Weight loss, apx 6g

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alfiethetortoise

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I usually try and weigh Alfie every week but have been a bit slack over the holidays.

According to my records i last weighed on the 16th of December and she was 126g and nearing 90mm. I weighed her this morning and the scales tell me she is now 120g. Should i be worried? She seems otherwise fine, moving around as normal, eating. I know that things can effect the weigts but 6g seems like a lot!

Thanks folks, hope everyone had a good holiday :D
 
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stells

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6g is nothing... i wouldn't worry... it could be that Alfie... done a wee or poop before you weighed....

Keep weighing on a regular basis... i do monthly... and keep an eye... but i can't see it being a problem...
 

Kymiie

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Yeah, there poo and weee affects the weight alot!!
Crush lost around 20 odd grams in 3 week when i got abit slack on weighing him, but now he has doubled it and put it back on
xx
 

kimber_lee_314

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I always try to soak them before weighing them to keep it as consistent as possible.
 

Luvthemtorts

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6 grams is absolutely nothing at all to be worried over. As stated before there are many variables that could account for this.
Follow kimber_lee's advice about weighing to get repeatable results.
 

dmmj

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6 Grams may not seem like much but it was 5% of his weight.
 
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Maggie Cummings

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I have never weighed any of my animals. It is the best way to tell if they are eating etc. But I watch when I feed and I can tell you right away who's eating and who's not.
 

Stephanie Logan

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dmmj said:
6 Grams may not seem like much but it was 5% of his weight.

I guess...I didn't realize Alfie was so tiny.

6 g = 0.211643 oz, and an ounce is the weight of one of my Christmas letters!

Even Taco is 21.6 oz, or 21.6 oz = 612.349 g.

She's just a baby! No wonder she gets on so well with Ava!:p
 

GBtortoises

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I agree with Maggie3fan. I never weigh my animals. I'm comfortable telling how their doing by how they're activities, what and how they're eating and how they feel when I pick them up.

I think way too much emphasis is put on how much a tortoise weighs or when it drops a little bit or gains a little bit and the not other factors. Their weight can vary depending upon hydration, amount of foods, activity levels and season.
 

Luvthemtorts

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Unless the tortoise is showing signs of illness then the weight loss is not significant. All it takes is a bowel movement, urination, empty stomach or a comination of these factors to create the weight fluctuation.
No need to get the owner worked up if the animal is eating, drinking and defecating as normal.

dmmj said:
6 Grams may not seem like much but it was 5% of his weight.
 

alfiethetortoise

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Well, i did think that 6g was a lot in comparrison to Alfie's overall size. She isn't showing any other signs of illness. I normally weigh every week and have never had a drop so dramatic. I usually do the morning feed, and put Alfie's bath on top of the scales before i turn them on and then put Alfie into the water to weigh (the scales then just weigh Alfie and not the water). I always do it in the morning.

Stephanie, Yes, Alfie is exactly the same age as Ava which i did on purpose :) Ava was born in April and Alfie was hatched in May. Perhaps she is coming out in sympathy as Ava is very small (thin) for her age and the health visitor is always complaining!

Well I just weighed Alfie now and she is 129g after a poop! So she has the 6g back and another 3. Panic over! I guess there is a moral lesson to be learned i'm glad that i didn't rush her to the vet in a panic!
 
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stells

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IMO once a week is to often... once month being better... with doing once a week you will get fluctuations....

6g really is nothing to worry about though...

And some of us like to weigh our animals once it a while.... esp growing animals or breeding females... it does them no harm
 

Luvthemtorts

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And there you have it :D.
Don't feel bad that you were worried as it shows you are an observant keeper. I used to get emails and calls all the time about weight fluctuations which 99% of the time amounted to little more than an empty belly or a good poo LOL.


alfiethetortoise said:
Well, i did think that 6g was a lot in comparrison to Alfie's overall size. She isn't showing any other signs of illness. I normally weigh every week and have never had a drop so dramatic. I usually do the morning feed, and put Alfie's bath on top of the scales before i turn them on and then put Alfie into the water to weigh (the scales then just weigh Alfie and not the water). I always do it in the morning.

