Redfoot sleeping a lot?

[Little Miss Naughty]

Hi

I am new here have recently got a Redfoot called Otto, he has been with us 5 days and is very quiet sleeps most of the day, I have had to show him where he is food and water are each day and i'm a bit worried that he isn't ok. I did do a lot of research before getting him but want to make sure that I am doing everything right for him.

He is in a 4ft x 2ft viv as our climate doesn't really allow for an outdoor enclosure but he will be able to go out next summer on hot days, he is only around 2-3 inches long at the mo.

He has a UVB light, a infrared 150w heat lamp on a thermostat. The ambient temp is around 86F (30C) the cooler end is around 70F (21C) and the hotter end where the infrared light is around 90F (32C), humidity at 80%. I mist the viv at least 2 a day he also has hides, plants and pebbles.

Is there anything else I can do or is it just a settling in phase? He is very cute when he does come out which isn't very often is he just a lazy tort?

Many thanks in advance for your help sorry if this is basic questions but new to all this.

LMN

 

[Madkins007]

New torts are almost always shy the first week or so, but you do want to make sure that the cares offered are good. Things sound OK but it is always helpful to check.

 

[HipsterTorts]

I agree with Mark. Plus baby torts usually sleep a lot compared to the adults.

~Sarah

 

[lynnedit]

I don't have Redfoots, but that is a nice looking enclosure. In general, baby torts sleep and hide a lot because the make a tasty meal for a predator, so it is a survival instinct. Plus, they are shy when in a new set up.

 

[Angrycowgoesmoo]

Glad my tort wasn't the only one that did that. My only advice is to never give up and always keeping showing him where his food and water is! My tort wouldn't come out and eat and drink by himself for a whole month! Boy was I reliefed when he finally ate by himself. (I was so tired from doing that I was gonna give him away! Glad I didn't ) Also mine only comes out when he is hungry so I barely see him.

 

[Khameleon21]

Hello,

First off from what I can see your setup looks great. I just got a baby Cherry head a few weeks ago, and I had the same concerns you are having as Charlie was behaving the same way.

I used to have red foots many years ago. They were adults, and I had them throughout my teens. I live in Canada, so I also did not have the luxury of keeping them outside year round, as well as keeping the humidity at a proper level during the winters. It was very difficult to maintain that humidity with larger full grown red foots, as vivariums don't seem to offer enough space for them. Unless of course you have a massive vivarium. Based on my past troubles, I have started out with this new guy, not using vivariums. I may in the end get one as I know it will be years before he out grows it.

When I got him last month I was not setup at home, but was using the advantage of the warm humid days to keep him outside while i worked on an indoor enclosure. During the week or so outside, he never came out of his hide unless I put him in front of is food, after about 10 mins of eating, he would then run back to the hide.

Now I have him in a sweater box that is about 3 feet long, 2 feet wide and maybe 10 inches tall. I opted for the smaller hight to allow for a more controllable environment. I cut the lid of the container to cover about 2/3rds of the box to help hold in the humidity and heat. The moment my tortoise went in there his personality changed. He spends a lot more of his day out of the hide. He seems to be more interested in exploring and searching for food. I think perhaps the reason he is out more is 2/3rds of the setup is basically a hide. It does get light however as I have UVB and a 2 foot fluorescent setup at the open end. He only heads into the hide about an hour or so before the light goes out.

Perhaps having such a big setup for you new friend, is causing some anxiety, I have read it can take a week or two till they feel comfortable in new surroundings. I would also wonder if perhaps from the eyes of your tortoise, it just doesn't feel safe in the openness of you vivarium. I understand they are new and interesting to watch. But try and imagine what it looks like from there eyes when they come out of the hide, especially being as helpless as they are.

I would suggest if you don't seen any improvement in a little while, to cover the sides of the vivarium and see if that helps. Use some brown paper and just give that a few days. The tortoise may feel like he is less in the open. Another suggestion, I would offer less food. There is a good example of how much you should feed them on redfoots.com. I wouldn't be worried about the over eating so much, as they seem to stop when they are full, but when you have less food it is easier to gage if they ate any while you are not watching them. I found the days where I was not able to watch my tortoise, he still came out and ate, because the food would be gone when I came home (in the old enclosure where he was more shy).

I know covering the enclosure with paper is not aesthetically appealing but it could be worth a shot. Patients is key, sounds like your off to a great start. Keep me posted on how yours is making out, by the sound of its age maybe ours are related

Have Fun

Khameleon21

 

[dabayliss]

The conditions sound idyllic! I have five redfoots and have had three different 'bringing home' experiances:
1) Two came from petsmart (but the store manager had a herd of a dozen redfoots) - both tortoises were happy to be handled - but one ate like a horse from day one - one didn't eat for the first 3-4 days
2) Two were rescued from a person that was not looking after them well - they both eat like fury but don't like being handled
3) One came from a reptile store (she is still in quaranteen) - she is very shy and won't eat - UNLESS you hand feed her!!!

To me the moral of the story is: follow the care sheet and persevere - eventually things tend to work out well ...

 

[Reptilemama38]

A lot of torts are shy at first, hopefully he will 'come out of his shell' soon. It sounds like you're taking good care of him. My girlfriend has a redfoot that was just like yours when she first got it. He stayed that way until they got a 2nd redfoot. His shyness went away immediately! Maybe he's just not used to being alone. I'm sure with the care you're giving him, he will come around quickly. Try talking to him and using a nice quiet, calm voice.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Khameleon21:

Won't you please take a few moments to start a new thread in the "introductions" section and tell us a bit about yourself?

 

[Little Miss Naughty]

Hi

Thanks everyone for the replies we have had a huge improvement in the last 24 hours or so. He has been coming out for his food on his own without me having to put him near his bowl. He is also spent most of yesterday exploring and spent some time on the cool side so he must be settling in ok now.

I haven't seen him in his water bowl yet but maybe he does it while i'm not looking.

I am concerned about his poo though, I don't seem to have seen any since bringing him home and have soaked him a couple of times and still nothing, i have heard that they can eat it but I don't seem to find any at all, he is eating all of the food I provide so I assume it must come out somewhere??

LMN