change in tortoise behaviour

[hoppysara]

Hello im new here and would love some advice on my 2 year old horesfield tortoise Esiotrot. I got him in january and bought a halogen reflecter light off the internet which said it was a two in one light uva and uvb. After settling in he was always very active stompi g about pushing his plants over and climping on things and none stop eating but one day the blub broke and i couldnt find a replacement so i toke it into my local pet shop and they said that it was no good for him and sold me a normal bulb thats a two in one heat and light but since then he does nothing gets up sleeps for ages then eats and goes back to bed sometimes as early as 11 in the morning and you dont see him again until next day.
he is in a tortoise table and the tempreture is 31
any advice id be really grateful

[Jan W]

Welcome to the forum.

I love the name of your tort. You were obviously watching the Judith Dench/Dustin Hoffman play?

I am not an expert on lamps, so will leave one of the more experience members of the forum to answer.

It takes a day for your posts to get on the forum, but once you post 5 they will be live as soon as you post them. I thought I would answer this so that it appears on todays posts (Sunday)

Good luck

[hoppysara]

A big thank you to Jan w for your message was getting a bit concerned that I'd done something wrong as I couldn't even find my post.
yes you are right my husband bought me the play and it made me fall in love with tortoises.
you are very kind thankyou

[Kirsty J]

Hello and welcome! I'm fairly new to the forum as well but have owned my tortoise now for 4 years so do have some experience.
Does your new bulb have UVB at all? If not them that's probably what's causing him to spend most of the time sleeping. UVB is really important for tortoises because it produces vitamin D which helps the little guy digest his food along with making sure his bone density is nice and strong. Are you supplementing your tortoises food as well?

[hoppysara]

The bulb I have is a uva and uvb bulb in one. Yes I sprinkle his food with supplement every other day but saying that when I do he doesn't like it tries to eat the bits with none on and leaves the rest, eats better when he doesn't have it.
thank you for the reply

[hoppysara]

Yes it's a uva and uvb bulb and I do put supplement on his food as well not that he likes it

[Suze65]

Can you tell us the name of the new bulb ( what make ) and you say it's a combination uv/heat bulb, are you sure of the temp under the bulb. Temps can often be the cause of inactive behaviour, so I would double check that. I have just invested in a digital thermometer gun, you point the laser beem at ground under bulb. I think these are more reliable than digital thermometers you leave under the light. You could try upping the the temp to 32/33 and see how he responds. If upping temps makes no difference then there may be another cause. In terms of uv bulbs I always stick with Arcadia, I find then very reliable.

[CherryBrandy]

Hoppysara hello ! , I think what you may have is a dayglo bulb which only puts out UVA spectrum. I can bore you solid with the whole three spectrum this that and other, UVA does do a good job for what it was produced for but for this little bob and all torts you should have a combined UVA and UVB tube or bulb or at least UVB somewhere in your table. Torts need Vitamin D - that translates in simple terms UVB light to be able to synthesise Vit D in their body. An Arcadia D3 is ideal - look for both UVB and UVA. I would get one pretty quick if can otherwise all sorts of hidden problems longer term - lots of natural sunlight where possible too. Fo rme 31 degree is way too high though I know a lot of TK's do have these heats. Even for my Egyptians I keep between 26 - 29 and they love the heat as you can imagine. Horsfields are hardier also so don't be afraid to drop to these ranges and he may be more active too - otherwise they aestivate (summer sleep in the heat). I would do some bathing also if you can make sure he is hydrated - those bulbs are HOT ! and torts can quickly dehydrate. Good luck, keep us posted. CB

[CherryBrandy]

oh and hoppy sara these D3 bulbs are half the price on the net than the shops. You shouldn't be paying above £28 odd for them. Ive noticed shops mark them up to £45 odd. Make sure you shop from a reputable dealer though on line. Amazon, swells reptiles... other on line shops are available....put in ARcadia D3....

[Suze65]

I agree on temps with CB, mine are all quite active and happy at about 29/30. But all torts are different and do respond to different temps, I certainly think 33/34 is to high.