Increase in thick urates

[Jude2000]

Hi. I have a beautiful 8yr old Russian tortoise. Very healthy, active and eating really well, but over the last 3 weeks she has been passing a lot of very thick urates both in her enclosure and her bath. Am I giving her too much calcium powder and is it a problem I need to address ? I would appreciate some advice if possible. Thank you .

 

[Maro2Bear]

So the question is, how much extra calcium powder are you adding? And how often & long are you soaking?

 

[Jude2000]

Thank you for your reply. She has calcium powder sprinkled on her food 2/3 times a week and I soak her every 3 days for 30mins. I've not changed this so I'm just surprised to see a big change in her urates. She dies have cuttlefish but has never even looked at it !

 

[Krista S]

Hi. I have a beautiful 8yr old Russian tortoise. Very healthy, active and eating really well, but over the last 3 weeks she has been passing a lot of very thick urates both in her enclosure and her bath. Am I giving her too much calcium powder and is it a problem I need to address ? I would appreciate some advice if possible. Thank you .

Urates aren’t caused by calcium intake. They’re produced as a result of protein digestion. Your tortoise must be eating more protein recently to be suddenly producing more urates. If nothing has changed in your tortoises diet, then it’s a sign that your tortoise is f hydrated enough. Are the urates smooth and silky or do you feel any grittiness? Keep your tortoise well hydrated and take a look at the diet you’re feeding.

Here is an excellent care sheet Incase you haven’t already seen it. It was created by one of our most talented members. There’s a section on diet in here too that you may find helpful.

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

 

[Jude2000]

Urates aren’t caused by calcium intake. They’re produced as a result of protein digestion. Your tortoise must be eating more protein recently to be suddenly producing more urates. If nothing has changed in your tortoises diet, then it’s a sign that your tortoise is f hydrated enough. Are the urates smooth and silky or do you feel any grittiness? Keep your tortoise well hydrated and take a look at the diet you’re feeding.

Here is an excellent care sheet Incase you haven’t already seen it. It was created by one of our most talented members. There’s a section on diet in here too that you may find helpful.

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

Thank you. The urates are smooth and slimey. Not gritty. I will definitely soak her more often and review her diet and see if I can help her.

 

[Krista S]

Thank you. The urates are smooth and slimey. Not gritty. I will definitely soak her more often and review her diet and see if I can help her.

That’s good that they’re smooth, it means there’s no immediate cause for concern. It’s ok to see some urates, but since you’re noticing a pretty big increase, minor adjustments like lowering the protein in her diet and maybe soaking every couple of days for the next while should help a great deal. ?

 

[Jude2000]

That’s good that they’re smooth, it means there’s no immediate cause for concern. It’s ok to see some urates, but since you’re noticing a pretty big increase, minor adjustments like lowering the protein in her diet and maybe soaking every couple of days for the next while should help a great deal. ?

That's a relief ?. Thank you so much for your advice ?