Why isn't my red foot eating?

[Spencertretter]

Hey guys I have a question that's been bothering me for awhile. My red foot tortoise is 8 months old now. Weighs about 132 oz which seems a little small to me. I try to feed him everyday but he only eats every other usually. His diet consists of lots of greens such as romaine, collard greens, spinach and kale, tomato, baby carrots, peppers. I also feed him lots of fruits. Mangos, watermelon, many different berries, Apple, grapes. I also give him Mazuri 3 times a week which he loves and tends to lean to over any other food. every few weeks I give him a hard boiled egg. On occasion I sprinkle on some calcium powder with vitamin d3 on the food too. He seems to favor foods more than others. He loves fruits more than veggies. He poops regularly. He is in a closed chamber which humidity is around 78 or higher always. 85 F degrees in enclosure. He spends a lot of time in his hide. Looks healthy when I soak him he walks when I wake him but I'm not sure if he sleeps too much or under weight. Also no coiled bulbs. Heat and UVB & UVA bulb. Can someone tell me what I am doing wrong?

 

[ZEROPILOT]

It sounds like you are doing MANY things right....
Can you supply us with photos of the enclosure?
I suspect we can find a few things to tweak.

 

[Spencertretter]

Just cleaned so a little plain.

 

[crimson_lotus]

All sounds great, but I have a suggestion - I would limit the intake of collard greens, kale, and spinach as they are all high in oxalates which inhibits the absorption of calcium and can also potentially cause stones, usually if kept too dry or if the animal is dehydrated. Those foods are still good every once in a while, just not all the time.

How are you measuring the humidity and temperature within the tank? Do you have a hygrometer, or is it one of those dials that stick to the side of the tank?

 

[Spencertretter]

All sounds great, but I have a suggestion - I would limit the intake of collard greens, kale, and spinach as they are all high in oxalates which inhibits the absorption of calcium and can also potentially cause stones, usually if kept too dry or if the animal is dehydrated. Those foods are still good every once in a while, just not all the time.

How are you measuring the humidity and temperature within the tank? Do you have a hygrometer, or is it one of those dials that stick to the side of the tank?

I will keep that in mind. I use a hygrometer to measure the humidity and temp

 

[ascott]

View attachment 177764View attachment 177765View attachment 177766

Just cleaned so a little plain.

If it were me....I would add a bit of real soil, like 5 or 6 inches of soil , peat moss....I would then dampen it and hand press it down really firm so that the tortoise has a firm surface to walk on...if the tortoise can not get a firm foot hold then they are likely not to muck about as much....do you keep a heat source going at night to maintain the night heat as well? If you are running high humidity in the entire enclosure then night warmth is super necessary....

The food you are offering sounds good....remember, this is a species that is designed a bit differently than a more "arid" species like a Desert Type species....this "forest" type tortoise can handle a bit more sweet treats and can also process foods differently, like a species more traditionally known as "arid" generate urates and can be plagued by stones as a result of dehydration, poor food offerings, low level of activity and the like....a species more traditionally known as a "forest" species does not have the same urate battle...their body is not designed to retain every drop of water as their natural environment has designed them to have access to reliable levels of hydration and such....so the food items and rhythm you outline sounds good...and they do get hooked on the mazuri, like little addicts....so if your real food diet is the majority of balance then some mazuri from time to time is ok but not too much or you may notice them "pee u'ing" the real food offerings....and that is not the best choice, in my opinion anyways....

Size of tortoise is not the biggest factor that dictates the health of the tortoise...if the tortoise is eating, drinking, soaking, exercising and acting as an overall good character and manner...then that would be fine if the tort is its own size....

 

[Spencertretter]

If it were me....I would add a bit of real soil, like 5 or 6 inches of soil , peat moss....I would then dampen it and hand press it down really firm so that the tortoise has a firm surface to walk on...if the tortoise can not get a firm foot hold then they are likely not to muck about as much....do you keep a heat source going at night to maintain the night heat as well? If you are running high humidity in the entire enclosure then night warmth is super necessary....

The food you are offering sounds good....remember, this is a species that is designed a bit differently than a more "arid" species like a Desert Type species....this "forest" type tortoise can handle a bit more sweet treats and can also process foods differently, like a species more traditionally known as "arid" generate urates and can be plagued by stones as a result of dehydration, poor food offerings, low level of activity and the like....a species more traditionally known as a "forest" species does not have the same urate battle...their body is not designed to retain every drop of water as their natural environment has designed them to have access to reliable levels of hydration and such....so the food items and rhythm you outline sounds good...and they do get hooked on the mazuri, like little addicts....so if your real food diet is the majority of balance then some mazuri from time to time is ok but not too much or you may notice them "pee u'ing" the real food offerings....and that is not the best choice, in my opinion anyways....

Size of tortoise is not the biggest factor that dictates the health of the tortoise...if the tortoise is eating, drinking, soaking, exercising and acting as an overall good character and manner...then that would be fine if the tort is its own size....

Could I just add that soil to the top of the other substrate I have now? I know red foots have issues with shell rot but if that's the best option I will definitely go with it. All I have right now is about 1/2 inch of coco coir and then bark on top. I have a CHE running 24/7

I read some posts last night about Mazuri. Seems like that could be another one of my bigger issues. Going to start leaning him off.

Thanks for the help!!!

 

[TammyJ]

Oh great - my avatar is upright now! Thanks to the kind soul.

Is it OK to have bark (repti bark?) as a substrate or partial substrate? I would be afraid of them swallowing it and getting impacted?

I am learning so much just by reading through these threads.

Spencertretter, can we see some pics of your tortoise please? If possible.

 

[Spencertretter]

Oh great - my avatar is upright now! Thanks to the kind soul.

Is it OK to have bark (repti bark?) as a substrate or partial substrate? I would be afraid of them swallowing it and getting impacted?

I am learning so much just by reading through these threads.

Spencertretter, can we see some pics of your tortoise please? If possible.

Here's two pics of squirt. One is him next to his food bowl. I tried smearing Mazuri onto romaine so he'll actually eat the romaine. However he still is able to pick the Mazuri off of it. As for the repti bark...I've always used it and I've never seen my tortoise eating it before but that's just my experience. Anyone reading this ever have issues with it?

 

[TammyJ]

Squirt is just totally adorable!

 

[ZEROPILOT]

I have garden soil and compost over my bark (orchid bark)
I pour water into the corners, the bark absorbs the water and leaves the soil layer dry. Giving you your high humidity without a damp floor.
I've never had any Redfoot eat bark.
Rocks yes.
Plastic plants yes.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Chop up your greens small with some scissors and mix it up in some Mazuri "mush." (So he can't pick and choose)
Over time, use less and less Mazuri and don't forget some fruit.
He'll eventually settle down and eat properly.

 

[GingerLove]

I literally gasped out loud when I saw your pictures. Squirt is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO cute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Did you get that name from Finding Nemo?

 

[Spencertretter]

I literally gasped out loud when I saw your pictures. Squirt is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO cute!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Did you get that name from Finding Nemo?

Thanks I actually got it from Squirtle from Pokemon! Haha