Impaction

[deandal]

hi, am new to forum and to keeping beardies, i have a 6yr old tortoise, the pet shop said i could keep the tortoise and beardie together. i have had the beardie for 5 days and the substrate is cork bark litter, i have since read on this forum that this is wrong and it can cause impaction, could someone please tell me what impaction means and what it does to a beardie

[marky0283]

Impaction is when the gut gets blocked maining that the affected animal can not digest it's food. As a result it will always feel full and not eat.

I would strongly advise that you seperate the animals. I know nothing about tortoises but you should not keep them together.

The best substrate for your beardie would be kitchen paper, tiles and some people like to use lino.

Do you have a spare viv or somewhere to put you Beardie?

[marky0283]

Just to add to my last post. The result of impaction can be death if left untreated. How old is your Beardie?

[Mikeysm]

Hi

Firstly Id seperate the Beardie and the Tortoise

And if its a young beardie, the best substrate to use is newspaper/tiles/lino etc something which cant be swallowed which as you say, could cause impaction.

Impaction is when they eat something that they cannot digest and blocks up the intestines so its best to keep him on something that he cant swallow until he grows a bit larger.

[deandal]

about 5 months old but is very small for its age, and only has three legs. the tortoise and beardie get on ok. as i dont have any where else to keep it, the beardie does not eat much and not sure if i would know when to panic.

[marky0283]

What are the temperatures of the setup, humidity and UV like?

[deandal]

i have a 4ft tank with a heat bulb 60w at one end and a uv light wich has 6500 kelvin 15watt 18" written on it. i have never taken temps or know if they would be right. i have had advice from pet shops and this was never mentioned. have had tortoise for 4 years and have really no idea

[krytes]

Hello. Definitely think you should try to separate them, should you get the chance. You need a dimmer thermostat for your bulb. Make sure crickets are fed well and dust them with calcium. Once or twice a week dust with vitamins. Mine enjoy daily warm baths. Not too deep. Helps them rehydrate & poo. DAILY baths are not necessary but mine have become accustomed. They don't like having to poo in their vivarium. If you fear impaction you can try giving them a few drops of olive oil. Worked once for me. I've stopped using sand or such like, as a precaution. I found out that wilkinsons play sand (safe for kids?) contains an orange die which can adversely affect the beardies appetite. Don't get too worried about impaction. Just be cautious of it. Temperature control should be of more concern for both reptiles. Offer your dragon drops of water. New reptiles sometimes take time to settle, before they eat. How are you going to feed insects when you have a tortoise in the viv? A bit scattered but I thought I'd share some of my thoughts.

[deandal]

thank you for your thoughts, i need lots of them the more im reading the more im starting to panic. should have found out more before i took them in. am feeding beardie salad that tortoise cant reach(not that it eats it)and the crickets are fed separatly

[marky0283]

Here is a link to a caresheet for Bearded Dragons so you can check what his requirements are.

Bearded Dragon Care Sheet - Emas Bearded Dragons

How long have you had him? It is good that he is getting crickets to eat as well.

What type of tortoise have you got?