Hi all, I am new to the forum. I'm an experienced reptile keeper but first time tort owner. I wish my first post was a more positive one, but I am glad to be here regardless.
After reading a gazillion threads about Russians, my mind is spiraling, so I decided to make my own post.
I have had my adult Russian since the middle of October now. I purchased him from a reputable reptile shop. I have no idea how old he is, and am making the assumption it is indeed a he. Tail is long, always tucked to the side. I also assume he was wild caught considering I bought him as an adult. Didn't realize at the time just how bad of an idea it was to get a wild caught one, however.
After the initial week or two of settling in, he was quite active. Enjoyed exploring his home, and ate pretty good for the first couple months. However, after a few cold snaps, he is sleeping more and more as time goes by and I'm getting more and more worried. He is being kept in a 3' x 3' homemade tortoise table. Substrate is a mix of coco fiber and cypress mulch. He has a heat lamp and an 18 inch UV bulb. Temps around the heat lamp range between a little over 100 down to 80 or so. Ambient temps in my home are 77-78. I live in Florida and it is relatively warm all year and always humid. Even with the cold snaps it never dropped below 75 in my apartment.
I keep thinking it's his natural instinct and he's trying to hibernate, but I feel like I've done all the steps to avoid that. His lights are on 13 hours a day, temperatures seem to be plenty warm, he gets frequent (at least once a week) soaks in warm water.
When he was eating well, he was fed a variety of leafy greens. Kale, collard greens, turnip greens, mustard greens, romaine, and spring mix. I also occasionally give zoomed grassland pellets and have tried hay but he showed no interest in that. I have some dandelion greens, hibiscus, and other weeds growing outside but since it is winter they're not growing too fast at the moment, but will be available for him eventually. He barely goes to eat now, if at all. I think at this point it's been a few days since I've seen him eat anything.
He seems to spend all day sleeping under his heat lamp. He does have a log he can hide under which he rarely ever goes under. I worry about him dehydrating by sitting under the lamp all day. Even if I move him to somewhere else, he'll immediately walk right back to the spot and fall asleep.
His substrate is dry. Should I be moistening it? I keep reading conflicting info about this online. It's already humid here in Florida and I doubt the humidity in my home drops below 50%. I haven't moistened his substrate because I was afraid he would be too moist. Is this wrong?
I'm guessing my first task should be to bring to a vet. But in the meantime, I'm hoping some of you can help me determine what I'm doing wrong and how I can fix it. I really love my little buddy and I want him to be happy and healthy. Please let me know if there is any other information I can provide! Pics attached of my tort and his enclosure.
After reading a gazillion threads about Russians, my mind is spiraling, so I decided to make my own post.
I have had my adult Russian since the middle of October now. I purchased him from a reputable reptile shop. I have no idea how old he is, and am making the assumption it is indeed a he. Tail is long, always tucked to the side. I also assume he was wild caught considering I bought him as an adult. Didn't realize at the time just how bad of an idea it was to get a wild caught one, however.
After the initial week or two of settling in, he was quite active. Enjoyed exploring his home, and ate pretty good for the first couple months. However, after a few cold snaps, he is sleeping more and more as time goes by and I'm getting more and more worried. He is being kept in a 3' x 3' homemade tortoise table. Substrate is a mix of coco fiber and cypress mulch. He has a heat lamp and an 18 inch UV bulb. Temps around the heat lamp range between a little over 100 down to 80 or so. Ambient temps in my home are 77-78. I live in Florida and it is relatively warm all year and always humid. Even with the cold snaps it never dropped below 75 in my apartment.
I keep thinking it's his natural instinct and he's trying to hibernate, but I feel like I've done all the steps to avoid that. His lights are on 13 hours a day, temperatures seem to be plenty warm, he gets frequent (at least once a week) soaks in warm water.
When he was eating well, he was fed a variety of leafy greens. Kale, collard greens, turnip greens, mustard greens, romaine, and spring mix. I also occasionally give zoomed grassland pellets and have tried hay but he showed no interest in that. I have some dandelion greens, hibiscus, and other weeds growing outside but since it is winter they're not growing too fast at the moment, but will be available for him eventually. He barely goes to eat now, if at all. I think at this point it's been a few days since I've seen him eat anything.
He seems to spend all day sleeping under his heat lamp. He does have a log he can hide under which he rarely ever goes under. I worry about him dehydrating by sitting under the lamp all day. Even if I move him to somewhere else, he'll immediately walk right back to the spot and fall asleep.
His substrate is dry. Should I be moistening it? I keep reading conflicting info about this online. It's already humid here in Florida and I doubt the humidity in my home drops below 50%. I haven't moistened his substrate because I was afraid he would be too moist. Is this wrong?
I'm guessing my first task should be to bring to a vet. But in the meantime, I'm hoping some of you can help me determine what I'm doing wrong and how I can fix it. I really love my little buddy and I want him to be happy and healthy. Please let me know if there is any other information I can provide! Pics attached of my tort and his enclosure.