please help -pink pee!

[clare n]

Hi all, can anyone give me some advice. I have a horsefields tort he's around two. I rescued phillip from someone as he was causing the females distress and they didn't know what to do with him. Id have taken all of them given the chance... I've had him around a year now, he's incredibly fussy with food... One minute hell eat one thing, the next hell completely refuse to eat it so I have to move on to something else. He's pretty active when he's out and about, I love him dearly, today I bathed him and set him down, I noticed a pink tinge to his wee. I have read that this can be down to too many dandelions but he has refused them for months now. He has a dand flavour pellet but he hasn't really eaten them for a couple of days (this is fairly normal for him to turn his nose up for a couple of days) could it be these just catching up and working their way through? It's never happened before, it's usually a nice healthy white.
Any help would be really appreciated thank you x

 

[Yvonne G]

RE: New to this site, please help!

I wouldn't worry about it. Its normal for the pee to be colored by what they eat.

 

[clare n]

Thank you, Phillip has always been an odd eater. He can go days without wanting to eat, he's always been this way. The only reason I panicked was because I looked it up and it said it was a sign of a bacterial infection.

 

[dmmj]

Lots of foods can tint their pee, dandelions are usually the main culprit.

 

[clare n]

This is why I was worried, he hasn't had dandelions for ages

 

[dmmj]

Can you tell us what his diet was like the past week or so?

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

I, too, was alarmed last summer when my female Russian had pink-tinged pee, but the good folks here at TFO assured me that this often happens when a tortoise is eating a lot of dandelion. Sure enough, that's what she was eating a lot of at the time. When I switched her to another food, the pink-tinge went away. So, although dandelions and pink-tinged pee are harmless, it is always good to vary your tortoise's diet.

 

[clare n]

Dmmj- he's a very bad eater. When I got him his diet was iceberg lettuce and it was hell to try and get him off this as I knew this was a really bad diet. I have tried a lot of things, I tapered it gradually putting less n less mixed with things like dandelion, have tried rose petals, c greens, leafy greens, even the odd piece of fruit as a treat. He ate dandelion for a good month on and off, now he won't touch it. His diet at the moment consists of greens rarely, he just won't have it (last few weeks) and pellets, only because it's an option when he won't eats anything else. He's a sod. He has dandelion pellets, but hadn't eaten them pre wee for a few days. He's had them before, he likes all flavour pellets soaked in water (then at least I know he's getting fluid along with bashing him) not eating for a few days is normal for him by the way, he's always been this way. The pellets are a pink purple colour like the wee, but I didn't notice any gone... So I'm confused. I will see what happens when the next wee comes then if it's the same I think I will take him to see someone. So in short, last few days has been possibly very few pellets and a couple of leaves...

---

Looking back at that- BATHING him, not bashing him lol o dear that would make me an awful pet owner. I certainly don't bash Phillip....

 

[dmmj]

Have you tried mixing his favorite foods with good food? And by mixing I mean chopping it up very finely wetting it down, and then mixing it all together so he has no choice but to eat it. Where abouts are you? do you have access to other foods, like grape leaves, hibiscus flowers, mulberry leaves, fig leaves, and such? Providing a variety of food for him to eat will be better in the long run, tortoises can be very stubborn, I would cut back if not completely replace the pellets myself.

 

[Jacob]

I have never experienced pink color pee, but i have experienced different tints of pee to what they are consuming.

 

[clare n]

Yes I have tried this, quite a lot. Maybe I need to be more persistent but hell go days ignoring it, he knows. He's rather go hungry and it worries me how long can he go, food I know a while but water. I bath him and I know he absorbs it but never see him drink. I'm in Essex in the uk so I don't have much access. Petals, roses, pansies I have tried, other bits but he is SO stubborn. I have seen the dried flower packs on eBay etc, would this be worth a go and mix it in or have all the nutrients gone once it is dried? I joined on here to find all this out. If I google things I get about 40 different answers. I am a huge animal lover, I have loads but Phillip worries me so much with the eating, he is a constant worry I just want him to b healthy. We get the keys to our new house this week so he will have garden access, but I think by his personality he will find a corner, dig and stay there... He bombs about the house like a rocket, ploughs thru the cats he's so funny. Just want his insides to b as happy as his outsides lol

---

Thanks Jacob it's all pointing to diet. Just need to figure out how to get the little sod to eat better...

 

[dmmj]

If he is healthy he won't starve himself, it can be difficult but tough love is often the best route to go with a healthy adult tortoise. You can only offer him good food and wait , and wait, and wait. Personally I wouldn't buy those dried flower packs, there is nothing wrong with dried flowers, just seems it would be more expensive, I would def. start growing stuff once you move though. Since you are in the UK you can buy rocket salad, same stuff as spring mix here in the states, that would be a good choice.

 

[clare n]

Ah rocket, I buy a lot of that for us- I read that they shouldn't have it so I separate it. Good to know tho, learning a fair bit already. So do you think that there is something wrong as he won't eat every day?

 

[Arizona Sulcata]

My Sulcatas often have pink pee. Nothing to worry about!

 

[dmmj]

Sometimes when a tortoise won't eat there may be something wrong, but in this case he probably likes one of the foods you give him ( pellets most likely) so I would imagine he is holding out for those. I would if it were me cut out the pellets and start giving him rocket salad, and then add more stuff, don't get upset or anything if he does not eat, like I said he is stubborn, so it will most likely be a battle of wills.

 

[clare n]

Thank you all for putting my mind at rest. I will be firm with him now haha. I will start with the new diet today. Let's see who is more stubborn