new here

[jeannettep]

Hi,

I'm new here too! I'm hoping to get some ideas for my leopard torts. I'm new to this that I have had my torts since Easter. They are not really growing, the vet seemed concerned about it but perplexed on what to do about it. They did give me Vetericyn VF Wound and Skin Care and told me its great for any animal and not a problem if it gets in their eyes or mouth. I bought more on Amazon because I use it on birds in the aviary, dogs, etc. Works well on what I've tried. I use sphagnum moss and I got some of the green because I liked the enhancement of some green in there for looks. But I don't think I'll be replacing it. I have not had any problems with heat and humidity. The vet said I needed humidity, not soaked wet and I needed to turn up the heat. So this is my set up.

I have the tort tabletop, I have a cat which had deadly results for 1 of my Geochelone pardalis pardalis, which is the reason the vet gave me the Vetericyn. I couldn't find another one and they were always together so I ended up with Stigmochelys pardalis babcocki. Which I'm having a hard time getting him (it's a guess) going after being gone for 2 weeks and communication issues with my husband!!!!!! I have a webcam on them, they were dry but at least the water in the bottle was refilled every day and the humidifier was running. Still ALL the sphagnum moss was dry when I got home except for the ones around the water dish AND he only soaked them 2 times...My poor babcocki was in terrible shape, breathing heavy, barely eating, little chalky poo. So I started spraying his underside, extra soaks, I talked to him and kept him eating more. So 2 weeks later he is not breathing heavy, appetite is getting better and poo is better but not a lot. I'm concerned about his eyes. Both did not lose weight while I was gone, but I haven't gotten them to gain weight yet either. They aren't growing fast and that bothered the vet.

So here's my set up in the tort box: (I'm only using part of it right now)
a heating pad under the box
Layer of foil, just to make sure everything stays clean
butcher paper makes it easy to clean spills
tortoise mat
plastic tray with the water dish in it to catch the overflow
sphagnum moss in the plastic tray around the water dish, absorbs the overflow. I also grow leopard tort sprouts here mostly.
area of orchid bark and offer pieces of cuttlebone
sphagnum moss tall pile in 1 corner they love to bury in with more moss around the edges
a dish for food, which holds a couple of tablespoons of water as I find it keeps the food fresh longer
Tupperware container that grows a leopard tort acceptable ivy, and I put more tort sprouts here, I trim the grass to put on top of their food (sphagnum moss around it in case they decide to climb in the container so they won't fall)
I have the humidity gage like another recommended and have BETAZOOER Reptile Humidifier, Reptile Fogger with Extension Tube, which I LOVE! and I use my zero water filter so it only gets filtered water. I want it to last a long time! I also have another humidity gage on the opposite side of the wall. I have the tube near the basking rock, but pointed toward the rest of the habitat so there is a varying amount of damp to dry in the corners so they can choose what they want.
I have a temperature control set at 90 near their basking rock. Using a ceramic heat bulb. I have a uva/uvb bulb similar to the coil but not coiled (I'm not sure if I'm using the correct one). I also have a floor uva/uvb lamp/bulb that my bird would never accept. I turn it on some days. The uva/uvb bulb is on a 12 hour timer. The ceramic bulb is on the temperature control shuts it off when it hits 90. I have a thermometer on the other side of the habitat which seems to stay around 80.
Then I have a webcam, which my husband didn't like because he was getting daily remarks, they are too dry you are going to make them sick or die.
The top of the tort box has wire, which I agree when it's just got the light and lamp on, it's not going to be warm enough and not enough humidity. i read online about covering part of the habitat with foil. So I have about 70% loosely laid foil on top and I found this amount is great for keeping everything regulated. That being said, if my husband was keeping the humidifier going the whole time, it should not have been so dry in there. I don't know what happened but I know he was getting tired of me bugging him every day saying you're going to kill the babies!

I tried to upload the pics but it keeps saying error. I tried to add a link to the pics online, don't know if it will work.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/au9v77z5qijblcq/20191030_153548.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/60yepnl9omjt3v3/20191028_184128.jpg?dl=0

Food: leopard tort sprouts, leafy lettuce, shreaded carrot, etc. little kale/bok choy every so often
miner-all and reptical

 

[Lyn W]

Hi

Hi,

I'm new here too! I'm hoping to get some ideas for my leopard torts. I'm new to this that I have had my torts since Easter. They are not really growing, the vet seemed concerned about it but perplexed on what to do about it. They did give me Vetericyn VF Wound and Skin Care and told me its great for any animal and not a problem if it gets in their eyes or mouth. I bought more on Amazon because I use it on birds in the aviary, dogs, etc. Works well on what I've tried. I use sphagnum moss and I got some of the green because I liked the enhancement of some green in there for looks. But I don't think I'll be replacing it. I have not had any problems with heat and humidity. The vet said I needed humidity, not soaked wet and I needed to turn up the heat. So this is my set up.

I have the tort tabletop, I have a cat which had deadly results for 1 of my Geochelone pardalis pardalis, which is the reason the vet gave me the Vetericyn. I couldn't find another one and they were always together so I ended up with Stigmochelys pardalis babcocki. Which I'm having a hard time getting him (it's a guess) going after being gone for 2 weeks and communication issues with my husband!!!!!! I have a webcam on them, they were dry but at least the water in the bottle was refilled every day and the humidifier was running. Still ALL the sphagnum moss was dry when I got home except for the ones around the water dish AND he only soaked them 2 times...My poor babcocki was in terrible shape, breathing heavy, barely eating, little chalky poo. So I started spraying his underside, extra soaks, I talked to him and kept him eating more. So 2 weeks later he is not breathing heavy, appetite is getting better and poo is better but not a lot. I'm concerned about his eyes. Both did not lose weight while I was gone, but I haven't gotten them to gain weight yet either. They aren't growing fast and that bothered the vet.

