about separation, due to the fact that you don't want the healthy one to catch whatever the sick one has. I also agree that sulcatas are not the best for keeping in pairs, but I've kept a lot of tortoises together (same species) as hatchlings and I've never seen an issue at a young age. I'm not saying that it doesn't happen either though. My opinion is to separate, read and re-read the sulcata care sheet, take him to a vet (one that actually knows about tortoises) and keep a close watch on him. Check for eating, drinking/soaking, pooping, and also activity.

*disclosure* I'm not an expert. I just know what's worked for me in my years of keeping tortoises.

 

[Tom]

Multiple potential issues here:

1. Chances are high that both of these tortoise were started far too dry. There is nothing anyone can do about that after the fact. If the kidneys were damaged early on, it can't be fixed. All you can do is daily soaks, and keep them in a warm enclosure with high humidity. SOme make it and some don't'.
2. Its possible that one made the other sick. New tortoises should be quarantine and stool checked for at least 6 months. Some of my vet friends recommend 12 months due to all the crazy tortoise diseases and pathogens they've seen in recent years.
3. Tortoises should not live in pairs. Its bad for both of them. There doesn't have to be obvious, overt attacks for the pair thing to be a problem. Age doesn't matter. Groups of juveniles usually get along, but not pairs. These two in particular need to be separated and live in their own enclosures ASAP, due to the behavior being seen.

@Csalazar250 please read these threads for the correct care info and temps:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

 

[Bee62]

Hello there I’m new to the forum, recently I just got two baby sulcatas however not at the same time (about 3 weeks apart) and the smallest named Talullah we bought from a pet store and they told us she was about 5 months when we got her (it’s been a bout a month and a half since) and she still hasn’t grown much. When we first got her she was very soft but we started giving her vitamins and calcium supplements and shortly after she started showing signs of improvement.. now the second tortoise named Clementine is bigger than her but the owner we got her from also said she was 5 months... since we got her we noticed a change in Talullahs behavior such as not being as active and eating pekishly and her shell is becoming soft again (although to be fair we have been slightly neglectful on sprinkling calcium on their food as often as we used to)... I’m just wondering if she’s showing signs of an illness and why. Their diet is dark leafy greens such as kale, collard greens, and cactus. Their enclosure is set up in a 50 gallon tank and kept under a uvb and uva light throughout the whole day... here is a picture of their size difference. View attachment 222143

Hello and welcome to the forum.
It seems to me that you made some mistake and have a problem too.
1. As @Big Charlie has already said it is no good idea to keep two tortoise from different owners together. They should have been in quarantine for not less than 6 months.
2. Keeping two sulcatas together in one enclosure is no good idea too. Can we see pics of your enclosure with the two tortoises ?
3. Your diet is not the best. Kale for example should be not fed too often.
4. Do you soak them and how often ? Can you tell us the humidity in the enclosure of your torts ?
5. When your little tort has been kept too dry by the pet shop she can already have a damage of her kidneys. Look for what is described: Hatchling failure syndrom.
That could be your problem.
My advice:
Keep them seperated asap.
Feed a wider diet with fresh grasses and weeds and Mazuri for torts.
When you must feed grocery food buy Lambs lettuce, chicoree and Romaine lettuce.
Soak them twice daily for 30 minutes.
Keep the humidity in the enclosure high ( 75 - 85 % )
Keep the warmth high too. Night times never below 80 F.

 

[Bee62]

Oh, sorry @Tom. Your post was earlier than mine but it seems we have the same opinion.
Excuse me.

 

[Cowboy_Ken]

Greetings Csalazar250,
Welcome to the TortoiseForum So here’s something for you. When tortoises bully one another, they don’t do it obvious to us with closed fists and punching going on. Here is a picture of two tortoises from the same clutch. Everything had been the same for these two. The family I rescued them from told me how sweet it was to see them snuggle every evening (one pushing one out of the best place) one got the best food, best heat, best uv-rays. . Ooh, while I’m thinking about it, what type of bulb are you currently using?