Indian Star Tortoise Help !

[Yash Raj]

Hello everyone.

I've got few questions regarding my Indian Star Tortoise.
I just got it before 5 days. It doesn't eat anything. It ate 1 bite of Hibiscus Leaf & 1 small pc. of Tomato on the second day.
It doesn't even drink water on its own. I put it into water, it drinks just a sip & runs away into some corner. It also runs away when I keep it under sunlight.
It just likes to sleep. It sleeps the whole day.
Today I got Calcium Tablets with Vitamin D3. I mixed 125 Milligrams in its water & put it into the water dish. It drank a sip & ran away to sleep !!!
I don't understand what to do ! Confused. Please help...
Thanks...
Age: 4-5 Months.
Size: 2 inches long, 1.5 inches wide.
Sex: Don't know.

 

[jeffbens0n]

Baby tortoises like to spend a lot of time hiding and sleeping...also add in the fact that this guy was just thrown into a new place, it will likely take him some time to get used to his surroundings. Just leave him some food on a daily basis and give him time to eat it when he is ready.

 

[Yash Raj]

Baby tortoises like to spend a lot of time hiding and sleeping...also add in the fact that this guy was just thrown into a new place, it will likely take him some time to get used to his surroundings. Just leave him some food on a daily basis and give him time to eat it when he is ready.

Thanks...
But it never wakes up. Just sleeps. When I put it into food plate, it sleeps there !
When do I know that it is hungry & ready to eat ?
Look:
View attachment 12321

 

[Jacqui]

Can I ask a few basic questions...

1)What temperatures are you keeping him at? Day temps and night? Does he have one side warmer then the other side?

2) You said it drank then ran away. Have you tried doing a soak, where he can't leave the water for like 15 minutes? Warm water and only just up to where the two shells meet.

3) Do you know if he was eating before you got him? If so, ask what he was eating.

4) Can you tell us a bit about his setup? (pictures would even be better) Like what substrate is he on? Lights (UV, heat, black, red, and hen are they on). Does he have hides?

5) Where did you get him? A breeder, a pet store or where?

I do agree, with what was said, this may all be his stress reaction to all the big changes in his life. Still it won't hurt to check that everything is set up okay while we give him some time to come around. Five days and only sleeping does tend to set off alarms with one so tiny.

 

[Yash Raj]

Around 30°C during the day & around 25°C at night.
It runs away from warm water soaks up to shell meeting point. Not more than 1 minute.
The Pet Shop Owner told me he gave crushed Bread mixed with Milk every morning. I didn't do that.
The food you see in the picture is chopped Hibiscus flower petals, Hibiscus leaves, Cabbage & Coriander.
It chewed Hibiscus leaves twice. I saw. But a very small amount.
Yesterday I gave him chopped Calabash, Zucchini, Broccoli & Cucumber at 7:00 P. M. & I was just shoked. It came to the food plate & ate continuously for 20 minutes !
Today also it ate the same for 5 minutes. I touched it & it went to sleep ! Forgot the food.
I've just kept it in a wooden box with a food plate & a water plate. A cardboard hide box in a corner.
No substrate. I used sand but removed it in 1 day with fear of going into its eyes, consumption, etc. !
Wooden box size: 20 x 18 inches.
Hide box size: 6 x 4 inches.
I got Calcium tablets with Vitamin D3. I mixed 125 Milligrams into its water & food yesterday.
How many times in a week should I give this ?
I want to know what it is ! Male or Female.
I'm planning to get its partner. Is it a good decision ? If yes, same sex or opposite sex partner ?
Please guide me. Thanks...

 

[agiletorts]

Your baby Star is so tiny so it won't eat much, especially the first week or so in a new environment. The fact that it ate a little shouldn't worry you too much. I've never fed my Stars crushed bread and milk, so not sure about that one. Usually something soft like romaine/green and red leaf lettuces are fine for babies. I also sprinkled calcium a little bit once/twice a week.

Regarding finding its partner, it's not really necessary for the tortoise itself, but more for the human (i.e. you!) to feel better knowing the pet is not alone.

 

[coastal]

You should provide a heated humid hide box for this little one to sleep in. It's normal to not eat and hide and sleep as it becomes accustom to its new setup in the first few days. You can order some Mazuri and use that to get him going, I ship around the world. I would not use calcium supplements on your star, you will get stones and cause more harm then good. The food I mentioned or the Marion red sticks both have all the supplements in balance your tort will need.

Stars can be very sensitive to overdose of calcium, use caution!

Also I worecommendmend using a substrate like ground coconut, sphagnumgnum moss for the hide. Be sure you heat the hide box with a heat pad.

 

[Torty Mom]

Your little baby need something to burrow in and get nice and snugglie, it also helps with the humidity. You got some great advice above!!! Good luck, we are here to help!!

 

[Yvonne G]

If your baby always has his eyes closed like in the picture, he's a very, very sick baby. Do you have a vet you can take him to?

 

[Torty Mom]

What kind of lighting are you using, is it a coil bulb?

 

[Yash Raj]

I'm not using any bulb. I've mentioned everything above.
My room temp. is 30-35°C during the day & around 25-30°C at night. Is this okay ?
Why does it run away from warm water soaks ?
I've never seen him urinating or excreting from last 2 days & it is eating well. Is this okay ?
Also, it opens its eyes very less. Sometimes looks at me with its only left eye open.
Only while eating, it keeps its both eyes wide open.
I don't think it is sick.

 

[Yash Raj]

No reply. Moderator is requested to close the thread. Thanks.

 

[turtlelady80]

Hello everyone.

I've got few questions regarding my Indian Star Tortoise.
I just got it before 5 days. It doesn't eat anything. It ate 1 bite of Hibiscus Leaf & 1 small pc. of Tomato on the second day.
It doesn't even drink water on its own. I put it into water, it drinks just a sip & runs away into some corner. It also runs away when I keep it under sunlight.
It just likes to sleep. It sleeps the whole day.
Today I got Calcium Tablets with Vitamin D3. I mixed 125 Milligrams in its water & put it into the water dish. It drank a sip & ran away to sleep !!!
I don't understand what to do ! Confused. Please help...
Thanks...
Age: 4-5 Months.
Size: 2 inches long, 1.5 inches wide.
Sex: Don't know.

---

You should soak your star in a seperate tub with warm water every day for 15-20 minutes. Reason 1- you can get a good look at your star everyday. 2- he can deficate in the water instead of the tank and keeps the tank much cleaner 3- you know that hes getting time in the water without running away and not drinking.

---

NOTE: you should do that with any hatchling. I soak my juveniles every other day.

 

[tortoises101]

I'm not using any bulb. I've mentioned everything above.
My room temp. is 30-35°C during the day & around 25-30°C at night. Is this okay ?
Why does it run away from warm water soaks ?
I've never seen him urinating or excreting from last 2 days & it is eating well. Is this okay ?
Also, it opens its eyes very less. Sometimes looks at me with its only left eye open.
Only while eating, it keeps its both eyes wide open.
I don't think it is sick.

If it keeps both eyes open when eating it should be fine. If he's running from warm water soaks it may be that he needs to adjust to his environment. Young tortoises spend a lot of their time sleeping and hiding.