Eggsy
New Member
So, my little box turtle is having a growth spurt and I have concerns about how fast is too fast for a young turtle to grow?
Eggsy’s Background:
Found 5/18/2017 in my front yard. No idea how old the little guy is, nor whether it’s male or female yet. Kept Eggsy due to the fact I noticed s/he has one eye and only 3 legs. Otherwise, Eggsy is healthy (bright eye, good shell coloring, healthy appetite, and active).
Full disclosure: because the original room where Eggsy’s tank was located was slowly being turned into a storage area, I would tend to forget that Eggsy was there and was also unable to get to the tank easily. So there was a very dark period in Eggsy’s time with me where s/he did not receive adequate care (food/water) for a couple of months. No, you do not need to chastise me for this, I already have. Eggsy is a true trooper, when I finally remembered he was there he was dehydrated, but alive. I quickly looked up rehydration formulas for him/her, and after a day or two s/he was back to normal. I have since moved Eggsy’s tank into our bedroom on top of my dresser where I can see and access him/her daily.
Eggsy’s Terrarium:
20 gallon tank with a couple of live pothos plants, a dual lighting setup with a basking light and UVB, 2 hiding areas made up of 6 inch terra cotta pots. I’m using a mix of substrates: long strand peat moss, cypress wood chips, and coco noir that are misted/moistened regularly every few days. I have a temperature and humidity gauge next to the tank. The daily temperature in the bedroom ranges from 68-78 degrees Fahrenheit, the humidity ranges from 60-80% depending on when my husband and I take our showers. Since the gauge is outside the tank and the light is on, I figure the tank temp is slightly higher than the bedroom temperature. There is also an undertank heating pad placed under the hiding spot that Eggsy prefers the most.
Eggsy’s Food:
Every day Eggsy is given ½ teaspoon of both Fancy Feast Purely Cat Food mixed with ZooMed Natural Box Turtle pellets since s/he is still pretty small. I then add either frozen strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, collard greens, or freshly chopped baby carrots to the food base. I’m slowly introducing a variety of fruits and veggies to Eggsy and s/he has been accepting them voraciously.
I also have red wigglers and some pill bugs living in the tank with Eggsy to provide opportunities to hunt if s/he desires. If not, then they provide service as composters for the pothos.
Eggsy’s Behavior:
Prior to updating his/her terrarium Eggsy wouldn’t really hide that much. S/he would sometimes snuggle under the leaves of the pothos, then wander around the tank all day after eating and soaking. After moving him/her to my bedroom, I started noticing that s/he would gravitate to either the corner of the tank with the water dish, or the food dish and just chill there for the day. I wasn’t sure if Eggsy was trying to hibernate so I update the terrarium with additional hiding spots, and areas that s/he could burrow.
Around this time, I noticed a weird whitish line at the bottom of his/her lower scutes and after some research discovered that this was actually his/her new growth rings. I also realized these areas are very sensitive, when I ran my finger along it, s/he immediately jumped and moved away from my finger. Since then, the growth rings are increasing in size, and s/he has become very shy. Eggsy now will wait until my husband and I have left the room to come out of her burrow and eat. If we come back into the room, s/he will haul a** back into his/her burrow and wait until we leave again to come out. I’m figuring with all the growing s/he is doing Eggsy is probably uncomfortable and prefers to stay in his/her burrow a majority of the day now. When s/he is out and about for feeding I make sure to observe him/her to make sure that s/he is still bright eyed and healthy-looking.
Eggsy’s Background:
Found 5/18/2017 in my front yard. No idea how old the little guy is, nor whether it’s male or female yet. Kept Eggsy due to the fact I noticed s/he has one eye and only 3 legs. Otherwise, Eggsy is healthy (bright eye, good shell coloring, healthy appetite, and active).
Full disclosure: because the original room where Eggsy’s tank was located was slowly being turned into a storage area, I would tend to forget that Eggsy was there and was also unable to get to the tank easily. So there was a very dark period in Eggsy’s time with me where s/he did not receive adequate care (food/water) for a couple of months. No, you do not need to chastise me for this, I already have. Eggsy is a true trooper, when I finally remembered he was there he was dehydrated, but alive. I quickly looked up rehydration formulas for him/her, and after a day or two s/he was back to normal. I have since moved Eggsy’s tank into our bedroom on top of my dresser where I can see and access him/her daily.
Eggsy’s Terrarium:
20 gallon tank with a couple of live pothos plants, a dual lighting setup with a basking light and UVB, 2 hiding areas made up of 6 inch terra cotta pots. I’m using a mix of substrates: long strand peat moss, cypress wood chips, and coco noir that are misted/moistened regularly every few days. I have a temperature and humidity gauge next to the tank. The daily temperature in the bedroom ranges from 68-78 degrees Fahrenheit, the humidity ranges from 60-80% depending on when my husband and I take our showers. Since the gauge is outside the tank and the light is on, I figure the tank temp is slightly higher than the bedroom temperature. There is also an undertank heating pad placed under the hiding spot that Eggsy prefers the most.
Eggsy’s Food:
Every day Eggsy is given ½ teaspoon of both Fancy Feast Purely Cat Food mixed with ZooMed Natural Box Turtle pellets since s/he is still pretty small. I then add either frozen strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, collard greens, or freshly chopped baby carrots to the food base. I’m slowly introducing a variety of fruits and veggies to Eggsy and s/he has been accepting them voraciously.
I also have red wigglers and some pill bugs living in the tank with Eggsy to provide opportunities to hunt if s/he desires. If not, then they provide service as composters for the pothos.
Eggsy’s Behavior:
Prior to updating his/her terrarium Eggsy wouldn’t really hide that much. S/he would sometimes snuggle under the leaves of the pothos, then wander around the tank all day after eating and soaking. After moving him/her to my bedroom, I started noticing that s/he would gravitate to either the corner of the tank with the water dish, or the food dish and just chill there for the day. I wasn’t sure if Eggsy was trying to hibernate so I update the terrarium with additional hiding spots, and areas that s/he could burrow.
Around this time, I noticed a weird whitish line at the bottom of his/her lower scutes and after some research discovered that this was actually his/her new growth rings. I also realized these areas are very sensitive, when I ran my finger along it, s/he immediately jumped and moved away from my finger. Since then, the growth rings are increasing in size, and s/he has become very shy. Eggsy now will wait until my husband and I have left the room to come out of her burrow and eat. If we come back into the room, s/he will haul a** back into his/her burrow and wait until we leave again to come out. I’m figuring with all the growing s/he is doing Eggsy is probably uncomfortable and prefers to stay in his/her burrow a majority of the day now. When s/he is out and about for feeding I make sure to observe him/her to make sure that s/he is still bright eyed and healthy-looking.