Need to take care of Tortoise of a friend

[Harry Hanzo]

Hi all,

My Colleague gave me his/her tortoise to take care of while he is away on vacation. The Problem is that i have no idea how to take care of tortoises , i have had pets before like (dogs,Cats, birds) etc but never in my life took care of a tortoise so i am a little worried of how to take care of him etc. Dont even know the Gender of the tortoise lol.
Anywho, i had some questions which i needed clarification on, so it would be awesome if you guys can answer it :

1- My colleague gave me the Tortoise actually in a sandbox with Special sand in it. I am no Wizard but shouldn't they have an aquarium or something with ample amount of water?

2 - The Room in which i am in is Central Air Conditioned with temperatures normally between 71.6 Fahrenheit till 75.2 Fahrenheit, is that okay for the tortoise?

3 - I dont usually take the tortoise out in the sun due to me being out the whole day on work, Is that okay if he/she does not bask in Sun?

4 - Today, in the morning, i woke up early, so i took him/her out in the sun for a little Basking session. I left him/her there and when i came back, his/her legs were all stretched out and as well as the neck and his/her eyes were closed. Is that normal?

5 - I usually feed him/her lettuce leaves, should i feed him/her something else as well?

Please let me know if you guys can help me on this, i don`t want anything to happen to him/her

Thanks,
Haris.

 

[mike taylor]

Well all the information you gave tells us your friend doesn't know how to care for tortoise either. First off no sand of any kind . Next we need to know the type of tortoise you are going to care for . Without knowing the type of tortoise we would be giving you miss information.

 

[mike taylor]

Can you post a picture of said tortoise and enclosure ?

 

[wellington]

I second what Mike said. Everything you said is so very wrong, except the tortoise being sprawled out in the sun, that's pretty normal, specially for a tort that is being so deprived of the proper temps and lighting.
We do need to know what kind of tortoise it is before we can give the exact proper care. However, all tortoises need a proper enclosure with a low sided water dish big enough to get into. They need a basking spot that reaches 95-100 to warm themselves up under to properly digest their food. They need a proper substrate which isn't sand and a proper diet, which isn't just lettuce. This poor tortoise needs a lot of help. Sad that it's sitter is more concerned about proper care then its owner. Hopefully you will be able to improve its life and convince the owner to do the same for it.
A picture of the tortoise and what was included to house and care for him so we can see what all needs changing.

 

[Harry Hanzo]

I knew there was something wrong, Poor thing , i`ll get some pictures of him/her tomorrow and Post it here

 

[Harry Hanzo]

Hi Guys,

So i have the pictures with me.

P.S : sorry for the dirty Sandbox, i just got home from and had not cleaned it as of yet.

Thanks,
Haris.

 

[zovick]

The tortoise looks lethargic and dehydrated. First thing I suggest is that you soak him in lukewarm water for 20 minutes each day, then try to feed him whatever produce he will eat. Put the food on a flat surface like a slate, a paper plate, or a board so it doesn't get sand on it when he eats. The foods can be any type of salad greens for the moment, just to get the tortoise started eating anything at all and to make sure he has an appetite.

 

[Harry Hanzo]

Hi Zovick,

When you say soak, you mean like a bath or just like get a big bowl of warm water and place him/her in it. Also i am already feeding him/her lettuce leaves, is that okay?

Thanks,
Harry

 

[mike taylor]

A bowl of warm water that is only about 1/4 inch deep . I don't keep this kind of tortoise so I don't know much about them . For now he needs new bedding. Some Orchard bark and peat moss dampened . Then he will need heat . I use a 60 watt par38 lamps from home depot they also sell the fixture to hold the lamp . Then adjust the height of the lamp to try to make it 80/85° f. This will keep him warm until someone who knows the care information can help.

 

[zovick]

Hi Zovick,

When you say soak, you mean like a bath or just like get a big bowl of warm water and place him/her in it. Also i am already feeding him/her lettuce leaves, is that okay?

Thanks,
Harry

When you soak a tortoise, it is a good idea to use a flat bottomed container rather than a bowl. Put just enough warm water in it so the tortoise's nostrils don't get covered if it can't hold its head up. If the tortoise is strong and holds its head up easily, then the water can be a bit deeper, but you need to watch to make sure it doesn't drown if it cannot hold its head up.

When you feed the tortoise, you can try romaine lettuce, collard greens, kale, bok choy, green beans, corn, carrots, radicchio, berries, papaya, etc. You can chop up or grate the larger items such as the carrots and beans. Does it eat now when you feed it?

 

[Harry Hanzo]

Hi zovick,

Yes he is eating fine, i fed him in the morning and he chomped up the lettuce pieces quickly.