Hi, a new member and a new tortoise owner, but a tortoise lover for many many years!
My dreams came true two days ago as I picked up an around 8-year-old male russian tortoise. He was found from a forest couple years back, and the original owner was never found. His founder decided to give him up as they didn't originally want a tortoise and they couldn't provide an enclousure for him. So, he has been living on the floor for a couple years now.
I tried to schedule a vet for the day of getting him, but since there is about one reptile specialized vet in the whole country (Finland), I wasn't able to get an appointment until two weeks from now. I've been monitoring him for two days, and during the first night he was eating and exploring quite actively. Yesterday and today he has been a bit "quieter" and less active/not eating much, but I'm not too concearned since he has gone through a big change in his life and is understandably stressed. He has pooped well (though the poop wasn't quite ideal), nibbled a bit of the food I offered, basked, slept and whenever I or my boyfriend walk past his enclosure, he peeks up and seems curious.
However, I'm a bit worried of his right back foot. As he was walking around on Monday, he seemed to avoid using that foot while climbing. Similarily, he doesn't really seem to be putting weight on it (especially on the slate I feed him on), and often stops moving when it would be the time to use that foot. I took a closer look at it, and one of the nails on the foot is very bent and looks to go under his foot scale. Should I try to trim it myself or should I wait for the vet appointment? Can I do something else e.g. feed him on the softer coco coir to allow him to eat more easily if he wishes to (I'm not sure whether it restricts his movement while eating)?
Here are some pictures of the foot:
I built him an enclosure around 30 square feet, the humidity is atm aroung 50% as I didn't manage to fully dry the substrate, cool side is around 19-20 C (65-70 F), warm side is 24-25 C (75-80 F) and basking spot in shell height is 36 C (97 F). He has a humid hide, a dryer warm hide and a cool hide, and a plant plate as a water dish. I feed him weeds, romaine, basil, a bit of kale, hibiscus and a hay/weed mix pellets to add a bit of fiber. As he doesn't seem to like to soak by himself, I've also offered cucumber for hydration. He has nibbled everything a little bit, and seems to love the cuttle bone I offered him (munching it atm). He has an overgrown beak, a bit of stuck shed, and maybe some extra weight (his shell's leght is 15,3 cm and he weighs 849 grams), I'll be discussing those with a vet.
Thank you all in advance and sorry for such a lenghty post!
My dreams came true two days ago as I picked up an around 8-year-old male russian tortoise. He was found from a forest couple years back, and the original owner was never found. His founder decided to give him up as they didn't originally want a tortoise and they couldn't provide an enclousure for him. So, he has been living on the floor for a couple years now.
I tried to schedule a vet for the day of getting him, but since there is about one reptile specialized vet in the whole country (Finland), I wasn't able to get an appointment until two weeks from now. I've been monitoring him for two days, and during the first night he was eating and exploring quite actively. Yesterday and today he has been a bit "quieter" and less active/not eating much, but I'm not too concearned since he has gone through a big change in his life and is understandably stressed. He has pooped well (though the poop wasn't quite ideal), nibbled a bit of the food I offered, basked, slept and whenever I or my boyfriend walk past his enclosure, he peeks up and seems curious.
However, I'm a bit worried of his right back foot. As he was walking around on Monday, he seemed to avoid using that foot while climbing. Similarily, he doesn't really seem to be putting weight on it (especially on the slate I feed him on), and often stops moving when it would be the time to use that foot. I took a closer look at it, and one of the nails on the foot is very bent and looks to go under his foot scale. Should I try to trim it myself or should I wait for the vet appointment? Can I do something else e.g. feed him on the softer coco coir to allow him to eat more easily if he wishes to (I'm not sure whether it restricts his movement while eating)?
Here are some pictures of the foot:
I built him an enclosure around 30 square feet, the humidity is atm aroung 50% as I didn't manage to fully dry the substrate, cool side is around 19-20 C (65-70 F), warm side is 24-25 C (75-80 F) and basking spot in shell height is 36 C (97 F). He has a humid hide, a dryer warm hide and a cool hide, and a plant plate as a water dish. I feed him weeds, romaine, basil, a bit of kale, hibiscus and a hay/weed mix pellets to add a bit of fiber. As he doesn't seem to like to soak by himself, I've also offered cucumber for hydration. He has nibbled everything a little bit, and seems to love the cuttle bone I offered him (munching it atm). He has an overgrown beak, a bit of stuck shed, and maybe some extra weight (his shell's leght is 15,3 cm and he weighs 849 grams), I'll be discussing those with a vet.
Thank you all in advance and sorry for such a lenghty post!