cherry head food tips

[gianni colameco]

tips on foods to get my baby cherry eating

 

[JoesMum]

Hello and welcome

In your other thread, I explained that new tortoises can be too frightened to eat and that it won't eat if the temperatures are wrong and/or there is a problem with the enclosure setup.

To help you we need more information:

1. We asked for photos of your enclosure and lighting to see if we can diagnose problems. If you are using the Android app it is having problems with photos right now and you will have to log into this forum's website using your device's browser https://tortoiseforum.org/

2. We need to know the temperatures in your enclosure by day and night and the humidity as these need to be correct for your tortoise to eat and be healthy.

3. We need to know what foods you are currently offering you baby

4. We need to know if your tortoise is being soaked. A baby, and any tortoise that isn't eating, should be soaked every day for at least 20 minutes in warm water.

Please can you answer these so we can help you

 

[ZEROPILOT]

I agree with the above.
But to answer your question...And assuming that all of your parameters are correct...Red flowers like hibiscus get them excited. So do very sweet and sappy things like mango or cooked sweet potato.

 

[gianni colameco]

Hello and welcome

In your other thread, I explained that new tortoises can be too frightened to eat and that it won't eat if the temperatures are wrong and/or there is a problem with the enclosure setup.

To help you we need more information:

1. We asked for photos of your enclosure and lighting to see if we can diagnose problems. If you are using the Android app it is having problems with photos right now and you will have to log into this forum's website using your device's browser https://tortoiseforum.org/

2. We need to know the temperatures in your enclosure by day and night and the humidity as these need to be correct for your tortoise to eat and be healthy.

3. We need to know what foods you are currently offering you baby

4. We need to know if your tortoise is being soaked. A baby, and any tortoise that isn't eating, should be soaked every day for at least 20 minutes in warm water.

Please can you answer these so we can help you

 

[JoesMum]

This enclosure is big which is great, but it’s also very dry and because it’s open it is impossible to raise the humidity to the level necessary for this species.

What type of lamps are those? Typically this species doesn’t want hot bright light - it needs steady warmth day and night with UVB

@Anyfoot @ZEROPILOT

 

[Anyfoot]

@gianni colameco

Your going to struggle to raise a smooth healthy tort in an open enclosure. Growing a tort in too a dry conditions causes pyramiding, letting your tort sit under a lamp all day will cause the carapace to dry out and pyramid. Because you can't get the ambient temp correct in an open enclosure uourvtirt has 2 options. It either sits in the cool ambient temp of the room, or it sits under the basking lamp trying to keep warm. Both of theses options also offer too a dry condition.
What you need to try and do is cover that enclosure, use a CHE for heat and a tube uvb light for lighting. Also raise the humidity by moistening the lower levels of the substrate, adding another water dish, spray your torts carapace a couple times a day and add some moist spagnhum moss in and around the hide. I also mix in dried leaves to moist moss, it seams to encourage the torts to dig in the moss under the leaves.
If that was my enclosure I would go and buy another exact same enclosure and make a lid out of it. Your going to have to adapt the lid to suit your needs. Like easy access, viewing window without compromising the closed system method.
How high is that enclosure you have now?

 

[Anyfoot]

Btw. It will be a lot cheaper on electricity too when it's closed. You have 4 lamp holders there. In a closed system all your going to need is a 15w uvb and a 100/150w CHE controlled on a thermostat.
If done correctly I think this enclosure could be a cheap way for a good enclosure.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Agreed.
A closed enclosure and less light with a strip florescent lamp.
I use a "5.0" tube.
This seems like a lot to do. But it isn't and you'll suddenly get results and you'll have to do little else.
No bright lights.
No area too hot or too cold. 80 to 88 during the day. 75 to 88 at night.
Humidity of over 70% constantly. But the tortoise can't stay wet.
I use a layer of Orchid bark with a layer of garden soil on top. I pour water into the corners.
The bottom layer of bark absorbs the liquid. Slowly evaporating and leaving the top layer relatively dry.

 

[gianni colameco]

is it normal for a baby cherry head to bury itself completely under the substrate for most of the day

 

[JoesMum]

is it normal for a baby cherry head to bury itself completely under the substrate for most of the day

If it's not warm enough, the lights are too bright, it doesn't feel safe and/or there's a compact UVB bulb hurting its eyes then it will hide.

So basically no, this tortoise shouldn't be buried most of the time.

