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Abhi_FloyD

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Holla friends!


This is abhishek here from gujarat, india! This is my first post on this forum and have been visiting it since quite a few days and loved the passion in all of you for torts, hence finally decided to bump in! :)

Well I have recently got a b'ful star tort (some 3 weeks back, it's a female acc to what the seller told me!). Her carapace size is 5 in approx, have been told that she's ard 2 yo.

Chippi's very very friendly and has gelled well with the surroundings at my place! I soak her everyday in the morning for ard 30 mins. Havent made any enclosure for her yet and she roams freely around in the house.
Her diet mainly includes tomato, beans, cucumber, spinach.... she avoids eating anything else, and hardly drinks any water.

Needed some valuable advice to from you guys to ensure that my Chippi stays happily -

1) The day i got her i managed to spot a tick in one of her arms and managed to pull it off with a tweezer, however have recently found that she has a few more in the upper part of the shell (inaccessible to bare hands) :(

Have been adviced by a friend to dip her in a solution of potassium permanganate everyday to ensure that the ticks come off themselves, however i doubt it as as the solution wouldnt reach the area below the carapace.
How do i get rid of it, kindly advice.....

2) She keeps on sleeping for almost 18-20 hours a day with absolutely no activity! And while she's awake her eyes look puffy.
Also I kind of get a feeling that she's looking a bit week since the last few days. What might be the issue?

Kindly guide me....

Thanks in advance.....
 

shanu303

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Hello Abhishek and Welcome to TFO!!

the puffy eyes could be due to multiple reasons......
*due to dehydration but since you soak for 30 min so we rule this out..
*due to vitamin A deficiency ... this might be the cause in your case because the diet you provide has very less variety and spinach and beans is a no no to any tortoise.......
*due to irritation because of some particulate dust matter or something else......

i suggest you keep up with the soaks and make sure the water is lukewarm.......

i strictly suggest no use of chemicals such as potassium permanganate on your tortoise...... you may never know the side effects and the ill effects...

if you want to take out the ticks ... during the soaks take a fresh new toothbrush and rub rigorously between the shell plates or where ticks are located..... make sure its not to harsh and the toothbrush is soft enough for the tort....... i suggest you do this twice a day and in less than a week the ticks will be gone!! :)

Now lets focus on the diet......... ==>
Hibiscus leaves and flower
lawn grass
wheat grass
Aloe Vera(moderately)
Grape Vine(not the fruit)
Mustard greens(RAI DANA ke powdhe) you can easily grow them
Opuntia sp cactus(available in plant nursery)
cucumber
lettuce
carrot greens
Fenugreek(Methi patta)
Cilantro/coriander(Dhaniya patta) torts don't really like the taste so ony little at a time


now all of this is recommended but you mentioned your tort is picky Just like mine are.......

so i've got a solution for that.....
BLEND all the stuff your tort doesn't eat like coriander/hibiscus leaves etc WITH her Favourite CUCUMBER... make sure the quantity of cucumber is more than that of other stuff so that the taste and odour of cucumber is not suppressed and your tort would eat it as if all of it were cucumber..... then slowly slowly reduce the portion of cucumber.....

i'll post a detailed thread on this special star tortoise mix for people in india....... it's easy to make and the most picky torts eat it....

and you have to provide a water source 24/7 for your tort...... it's essential....

and also she needs access to sun daily for at least 7-9 hours.... but since it's really hot in this summer you can keep her out before 12 noon and after 5 in evening.......

regarding the inactiveness..... that's normal for indian star tortoise..... so no need to worry......

and last advice is that you build an enclosure ASAP.......

and we'd love to see so pics of Chippi :)
 

shanu303

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Hello Abhishek..... i hope everything is good because we haven't heard from you after this single post of yours...... hows chippi doing ?
 
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