My tortoise won't eat..

[Bozza]

hi,
I have a 4 year old horsefeild tortoise and she won't eat and hasn't eaten for weeks. She is very dependent on us and won't do much without us. When she does eat, she eats pellets, no veg she hasn't eaten veg in months even though we try so hard to get her to. I will post more details tmrw about her. Please help.

 

[Lyn W]

Hi and welcome.
There is a good caresheet for Russians under Species Specific section and the Beginnner's Mistakes thread (link below) will help you avoid potential problems; www.thetortoisetable.org.uk is a good guide to tort safe foods.
Where are you located? Are your temps warm enough? (see caresheet) if not maybe he is trying to hibernate. Read through those threads and see if you can spot anything you could do differently, and if you post pics of your enclosure members can advise on any changes you could make.
Hope to see you soon with more information

 

[Bozza]

I live in england i will look at the link and post pictures and temperatures tomorrow. Thx

 

[Yvonne G]

The most common reason a tortoise isn't eating is because he's not warm enough. But this is the time of year they want to hibernate, and that might be contributing to your problem too. Read the care sheet and keep in mind a captive tortoise can only eat what you give it. If you don't give pellets, he can't eat them. And if all conditions are correct, a tortoise won't starve himself.

 

[JoesMum]

Hi Bozza

Many British Testudo are reacting to the shortening days and preparing to hibernate now.

My Greek will be going down in the next few days.

If you don't intend to hibernate then you must pay especial attention to heat and lighting to make things bright and warm enough for your tort to start thinking summery active thoughts.

It is also important that you soak your tort for a good 30 minutes every day during this inactivity. A tortoise can survive without food, but not water.

What temperatures do you have? (Warm side, cool side, directly under the basking lamp and overnight minimum?)

Pictures of your enclosure and lighting will also help us to help you.

 

[Bozza]

Ok I will post pics

 

[Gillian M]

Hi @Bozza and a very warm welcome to the forum!

Please make sure that your tort is warm enough.

Look forward to seeing pics.

 

[Bozza]

This is a link to a video about her enclosure

 

[TheSulcata]

Yes temps are very important because it might be brummating (reptile hibernating) And they don't eat anything during that phase, but if ur temps are over 80 there shouldn't be a problem

 

[Bozza]

Okay
Do you know if there is any way to check the heat without a thermometer?

 

[TheSulcata]

Uhh idk but you can get one for like a dollar at Walmart or target

 

[Bozza]

Also I was curious about the average weight of a 4 year old horsefeild tortoise can't find an answer.

 

[TheSulcata]

Hmm I don't know.. I own sulcatas so I don't know a whole lot about that tortoise

 

[JoesMum]

Also I was curious about the average weight of a 4 year old horsefeild tortoise can't find an answer.

There is no answer as they all grow at different rates.

What you're looking for is steady growth and weight gain.

Failure to grow or weight loss is the concern

 

[Bozza]

For the past year she has been growing in weight but slowly and has not lost weight at all. I will weigh her tmrw.

 

[JoesMum]

For the past year she has been growing in weight but slowly and has not lost weight at all. I will weigh her tmrw.

It's best to weigh your tortoise at roughly the same time of day each time as weight varies throughout the day, just like yours does, and pooping and peeing can make a massive difference in smaller torts.

Weighing fortnightly is enough to get the trend.

 

[Yvonne G]

Well, Russian tortoises are a pretty small species. I doubt you'll notice very much growth as they only reach about 5 or 6 inches front to back in a straight line at full size