You need to sort out your enclosure and lighting

 

[gianni colameco]

do you have pictures of your enclosure

 

[JoesMum]

do you have pictures of your enclosure

I don't keep this species which is why I tagged @Anyfoot and @ZEROPILOT. Follow their guidance

 

[Anyfoot]

Have s look at this. Look at @Pearly threads on her enclosure too.

https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/redfoot-vivarium.140689/

 

[gianni colameco]

i dont understand why your saying that it has to be kept in a closed enclosure when their are plenty of reputable tortoise breeders that keep them in open air setups that still can retain humidity, people keep them outdoors in arizona and have them successfully breed and thrive , i feel like a closed system will be to humid and cause shell rot

 

[JoesMum]

i dont understand why your saying that it has to be kept in a closed enclosure when their are plenty of reputable tortoise breeders that keep them in open air setups that still can retain humidity, people keep them outdoors in arizona and have them successfully breed and thrive , i feel like a closed system will be to humid and cause shell rot

The reputable breeders here I tagged in this thread are working on their own experience of what is best.

@ZEROPILOT lives in Florida with its naturally warm and humid climate and successfully keeps older torts outside. He still says you need a closed chamber for a young tortoise.

@Anyfoot lives in the less ideal climate of the UK, but his home is undoubtedly heated properly. He also recommends closed chambers.

There is an awful lot of outdated information out there from “breeders” and “experts”. The guys in this thread have current, hands on, experience of raising these tortoises

The secret to avoiding shell rot in any species is to raise humidity by having damp, but not wet, substrate which is a little dryer at the surface than underneath and the correct temperatures. Most homes are far too dry to successfully raise humidity without closing the enclosure in.

Without a closed chamber you cannot possibly keep the temperatures at a steady 80F. Cold and damp causes respiratory infections, so raising humidity means you must get the temperatures steady too.

 

[Anyfoot]

i dont understand why your saying that it has to be kept in a closed enclosure when their are plenty of reputable tortoise breeders that keep them in open air setups that still can retain humidity, people keep them outdoors in arizona and have them successfully breed and thrive , i feel like a closed system will be to humid and cause shell rot

We all let our torts live outside when weather permits. Mine are out roughly 6 months of the yr and zero pilot probably close to 12 months a yr.
As babies in the wild they all live in a micro climate hidden away from predators. When a hatching is born it is soft and supple. For the next 12 months at least(I think 2 yrs) you need to imitate that micro climate. When it's bone structure has hardened off then it's not as critical to gave the constant 80/90% humidity. In the wild this coincides with them feeling brace enough to come out into the open and not get eaten. Rome believe they hide away in the microclimate until they are 5 or 6yrs old in the wild
If you don't provide a warm moist humid environment at the young supple stage you will get a pyramided tortoise, the high humidity keeps them hydrated at this young vulnerable stage. Adults are well hard.

 

[Anyfoot]

 

[gianni colameco]

thank you for your advice , i just am a little worried I've only had him two weeks so idk if he is still adjusting. i have kept torts my whole life but never a cherry head, he spends 99 percent of his time buried sleeping, he only wakes up for soaks and takes about to bites of food shoots right back to his hide and goes to sleep he does not explore at all its really concerning, he is clear eyed and snot free but super in active, i have tried turning out all the lights and only using the heat emitter and it makes no difference, he also makes little grunting noises sometimes idk what that means, what temps do u recommend for hot and cold side

 

[ZEROPILOT]

There should be no hot or cold side.
You want the whole enclosure to be a steady 80 to 88. With 82 to 84 being the ideal target. This is also simpler to achieve with a closed chamber enclosure.
Also, It is 100% normal for a baby to sleep most of the day. Hiding is natural behavior.
Even my adults sleep most of the day. Especially if it is hot outside.
There really is no contradicting advice. Not here on the forum. This is real time information. Information learned from decades of keeping Redfoot tortoises.
I wish it had been available when I started with them in 1982.
Don't be worried. Don't risk your tortoise getting ill, either.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

i dont understand why your saying that it has to be kept in a closed enclosure when their are plenty of reputable tortoise breeders that keep them in open air setups that still can retain humidity, people keep them outdoors in arizona and have them successfully breed and thrive , i feel like a closed system will be to humid and cause shell rot

Too wet WILL contribute to shell fungus.
You aren't looking for soaking wet. You want humid. Like their natural environment.
Redfoot need high humidity for their entire lives. But with young tortoises it is absolutely critical.
How you provide the humidity is up to you. But we have shared with you the easiest, most cost effective way. A closed or semi closed system.