Just Hatched or 3.5 months old?? Help!!

[Speedy-1]

I only used one light for UV and basking , with the CHE for night heat . It just makes things easier , light on a timer that is set to be on for 12 hours . CHE on a thermostat set at 81 , turns off and on as needed ! Easy peasy why make it harder than it needs to be ?
Settle down a little bit , it is supposed to be fun !

 

[leigti]

Please don't get discouraged or stressed out. You actually started out much much better than many people do with their baby tortoise. Get rid of the hay completely. It dries them out and it can mold. And open topped table is extremely difficult to keep heat and humidity in, look up "closed chamber" for some ideas. But until then you can just use a medium or heavy clear shower curtain and build a frame out of wood or even PVC. Cover the entire enclusure. It's good that you divided it in half, it will be easier to manage temperatures in the smaller area for now. This is a handy little gadget I got off Amazon, I must have six of them sitting around in different enclosures, even my chicken coop
And these can be found at hardware stores or farm supply stores. They work well for the mercury vapor bulb, I heat bulb, or a CHE.
The learning curve for a hatchling is pretty steep, but you can do it. All the information you need is on this site.

 

[Tom]

• I have a question, maybe someone here could help me. I just got a baby sulcata from a reptile show 2 weeks ago. They told me she was about 3 1/2 months old. Although, I'm pretty sure she still had her egg tooth when we got her. Whatever it was fell off about a week after we brought her home.
  My question is this, Is it possible that she is younger than they initially told me or can they sometimes have the tooth or part of it still attached that long after they are hatched?

• For the record she is 2" and .355 oz. They also told me they had an ultrasound and that they were 95% sure she was a girl...idk what to think about all that.

• I kind of feel like the guy just wanted to get rid of the tortoise because he didn't even ask me if I had any idea as to what I was getting myself into. He also told me that they just eat whatever we eat. Thankfully I know that to be untrue. I am just worried. I want to make sure he or she is getting exactly what they need to thrive.

Hello and welcome Kara. Your suspicions are all correct. That seller told you a pack of lies to make a sale.

1. Babies usually lose the egg tooth by about 6 weeks. That is by far the most common time frame, but it is physically possible that a tortoise somewhere could deviate from that. Most sellers try to sell their babies off ASAP. I'll bet your tortoise was right around 5-6 weeks old when you got it.
2a. 0.355 oz. would be 10 grams. That can't be correct. Even little ones hatch at 30 grams. Did you mean 3.55 oz? That would be closer to 100 grams. That would be ok weight if she is really 4 months old. Pretty good is she's really closer to 2 months. Will you re-weigh her and set the scale for grams for me?
2b. Ultrasounding a baby would tell them nothing. Babies can be surgically scoped and sexed, but that costs hundreds of dollars and is almost never done except for really high end species that cost thousands of dollars. This is a blatant lie, or the guy is totally ignorant. You won't know what your baby is for 3-4 years in most cases.
3. Yes, you are right about the food thing.

Please read all three of these. They will answer all of the questions you are asking and also give you some tips for things you might not have thought of yet.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

I'm very glad you found us and decided to join. Hope we can help.

 

[saginawhxc]

Welcome to community and congrats on the new tortoise. I was in the same place with my baby sulcata less than a year ago.

Brought mine home, set him up, found this site, and threw out all I did.

Best advice I can give is get rid of the hay. If you do things right that hay will be moldy in two days. Spring mix is kind of like fast food for tortoises, it's okay... but there are much better thing out there. If you are going to rely on store bought greens start adding greens like collards, turnip, mustard, and dandelion.

Most importantly, read thE beginner thread, and Tom's sulcata care sheet and his diet sheet. Make those threads your new best friends.

And have fun.

 

[Kara B]

Hello and welcome Kara. Your suspicions are all correct. That seller told you a pack of lies to make a sale.

1. Babies usually lose the egg tooth by about 6 weeks. That is by far the most common time frame, but it is physically possible that a tortoise somewhere could deviate from that. Most sellers try to sell their babies off ASAP. I'll bet your tortoise was right around 5-6 weeks old when you got it.
2a. 0.355 oz. would be 10 grams. That can't be correct. Even little ones hatch at 30 grams. Did you mean 3.55 oz? That would be closer to 100 grams. That would be ok weight if she is really 4 months old. Pretty good is she's really closer to 2 months. Will you re-weigh her and set the scale for grams for me?
2b. Ultrasounding a baby would tell them nothing. Babies can be surgically scoped and sexed, but that costs hundreds of dollars and is almost never done except for really high end species that cost thousands of dollars. This is a blatant lie, or the guy is totally ignorant. You won't know what your baby is for 3-4 years in most cases.
3. Yes, you are right about the food thing.

Please read all three of these. They will answer all of the questions you are asking and also give you some tips for things you might not have thought of yet.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

I'm very glad you found us and decided to join. Hope we can help.