Stephanie, Yes, Alfie is exactly the same age as Ava which i did on purpose :) Ava was born in April and Alfie was hatched in May. Perhaps she is coming out in sympathy as Ava is very small (thin) for her age and the health visitor is always complaining!

Well I just weighed Alfie now and she is 129g after a poop! So she has the 6g back and another 3. Panic over! I guess there is a moral lesson to be learned i'm glad that i didn't rush her to the vet in a panic!
 

alfiethetortoise

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Is once a week really too often? Alfie is still very young. How often do you weigh hatchlings? Surely, it cant harm them to be weighed weekly? In my records, alfie has never had a drop in weight before and certainly never 6g. I guess it's best to aire on the side of caution? Or maybe i'm just over paranoid :)
 
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stells

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I only weigh hatchlings once per month too... unless i get one thaat i think isn't doing so well....

I found with weighing once per week i got to many fluctuations in weight...

If the tortoise is active... eating and going about his business then i wouldn't be worried about the loss...
 

tortoisenerd

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I weigh my hatchling once a week, and I was able to pick up on the times we were having troubles with him very quickly that way. I would only do this the first year or two of life though. But yes, take a small weight loss with a grain of salt when you weigh the tortoise frequently because it does fluctuate with bodily functions. With a 5% weight loss, I would weigh weekly for the next bit, keep an eye on food intake to see if the tortoise is eating as usual, watch for any other symptoms and changed in behavior, and if the tortoise has not had a fecal test for parasites in the last 6 months or so I would get that done if there is any more weight loss or lack of weight gain. I don't think weekly weigh ins could ever hurt though. My hatchling for the first 6 months I had him never lost weight, but after a bit he did have some weeks of loss, but definitely a general upwards trend (the important thing). I wouldn't want to see a loss more than 2 weeks in a row. After that I would worry. My tortoise when at 120 g was gaining about 3 grams a week, so 6 grams loss in two weeks would be about the max I would want to see. What is your tortoise's typical weight gain over a period of time such as a week or month? Take another measurement in a week and see how it goes. Best wishes.
 

alfiethetortoise

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With the parasite test, what do they test for? And do i just call the vet and ask for a parasite test? Is it expensive? Do i have to have a reson for requesting one?

date age length mm weight g

16/9/09 1 year 5 m 80 78
20/9/09 1 year 5 m 81 82
25/9/09 1 year 5 m 81 83
30/9/09 1 year 5 m 81 84
2/10/2009 1 year 5 m 81 86
6/10/2009 1 year 5 m 82 89
18/10/2009 1 year 6 m 84 91
24/10/2009 1 year 6 m 85 95
28/10/2009 1 year 6m 85 100
18/11/2009 1 year 7m 88 108
5/12/2009 1 year 7m 89 115
12/12/2009 1year 7m 89 126
28/12/2009 1 year 8 m 90 120
1/1/2010 1 year 8 m 91 129

This is the record i have of Alfie. In a week 2-3g gain is about right. normally a mm every 2-3 weeks. I think i will carry on weighing weekly just to check on the weight. Alfie is indoors, and still seems fine, but i'd rather be overly cautious. As you can see, there is only one recorded drop in weight and its the 6gs.
 
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stells

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To have the test done you would need to take a sample into the vets and ask for it to be tested for worms/protozoa... you don't need a reason to have one but by your last post i really wouldn't worry...

By looking at it Alfie has put on 9g and grown 1mm... so he has made up for his weight loss the week before....

Some tortoises will use lose a small amount of weigh and grow abit then will start gaining weight again... looks like this is what Alfie has done...
 

egyptiandan

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Yup it would be a good idea to get a fecal test done. The vet will need a fresh smple of poo to test for parasite eggs.
At that size Alfie is a bit light weight wise. He should be about 175 to 180g for the size he is now.

Danny
 
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