Please help me with my first tortoise.

[Lemmy the tortoise]

hi everyone, thanks to all of you for your help. I am seeing my tortoise eyes has bubbles on it. it's like half of the eye is covered with the bubbles. is there something wrong? she had celery and kale this morning and she keep digging. i assume it has something to do with the light or humidity? Thanks

 

[Lemmy the tortoise]

on its eyes*

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Sounds odd.
Can we get a picture, please?

 

[GingerLove]

My tortoise gets that sometimes (not as much now that I've had her longer). She is the exact same species as yours, also from that same pet store, and I was told everything you were! lol! Your tortoise just needs to be soaked in water every few days. Fill a small tub up with lukewarm water (not too deep, just enough to get to the legs) and let her soak for 10-15 minutes. I do this a few times a week and it seems to keep the bubbles away. However, as it is the first time you are doing this, it is probably going to irritate Lemmy's eyes and she will scratch at them with her arm. You might want to help wipe the bubbles away if she'll let you. Don't be surprised if her eye fogs up a bit when exposed to the water, it will clear.

Also, (sorry this is so long), don't be surprised if she sucks her head in when put into the water. Just make sure she doesn't drown herself. She will probably urinate and poop as well. (mine always does in water). And to confirm, you have a Russian tortoise, I would actually guess she's 5 or six years, she will grow bigger (about ten inches max) and it is definitely a girl! When she grows you will see growth rings.

My girlie, Ginger, just turned six (I'm assuming) and I've had her two years. Welcome to the forum! If Ginger could talk I'm sure she'd love to meet Lemmy, lol. Here's my girl.

 

[GingerLove]

Oh, and coconut coir is better than bark chips. I started out with bark too. Coconut coir is about 7-8 dollars, and all you have to do is soak it in water and let it dry. It helps her when she wants to dig, it smells nice, and it keeps her quiet! But bark isn't going to kill her either.

 

[Lemmy the tortoise]

Sounds odd.
Can we get a picture, please?

right now her eyes look normal but i was worried when i saw the bubbles.

 

[Lemmy the tortoise]

Oh, and coconut coir is better than bark chips. I started out with bark too. Coconut coir is about 7-8 dollars, and all you have to do is soak it in water and let it dry. It helps her when she wants to dig, it smells nice, and it keeps her quiet! But bark isn't going to kill her either.

do you think its a good idea to mix bark and coco coir? i have ordered the coconut coir i want the substrate to be deep enough for her to dig so i thought if i mix them i am gonna have some volume. thanks

 

[Lemmy the tortoise]

My tortoise gets that sometimes (not as much now that I've had her longer). She is the exact same species as yours, also from that same pet store, and I was told everything you were! lol! Your tortoise just needs to be soaked in water every few days. Fill a small tub up with lukewarm water (not too deep, just enough to get to the legs) and let her soak for 10-15 minutes. I do this a few times a week and it seems to keep the bubbles away. However, as it is the first time you are doing this, it is probably going to irritate Lemmy's eyes and she will scratch at them with her arm. You might want to help wipe the bubbles away if she'll let you. Don't be surprised if her eye fogs up a bit when exposed to the water, it will clear.

Also, (sorry this is so long), don't be surprised if she sucks her head in when put into the water. Just make sure she doesn't drown herself. She will probably urinate and poop as well. (mine always does in water). And to confirm, you have a Russian tortoise, I would actually guess she's 5 or six years, she will grow bigger (about ten inches max) and it is definitely a girl! When she grows you will see growth rings.

My girlie, Ginger, just turned six (I'm assuming) and I've had her two years. Welcome to the forum! If Ginger could talk I'm sure she'd love to meet Lemmy, lol. Here's my girl.View attachment 222588

wow seems like petsmart has same script for all the pets ginger is a beautiful tortoise and she look just like lemmy. i am so relieved by your answer . i am soaking her for 3 days now. every morning when i wake up i wake lemmy up and let her bask for like 30 mins and after that i soak her for 15 mins in luke warm water making sure she does not drown. do you think its a good idea to soak her every day or only 2-3 times a week?

