New Russian rescue... HELP

[Klovell1]

I just got this Russian who was very underfed and ignored. He appears to have some pyramiding, but I don't really know how bad it is. I have a thing of the recommended zoomed grassland tortoise nuggets, but he won't touch them however I read online that I could give him romaine lettuce which he loves. I used to have a box turtle, but from the reading I have done it is very different to care for my Russian. I live in Alabama, very hot/very humid, but cannot let him live outside during the day due to my current living situation. I plan to give him plenty of supervised outdoors time when weather permits. I really just need some help and will provide pictures of the pyramiding ASAP, please tell me all you can

Sincerely,
Happy new owner

 

[wellington]

Hello and Welcome. Most likely the pyramiding he has is all he will get. Your humid weather will be good for him. However, at adult age/size he doesn't require a high humidity. Around 30-40%. Yes, you can feed romaine. However, it should be a small portion of a varied diet. Dark leafy greens or broad leaf weeds. Check out the tortoisetable.org for edible items.

 

[Yvonne G]

Your tortoise doesn't have to eat the manufactured pellets in order to be healthy. But if you really want to feed them, you can blend up some romaine until it's mostly juice, then mix it all together with softened pellets so the romaine smell gets all over the pellets (you DO offer the pellets softened with water, right?).

But buy some other greens besides romaine and see if you can't get him to eat some of the foods on this list:

http://russiantortoise.net/russiantortoisediet.htm

 

[Laura]

and if he doesn't feel a solid weight.. like a rock, when you pick him up... don't let him sleep this winter.. keep him warm and 13 hours at least, of light per day.

 

[Klovell1]

Thanks for tips guys... Two other things how often should he eat? And will he grow anymore unless I get him in a bigger enclosure?

 

[johnsonnboswell]

Every day. Many feed just once a day. I like to feed my starved rescues twice a day, but not too much at a time.

 

[biochemnerd808]

I would feed daily, and for at least the next few weeks, I would soak it daily in lukewarm water (about 1-1.5 inches deep) for 20 minutes. A kitty littler pan works well for that, or any tub from the dollar store that is deep enough that it can't climb out. This will help hydrate the tort. For a malnourished (underfed) tortoise, hydration is SUPER important, since the kidneys and liver are likely stressed. Now that it's getting food, this will be all the more important. If you have any other re-hab questions, feel free to PM me, as I've had to fatten up (very slowly btw) several rescued RTs.

Tortoises will keep growing, no matter the size of the enclosure. Russian tortoise males usually grow to be 5-6" long, females can (but rarely do) get to be 10" long.

Good luck!

Thanks for tips guys... Two other things how often should he eat? And will he grow anymore unless I get him in a bigger enclosure?

 

[johnsonnboswell]

His size is not dependent on the size of his habitat. But still, make it as big as you can.

 

[luvpetz27]

Welcome!!