Sulcata Runt?

[TortLass]

so.
I have a little tort named Pumpkin, and he's a year old as of...sometime in April. But he hasn't grown. It's not just me, I have a chart for his growth which I use every month, and he hasn't grown. Why?
And also I picked out the smallest tort when I was buying him. Does that mean he's a runt? Are there tortoise runts? I'll try to get a pic on here.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi TortLass:

A lot of factors play a roll in how a tortoise grows. You must have the correct temperature. He also needs quite a bit of humidity (they hatch during the monsoon season in the wild and are in pretty wet conditions for the first few months of their lives). A diet of fibrous weeds and greens also helps him grow. Plus exercise. They need to have a habitat big enough to provide plenty of walking/exercise.

 

[samsmom]

Just exactly how big/small is he? Pictures would really help!

 

[sibi]

Yes, there are runts among tortoises. I have one named Baby Runt. There are a list of things that went wrong in Baby Runt's case. First, he was not properly cared for as a hatchling. It's also possible that the problem began before be was hatched. He has 3 other siblings who competed with each other for food, warmth, etc. As a result, he barely had enough to eat, yet, he survived. He was 3 years old when i got him and he only weigh 4 oz! Now, 6 months later, he is 1 lb and 4 oz. I have to hand feed him everyday because his neck is too short to pick food from the ground. Does your lil one eat well on his own? If you hand fed him, would he eat more? If you haven't tried it, please do. I'd be interested in finding out if he'll gain more by you hand-feeding him.

 

[Tom]

There are two likely possibilities.
1. In typical fashion, he was started dry like a desert tortoise. They aren't. As Yvonne stated above, the hatch during the rainy season. Hot, humid, wet, marshy, food everywhere. For decades people have been starting them on rabbit pellets under a hot bulb, with nowhere to hide and no water bowl. Weekly soaks, if that. This chronic dehydration in there first few weeks can damage their internal organs. Some survive it and grow. Some survive it and are stunted. And some die.
2. Some breeders do not use a brooder box after hatching and instead leave them in the incubation chamber. They have a mistaken notion that babies don't eat when they have a yolk sac, and they let them live on the incubation media for a week or so while the umbilical scar closes up. They eat the incubation media and some of them get impacted. Some pass it and are fine. Some are partially blocked up, but somehow survive but grow very slowly or not at all. And some die.

Where did you get yours? How was it started? Does the set up described in number one sound familiar to you?

 

[TortLass]

Tom, thanks for your help.
I got Pumpkin at a breeder. He was about a month old.

 

[rideburton87]

Tom is asking you more specific questions like: ask the breeder if it was raised in a brooder box, did they soak, how was it fed, and how was the humidity/heat in first month, etc..? Next how are you raising your tort; in a tortoise box, closed chamber, or a tank? If its been a year have you brought a fecal sample to a vet? It may be possible your tort has parasites. Read Tom's threads he has in his signature. I strongly believe Tom has saved my torts life as in: keeping him in the appropriate housing (closed chamber), diet, substrate (we differ on but close), temps, soaks, and everything else he has to add in the way a sulcata should be raised. My month old sucata didnt grow at all for six months when raised on a tort table (very low humidity) and had a diet that was mainly orchard grass hay and a little spring mix. I followed what Tom said, joined the forum, and bam! My sulcata grows every day! So keep reading.. There is a lot of info out there on the e.net but stick with this forum and for a sulcata.. read everything Tom has to say!

 

[TortLass]

Pumpkin was in a tan k when I bought him. They did soak, the breeder was the one who told me to soak him, although I already knew. He was fed on washed greens. Not sure how the humidity or heat was, but he seemed to know a lot about torts. I'm raising him in a plastic tank. It has been a year since I brought a fecal sample to the vet, Pumkin has never been to the vet.
I'll try to get some pics of Pumpkin and his habitat.

 

[Tom]

Back in the old days, I used to regurgitate the info I got from "experts" who seemed to know a lot, books, vets, and breeders. All of them were wrong, and I was wrong as I passed along what I learned from them. Its pretty sad really.

"From a breeder, in a tank, soaked, fed washed greens..." does not help us answer your original question. While it is possible to have a "runt" that hatches out with some sort of congenital defect (very rare), the most likely cause or your lack of growth is improper husbandry as elaborated upon in post number 5 of this thread. I spelled it out so you could either confirm or deny my most likely suspicions.

Can you tell us his weight the day you got him? Or the day he hatched? This would confirm whether or not he was a "runt" with some other possible internal "defect" that may be affecting his growth. (Very unlikely, but physically possible.)

 

[TortLass]

sorry, Tom, but I don't think I can answer any of your questions. And I can neither confirm or deny your suspicions. I could technically email the breeder I bought Pumpkin from, but I'm pretty sure he'll have forgotten what day Pumpkin was hatched.