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

right now her eyes look normal but i was worried when i saw the bubbles.

Keep an eye on it (no pun intended), I'm sure Ginger Love is right and it's nothing to worry about.
I just use the coir, some just fine grade orchid bark, but I think I heard of someone using coir with bark on top.
I soak tho or three times a week, but at the beginning it's not a bad idea to do it daily until you are sure the tortoise is properly hydrated.
Make sure the water is nice and warm, more than luke warm but not hot and if you do it to a level just above where the carapace joins the plastron there should be no fear of drowning if the tortoise is healthy.

 

[Cheryl Hills]

Hi and welcome to the forum. You have a beautiful female Russian!

 

[Taylor T.]

Welcome!

 

[GingerLove]

wow seems like petsmart has same script for all the pets ginger is a beautiful tortoise and she look just like lemmy. i am so relieved by your answer . i am soaking her for 3 days now. every morning when i wake up i wake lemmy up and let her bask for like 30 mins and after that i soak her for 15 mins in luke warm water making sure she does not drown. do you think its a good idea to soak her every day or only 2-3 times a week?

Soaking is never going to hurt your tortoise as far as I know, so do however many times you like! If you are on a tight schedule, just two to three times a week is definitely fine. Sure, you can mix the coconut coir and the bark. I just like using coconut coir because I think the bark smells strong, lol. But I've heard of a lot of people mixing them.

 

[Lemmy the tortoise]

lemmy's enclosure update.

I have changed lemmy's substrate with coconut coir and its about 5 inches deep. Also, before i was using a uva bulb and now i changed that too zoomed powersun 100w uvb and uva bulb. i also bought one ceramic heat emitter to make the terrarium warm but i think the bulb does the job for now. lemmy looks very happy and active now. could't believe how much difference a bulb can make. The basking spot area is around 86* f and the cooler side is 75-77* f . i soak her every day for about 20 mins and she poops and some other white stuff maybe urate. she burrow herself and it looks very funny to see how she does it (i think she has not done it for few months as petsmart kept her in small enclosure with little substrate). I feed her organic romaine lettuce, celery, kale and wheatgrass with some of zoomed food in variation, I left a cuttlebone in there that she has not touched yet. i am planning to make a big tortoise table maybe next month so she can have fun. please let me know if there is anything more i should be doing.

I want to thank you all for helping me and giving good advice.

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Some tortoises won't touch the cuttlefish bone. Others will when they need to.
You can always scrape a little onto the food once or twice a week.

 

[Lemmy the tortoise]

few shots.

 

[Lemmy the tortoise]

Some tortoises won't touch the cuttlefish bone. Others will when they need to.
You can always scrape a little onto the food once or twice a week.

i will try that tomorrow.

 

[Lemmy the tortoise]

Hi and welcome to the forum. You have a beautiful female Russian!

thank you

 

[Lemmy the tortoise]

Welcome!

thank you

 

[GingerLove]

few shots.

Awwww, little Lemmy looks happy!!! Way to go! If you have the Powersun light bulb (and it says it has heat and UV) then you don't need to use two bulbs, just to save you some money! And if you got the right Powersun bulb, send in the warranty card!! They are true to their word and I just got a free one because the other one stopped working. It had a one year warranty!

 

[Lemmy the tortoise]

Awwww, little Lemmy looks happy!!! Way to go! If you have the Powersun light bulb (and it says it has heat and UV) then you don't need to use two bulbs, just to save you some money! And if you got the right Powersun bulb, send in the warranty card!! They are true to their word and I just got a free one because the other one stopped working. It had a one year warranty!

i did not kow that i am not gonna need both bulbs so i bought them together. i am going to fill the warranty card thing.