Rijal
New Member
Hi all,
I have a sulcata hatchling since a month ago. He was not eating a lot for the first few days, maybe only a nibble or two, and he was losing weight although he was still active and exploring his enclosure. I fed him hibiscus flower and leaf, mulberry leaf, occasional mustard green, pak choi, and opuntia pad as well as the original mazuri. Then, I asked the seller and the seller suggested to feed him outdoor under the morning sun, because that's how they did it. I tried it and he started eating like pigs. So I did it like that for few days. I put the leftover food into his enclosure afterwards but he never touched it.
Then one day, after his daily soak (I put him in a small tub inside the enclosure), I put his foods in the tub while it is still inside the enclosure. To my surprise, he started eating. However, when I put him and the food on his feeding plate, he will stop eating. Then I put him again into the tub and he will resume eating. It is just so weird. At first I thought it was light/temperature issue but seeing that he will eat in his soaking tub inside, I doubt it is the issue.
Have anyone encountered similar issue? What kind of behavior trait which might be linked with this issue? Should I continue to feed him this way?
For additional info, here is the enclosure data:
- Glass tank about 5 x 2 feet (only for his hatchling/baby period) with a lid
- Substrate is exoterra plantation soil topped with fine coconut chips to make it less messy
- Humidity always >95% except under basking light which is about ~85%
- Ambient temperature is 86-90 F at noon and 83-84 at night (even without CHE/heater)
- Basking light is exoterra daylight basking spot (it is actually R20 bulb, so it should counted as flood bulb right?) with basking temperature of 97-98 F. I cannot find normal incandescent light bulb here anywhere here in Indonesia.
- Additional light is LED strip to make the enclosure brighter
Daily care:
- Lights are on at 6 am and off at 6 pm
- I soak him everyday for about 30-45 min
- Then I put him in his portable outdoor enclosure for sunning every morning for an hour, thus no uvb light is used
- Afterwards, I put him back to the tank together with his leftover food. I removed the food every night
Here is him sleeping on his basking spot and his leftover food.
I have a sulcata hatchling since a month ago. He was not eating a lot for the first few days, maybe only a nibble or two, and he was losing weight although he was still active and exploring his enclosure. I fed him hibiscus flower and leaf, mulberry leaf, occasional mustard green, pak choi, and opuntia pad as well as the original mazuri. Then, I asked the seller and the seller suggested to feed him outdoor under the morning sun, because that's how they did it. I tried it and he started eating like pigs. So I did it like that for few days. I put the leftover food into his enclosure afterwards but he never touched it.
Then one day, after his daily soak (I put him in a small tub inside the enclosure), I put his foods in the tub while it is still inside the enclosure. To my surprise, he started eating. However, when I put him and the food on his feeding plate, he will stop eating. Then I put him again into the tub and he will resume eating. It is just so weird. At first I thought it was light/temperature issue but seeing that he will eat in his soaking tub inside, I doubt it is the issue.
Have anyone encountered similar issue? What kind of behavior trait which might be linked with this issue? Should I continue to feed him this way?
For additional info, here is the enclosure data:
- Glass tank about 5 x 2 feet (only for his hatchling/baby period) with a lid
- Substrate is exoterra plantation soil topped with fine coconut chips to make it less messy
- Humidity always >95% except under basking light which is about ~85%
- Ambient temperature is 86-90 F at noon and 83-84 at night (even without CHE/heater)
- Basking light is exoterra daylight basking spot (it is actually R20 bulb, so it should counted as flood bulb right?) with basking temperature of 97-98 F. I cannot find normal incandescent light bulb here anywhere here in Indonesia.
- Additional light is LED strip to make the enclosure brighter
Daily care:
- Lights are on at 6 am and off at 6 pm
- I soak him everyday for about 30-45 min
- Then I put him in his portable outdoor enclosure for sunning every morning for an hour, thus no uvb light is used
- Afterwards, I put him back to the tank together with his leftover food. I removed the food every night
Here is him sleeping on his basking spot and his leftover food.