Redfoot not eating

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Kemperly_Williams

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I've never heard my RF toot but I do see her blow bubbles in her bath in between passing her turds which always makes me giggle. What is it about farts that are so darn funny ? I'm having a bit of a problem with MY tortie .... in the past couple days she has stopped eating, she won't even take her favourite treat from me anymore. She is also seeming to be quite constipated. She has to really push and grunt and strain just to get a small amount of fecal matter out. Plus her pee isn't semi-solid white urates like it should be. It's pure clear urine in big puddles which I'm told is another sign of constipation.

I feed her watercress, redleaf lettuce, Zoo-Med Forest Tortoise Diet in a mash form, a crushed multivitamin, and for fruits she gets a variation every week. Pineapple is her favourite but I've given her mango, kiwi, strawberry and green grapes. I'm going to try papaya and see if she'll take that.

I live in Canada and it's getting really cold really fast. Last night I was out and got caught in a short blizzard! IN OCTOBER! Could this also be why she just wants to sleep and stay in her hideout under her log ?

Any answers would be great cuz I'm really worried. I plan to take her to a herp vet for her first check up but I got to save the money up first. Funds here are tight as piano strings.

Kemp
 

Yvonne G

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RE: [split] Redfoot not eating

Hi Kemp:

I moved your post to its own thread so that more people would be inclined to give you some answers. Its always a good idea to start your own thread when you have a question not concerning the original poster's thread.
 

Balboa

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LOL Sorry to laugh, but I was just reading the other thread, and Mark's reply to you seemed a little out of place, now I know why.

As he commented, I've only ever noticed clearish pee from my red foots. The white stuff I think is more for desert torts, but I could be wrong (but I bet money on Mark knowing his stuff)

I think most folks would suggest workin on the diet. I SUSPECT that the Zoo Med product is actually half way to decent, but I'd still suggest relying on it less and using more fresh greens. I picked up some of the Zoo Med grassland tort myself after reading the ingredients (they didn't have the forest at the local store) for those occasional "oh poop" moments when I realize the fresh vegies aren't so fresh anymore, but in reality haven't needed it much. Instead I'll run over to the neighbors house and pick some dandelions and plantain (sometimes its good to have a lazy neighbor, his lawn is loaded with nice juicy herbicide, fertilizer and pesticide free weeds). I should just do that daily as dandelions and plantain are some of the best eatin there is for red foots. You just have to be real careful and learn to identify a true dandelion, as not all weeds with yellow flowers are dandelions, and some are quite harmful to torts.
If you can find collards, turnip greens, escarole, endive and the like at the grocer, those are good greens for torts. Maybe tough to find in Canada? too flavorful likely. Around here all I can get is collards and kale, and kale needs to be limited. Lettuce isn't considered very beneficial, as I recall its just fiber and water. I've resorted to setting up a mini-farm to grow some turnip greens and hibiscus to get more variety in my torts' diet.

I try and follow Terry Kilgore's schedule as it makes it easy to keep track of how much of what I'm feeding. 2 days Greens, 1 Day Fruit, 2 Days Greens, 1 Day fruit, Seventh day diet cat food. (sunday in our house hehe)

If you're giving her fruit everyday (couldn't tell from your verbage how often fruit is offered, sorry) She'll probably go for the fruit first and wind up having too much in her diet.

I hope she's kept inside? Outside temps should have no effect on her as long as her enclosure temps are good. If someone was to allow their house to get too cold, and with no kind of regulation in the enclosure, then yes passive only heating that was sufficient in summer would no longer cut it in the winter, and that could certainly make for a sick Tort.

but all this I say must be taken with a grain of salt, as I'm just a Newb :)
 

Madkins007

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(Copied from the other post, and so Balboa's comment makes more sense!)

I've always thought that clear urine was the norm in Red-foots, and for many torts, too much of the white stuff was a sign of dehydration.

This may sound odd, but how long is your tortoise and what does it weigh? It may be dehydrated. If you take the weight in grams to the third power and multiply by 0.191, you should see the minimum desired weight in grams.

I would also stop the vitamins if you are using a prepared diet- they usually have all you need in them. Personally, I would stop the prepared stuff- the rest of the diet is pretty good.
 

tortoisenerd

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I wanted to add that even indoor tortoises kept at a constant temperature (even if your house is on a thermostat, remember to check enclosure temps regularly and adjust heat as needed) supposedly can feel the weather changes--I surely believe this as my tort will get in a funk and be inactive and not as hungry for days at a time with changing weather. I am not a fan of multivitamins as you don't know how much to give--D vitamins and such especially can be harmful as they are fat soluble and can build up to toxic levels. A good varied diet should be plenty. Yes, clear urine is usually good, even on a daily basis (this means good level of hydration, as unless they are scared, they won't pee unless they are replenishing it), with limited urates (the less gritty/chunky the better, up to a couple times a week of urates is fine--if you see more, cut back on greens with oxalic acid). Some torts just get in a funk and their appetite drops for a few days. Check temps, and if this persists, get the vet check up with a fecal test for parasites (always a good idea anyways). I recommend setting aside at least a few hundred in an account for your tort's vet bills and supplies so you don't run into problems. Just part of being a responsible pet owner. I'd up the variety of greens. Spring mix is great (without spinach or chard), plus 1-2 other greens a week like the watercress, dandelions, endive, mustard, collard, turnip, etc (stuff not in the spring mix). I'd keep an eye on this, check temps, up the variation in the diet and try to entice her to eat (maybe some squash or pumpkin, radicchio, or chemical free flowers?) with some new and favorite foods, and do the vet visit. You sure you don't see any other symptoms besides stopping eating? A few days at a time of no eating can be normal in torts, so we're not quite at panic mode yet (and they can go months literally without starving to death, although the longer they go without eating, the harder it is to get them to start again).
 
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