Elongated tortoise not pooping

[Bmdeshields]

First time tortoise owner. I got a baby elongated tortoise four days ago from Repticon and I haven’t seen him poop. He’s eating, I’m soaking him every morning in warm water, he goes outside and has a great time. When I bring him in he goes under this one plastic greenery in the corner and sleeps all day. He has his basking light, uvb/uva light, and at night he has a little blue heat lamp. Any tips would be appreciated.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Hello!
What are temperatures in the enclosure (under the basking lamp, ambient day/night)?

I see that humidity is around 50%. For baby tortoises higher humidity (80+%) is beneficial for smooth shell growth. This can be achieved by pouring water in the corners of the enclosure. Gauge type hygrometers and thermometers are not accurate, digital work much better.

For night and ambient heating consider changing blue lamp to a ceramic heat emitter (they don't need any light at night) with a thermostat. Consistent ambient temperature is essential. In their native habitat temperatures stays between 67-86F. I would target for 82-84F as ambient.

For babies outdoor time should be limited, no more that an hour a day (or less, depending on outside temperatures). After that, that should be soaked to rehydrate and warm up.

What do you feed him?

 

[Bmdeshields]

I brought those two black digital gauges that are sitting in the substrate. The one on the glass I didn’t think was accurately gauging the humidity. I will switch to the ceramic heat emitter. I have been feeding him a spring mix, tortoise diet, I’ve been sprinkling calcium on his food too. I just got some carrots so he’s going to have that for breakfast today. I didn’t know to limit the outside time. Got it!.

Temperatures under basking lamp have been 85F and then on the cooler side it has been 75F. Any info is appreciated.

Also, what do you do when you go on vacation? I have a couple trips coming up and trying to plan for that as well.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

As I don't keep elongateds, I might give you wrong direction on care. @mark1 maybe you can share some info how you keep (or kept) yours?

As for the vacations - for 1-2 days you don't need to do anything special (long soaks before and after the trip and maybe an opuntia pad as a food supply). For anything longer I would search for a trusted friend or family member who can come and care for your tortoise.

Upd: I've looked for the older posts on care for elongated tortoises. It looks like their requirements are very similar to those of redfoots. You can take a look at this care sheet for hints: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/redfoot-tortoise-care-sheet.175319/
And this link for diet: https://tortoiselibrary.com/nutrition-2/diet-plans-omnivore/

 

[TammyJ]

They NEED to be in darkness and warmth at night. No night light.

 

[Bmdeshields]

They NEED to be in darkness and warmth at night. No night light.

Thank you! I have switched to a ceramic heat emitter at night

 

[Lyn W]

Thank you! I have switched to a ceramic heat emitter at night

Make sure you run the CHE through a thermostat which will turn it off and on as needed - otherwise if it gets too hot, your tort could over heat.

As you have a baby with all the usual risks of tipping etc. I would ask a friend or family member to look after your tort rather than just leave him for days.

 

[Nsav]

For 1-2 day trips, I purchased a Wyze V3 Camera with Color night vision. $25.99 on Amazon. That way you can check up on him while you’re out for the short trip.

 

[Bmdeshields]

Make sure you run the CHE through a thermostat which will turn it off and on as needed - otherwise if it gets too hot, your tort could over heat.

As you have a baby with all the usual risks of tipping etc. I would ask a friend or family member to look after your tort rather than just leave him for days.

Oh yes, leaving him for days would not be ideal for me. The lady that wa

Make sure you run the CHE through a thermostat which will turn it off and on as needed - otherwise if it gets too hot, your tort could over heat.

As you have a baby with all the usual risks of tipping etc. I would ask a friend or family member to look after your tort rather than just leave him for days.

Oh yes, leaving him for days is not ideal to me. These are not a couple day trips. A week to 10 days. The lady that comes and stays my dogs will take care of little Sheldon for me. Any brand thermostat or one that you found works really well?

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

BN-Link are known to be reliable. Next goes Inkbird. In UK Habistat are most available, I think. Most on/off thermostats are reliable as they are simple, just make sure that wattage exceeds CHE wattage (e.g. 300/600W or more).

Leave detailed written instructions for the lady and outline "don't"s as well - do not mess with a thermostat, don't let to roam the house, keep dogs out, no fruit and so on.

Also, you might get smart thermometers and sockets to be able to check and control lights/heating/environment parameters remotely from your smartphone in case if something goes wrong (e.g. if he flips under the basking lamp).

 

[Sarah2020]

Oh yes, leaving him for days would not be ideal for me. The lady that wa

Oh yes, leaving him for days is not ideal to me. These are not a couple day trips. A week to 10 days. The lady that comes and stays my dogs will take care of little Sheldon for me. Any brand thermostat or one that you found works really well?

I am in the UK but I have had success with this one . You need a ceramic bulb and the correct holder.