my red foot is pyramiding

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aidanhd500

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i got my red foot 2 days ago. he is a baby still and i dont know what to do about it. he tends to hide alot, he doesnt sleep alot just hides in his log... he hasnt basked in his heat light or his uvb light yet and im starting to be worried. the pet store mis treated him and fed im pellets and gave him a small space with only a heat light and carpet. View attachment 6564
 
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Yvonne G

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Hi Aidanhd500:

Welcome to the forum!!

Well, you've come to the right place to learn "what to do about it!!!"

I don't keep redfoots, but there are several...read that MANY...redfoot keepers here on the forum.

I'll give you one piece of advice, then you should listen to others who have more experience: more moisture and humidity and less light.

Also, I'm going to move this "introduction" thread to the Redfoot thread so more RF keepers will see it.
 

Balboa

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I'm the newb on the redfoot corner, but I can try to help, I'm sure I'll be corrected if I lead you wrong.

From my experience alot of hiding when both new and young is normal, don't fret that. HOPEFULLY it will turn around over time.

If you haven't yet check out these sites

http://www.turtletary.com/redfootcare.htm
http://sites.google.com/site/tortoiselibrary/

both were instrumental in getting me up to speed on redfoot care when I unexpectedly acquired one a couple months ago.

How are you keeping yours? Give us lots of details in case you're unsure, we may be able to make some helpful pointers.
 

Kenny

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I agree with Balboa
That turtletary article is as good as it gets.
 

PeanutbuttER

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Welcome to TFO aidan. Not sure if these will help you, but this is how I"m keeping my redfoot. How big is yours?

Here's my 6" redfoot, Kiwi
Tortsfeeding039.jpg

her substrate is cypress mulch.

and this is Maui, she was on a mixed substrate of cypress mulch and long-fibered sphagnum moss but I have since switched to just straight cypress mulch.
Tortsfeeding020.jpg


Maui is still just little, about 7 months old. She has lots of fake plants and stuff to hide under and she spends most of her day dug down into the substrate under the fake plants. It's normal for them to hide.
 

Madkins007

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aidanhd500 said:
i got my red foot 2 days ago. he is a baby still and i dont know what to do about it. he tends to hide alot, he doesnt sleep alot just hides in his log... he hasnt basked in his heat light or his uvb light yet and im starting to be worried. the pet store mis treated him and fed im pellets and gave him a small space with only a heat light and carpet.

Hi!

I have some articles in the Tortoise Library in my sig that might help. Here are some quick starting points...

1. New guys are almost always nervous and hide for the first few days. If the basic cares are OK, you can just leave it alone until it gets comfortable. Leave it as alone as you can for now- even to reducing vibrations and such around it.

2. A lot of people think they don't like a lot of light, but that is not really true- as long as they have plenty of shade and hides to choose from.

3. Keep him warm and humid. Warm = 85ish, with a range of about 80-90. Humid = it should be warm and steamy in there. Ideally, the tort should always look a bit moist, but that can be tricky. It does look like your substrate may be a dehydrating one instead of a moistening one.

Let us know if you need more ideas!
 

aidanhd500

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i read the turtle tary link and it was very helpful. the pet store i bought him from had him in a 2 feet by 2 feet enclosure with carpet water dish and a log. they also fed him pellets..... i have him in a 4 feet by 2 feet by 10 inches enclosure and he has plenty of space to Rome around. im going to start misting it with a spray bottle because it is pretty dry in there. he has been e\ting fine but he hasnt ate the same food 2 days in a row. (if i present it with something new) other wise he will eat it. i will link some pictures of the enclosure in a little bit :) im gonna go check on him for now

thank you for the support :)
 

Seiryu

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I don't have much to add. But does anyone else see in the last 3 pics his shell is actually dipping in (Like MBD already?)

