Baby Leopard Tortoise Care?

[EamonP]

Hey Everybody,

1st post, just looking for some help with a baby Leopard Tortoise that I just got. Firstly, the little guy is about 4 inches from head to tail, but I've no idea what age he is, anybody able to tell me how old the guy is?

Secondly, I've had my tortoise for about 4 weeks now, at 1st I had a lot of trouble getting him to eat. I bought him ZooMed Natural Grassland Tortoise Food, which the guy hasn't touched. So I tried some grasses from the garden, which he also didn't touch. After 2 week he finally started eating grass directly from the garden. The problem is: now he refuses to eat anything unless he can can eat it out of the back garden.

As he is a baby and I live in Ireland it's not practical to leave him outside for long periods of time, nor can he be unsupervised cause of cats and the like. I try to let him out in the back as much as possible whenever I can supervise him but obviously I can't be there every single day. I came home today however after being out for an hour and the poor guy had managed to flip himself onto his back in his enclosure as he was so anxious to get out.

Basically I appreciate any help that people could offer my with regards to getting him to eat something other than the fresh grass in the back?

Also any advise on how to set up his indoor enclosure to make him more comfortable, at least until he is big enough to be safe from other animals outside, would be a big help?

Cheers.

[FreakOonique]

Perhaps it would have been an idea to research your tortoises needs before buying it... just a thought?

Im sure if you post this in the shelled section at the top of the forum, you will get a better response

With regards to indoor enlcosures, a tortoise table would be an idea

[maddragon29]

first of all, what's said above. research first.


But to try help with the garden thing... maybe try growing grass indoors in something you can put him in to eat?
He maybe doesn't like eating it once its cut.

[EamonP]

I had actually done research into turtle care, before I went out to buy a turtle. I was planning on buying a Box Turtle as it seemed the most suited to Ireland and easiest to care for compared to some of the alternative.

When I went into the shop to buy one, they didn't have any. He offered me a Leopard Tortoise, I explained about the needs of a Box Turtle and he said that the needs of a Leopard Tortoise were much the same. So I figured I had a fairly good idea of how to look after him. However I quickly learned that that was not the case. Hence, I asked for help.

I had done research into the care of Box Turtles, but I was advised incorrectly in the Pet Store, who incidently were not caring for the Tortoise correctly. Which I have now corrected.