Inquiry about a sick baby tort, help!

[Besh1994]

Hello,
I have a sick baby tortoise (greek) with respiratory infection, and I’ve been doing as best as I could to save her.

so I‘m wondering If It’s good to sprinkle centrum multi vitamin(for humans) on her food, Would this help? Or not necessary?

Also, she’s indoors now but i’m planning on keeping her outdoors to get more warm from the sun light but i’m a little concern wether she’ll receive UV from the sun or not cuz her enclosure must be covered on top since she’s a baby! And this had me confused, So what should i do about her outdoor enclosure to make her safe,healthy and receive enough UV?

thank you

 

[KarenSoCal]

How old is your baby? And how long in your care?

Don't use human vitamins on her food. Their requirements are very different than ours, and you could easily overdose her. If she is eating a varied diet of weeds, all she needs is a tiny pinch of calcium 2x/week.

Baby torts do better when they live inside. Usually we only take them out for an hour per inch 2-3x/week. So tort's shell is 2" , out for 2 hours. They can't be left in the sun...I am assuming that where you live, it's getting pretty hot by now.

So you could leave the cover off while you sat and watched her. Do you use a UVB light in her indoor enclosure? If not, supervised outdoor time is your only option.

Could you post some pictures for us? Her enclosure, lights, etc. And include a couple of her, one taken from below her.

Maybe we can figure something out.

 

[Besh1994]

First thank you for your humble help,

-She’s 2” and unfortunately I don’t know her age.

-And no I don’t have indoor UV light for her, that’s why i want to put her outdoor. And I put heat light 24hrs.

-But since it’s better to keep her indoors, then I should only expose her to sun light 2-3 times a week? For 2 hours & cover off right?

- pictures are attached
Thank you

 

[Besh1994]

How old is your baby? And how long in your care?

Don't use human vitamins on her food. Their requirements are very different than ours, and you could easily overdose her. If she is eating a varied diet of weeds, all she needs is a tiny pinch of calcium 2x/week.

Baby torts do better when they live inside. Usually we only take them out for an hour per inch 2-3x/week. So tort's shell is 2" , out for 2 hours. They can't be left in the sun...I am assuming that where you live, it's getting pretty hot by now.

So you could leave the cover off while you sat and watched her. Do you use a UVB light in her indoor enclosure? If not, supervised outdoor time is your only option.

Could you post some pictures for us? Her enclosure, lights, etc. And include a couple of her, one taken from below her.

Maybe we can figure something out.

.

 

[KarenSoCal]

UV will not penetrate that plastic top.

But first, why do you think she has an RI? What signs do you see?

If she does have RI, she needs to be kept warm, and have humidity. Do you know the temp in her box? Both daytime and overnight low. Does she have a basking spot?

Her heating light should be off at night, but she still needs to be warm enough.

Is there any way you could get a new, much larger plastic bin with a lid? You really cannot give her what she needs in that one. We can tell you what you would need to set it up properly. I just have no idea what is available to you.

In the meantime, if she really does have an RI, taking are of that is more important than the UV.

Please read this care sheet. It tells you how everything is supposed to be done.

Is she eating well? What do you feed her?

Greek Tortoise Care Guide

The Greek Tortoise Care Guide (Testudo graeca ssp) Chris Leone HermanniHaven.com GardenStateTortoise.com theTurtleRoom.com THIS CARE-SHEET IS DETAILED FOR A REASON. READ IT THOROUGHLY BEFORE PROCEEDING WITH OBTAINING A TORTOISE. Moroccan tortoise (Testudo graeca marokkensis) Introduction...

www.tortoiseforum.org

 

[Besh1994]

UV will not penetrate that plastic top.

But first, why do you think she has an RI? What signs do you see?

If she does have RI, she needs to be kept warm, and have humidity. Do you know the temp in her box? Both daytime and overnight low. Does she have a basking spot?

Her heating light should be off at night, but she still needs to be warm enough.

Is there any way you could get a new, much larger plastic bin with a lid? You really cannot give her what she needs in that one. We can tell you what you would need to set it up properly. I just have no idea what is available to you.

In the meantime, if she really does have an RI, taking are of that is more important than the UV.

Please read this care sheet. It tells you how everything is supposed to be done.

Is she eating well? What do you feed her?

Greek Tortoise Care Guide

The Greek Tortoise Care Guide (Testudo graeca ssp) Chris Leone HermanniHaven.com GardenStateTortoise.com theTurtleRoom.com THIS CARE-SHEET IS DETAILED FOR A REASON. READ IT THOROUGHLY BEFORE PROCEEDING WITH OBTAINING A TORTOISE. Moroccan tortoise (Testudo graeca marokkensis) Introduction...

www.tortoiseforum.org

I think she has RI because she has a runny nose, sneeze often, opens her mouth to breath every 30-50 seconds and stretch her body to catch a breath.

I moist her enclosure daily to keep it humid, but how can i keep it warm if i should turn off the heat at night? Any suggestion?

her basking area should be under the heat light right?

Yes I can provide her larger enclosure.

I feed her romaine lettuce daily and zucchini, rocca, mallow and cucumber sparingly. Is it good? And should i feed her once or twice a day?

Her appetite is very good she’s active, excited and always looks for food.

I think there’s a missing word or sentence when you said ( taking is more important than UV) I couldn’t understand.

 

[KarenSoCal]

Sorry, it was supposed to be "taking care of that (the RI) is more important than the UVB."

Yes, the basking is under the heat lamp, but the entire box should be 80-85F (27-30C) even in the coolest corner. There is a very good chance that being too cold is why she has the RI.

To keep warm at night, we use a CHE (ceramic heat emitter). It screws into a light bulb socket, but puts out only heat, no light. It should be on a thermostat so it only comes on when needed.

But you have no way to hang anything above your bin. If you get the biggest bin you can get with a lid, we can tell you how to set it up.

The diet is OK, but she needs lots more variety. If you'll read that care sheet, it will give you a list of foods. It will also give you proper temps.

She needs humidity too. That should also be around 80%, but you can't maintain that with the hole in the lid of the box.

You must be able to maintain at least 27C all day and all night before you can add humidity.

Again, she really needs that new bin.