How long before i should worry?

[pwinkie03]

hi all,

had my 1 year old pancakes for 9 days.. they have been eating for 3 days now... but i have not yet seen evidence of them urinating or pooping :/ i bath them every day for 15 minutes in warm water, and i check the table thoroughly but have found nothing so far. How long before i should worry? obviously they have only been eating for a couple of days but i still thought its better to be proactive and ask now!

Thanks Louise

[egyptiandan64]

Did they go in the box on the trip to your house?

Danny

[EJ]

I read somewhere that it takes 15 days for a tortoise to pass material from end to end at normal tortoise temperatures. Of course this can probably vary but I think this was the mean time of digestion.

They used a colored ribbon piece to mark the feeding.

Are you still feeding and monitoring the weights? Are you seeing any fluxuation in the weight?

If the tortoise slows down and stops eating or it looks a little bloated... then a vet visit might be in order. Right now I wouldn't worry.

Originally Posted by pwinkie03

hi all,

had my 1 year old pancakes for 9 days.. they have been eating for 3 days now... but i have not yet seen evidence of them urinating or pooping :/ i bath them every day for 15 minutes in warm water, and i check the table thoroughly but have found nothing so far. How long before i should worry? obviously they have only been eating for a couple of days but i still thought its better to be proactive and ask now!

Thanks Louise

[pwinkie03]

thanks, Swarely did go in the box on the way home, but Sheldon didn't. Swarley is smaller and last week weighed 34g now 37g, Sheldon is noticeably bigger and weighed 47 last week and 53 this week :O

ill keep an eye for a while longer, Sheldon does eat much more than Swarley too from what i've seen. Is 15 minutes enough for bath time, or should i give them a bit longer?

thanks, Louise

[EJ]

I'd suggest getting them used to using a water bowl but 15 minutes is more than enough time.

Originally Posted by pwinkie03

thanks, Swarely did go in the box on the way home, but Sheldon didn't. Swarley is smaller and last week weighed 34g now 37g, Sheldon is noticeably bigger and weighed 47 last week and 53 this week :O

ill keep an eye for a while longer, Sheldon does eat much more than Swarley too from what i've seen. Is 15 minutes enough for bath time, or should i give them a bit longer?

thanks, Louise

[Alan1]

I do about 15 mins

[pwinkie03]

ok thats good ill just keep an eye for a bit longer, Louise

[littlestar]

were do they live table/viv? whats the temps? what you feeding them on?

it is possible they are eating it before you see it.

[EJ]

This is a very valid point.

Originally Posted by littlestar

were do they live table/viv? whats the temps? what you feeding them on?

it is possible they are eating it before you see it.

[pwinkie03]

Originally Posted by littlestar

were do they live table/viv? whats the temps? what you feeding them on?

it is possible they are eating it before you see it.

they are in a table, its a small one as they are still so young as people reccomended to me on here. the hot end is 30-31C during the day, cool end never drops below 20-21C, and at night the warm end is 18C on a thermostat and the cool end doesn't go below 16c. though they spend most of their time in the hide on the warm end.

i didn't think about them eating it... :/ i have been giving living lettuce for the last 3 days as they had a week of just weeds and wouldn't touch it. i mix the lettuce with soaked grass pellets i brought from shelled warriors shop, a little aloe, optunia and dried flowers. the weeds i've positively id so far are dandelion, slender plantain and field marigold.. all of which they wont touch, even when chopped and mixed with the lettuce. i also have spider plants on the table that they haven't touched.

i fed the lettuce because i was told they were raised on a lettuce and weed mix.

Louise