Feeding, Hydrating, Urates?????

[Scoffy20]

Hello all!

I have to ask is there any tips you can give me to help get my RT to eat ? It seems like he hasnt eaten much in 3-4 days now, not that I am home to watch him 24/7. I'm trying many different foods. T-rex dry tortoise formula, Fresh carrot shavings, red leaf lettuce, romaine, bib, kale. he still seems to defecate a lot so i figure if its coming out he must be putting something in no? Im just getting impatient and concerned. His temps are in the appropriate area from 78-95 fahrenheit. most averaging 80-85. In the mid mornings he seems active but it just seems like he doesnt touch his food. the first day i brought him home he ate all the kale i put in his home. now i come home and looks like nothing has been touched.

now for the urates. when i soak him he secretes this after he gets out. from reading books and this forum it sounds normal. i just want to know if it is ok for them to do this? it looks creamy white. is he dehydrated? i try to soak him 1-2 per week. the amount of time i keep him in the water bowl is up to him but it averages 10-15mins and i watch him gulp down the water.

Please help me get Rex to eat!!!

 

[chicagojohn]

The urates are perfectly normal. You've heard of "number 1" and "number 2"; well for torts, urates are "number 3", and what you describe is ideal in consistency.

I would suggest soaking in luke warm water (around 85°F) maybe every other day. That couldn't hurt anything and would help to make sure he has plenty of water.

How would you describe the consistency when he defecates? Is it well-formed, or watery and runny? Especially if the later, you might want to have a vet check for the presence of protozoa such as giardia. Our tortoise had that happen at one point, and it happened over and over again. That was probably 9 years ago. We then began including more fiber (like timothy hay), by powdering it or wrapping it in something he likes, and we have never again had this problem. The fiber helps to clean out the gut better, I think.

You say he seems active and not depressed, and all that is good. I get the impression you may have brought him home recently, so you might want to take a poop sample in to check at the vets and more frequent soaks. Also, our tort loves to be hand fed in the pan we soak him in! This is where we can roll up some hay in a dandelion leaf or some romaine lettuce, which he loves and get him to eat it.

If you have dandelions or the broad leaf plantains (with veins that run from stem to tip) around where there is no fertilizing or spraying, your tort might like these in his diet, especially dandelion flowers. I think dandelions are among the best nutritionally for torts like yours and mine -- mine being a Testudo ibera, a very feisty and robust variant of "Greek tortoise", T. graeca.

 

[Scoffy20]

The urates are perfectly normal. You've heard of "number 1" and "number 2"; well for torts, urates are "number 3", and what you describe is ideal in consistency.

I would suggest soaking in luke warm water (around 85°F) maybe every other day. That couldn't hurt anything and would help to make sure he has plenty of water.

How would you describe the consistency when he defecates? Is it well-formed, or watery and runny? Especially if the later, you might want to have a vet check for the presence of protozoa such as giardia. Our tortoise had that happen at one point, and it happened over and over again. That was probably 9 years ago. We then began including more fiber (like timothy hay), by powdering it or wrapping it in something he likes, and we have never again had this problem. The fiber helps to clean out the gut better, I think.

You say he seems active and not depressed, and all that is good. I get the impression you may have brought him home recently, so you might want to take a poop sample in to check at the vets and more frequent soaks. Also, our tort loves to be hand fed in the pan we soak him in! This is where we can roll up some hay in a dandelion leaf or some romaine lettuce, which he loves and get him to eat it.

If you have dandelions or the broad leaf plantains (with veins that run from stem to tip) around where there is no fertilizing or spraying, your tort might like these in his diet, especially dandelion flowers. I think dandelions are among the best nutritionally for torts like yours and mine -- mine being a Testudo ibera, a very feisty and robust variant of "Greek tortoise", T. graeca.

Ok I was actually thinking of trying some hay. His "poo" is solid and well formed so no worries there, and yes I did just get him two weeks ago. Ill go to the farmers market this weekend and try to get some dandelion greens.

 

[chicagojohn]

I would avoid the dandelion greens at the market. These look like dandelion greens but are chicory, not the same at all as dandelion. Chicory has a very unbalanced calcium-to-phosphorus ratio.

I highly recommend you go to some place where they don't spray weed killer, like a forest preserve, and look for actual dandelions. Do not use what you buy in the market. Try to find some dandelion flowers as well. Testudo's love them. Hibiscus flowers are good too. Wild violet leaves and wild grape leaves are also great. Plantains the flat-leafed "weeds" where the veins run in the line between the stem and pointed tip are an acquired taste but have lots of fiber.

Regular hay is also not at all a good idea since it could be alfalfa, and that contains elevated nitrogen levels. This is good for farm animals, not at all for tortoises.

You can buy timothy grass or hay sometimes in pet stores, I think, where it's used in connection with rabbits. BUT MAKE SURE IT'S NOT ALFALFA. The only time I would suggest a lot of grass would be in the Winter, indoors to keep the gut clean.

Some other great things in terms of their nutritional value, as long as you can find them fresh, are Watercress, Turnip Greens, Collard Greens.
Your tort will no doubt love things like Bell Pepper and Cherry Tomato, but I would suggest using these in very small quantities as a treat only.

PS - I think it is always advisable to thoroughly wash everything in plain water before feeding it to your tort. That will help to reduce any herbicide residues and provide some additional moisture when he eats it.

 

[Scoffy20]

I would avoid the dandelion greens at the market. These look like dandelion greens but are chicory, not the same at all as dandelion. Chicory has a very unbalanced calcium-to-phosphorus ratio.

I highly recommend you go to some place where they don't spray weed killer, like a forest preserve, and look for actual dandelions. Do not use what you buy in the market. Try to find some dandelion flowers as well. Testudo's love them. Hibiscus flowers are good too. Wild violet leaves and wild grape leaves are also great. Plantains the flat-leafed "weeds" where the veins run in the line between the stem and pointed tip are an acquired taste but have lots of fiber.

Regular hay is also not at all a good idea since it could be alfalfa, and that contains elevated nitrogen levels. This is good for farm animals, not at all for tortoises.

You can buy timothy grass or hay sometimes in pet stores, I think, where it's used in connection with rabbits. BUT MAKE SURE IT'S NOT ALFALFA. The only time I would suggest a lot of grass would be in the Winter, indoors to keep the gut clean.

Some other great things in terms of their nutritional value, as long as you can find them fresh, are Watercress, Turnip Greens, Collard Greens.
Your tort will no doubt love things like Bell Pepper and Cherry Tomato, but I would suggest using these in very small quantities as a treat only.

PS - I think it is always advisable to thoroughly wash everything in plain water before feeding it to your tort. That will help to reduce any herbicide residues and provide some additional moisture when he eats it.

Thank you very much. I am actually a chef in NYC and will have no trouble finding any of these items at there peak quality. Thanks again