Change in tortoise behaviour

[Max57!]

Hello everybody. In June, me and my girlfriend first recevied our Leopard Tortoise and she then weighed 60 grams. Now, she weighs 160 grams and we have been following @Tom 's care sheet as soon as we found out that out husbandry was wrong. That was in July and since applying the changes she has been quite active and eaten lots. However the last few days we have noticed a decrease in appetite and activity compared to previously. She is also rarely under her basking lamp but sleeps quite close to the CHE. Our enclosure setup is the same as previosly with a 7x3 feet enclosure, a basking spot reaching 100 F at her height, humidity above 80% at all times and 80 F ambient controlled by a CHE. We give her daily soaks and most of the time she poops in the soak but we occasionally find poop in the enclosure aswell.

As we live in Sweden there is not as big of a supply of outside foods currently as it did in the summer so we have to rely on some grocery foods, as endive, lambs lettuce, coriander etc. but we give calcium 3 times and multivitamin twice a week. We also occasionally give ZooMed pellets alongside her greens for some extra fiber.

What we were then wondering is what the cause of this change in behaviour could be due to, as she still eats (just less) , poops and has not lost any weight or showed any signs of respitory infection.

Any help is much appreciated!

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Hello, sounds like you made some wonderful improvements to her care

Even some tropical, none brumating species will slow down at this time of yr. Even if you have perfect temperatures. They feel atmospheric pressure as the world rotates on its annual axis, if she’s still eating, pooping, no weight loss, alert and no symptoms of sickness, I wouldn’t be concerned

 

[COmtnLady]

Your weight gain is good.

Is your chamber enclosed? Does it have a top on it to hold in humidity and heat?
Please post some pictures of it and your tortoise.

The humidity and temperature are both low for a young tortoise. They should be in the range of 84% humidity or higher, and temps should be 84F/29C or a little higher for the first two or three years of life.

When tortoises are chilly they slow down. Warm the enclosure up.
Make the lights as bright as sunshine so that your tortoise will think it is still summer, and have the lights on twelve hours per day. The UVB light only needs to be on for four hours, though.

What substrate are you using?

How long are you soaking in warm (95F/35C) water that is only as deep as where the top and bottom shells come together? Young ones need daily half hour or longer warm soaks, and it doesn't hurt to soak twice per day. Since the water is so shallow you will have to monitor it the entire time your tortoise is in the soak. It is not good for it to cool down.

A tiny pinch of calcium 2 times per week is all that is needed. Too much calcium blocks other nutrients from being used correctly. You shouldn't be able to see it on the food. If you are concerned two pinches per week might not be enough, keep a cuttlebone in the enclosure so that the tortoise can nibble on it if it feels the need for more.

What quantity of food are you offering?


What did you name your tortoise?

 

[Tom]

Hello everybody. In June, me and my girlfriend first recevied our Leopard Tortoise and she then weighed 60 grams. Now, she weighs 160 grams and we have been following @Tom 's care sheet as soon as we found out that out husbandry was wrong. That was in July and since applying the changes she has been quite active and eaten lots. However the last few days we have noticed a decrease in appetite and activity compared to previously. She is also rarely under her basking lamp but sleeps quite close to the CHE. Our enclosure setup is the same as previosly with a 7x3 feet enclosure, a basking spot reaching 100 F at her height, humidity above 80% at all times and 80 F ambient controlled by a CHE. We give her daily soaks and most of the time she poops in the soak but we occasionally find poop in the enclosure aswell.

As we live in Sweden there is not as big of a supply of outside foods currently as it did in the summer so we have to rely on some grocery foods, as endive, lambs lettuce, coriander etc. but we give calcium 3 times and multivitamin twice a week. We also occasionally give ZooMed pellets alongside her greens for some extra fiber.

What we were then wondering is what the cause of this change in behaviour could be due to, as she still eats (just less) , poops and has not lost any weight or showed any signs of respitory infection.

Any help is much appreciated!

It's most likely due to the days getting shorter and light intensity decreasing.

What are you using for ambient lighting? If your temperatures and humidity are good, then its probably the lighting.

 

[Max57!]

Hello, sounds like you made some wonderful improvements to her care

Even some tropical, none brumating species will slow down at this time of yr. Even if you have perfect temperatures. They feel atmospheric pressure as the world rotates on its annual axis, if she’s still eating, pooping, no weight loss, alert and no symptoms of sickness, I wouldn’t be concerned

Hi, that was what we were suspecting aswell from reading precious threads, but since we are still quite new tortoise owners we just wanted to make sure

Your weight gain is good.

Is your chamber enclosed? Does it have a top on it to hold in humidity and heat?
Please post some pictures of it and your tortoise.

The humidity and temperature are both low for a young tortoise. They should be in the range of 84% humidity or higher, and temps should be 84F/29C or a little higher for the first two or three years of life.

When tortoises are chilly they slow down. Warm the enclosure up.
Make the lights as bright as sunshine so that your tortoise will think it is still summer, and have the lights on twelve hours per day. The UVB light only needs to be on for four hours, though.

What substrate are you using?

How long are you soaking in warm (95F/35C) water that is only as deep as where the top and bottom shells come together? Young ones need daily half hour or longer warm soaks, and it doesn't hurt to soak twice per day. Since the water is so shallow you will have to monitor it the entire time your tortoise is in the soak. It is not good for it to cool down.

A tiny pinch of calcium 2 times per week is all that is needed. Too much calcium blocks other nutrients from being used correctly. You shouldn't be able to see it on the food. If you are concerned two pinches per week might not be enough, keep a cuttlebone in the enclosure so that the tortoise can nibble on it if it feels the need for more.

What quantity of food are you offering?


What did you name your tortoise?

Yes, it is a fully enclosed chamber. The humidity is usually above 84% but we could look into increasing the temps a bit more if that would be needed.

We are using coco coir but we were thinking of switching to orchid bark next substrate change, because it can sometimes get a little messy even when packed down.

Yes, we always try to soak 30 min but if she poops before that we usually give a second soak later on just so she is fully hydrated.

Okay, less calcium in the future. We usually give a pile of food approximeatly the size of her shell and if she finishes it before the day is up we just refill it for her. Same with the water if it gets too dirty.

Her name is Ingeborg

It's most likely due to the days getting shorter and light intensity decreasing.

What are you using for ambient lighting? If your temperatures and humidity are good, then its probably the lighting.

We are using 4000K LED strip lighting, but I know saw that you recommended even higher (5000-6500), so we could swap those out for the higher ones.

Thanks for the great replies!!

 

[Tom]

Hi, that was what we were suspecting aswell from reading precious threads, but since we are still quite new tortoise owners we just wanted to make sure


Yes, it is a fully enclosed chamber. The humidity is usually above 84% but we could look into increasing the temps a bit more if that would be needed.

We are using coco coir but we were thinking of switching to orchid bark next substrate change, because it can sometimes get a little messy even when packed down.

Yes, we always try to soak 30 min but if she poops before that we usually give a second soak later on just so she is fully hydrated.

Okay, less calcium in the future. We usually give a pile of food approximeatly the size of her shell and if she finishes it before the day is up we just refill it for her. Same with the water if it gets too dirty.

Her name is Ingeborg


We are using 4000K LED strip lighting, but I know saw that you recommended even higher (5000-6500), so we could swap those out for the higher ones.

Thanks for the great replies!!

I would just add more ambient lighting. And also bump up the UV tube to 6-8 hours a day.