Under weight russian maybe dehydrated?

[terracolson]

So i did the chart for my Russians.. as you can see below, i made sure to do grams and lbs as well as cm and inches.

I know some people use different measurements, so i did the conversions.


Per cite: Mike Pingleton "Redfoot Manual" hydration guide, mommas is way way under min..

She almost didnt make it out of hibernation as it was..

So i need to get her back on track!

So I have many ideas, but i would love to hear what you think of the measurements.

Thank you

and please give me advice if you want to....

I will be soaking her daily and using all kinds different ideas to make sure she gets back up to par..

I will soak in the baby food jars of carrots, to make sure she gets her vitamins

as well as any thing else you can suggest!

Oh she lives outside and has been outside for years

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Poor things...I am sure if anyone can nurse them back to health it's you, Terra. You are such a caring torty mom.

Any idea why these tortoises got so underweight? It just seems odd, when Russians have such a reputation for being big eaters...

 

[terracolson]

She came from the Rscue last November, with most of my others, they have really all came from the rescue. She wasnt doing good when i got her, i thought it was cause it was time to hibernate, then i took her for a checkup, they said she could hibernate, she felt heavy enough.

So she did and she made it BUT it was a struggle to get her to open those eyes, and we went round and round.

I just got a new scale for the russians and i can see how light she is IF that formula is correct.



So does she eat yes, she actually takes her food and runs to the other side of the pen with it!

I will continue to saok her and weight her daily.. I will see if that helps her numbers move..

 

[GBtortoises]

Tortoises are always dehydrated and underweight when coming out of hibernation if they have been under for any lengthy period of time. How long was she hibernated?

The first thing that should be done (or should have been done) is to make water constantly avaible when the tortoise comes out of hibernation before[i/] offering any food whatsoever. Once the tortoise has drank to the point where it is no longer interested in the water then small amounts of high fiber greens should be offered. Without being coated with vitamins and without any other vegetables or anything else.

The first thing a tortoise needs to do out of hibernation is to rehydrate and then re-activate it's digestive system. It's digestive system under normal circumstances relys greatly on high fiber foods that are not necessarily rich in vitamins. An instant rush of vitamins isn't going to help a tortoise put on weight or bulk. Most likely in large, sudden quantities, much of the vitamins will not have time to be asbored and will be expelled through wastes. It's going to take more than a few days or even a few weeks for a tortoise to regain weight lost during hibernation. True weight that it's going keep and maintain, as opposed to water weight from sudden re-hydration.

I'm not disputing the fact that carrots are full of beneficial vitamins and minerals but I think the digestive system needs to be "up and running" to be able to process such a load first.

I put little value in weight charts since tortoise weights vary some throughout the year based on seasonal changes, food availability, hydration, activity level and more. I've never weighed my tortoises. But I do pay close attention to what they're eating and when, their activity levels at different times of the year and other aspects. Also the simple fact that individual tortoises have different habits and behave differently throughout the year.

Just my opinions based on my own experiences.

 

[terracolson]

G you are very right!

She could be at "her normal"

She has been awake since February, when we had a odd hot spell, then it went cold again, now its warm to stay!

Really i only feed them 2 times a week " kitchen food". They eat the clover, grasses, flowers and other stuff in the pen.

I will take a front shot for you, she seems like her shell is WAY bigger than her...

OF course My girldfriend tells me I am over worried and should stop.. but i am a analyzer and I have to have the numbers and facts!

If her weight is always low or goes up and down, after having her for 2 seasons, i will be more comfy, but this is MY first season with her. She was at the rescue for a few years before that and an apt tort for 1o years before that..

I want her happy!

Here are some pictures of my dinosaur....

After her 30 min soak today after her poo she now weights 8 grams less!
I am so going to have fun with this new scale!

Does she look "hollow?"

 

[dmmj]

I think she looks a little emaciated ( I think I spelled it wromg). One way I fight dehydration is to wet their food when I go and pick a bunch of grape leaves or hibiscus flowers, I spray them down with a water bottle.

 

[GBtortoises]

She doesn't look bad at to me based on the last set of photos you posted. Maybe a little thin but normal out of hibernation. Her eyes and upper limbs don't appear to be sunken in, which is usually a sure sign of severe dehydration and fat loss.

I have to agree with your girlfriend on this one!

 

[terracolson]

Ok then, i will take it easy on her...I refuse to tell my friend she is right...so since she doesn't get on tfo, she will never know..haha

thank you

---

I think she looks a little emancipated ( I think I spelled it wromg). One way I fight dehydration is to wet their food when I go and pick a bunch of grape leaves or hibiscus flowers, I spray them down with a water bottle.

I am not getting the emancipated joke?

 

[Kristina]

I think he meant emaciated.

 

[dmmj]

thank you that is what I meant I get confused sometimes.

 

[Kristina]

Don't we all

 

[terracolson]

emaciated- wasted away
emancipated- freedom from parents reign to waste your self away..

 

[egyptiandan]

For a Russian of her size Terra, she is quite a bit under-weight. Unfortunately she was hibernated while under-weight, so her weight loss wasn't caused by hibernation as it happened before hibernation.
Seeing as she's been up for a bit, just make sure she has plenty of good food available at all times until she gets her weight back up. Which should be around 800g. Also she won't be producing any eggs this year with being so light. Just concentrate on getting the weight back on her.

Danny

 

[terracolson]

Will do

Thank you.

I hibernated her because i was told it was ok..I cant change it now..

So i will work on feeding her every day...thx

 

[Tom]

I've got nothing to add beyond GB and Danny, but just wanted to give you one more in agreement with your plan of action. Whatever the circumstances that got her to this point, I think your current course of action will fix it. She doesn't look too bad to me either.

If she were mine, I'd do a fecal in a couple of weeks, just out of curiosity, if nothing else.

 

[terracolson]

I think i will, i am going to look for a vet to do that. my vet charges 35 for a fecal..i am thinking there should be a lower cost some where....

Tomorrow i will call around..

Now the big question.. If she has a over the top bad case of parasites, knowing small amounts are ok, what do i do with the others?

test them all?
med them all?

or let it go?