red foot tort seems unhappy pls help

[jason]

hello my name is jason i livee in florida i purchased a 14 month old red foot at least that is what i was told he is about 3" his home is 5' x 2.5' as of right now the substrate is alfalfa hay bout 1/2 inch thick i have 2 2' lights 1 reptiglo 2.0 and 1 reptiglo 5.0 in each they are about 14" high i have a heat light in one corner that side of enclosure ranges from 100 to 78 degrees the opposite end is about 75 the humidity is around 60 to 75% i mist frequently and try to keep alfalfa somewhat moist to try to keep the humidity up planning on taking out the hay and using mostly dirt with an area of medium river stones and in a corner folded towels and will plant grasses and weeds he has a water dish that is 5 inches by 9 inches and probably less than 1/2 deep i keep it kinda close to heat lamp so it stays warm he has i hide made from a half log sold at petstores everywhere and i have a food dish that is about 2 inches by 4 inches an 1/4 deep i have been trying to feed him kale apple watermellon sweet potato cherry tomatoes romaine bannana but he doesnt seem to be eating hardly anything and is mostly hiding under his log i am very concerned is he unhappy unhealthy i not sure what to do pls help normal day i get up about 7 turn on his lights later bout 8 or 9 he still hiding so i take out try to hold him and feed him he usually take a few bites of tomato or kale then i put him in his water dish he gets out very shortly after goes under his heat for a bit then back under his log then bout 3 or 4 i pull him out again and repeat earlier steps and mist him and he does the same and i usually pull him out once or twice more before i turn out the lights at about 8 or 9 i am pretty sure he has not pooped or peed had him 4 days now is he lonely is this normal any and all advice would greatly be appreciated

thankyou
jason and my DR Rodney McKay

 

[dabayliss]

Jason,

First, love the tortoise name - you'll have to get him a Samantha before too long.

Next - I would personally lose the AlfAlfa - it is very hard to keep moist and the 'dust' from it gets all over the tortoise. We use a pet store 'cypress mulch' along with Spagnum Moss - but others use dirt quite successfully.

You also seem to be using a LOT of light - I have a similar enclosure to you and use one light (used to use two - the torts are happier with one)

The diet sounds like a good sound diet; if your redfoot in anythign like mine the (rare but extremely popular) treat is the strawberry.

Most people on here (including me) will point you here:
http://www.turtletary.com/redfootcare.htm
as the 'bible' of redfoot care.

Final point to mention - it could just be early days. I have four redfoots - two were (literally) eating out of my hand from day 1 - the other two have taken a good few days to adapt themselves.

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

Welcome.

 

[LindaF]

If you just got him he probably just needs some time to adjust. Also, babies LOVE to hide. It is normal for them. Lose the hay and go with a Cyprus mulch. It will work better. Congratulations on getting a ret foot. They are great little torts. Post some pictures. We love pics!

 

[Jacob]

Yea loose the hay, go with coconut!

 

[jason]

Jason,

First, love the tortoise name - you'll have to get him a Samantha before too long.

Next - I would personally lose the AlfAlfa - it is very hard to keep moist and the 'dust' from it gets all over the tortoise. We use a pet store 'cypress mulch' along with Spagnum Moss - but others use dirt quite successfully.

You also seem to be using a LOT of light - I have a similar enclosure to you and use one light (used to use two - the torts are happier with one)

The diet sounds like a good sound diet; if your redfoot in anythign like mine the (rare but extremely popular) treat is the strawberry.

Most people on here (including me) will point you here:
http://www.turtletary.com/redfootcare.htm
as the 'bible' of redfoot care.

Final point to mention - it could just be early days. I have four redfoots - two were (literally) eating out of my hand from day 1 - the other two have taken a good few days to adapt themselves.

thank you very much i have gone to turtletary.com very good stuff!! and the plan is to get him a samantha carter some time in the near future!

jason

 

[fhintz]

I'm certainly not one of the experts here, and hopefully one of them will chime in soon, but here's my input:

When I first got my little buddy, she acted very similarly to what you describe. I found out that, most likely, I was using too much lighting. So, maybe try cutting that down a bit for a couple days. Also, 100 degrees sounds a bit high for redfoots. Mid to upper 80s seems to be optimum. I have no experience with alfalfa, but for me, cypress mulch with a little sphagnum moss on top works great. I THINK kale and tomato aren't the best choices for diet. I use mostly greens, like escarole, endive, and some spring mix, and then mix in some squash, occassionally strawberries, blueberries, apples, and mushrooms, and such (basically the turtletary diet).

You may want to post some pictures of your enclosure to get the best, most specific feedback.

Also, though, its somewhat normal for them to take a few days to adjust. And in Florida, redfoots like to go outside!

Grats on your new buddy, and good luck. I'm sure some more folks will chime in with some expert feedback soonish!

Frank

 

[coreyc]

Welcome to the forum Jason

 

[Madkins007]

hello my name is jason i livee in florida i purchased a 14 month old red foot at least that is what i was told he is about 3"

Hi Jason. I am not normally a member of the 'grammar police' but just to offer some un-asked for advice, the easier a note is to read, the easier it is to offer help. End commercial.

his home is 5' x 2.5' as of right now the substrate is alfalfa hay bout 1/2 inch thick

Size is OK, but alfalfa hay is a very dry substrate while Red-foots prefer humidity. Substrates like cypress mulch, coconut coir, and so on help with humidity more.

i have 2 2' lights 1 reptiglo 2.0 and 1 reptiglo 5.0 in each they are about 14" high

That is not excessive in a 60" long habitat, but it does seem rather bright for a young tortoise. Especially one that, being in Florida, can get out into real sunshine. There is not really much need for UVB lighting if the tort can get about an hour worth of real sunshine over several sessions in a week.

