Haven't gotten a brand new Sulcata to eat

GaretMac

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Hey all!
We brought home a yearling Sulcata Sunday. We had done all the research and committed to this species. I'm a former vet tech, paramedic, and Great Dane breeder, but this is a bit of uncharted territory. We have made fresh grass, hays, and sparingly veggies available to her, but have yet to see her eat more than a bite or two. She did have a bowel movement on me at the store Sunday before we brought her home but none since. We are soaking daily in warm water to assure hydration, no drinking even in the soak. She is in a 50 gallon long tank with a water dish, food on a flat surface, uvb and heat lamps and a hiding hut. Temp ranges from 75-95 from one end to the other. She is perky and active out of the terrarium but prefers a corner when in the tank. She also has daily access to our back yard that is fenced. Is this normal shyness and acclimation? We have bought pedialyte but have not added it to soak yet. She has not had any discharge. Any advice appreciated!
Garet
 
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Lyn W

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Hi and welcome.
Have you found the caresheet for sullies yet under Species Specific yet? That will tell you all about diet, temps, humidity and substrate etc.The Beginnner' Mistakes thread (link below) also has some great advice and the Enclosures thread is full of good ideas.
If you can post some pics of your enclosures and bulbs members can advise on any changes you can make - if any - to ensure your tort has a safe and comfortable home. They do take a little while to settle in as they don't like change, so it could just be a period of adjustment, but the big dog/s could be very scary for him too. Hope he settles in and starts to eat soon.
 

dmmj

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if your temperatures are good. Basking spot, warm side, cool side and overall then this is more than likely just a Readjustment period. what are your f
4 temperatures please?
 

GaretMac

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I have read the listed posts (and will reread :) ). I'm all for educating myself and doing right by her. It seems that what I'm attempting to feed is in line with the dietary lists. I will try to get some pictures of her enclosure. It is 50 gallons with coir substrate and a humidity range of 80-85%. And temperature range of 75-95 degrees Fahrenheit. Basking area being the 95 degree area.

I will minimize exposure to scary and new things (including pups). I also am planning on moving her to the whelping box I use which is 5 ft x 8 ft once I figure out how to get the correct humidity and temperature.

I suppose I'm over worrying? At what point of not eating should I be concerned?

Garet
 

Speedy-1

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It may just be getting used to new suroundings . I think you should try to bring the low end temps up to 80 ! Has she been offered Mazuri pellets ? Speedy cant resist them !
 

GaretMac

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I will raise temp and look into Mazuri pellets. I do have zoo med grassland tortoise pellets. But if I need to upgrade quality I will.
 

Speedy-1

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I will raise temp and look into Mazuri pellets. I do have zoo med grassland tortoise pellets. But if I need to upgrade quality I will.

Zoo med are fine especially if thats what she is used to. Raising temps a bit will also help. Are you soaking the pellets first to soften them ?
 

Tom

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What are you using for night heat? What bulbs are you using during the day? Any UV?
 

orasteele

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I found that when I first brought my Turnip home he also refused to eat. I tried soaked him in organic baby carrot food mixed with a little bit of warm water and that perked his appetite. He now it's fine so you may want to try that.

Best of luck and welcome to the Forum!
 

GaretMac

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Eureka! We have digestion! She ate a TON today. Consisting of fresh grass from the yard, strawberry leaves from my garden, turnip greens, moistened zoo med grassland pellets, and a bit of Timothy hay. Thank you guys for all the great information here.

Tom to answer your question: I have a long 25 watt uvb flourescent lamp and a 50 watt incandescent bulb for heat. I was not doing night time heat as she was in a warmer section of the house ~75 degrees. I marched out today and bought a 100 watt ceramic infrared for 24/7.

I would love for her to absorb uvb trough sunlight and do away with the flourescent. She has access everyday (pending weather) to the yard for several hours.

Thoughts?
 

Sara G.

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I think the general idea, and anyone can correct me if I'm wrong, is that if a tort can get several hours of unfiltered sunlight several times a week then the UVB bulb isn't necessary.
I live where it's way too cold to bring my tort outside for most of the year so I can't skip on the UVB bulbs. But I use an MVB because of how convenient they are.
 

Cowboy_Ken

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I think if a tort can get several hours of unfiltered sunlight several times a week then the UVB bulb isn't necessary.
I'm with Sara here on this. Some outside in the unfiltered sun is very adequate. How much time that actually is, I have no knowledge. I always have a mvb with them when not outside. More folks will chime in and hopefully we will get a solid guestamate on about how much weekly "real sun time" would be required to fill the tortoises needs and allow them to thrive as they should. I wish I could offer more help.
 

JoesMum

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I think the general idea, and anyone can correct me if I'm wrong, is that if a tort can get several hours of unfiltered sunlight several times a week then the UVB bulb isn't necessary.
You are correct :)

I live where it's way too cold to bring my tort outside for most of the year so I can't skip on the UVB bulbs. But I use an MVB because of how convenient they are.
:)
 

Lyn W

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I have read the listed posts (and will reread :) ).
I will minimize exposure to scary and new things (including pups).
Garet
Good idea - never trust your dogs - there are far too many sad tales here of injury or death caused by pooches who may never show any interest in torts previously until suddenly they see a new chew toy. Better safe than sorry!
 

Speedy-1

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Good to hear she is all settled in and eating well ! I would agree that a few hours of daily sunlight is preferable to a uv bulb ! I have a 65 watt uv bulb which is a daytime heat / basking bulb . I use it because I have it , not because it is a necessity , Speedy is outside except to sleep or bad weather ! :)
 

GaretMac

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Y'all are awesome! Temp range 80-100 and she is so much more perky! She is eating voraciously and loving the fresh grasses and turnip greens. Still doing a daily soak and humidity is 80-85%. I'm so relieved. She does daily turn outs in the yard pending the soupy Texas weather these days.
 

Tom

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Tom to answer your question: I have a long 25 watt uvb flourescent lamp and a 50 watt incandescent bulb for heat. I was not doing night time heat as she was in a warmer section of the house ~75 degrees. I marched out today and bought a 100 watt ceramic infrared for 24/7.

I would love for her to absorb uvb trough sunlight and do away with the flourescent. She has access everyday (pending weather) to the yard for several hours.

Thoughts?

If your tortoise is getting a half hour a couple of times a week, that is enough UV. More is better. The florescent tube inside is still good for light and won't do any harm. I just wouldn't bother replacing it unless your tortoise is going to be indoors for months on end in winter. Just keep using your current bulb until it dies. It will probably last for years, it just won't produce any UV after about a year of daily use.

I think indoors most of the time and outdoors for a few hours a day is the best way to raise a young sulcata. You get the best of both worlds.

Run your new CHE on a thermostat to maintain ambient around 80, day and night. Here are a couple that I use and like:
http://www.lllreptile.com/products/13883-zilla-1000-watt-temperature-controller
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000NZZG3S/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
Very easy to use. Just plug thermostat into wall, set temp, and then plug CHE into the receptacle on the thermostat. Put the temperature probe on the cool side of the enclosure.

Last thing: 50 watts sounds awfully small for your basking bulb. Is it a "spot"? If yes, I think those concentrate too much heat into one small area. For years I've been using the 65 watt floods and I think they are a nice compromise. They spread the heat out a bit more, but they are still relatively low wattage.
 

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