Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a sulcata tortoise thats about 5 months old and its got to were he's sleeping what me and my wife thinks as way to much. Could anyone please shed some light on this, he's our baby and we want to take the best possible care of him.

Thanks
Tim and Jessica

If your tortoise has suddenly begun sleeping a lot, then I would be concerned. Is there anything else going on, such as lack of appetite or diarrhea? If he is sleeping enough to worry you, your best bet would be to take him into a vet for an exam, including a fecal check.
-----
Sohni
Northern California

0.1 Baja de L.A. Rosy Boa
0.1 Okeetee Corn Snake
1.1 Rubber Boas
1.0 Leopard Gecko
0.0.2 Hermann's Tortoises
plus my kids' herps:
0.0.1 California King Snake
1.0 Mexican Rosy Boa
0.1 Leopard Gecko

well he eats like a horse and theres been no sign of diarrhea at all, believe me we check his feces daily, as far as the sleeping goes, he has always slept a lot but it seems like hes doing it more. Is it possible that its the setup we have? its fairly small (10 gallon tank) could he just be getting too bored? We have plans to fix him a better setup us a large plastic storage box thats not too deep, yet deep enough for him at his size not to get out we will be building a wood frame that sets over the box that has wire screen for his lighting (its only for the lighting as it will not help keep him in his setup.

Thanks
Tim

It does sound like something is wrong. Sulcatas are very active
and alert tortoises. Mine was awake as a hatchling all day, basking
and nosing around. Maybe take a small nap, and that was it.

Your set up will need to be improved, the sooner the better.
Make sure you have the right UV lighting, as well as enough
heat (something you CAN't do in a 10 gallon, not possible to
get a 70-105 range in there, you'll cook him trying). He's
sleeping a lot because he's either sick, or too cold and going
to get sick. There's a slim chance he's actually too hot, if
you were trying to heat a basking spot to a high temp you'd be
roasting him in that small tank, I find that most people keep
theirs way too cold though.
Hopefully you can get him into something more suitable right
away, remember it's just another temporary thing as they grow
quickly - mine is only 4 years old and probably has a water
drinking container bigger than the rubbermaid you're considering
as a set-up.
If you haven't had it checked by a vet, get to it right away,
there've been several hatchlings lost lately by people on this
forum that wait too long. By the time they seem sickly it's usually
too late already. Make sure you keep yours out of drafts, that
means not on the floor with the rubbermaid. Also make sure you
soak him and completely dry him at least weekly or he'll dehydrate.

Also be aware that hatchlings can deteriorate quickly. I lost my hatchling Hermann's recently, although I took him for his first vet visit within 2 weeks of receiving him, and although his symptoms were not indicative of anything other than a parasite infection (which he was treated for and a subsequent fecal was clear). His husbandry conditions were the same as my other Hermann's, who is thriving. He seemed more or less the same for a month, and then went downhill very rapidly, over about a 24 hour period. I've since been told that young hatchlings do sometimes just fail to thrive, and some just don't make it past 4 or 5 months, so you do need to be careful.

10 gallons is too small for even the tiniest tortoise. Go out a get at least a Rubbermaid blanket box--it's not huge, but it's a lot better than nothing, and you could get it set up tomorrow.
-----
Sohni
Northern California

0.1 Baja de L.A. Rosy Boa
0.1 Okeetee Corn Snake
1.1 Rubber Boas
1.0 Leopard Gecko
0.0.2 Hermann's Tortoises
plus my kids' herps:
0.0.1 California King Snake
1.0 Mexican Rosy Boa
0.1 Leopard Gecko

also, so sorry about your loss too

I don't think of sulcatas as being "over the safety bump" till
they're at least a year old. I coddled and doddled mine till
he got bigger. I understand that after 10 pounds they are
fairly hardy, though there sure don't seem to be a lot that
are even that size. I know when Teddy was small I didn't even
take him outside below 70 degrees, and he slept with his ceramic
heater keeping him at 78-80. He's still a chore, even now at his
size, I'm always checking the weather report, should I open his
window in the morning or wait till I come home for lunch, or not
at all that day, is it too hot, too cold etc..etc...

I think in this case though - especially if they think it's their
baby, they need to set him up better than whan they've got.

Oh, yeah, definitely the younger they are, the more careful you have to be. Also you have to take into consideration the species, and what their natural environment is.

I agree that the first thing they need to do is set the little guy up in something more suitable for a tortoise. It's amazing how much more active they are when they have enough room to roam.
-----
Sohni
Northern California

0.1 Baja de L.A. Rosy Boa
0.1 Okeetee Corn Snake
1.1 Rubber Boas
1.0 Leopard Gecko
0.0.2 Hermann's Tortoises
plus my kids' herps:
0.0.1 California King Snake
1.0 Mexican Rosy Boa
0.1 Leopard Gecko

Thanks so much, well my wife had him in his new setup when I got home from work, its a lot bigger, he can get more air and We are going to move him into the bed room with us were its a lot warmer. Thanks a gain!

Let us know if you see an improvement in his activity level. If not, you should probably take him into the vet.
-----
Sohni
Northern California

0.1 Baja de L.A. Rosy Boa
0.1 Okeetee Corn Snake
1.1 Rubber Boas
1.0 Leopard Gecko
0.0.2 Hermann's Tortoises
plus my kids' herps:
0.0.1 California King Snake
1.0 Mexican Rosy Boa
0.1 Leopard Gecko

will do! and Thanks for all the help, he has already just over nite gotten some what better, I'll hope for the best, and we'll take him to the vet, we've had it planned for a while now.

Tim