Re: leopard tortoise questions

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Posted by tcc on January 10, 2001 at 20:30:13:

In Reply to: leopard tortoise questions posted by Max Duggan on January 09, 2001 at 10:44:00:

Hi Max,
Im sending you gobs of info off list.
The rock eating is usually looking for calcium. I would give daily supplementation with a good phosphorus free source and leave cuttle bone available to him at all times.
They do seem to be attracted to reds, yellows and oranges.
Pyramiding allong the spinal scutes, isnt too unusual even in wild specimens. You diet sounds good and if you do get a bit of bumpyness in that area, it could be genetic.
tcc :)

: I am now the proud owner of of my first tortoise. He's a leopard. Not a hatchling, he's about 8 inches long, heavy as lead, and eats like a cow. I have read that too much food (even if it's the right food) can cause shell pyramiding. He gets a nice pile of greens and grasses every morning about an hour after he wakes up and warms to eating temperature. (Calcium and vitamin D-3 are sprinkled on) I always feel like he wants more food later in the day. Yesterday was nice and warm so we went for a long walk in the yard and he tried to eat anything that he could get his mouth around. Anything that was white,that is. He walked over lots of nice grass and clover to get to some white rocks that he attempted to eat. What is the fascination with white things. Can anyone enlighten me as to tortoise visual acuity. Do they see colors? I am also confused about what constitutes pyramiding. I have read that a leopard tort will have some bumpiness. Geovanni posted a good picture of a leopard and it was about as bumpy as Rex.(oh yea; his name is Rex) I'm sure that Geovanni knows what he's doing so I'm assuming that this is indeed normal. My final concern is the noise that Rex makes. He is in no distress and as I have said, he eats well; but he whistles when he breathes. No head in the air or gasping for breath. Just a little whistle. He is in a well heated enclosure with white and red basking lights and a 48 inch uv light. Water is always available and he always seems to drink or soak after eating. I just want to be sure that I'm not doing something wrong that could make him sick. I would really appreciate a reply from Geovanni because he has at least one leopard and I believe that we are in the same climate. Jacksonville,Fl. Thanks in advance to any and all who respond.

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: Hi Max, : Im sending you gobs of info off list. : The rock eating is usually looking for calcium. I would give daily supplementation with a good phosphorus free source and leave cuttle bone available to him at all times. : They do seem to be attracted to reds, yellows and oranges. : Pyramiding allong the spinal scutes, isnt too unusual even in wild specimens. You diet sounds good and if you do get a bit of bumpyness in that area, it could be genetic. : tcc :) : : : I am now the proud owner of of my first tortoise. He's a leopard. Not a hatchling, he's about 8 inches long, heavy as lead, and eats like a cow. I have read that too much food (even if it's the right food) can cause shell pyramiding. He gets a nice pile of greens and grasses every morning about an hour after he wakes up and warms to eating temperature. (Calcium and vitamin D-3 are sprinkled on) I always feel like he wants more food later in the day. Yesterday was nice and warm so we went for a long walk in the yard and he tried to eat anything that he could get his mouth around. Anything that was white,that is. He walked over lots of nice grass and clover to get to some white rocks that he attempted to eat. What is the fascination with white things. Can anyone enlighten me as to tortoise visual acuity. Do they see colors? I am also confused about what constitutes pyramiding. I have read that a leopard tort will have some bumpiness. Geovanni posted a good picture of a leopard and it was about as bumpy as Rex.(oh yea; his name is Rex) I'm sure that Geovanni knows what he's doing so I'm assuming that this is indeed normal. My final concern is the noise that Rex makes. He is in no distress and as I have said, he eats well; but he whistles when he breathes. No head in the air or gasping for breath. Just a little whistle. He is in a well heated enclosure with white and red basking lights and a 48 inch uv light. Water is always available and he always seems to drink or soak after eating. I just want to be sure that I'm not doing something wrong that could make him sick. I would really appreciate a reply from Geovanni because he has at least one leopard and I believe that we are in the same climate. Jacksonville,Fl. Thanks in advance to any and all who respond.

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