Thank you for allowing me to join, I am so glad I found this site. I just calibrated my scale and weighed her. 31.9 Is that small?? Or maybe my scale is still off?? I have read all of and even printed parts of those files you pointed me to! Thank you...The information is invaluable. I am not a completely new tortoise owner, but very new to one so small and young. I once had an ornate box turtle, which I know aren't real close to a sulcata but I knew enough to know that you can't just feed them anything.

 

[Tom]

I just calibrated my scale and weighed her. 31.9 Is that small?? Or maybe my scale is still off??

32 grams would be very light for a 2 month old, and indicate a big problem for a 4 month old.

Put a nickel on your scale. It should weigh about 5 grams. 4 quarters should weigh 22-23 grams depending on how sensitive your scale is.

Sounds like you might have gotten a dry started baby, but lets hope for the best.

 

[Gillian M]

View attachment 187665 View attachment 187666

A gorgeous tort!

 

[Kara B]

32 grams would be very light for a 2 month old, and indicate a big problem for a 4 month old.

Put a nickel on your scale. It should weigh about 5 grams. 4 quarters should weigh 22-23 grams depending on how sensitive your scale is.

Sounds like you might have gotten a dry started baby, but lets hope for the best.

I checked the scale, it's correct...I am so worried now. I don't want her to die. She has her own room which is kept at 80 at all times, then I have a fogger in there as of yesterday. I am trying to figure a way to construct a tent to keep more moisture in and not start a fire. What else should I do for her?

 

[Tom]

I checked the scale, it's correct...I am so worried now. I don't want her to die. She has her own room which is kept at 80 at all times, then I have a fogger in there as of yesterday. I am trying to figure a way to construct a tent to keep more moisture in and not start a fire. What else should I do for her?

I'll share what I've learned over the years, so that at least you can be informed. What you should know is that some of them pull through and are fine, and some are not going to live, no matter what the new keeper (you) does, or doesn't, do. No amount of money or vet care will make a difference either. All you can do is offer the best conditions possible, soak daily, feed a good diet, and hope for the best.

Here is how babies should be started:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-incubate-eggs-and-start-hatchlings.124266/

Here is what can happen when they are not started the right way:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/hatchling-failure-syndrome.23493/

Don't jump to conclusions just yet. Do your best and hope that your baby will be one of the survivors. Think positive.

 

[Kara B]

I'll share what I've learned over the years, so that at least you can be informed. What you should know is that some of them pull through and are fine, and some are not going to live, no matter what the new keeper (you) does, or doesn't, do. No amount of money or vet care will make a difference either. All you can do is offer the best conditions possible, soak daily, feed a good diet, and hope for the best.

Here is how babies should be started:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-incubate-eggs-and-start-hatchlings.124266/

Here is what can happen when they are not started the right way:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/hatchling-failure-syndrome.23493/

Don't jump to conclusions just yet. Do your best and hope that your baby will be one of the survivors. Think positive.

I am going to try not to worry. Easier said than done though!! She does, however eat and poop every day, thats a good sign, right? She just sleeps a lot. But she does move around a little bit during the day. Those all have to be positive signs....at least I hope so!

 

[leigti]

If she eats, poops, and sleeps, then she's doing exactly what a baby should do.

 

[leigti]

I understand all the worrying though. I am getting a hatchling in about an hour, and I think I've checked all the temperatures in the enclosure about 20 times today. I even change the water out and he hasn't even gotten there yet yes a little OCD showing through I think.

 

[sue white]

I have to agree with Tom. I worry about my little Finn too But I know after raising domestic and wild babies of varying species some just don't have the capacity to make it I gotten where I measure my success with my hatchling on the eat,poop and sleep system Good Luck

 

[Kara B]

I understand all the worrying though. I am getting a hatchling in about an hour, and I think I've checked all the temperatures in the enclosure about 20 times today. I even change the water out and he hasn't even gotten there yet yes a little OCD showing through I think.

I will admit my OCD!! My confession...I have a video baby monitor on her so I can stare at her while I'm at work!! LOL

 

[sue white]

Wish I'd thought of that . Love It !!!!

 

[leigti]

I will admit my OCD!! My confession...I have a video baby monitor on her so I can stare at her while I'm at work!! LOL

I need one of those!

 

[Kara B]

I do believe that I am watching my baby torti slowly die.....

 

[sue white]

why do you think that? Is there a vet that knows tortoises near you? Take it. It's better to know then to guess. As for my experience with my hatchling seeing the vet cost the same as one of my cats if not cheaper. worth the money Good luck

 

[Tom]

I do believe that I am watching my baby torti slowly die.....

Sorry to hear this. We're here for you...

 

[Kara B]

Sorry to hear this. We're here for you...

I have her table covered and a good humidity meter and thermometer. It's at 80 degrees and 80% humidity She moved about a bit today but didn't really eat much. She did go potty in her bath, but it's was bright green and mossy looking. I think her shell is softening as well but I'm not certain. I am just so sad and mad too!