The 2nd pic between the 2nd and 3rd middle scute (from the head). It looks like they are dipping in to me.
 

onarock

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Yeah, I see it. Could it be shadow? Where is the lite source. We would need more pics
 

sara

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I find that cypress mulch is excellent for holding moisture, I also mist it every day as well as mist Bert. I also soak bert 2-3 times a week in warm water. Not too deep so he doesnt drown. Right now where i live its snowing and cold, it has been a bit of a challenge to keep his room warm and humid, I use a oil heater as well as a warm mist humidifyer. it has helped tremendously, and he is much happier about it.
There is alot more info out there and this is a great place to get it. soooo, keep the questions comming! and welcome to the forum :)
 

Balboa

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I saw that too, Rob and Ona, but chose not to comment on it, figuring more experienced keepers (like you guys) would be a better judge. Looks alot like my Adrienne. Reminds me that I need to look at more pictures of 4 inch or so Redfoots to compare.

That being the case, I would like to ask you, Aidan, about the source of your redfoot. I'd be curious if this was what I guess you could term a "bad batch" that went out from some vendor. It would be nice to know if there ARE alot more like these two, and possibly (yet unlikely) trace down the ranch that appears to be badly mistreating redfoots. One sickly slipping through is an accident, many is a problem.
 

aidanhd500

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well i live in manitoba and i bought this red foot from a place cald pet traders. im not sure what breeder they got it from
 

Balboa

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cool, thank you, do you know how long they had it before you adopted?
 

aidanhd500

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does it have MBD ? cause i just got my tortoise and im attached to it... i dont want it to die :'( im just a kid... if those suckers ripped me off of my 500 dollars im gonna flip!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
 

onarock

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I would recommend a vet. Is there a good reptile vet in your area. I think egyptiandan might be able to help with locating a vet in your area. I think I've seen some other posts where he has assisted. If I'm wrong, sorry Dan.
 

Balboa

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Calm down Aidan,
even if she does its not the end of the world, at least she has you now to love her and care for.
The only two redfoots I have were "sick" when I got them, the only reason I got them, to try and nurse them back to health. (I also didn't pay retail for them I should point out. One was free, the other I paid a nominal $25 for. To anyone who ever reads this thread who has thought about "rescuing" from a pet store, its probably not a good idea, at least not to pay full retail. It does not encourage proper behavior on the part of suppliers, they make full profit still after abusing an animal.)

That being said, done is done, and she needs you now Aidan, to give her the very best of everything you can. If you feed her well, give her proper living conditions, and all the love she deserves, she will likely pull through and live a long happy life regardless of any MBD she may or may not have at this point.

A GOOD tortoise vet, would be a good idea, unfortunatly those can be hard to find. An inexperienced vet who simply looks through old, outdated manuals can at times cause more harm than good. (That's my opinion, not fact)

We can work with you to make sure you fully understand how to care for your Tort. You are lucky, you found us. If something like this had been available when many of us were "just kids" we wouldn't have had the heartbreaks we endured back then.

Another thing I'd like to stress, is if there is ANYTHING you are uncertain about as to keeping Redfoots, please DO ask, no matter how silly it may seem.

If you're willing, I'd like to ask you for detailed information on how you keep her, just to make sure we have the bases covered.
What is her substrate?
How humid is her enclosure on a continuous basis?
What are the enclosure temps at each end of the enclosure?
You've mentioned about her eating different things, which is VERY good. What are you able to feed her now?
Do you have a UVB lamp for her?

I ask because I want to know if you are having trouble in any of these areas, we may be able to come up with ideas that will work for you and where you are at.
 

Yvonne G

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And don't forget the calcium and UVB.
 

ALDABRAMAN

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Balboa said:
I saw that too, Rob and Ona, but chose not to comment on it, figuring more experienced keepers (like you guys) would be a better judge. Looks alot like my Adrienne. Reminds me that I need to look at more pictures of 4 inch or so Redfoots to compare.

That being the case, I would like to ask you, Aidan, about the source of your redfoot. I'd be curious if this was what I guess you could term a "bad batch" that went out from some vendor. It would be nice to know if there ARE alot more like these two, and possibly (yet unlikely) trace down the ranch that appears to be badly mistreating redfoots. One sickly slipping through is an accident, many is a problem.

I saw the same thing.
 
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