Winter issue

[philip1]

Ok, 1st winter with rescue... Had since July and had an awesome appetite, enclosure everything was great. Slowed a little during Nov, Dec now toward the end of January sleeping a lot more and not eating as much if at all... Comes out at 5:30 basking goes back in dirt a bit later. Soaking 2 times a week and on the weekend he will climb sides of enclosure to get out and walk around. Stays out and walks around for and hour plus a couple times a weekend. Still find pee and urates and this weekend a small amount of poop (looked normal) could this be normal is enclosure temp seem normal and uvb changed in Nov. He is by an outside wall with Windows...

 

[Blackdog1714]

Please measure your temps so you can know exactly what they are. In my old house by the window-single pane- is 60 degrees at best. Do you have a basking spot?

 

[philip1]

Yes... Have basking.. temp 95.

 

[Blackdog1714]

I do not bruminate my russian and they do slow down for the winter. Ensure they are getting good UVB-I use a Solarmeter 6.5r to ensure it is the correct output at tortoise height. Soaks never hurt so keep it up and just keep offering a varied and fresh menu each day. Here is my russian basking and please notice that the greens pile is undisturbed (has been down for 3 hours). As long a some food goes in and comes out and you have no belief that they could be sick (Upper respiratory, worms) than a slow down is not unusual

 

[philip1]

I do not bruminate my russian and they do slow down for the winter. Ensure they are getting good UVB-I use a Solarmeter 6.5r to ensure it is the correct output at tortoise height. Soaks never hurt so keep it up and just keep offering a varied and fresh menu each day. Here is my russian basking and please notice that the greens pile is undisturbed (has been down for 3 hours). As long a some food goes in and comes out and you have no belief that they could be sick (Upper respiratory, worms) than a slow down is not unusual

Thank you... And yes don't believe any issues... Offer food every day... He comes out to bask every morning for a couple hours.... Just our first winter with him... Thanks again.

 

[Blackdog1714]

In summer outside it’s prowl around at dawn and hit the hide till late afternoon. So still not to active

 

[Tom]

What species are we talking about? What size?

What are the 4 temps? Warm side, cool side, basking area, overnight low?

No torotise should be running loose on the floor. It cannot be made safe, the temperatures are too cold, and this eventually will lead to a disaster.

 

[philip1]

What species are we talking about? What size?

What are the 4 temps? Warm side, cool side, basking area, overnight low?

No torotise should be running loose on the floor. It cannot be made safe, the temperatures are too cold, and this eventually will lead to a disaster.

Warm side 85, basking 95 (last check), cool 72, overnight 67. And I should not let him run around kitchen floor ???

 

[philip1]

Warm side 85, basking 95 (last check), cool 72, overnight 67. And I should not let him run around kitchen floor ???

Thank you

 

[philip1]

Thank you

Sorry forgot ... Russian - rescue not sure age but 5+" from front to back of shell.

 

[Tom]

Warm side 85, basking 95 (last check), cool 72, overnight 67. And I should not let him run around kitchen floor ???

The temps sound good. You could try to add more lighting. A good 5000-6500K HO tube and a 12% HO UV tube would do it. You can buy those as an all in one unit from Lightyourreptiles.com

Definite and emphatic "NO" on the kitchen floor. We've seen this end in disaster more times than I can count.

 

[philip1]

In summer outside it’s prowl around at dawn and hit the hide till late afternoon. So still not to active

The temps sound good. You could try to add more lighting. A good 5000-6500K HO tube and a 12% HO UV tube would do it. You can buy those as an all in one unit from Lightyourreptiles.com

Definite and emphatic "NO" on the kitchen floor. We've seen this end in disaster more times than I can count.

Because of temp (floor) or something else? Thank you for insight!!!

 

[Blackdog1714]

Good catch Tom. Philip the floor may not seem like it to you, but to a tortie it is a heat sink!

 

[philip1]

Would extra soaks be a good thing?

 

[Tom]

Because of temp (floor) or something else? Thank you for insight!!!

Temperatures are too cold, its stressful and unfamiliar, they get kicked, stepped on, and in one grisley case a loving tortoise owner crushed her tortoises head in the corner of the door. They also find things to eat that can be fatal. One member here showed us an X-ray of her tortoise with a 2" sewing pin in its intestinal tract. She doesn't sew and had no idea where the pin came from. No matter how safe you think it is, and no matter how much you think you are supervising, they will find a way to harm themselves.

@Yvonne G also has a better way than me of pointing out that if you let them out to explore the wide wide world, it makes them fussy, antsy and more discontent in their enclosure. Best to just leave them in their large safe enclosure and let them be content with their world. I do like to use large outdoor enclosures, but this is space dedicated to the tortoise and there are no human activities going on in those pens.

 

[Tom]

Would extra soaks be a good thing?

2 soaks a week should be enough for an adult (5+ inches) Russian tortoise. More won't hurt, but I wouldn't argue that more is "necessary".

 

[philip1]

Temperatures are too cold, its stressful and unfamiliar, they get kicked, stepped on, and in one grisley case a loving tortoise owner crushed her tortoises head in the corner of the door. They also find things to eat that can be fatal. One member here showed us an X-ray of her tortoise with a 2" sewing pin in its intestinal tract. She doesn't sew and had no idea where the pin came from. No matter how safe you think it is, and no matter how much you think you are supervising, they will find a way to harm themselves.

@Yvonne G also has a better way than me of pointing out that if you let them out to explore the wide wide world, it makes them fussy, antsy and more discontent in their enclosure. Best to just leave them in their large safe enclosure and let them be content with their world. I do like to use large outdoor enclosures, but this is space dedicated to the tortoise and there are no human activities going on in those pens.

Thank you... I thought I was helping him by letting him stretch his feet

 

[Tom]

Thank you... I thought I was helping him by letting him stretch his feet

You are not alone. Some people get mad when we tell them this. For some reason this is taken as an insult. We've had some of them come back after a problem and say they wished they had listened to us. Anyhow, glad you are not one of those.

The enclosure needs to be big enough for them to stretch their feet while safely contained in their own space. I like to have a large outdoor enclosure for them during fair weather, and this helps too.

 

[philip1]

 

[philip1]

Update!!!! Yesterday morning Philip did not come out of his dirt I took him out yesterday afternoon when I got home gave him a little soak and a nice warm bath dried him off put him back in he passed for a little bit and then went back into the dirt this morning same thing he didn't come out when his spotlight turned on it's on a timer He's usually out when I get up... So again I took them out of the dirt put them under his basking lamp as for every morning even when he wasn't eating I always put food in his bowl today I decided to hold some in front of his face he started walking towards it and nudging it with his nose so I held it there and to my surprise he started eating so I moved his entire food dish over to where he was and he started eating like a fiend... Then he fell asleep in his food dish.. lol but he ate really good..