So here's my set up in the tort box: (I'm only using part of it right now)
a heating pad under the box
Layer of foil, just to make sure everything stays clean
butcher paper makes it easy to clean spills
tortoise mat
plastic tray with the water dish in it to catch the overflow
sphagnum moss in the plastic tray around the water dish, absorbs the overflow. I also grow leopard tort sprouts here mostly.
area of orchid bark and offer pieces of cuttlebone
sphagnum moss tall pile in 1 corner they love to bury in with more moss around the edges
a dish for food, which holds a couple of tablespoons of water as I find it keeps the food fresh longer
Tupperware container that grows a leopard tort acceptable ivy, and I put more tort sprouts here, I trim the grass to put on top of their food (sphagnum moss around it in case they decide to climb in the container so they won't fall)
I have the humidity gage like another recommended and have BETAZOOER Reptile Humidifier, Reptile Fogger with Extension Tube, which I LOVE! and I use my zero water filter so it only gets filtered water. I want it to last a long time! I also have another humidity gage on the opposite side of the wall. I have the tube near the basking rock, but pointed toward the rest of the habitat so there is a varying amount of damp to dry in the corners so they can choose what they want.
I have a temperature control set at 90 near their basking rock. Using a ceramic heat bulb. I have a uva/uvb bulb similar to the coil but not coiled (I'm not sure if I'm using the correct one). I also have a floor uva/uvb lamp/bulb that my bird would never accept. I turn it on some days. The uva/uvb bulb is on a 12 hour timer. The ceramic bulb is on the temperature control shuts it off when it hits 90. I have a thermometer on the other side of the habitat which seems to stay around 80.
Then I have a webcam, which my husband didn't like because he was getting daily remarks, they are too dry you are going to make them sick or die.
The top of the tort box has wire, which I agree when it's just got the light and lamp on, it's not going to be warm enough and not enough humidity. i read online about covering part of the habitat with foil. So I have about 70% loosely laid foil on top and I found this amount is great for keeping everything regulated. That being said, if my husband was keeping the humidifier going the whole time, it should not have been so dry in there. I don't know what happened but I know he was getting tired of me bugging him every day saying you're going to kill the babies!

I tried to upload the pics but it keeps saying error. I tried to add a link to the pics online, don't know if it will work.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/au9v77z5qijblcq/20191030_153548.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/60yepnl9omjt3v3/20191028_184128.jpg?dl=0

Food: leopard tort sprouts, leafy lettuce, shreaded carrot, etc. little kale/bok choy every so often
miner-all and reptical

Hi Jeanette and welcome.
There is already a lot of good information here for you to follow, but I notice you have 2 lovely torts, and I don't know if you have read any of the posts about keeping pairs of torts yet but please find them, because your torts will have to be separated.
Torts are solitary creatures and don't like company or competition for food and space. One will become dominant and will bully the other with behaviours like following and nudging which some people mistake for affection. It is actually an attempt to drive and push the other tort away and can be very stressful for both of them. It will become more physical and can result in shell damage or bites and the stress alone can make them ill. So they would be happier and safer in their own enclosures sooner rather than later. My leopard will even try to barge me out if I sit on the floor of his room.

 

[jeannettep]

Hi

Hi Jeanette and welcome.
There is already a lot of good information here for you to follow, but I notice you have 2 lovely torts, and I don't know if you have read any of the posts about keeping pairs of torts yet but please find them, because your torts will have to be separated.
Torts are solitary creatures and don't like company or competition for food and space. One will become dominant and will bully the other with behaviours like following and nudging which some people mistake for affection. It is actually an attempt to drive and push the other tort away and can be very stressful for both of them. It will become more physical and can result in shell damage or bites and the stress alone can make them ill. So they would be happier and safer in their own enclosures sooner rather than later. My leopard will even try to barge me out if I sit on the floor of his room.

Hi Lyn,
Thanks! That's a good point! I've just read some things here and there. Now that you mention it, the other tort we had Geochelone pardalis pardalis did ram the other one we still have a couple of times, after that they got along. I thought it was cute (named him crash) but watched to see if there were any more signs to separate. I have seen none of that behavior between crash II and half-pint. Crash II will not eat until half-pint is there. I will have plenty of room in the yard for them. I have 3x the amount of space each set aside for them full-grown and separated, they will eventually use. So it makes no difference what the sex is, we just made it up. I'm working on removing plants on the no list and replanting ones on the yes list. The biggest thing is drainage. It's a swamp in South Texas. Hard clay is only 10 inches under the ground. The vet told me to put them outside and put in a heated area for the winter for them to use if they wanted. I know I haven't listened when I spend time out there and it's a pretty day they do too. I thought I'd put them in a full cage next year part-time and then full time the following spring (they would be 2). Everything is big enough to separate them, no problem. I just feel like I can regulate humidity and heat while they are little.

 

[Lyn W]

Just keep a close eye on them, even one staring at the other will intimidate it and cause it stress. Maybe the other only eats because he is making sure the other doesn't get it. They really don't need or like friends.

 

[jeannettep]

very good point!