i have a heat light in one corner that side of enclosure ranges from 100 to 78 degrees the opposite end is about 75 the humidity is around 60 to 75%

We would normally aim for about 85ish overall, with a warmer and a cooler end. What are temps like in the middle? Heat lamps also add more light (see earlier note), and more dry heat. The humidity is also not ideal, but common in a set-up like the one you are describing. We would like to see more humidity- but not actually wet substrate.

i mist frequently and try to keep alfalfa somewhat moist to try to keep the humidity up planning on taking out the hay and using mostly dirt with an area of medium river stones and in a corner folded towels and will plant grasses and weeds

Misting, better substrate (although I would avoid dirt unless you make it a 'bioactive substrate'- dirt is dirty), plants- all helpful. Covering the habitat is also helpful. Better yet would be an outdoor habitat if you can swing it.

he has a water dish that is 5 inches by 9 inches and probably less than 1/2 deep i keep it kinda close to heat lamp so it stays warm he has i hide made from a half log sold at petstores everywhere and i have a food dish that is about 2 inches by 4 inches an 1/4 deep i have been trying to feed him kale apple watermellon sweet potato cherry tomatoes romaine bannana but he doesnt seem to be eating hardly anything and is mostly hiding under his log

Hide and diet is not great, but not bad. I would bet that when the habitat is better, his appetite will improve.

i am very concerned is he unhappy unhealthy i not sure what to do pls help normal day i get up about 7 turn on his lights later bout 8 or 9 he still hiding so i take out try to hold him and feed him he usually take a few bites of tomato or kale then i put him in his water dish he gets out very shortly after goes under his heat for a bit then back under his log then bout 3 or 4 i pull him out again and repeat earlier steps and mist him and he does the same and i usually pull him out once or twice more before i turn out the lights at about 8 or 9 i am pretty sure he has not pooped or peed had him 4 days now is he lonely is this normal any and all advice would greatly be appreciated

thankyou
jason and my DR Rodney McKay

Hiding a lot is what a small tortoise does. Puling him out of shelter is just a way to stress him out- it is a lot better to let him hide and entice him out with good temps, lights, humidity, etc. as well as tasty food.

You can find a lot of good information at http://www.tortoiselibrary.com

 

[Wezzer]

Hi Jason;

When i bought my RF about 3 months ago, she did not eat properly for a few days and i did not see her poop for at least a week. It is completely normal for them, they get stressed out very easily. I am sure he will settle down soon enough. enjoy ur new RF, they are a pleasure.

 

[jason]

hello my name is jason i livee in florida i purchased a 14 month old red foot at least that is what i was told he is about 3"

Hi Jason. I am not normally a member of the 'grammar police' but just to offer some un-asked for advice, the easier a note is to read, the easier it is to offer help. End commercial.

his home is 5' x 2.5' as of right now the substrate is alfalfa hay bout 1/2 inch thick

Size is OK, but alfalfa hay is a very dry substrate while Red-foots prefer humidity. Substrates like cypress mulch, coconut coir, and so on help with humidity more.

i have 2 2' lights 1 reptiglo 2.0 and 1 reptiglo 5.0 in each they are about 14" high

That is not excessive in a 60" long habitat, but it does seem rather bright for a young tortoise. Especially one that, being in Florida, can get out into real sunshine. There is not really much need for UVB lighting if the tort can get about an hour worth of real sunshine over several sessions in a week.

i have a heat light in one corner that side of enclosure ranges from 100 to 78 degrees the opposite end is about 75 the humidity is around 60 to 75%

We would normally aim for about 85ish overall, with a warmer and a cooler end. What are temps like in the middle? Heat lamps also add more light (see earlier note), and more dry heat. The humidity is also not ideal, but common in a set-up like the one you are describing. We would like to see more humidity- but not actually wet substrate.

i mist frequently and try to keep alfalfa somewhat moist to try to keep the humidity up planning on taking out the hay and using mostly dirt with an area of medium river stones and in a corner folded towels and will plant grasses and weeds

Misting, better substrate (although I would avoid dirt unless you make it a 'bioactive substrate'- dirt is dirty), plants- all helpful. Covering the habitat is also helpful. Better yet would be an outdoor habitat if you can swing it.

he has a water dish that is 5 inches by 9 inches and probably less than 1/2 deep i keep it kinda close to heat lamp so it stays warm he has i hide made from a half log sold at petstores everywhere and i have a food dish that is about 2 inches by 4 inches an 1/4 deep i have been trying to feed him kale apple watermellon sweet potato cherry tomatoes romaine bannana but he doesnt seem to be eating hardly anything and is mostly hiding under his log

Hide and diet is not great, but not bad. I would bet that when the habitat is better, his appetite will improve.

i am very concerned is he unhappy unhealthy i not sure what to do pls help normal day i get up about 7 turn on his lights later bout 8 or 9 he still hiding so i take out try to hold him and feed him he usually take a few bites of tomato or kale then i put him in his water dish he gets out very shortly after goes under his heat for a bit then back under his log then bout 3 or 4 i pull him out again and repeat earlier steps and mist him and he does the same and i usually pull him out once or twice more before i turn out the lights at about 8 or 9 i am pretty sure he has not pooped or peed had him 4 days now is he lonely is this normal any and all advice would greatly be appreciated

thankyou
jason and my DR Rodney McKay

Hiding a lot is what a small tortoise does. Puling him out of shelter is just a way to stress him out- it is a lot better to let him hide and entice him out with good temps, lights, humidity, etc. as well as tasty food.

You can find a lot of good information at http://www.tortoiselibrary.com

thank you much i was given similar advice i changed to cypress and bcked off the lighting he is very happy eating great and very active!

___________________
jason