Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi,
I recently purchased a young cherry head from a reptile specialty store in Miami, (I live in the Florida Keys). He/she is about 4 inches long and is eating, drinking, defecating etc. He/she is housed in a large plastic kiddie pool with cypress mulch, a water dish and three different hides, (including a high humidity hide) postioned throughout the pool. I have the pool outside during the day and inside at night. Throughout the day the pool is maneuvered so that there is always shady areas. I have a few questions/concerns.

About soaking, how do you soak aside from placing the tort in his water dish? For how long and how often should I soak?

Also the carapace is strangley colored. For lack of a better description, the shell area between the scutes on the carapace is light colored. It looks like the scutes are not connected to one another. It doesnt appear to be fungal in origin, it just looks like the shell in those areas is abnormally colored. The pet store guy said it's nothing to be concerned about, and that it is seen often in "blonde" phase torts of other species. Ever heard of anything like that? I'll post pics of it later.

Finally, anything I can use for calcium dust until I get my Rep Cal delivered? I was thinking maybe shaving one of my parrots' cuttle bones over the torts food? Also, what should the phosphorous ratio in the calcium powder be?

Thanks very much.

If your new tortoise is 4 to 5 inches, daily soaking isn't necessary. In fact, if you have water available to it all the time and it can drink the water as well as crawl through the water dish when it wants, soaking isn't needed. Unless it gets really hot and dry and then once a week isn't a bad idea.
A varied diet with high calcium greens, occasional prepared foods like Mazuri Tortoise Diet and fruits like strawberries, papaya, bananas, etc. will go a long way in keeping a redfoot healthy. The added calcium is a good idea as they grow but with your animal getting a good diet and full sunlight it isn't that important. I have only occasionally given my redfoots calcium (mostly to egg laying females) over the years and they have grown and reproduced really well. Don't get me wrong....I am not saying to never add calcium to the diet...but I don't think you need to run out and start shaving your parrot's cuttlebone right away either. I am also in south Florida so our conditions are about the same.
The pale coloring you described is common to the 'cherryhead' form of redfoots. Some show this trait more than others.

I would add that getting a fecal check done by a decent vet is a very good thing to do too. Go to the trouble, it's worth it.

I'll cover some questions:

Light areas between scutes: that's new growth. Shows up a lot in younger tortoises. If there's oozing fluid or the scutes are peeling off, then there is a problem.

Calcium to phosphorous ratio in supplement: There is no need for a calcium supplement to have any phosphorous. If you are getting Repcal, then it should have next to no phosphorous. The fruits and vegetables in the diet already have plenty of phosphorous. The recommended ratio for the overall diet (foods AND supplements) is about 2:1 (from sources I've read), but I don't try to calculate that when I prepare foods. I just supply foods that have calcium and then provide Repcal along with cuttlebones for them to chew on.

Good luck.

Thanks for the great advice, everyone.

The coloring between the scutes isnt oozing or peeling or anything like that, so hopefully all it is is new growth.

About the phosphorous, i used to keep chameleons and there was always an on going debate about the calhos ratio. I'm glad it's not that heated a topic with red foots.

I should know this from my cham keeping days (gut-loading crickets and such), but can you give some examples of high calcium greens? Right now Im feeding romaine, green leaf and red leaf lettuce, endive, escarole, as well as hibiscus leaves.

Thanks again.

Oh, and how often do you offer the tortoise food? Thanks

Dandelion, escarole and chiccory have excellent calcium : phosphorus ratios. Black figs and pricky pear cactus fruit are amongst the fruit that have a good ratio.
Feeding every other day seems to work for a lot of people (and redfoots)!

Gaby

I feed everyday. Mine also have alot of room to roam. Since yours is still small, I would feed daily, but smaller amounts.

Allegra

OH, I meant how often do you offer the mazuri? Should have specified. Thanks.

I feed Mazuri only about once a week--- or when I have nothing else around and I don't feel like going to the produce store.
The tortoises really like it and they can get sort of spoiled on it, refusing other things if you feed it too often.
If you are in the upper keys, Robert is Here (in Florida City) has some great fruits like guava, papaya, egg fruit as well as very good romaine.

I have heard from alot of people that Mazuri has too much sodium ( i believe) for redfoots, and that alot of people prefer to use a weight managment catfood (i use purina pro-plan) sprinkled with calcium carbonate or a multi-vitamin. this combo seems to give them the xact right amount of protein if fed once a week. Though, most advise not to feed this to a tortoise under 3" or so.

some RF feeding links:

Tortoise Trust - RF feeding
Terry's RF husbandry, over at turtletary

once again, those that slam the stuff have probably never used it.

The Mazuri tortoise diet is formulated specificly for tortoises by people who are very knowlegable in animal nutrition. I've noticed that just because they have a product it does not mean the research stops. I have a great deal of respect for this kind of thinking because it shows me the people working on the product are always looking to make it better.

When I read the comment on the sodium I figured what better way to tell how much sodium is present then by taste. Same with the molassas (sp?). The stuff does not taste sweet or salty in any way.

I always have to ask... how does anyone know how much too much of anything for any one species is. This is why I would rather trust a person who actually knows than one who basis their opinion on speculation which is based on a slanted point of view.

>>I have heard from alot of people that Mazuri has too much sodium ( i believe) for redfoots, and that alot of people prefer to use a weight managment catfood (i use purina pro-plan) sprinkled with calcium carbonate or a multi-vitamin. this combo seems to give them the xact right amount of protein if fed once a week. Though, most advise not to feed this to a tortoise under 3" or so.
>>
>>some RF feeding links:
>>
>>Tortoise Trust - RF feeding
>> Terry's RF husbandry, over at turtletary
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Ed @ Tortoise Keepers
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

Mazuri has been formulated for tortoises. For the larger species like Galaps and Aldabras I think. While none of us would recommend it as a staple diet, the occasional use of it is perfectly fine. I have fed it to my redfoots for years and I get perfect growth.
But at any rate, who said too much sodium for redfoots? And based on what study? Who decided this?

I believe a tortoise is a tortoise. In the wild, diet is an adaptation of an ecological niche to fulfill a basic biological requirement. Every vertebrate requires the same nutritional components.

I've got a trio of RFs that get fed nothing but Mazuri diet. I'll keep y'all posted on the outcome.

>>Mazuri has been formulated for tortoises. For the larger species like Galaps and Aldabras I think. While none of us would recommend it as a staple diet, the occasional use of it is perfectly fine. I have fed it to my redfoots for years and I get perfect growth.
>>But at any rate, who said too much sodium for redfoots? And based on what study? Who decided this?
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Ed @ Tortoise Keepers
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care