Hi im new to this and dont ever use forums, but i am kind of worried about my tortoise! Someone gave it to me as a present after returning back from holiday in morrocco. she bought it there and one her friend also bought two from the same clutch (i think; as they looked exactly the same). anyways they were very little when i first got it. one of her friends one is already dead! :-I I researched how to look after it properly without spending a lot of money on the enlosure, lighting etc. ive had it for nearly a year and a half now but it has not really progressed looks wise in health and alertness. ive especially got worried after finding these two articles about it.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1703184.stm
http://www.rspca.org.uk/ImageLocator/LocateAsset?asset=document&assetId=1232715046737&mode=prd
i know maybe i should give it to a professional but i am sure i can do it! ive kept other reptiles in the past successfully too. ok so heres the things i need to find out about my tortoise:
its sleeping most of the tym, id say like 95%. i had read tht thts normal but when its awake it should b pretty fast and alert..which i dont feel it is 100%. i do feed him/her enough and it does eat every morning (like a pig) but apart from eating it sleeps the rest of the day. i am also not sure if it is big enough for his age.
his favourite is rocket salad and it does mostly eat that. it hardly eats other greens. i also use calcium supplement in addition to uv lamp and light bulb. i think maybe he does not have anough heat so i am going to get him a proper reptile heat lamp next week.could u pls tell me the best one to get aswell!
it has had dry flakey skin since ive received it and i even spoke to a vet about it. he told me that its nothing to worry about but its getting worse even tho i do soak him quite a bit. today i saw which i think is dry skin on the left eyebrow and i just wanted to make sure its not affecting vision in way way. he does scratch his eyes when i first put him in water.
i also wanted to find out the gender and the exact species. i think it is a sulcata, spurr thighed, Testudo Graeca Graeca but i could be wrong. please help me out with all these queries as i am sure you are much more experienced with tortoises than me. i do want to do everything in my power to help him survive! i gna try and add pics to this for u to see the left eye , species, gender, size and general looks. PLEASE let me know what u think!!!!id appreciate advice from pro's. sorry for the bad quality in pics btw...
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1703184.stm
http://www.rspca.org.uk/ImageLocator/LocateAsset?asset=document&assetId=1232715046737&mode=prd
i know maybe i should give it to a professional but i am sure i can do it! ive kept other reptiles in the past successfully too. ok so heres the things i need to find out about my tortoise:
its sleeping most of the tym, id say like 95%. i had read tht thts normal but when its awake it should b pretty fast and alert..which i dont feel it is 100%. i do feed him/her enough and it does eat every morning (like a pig) but apart from eating it sleeps the rest of the day. i am also not sure if it is big enough for his age.
his favourite is rocket salad and it does mostly eat that. it hardly eats other greens. i also use calcium supplement in addition to uv lamp and light bulb. i think maybe he does not have anough heat so i am going to get him a proper reptile heat lamp next week.could u pls tell me the best one to get aswell!
it has had dry flakey skin since ive received it and i even spoke to a vet about it. he told me that its nothing to worry about but its getting worse even tho i do soak him quite a bit. today i saw which i think is dry skin on the left eyebrow and i just wanted to make sure its not affecting vision in way way. he does scratch his eyes when i first put him in water.
i also wanted to find out the gender and the exact species. i think it is a sulcata, spurr thighed, Testudo Graeca Graeca but i could be wrong. please help me out with all these queries as i am sure you are much more experienced with tortoises than me. i do want to do everything in my power to help him survive! i gna try and add pics to this for u to see the left eye , species, gender, size and general looks. PLEASE let me know what u think!!!!id appreciate advice from pro's. sorry for the bad quality in pics btw...
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