swollen bottom...

Question
Hi.. my poor little 5 year old red foot desert tortoise has a swollen back end.  He is acting fine.  the distance between upper and lower shell is just stretched out and his little tail is a little stub sticking out.. nothing is prolapsed.. he does love tomatoes..are they bad for him?  he gets greens, tomatoes, meal worms... i put him in some warm water last night and he passed a big poopie...he dug a big hole in his tank today and stayed in it bottom side down - head up.. I wondered if he is actually a she and trying to lay eggs?? thank you... he/she is small - only about 3-4 inches across...

Answer
Hi Kim,

Redfoots are tropical tortoises, and if you've been keeping yours as a desert tortoise he may be in serious trouble.  Redfoots need a lot of moisture in their enclosure, and yours may be very dehydrated; it's also possible that he has a bladder stone that he's attempting to pass.  I'm going to give you some basic information and also link some care sites for you so you can make the changes necessary for his health.

Redfoots come from Central/South America and do not hibernate.  Females can grow up to 12"; males are up to about 8".  There's no way to tell age unless you know the hatch date, but yours is definitely not mature yet.  You also can't sex tortoises until they're mature, so you won't know if yours is male or female until then.

You didn't say anything about the enclosure except that it's a tank, but tortoises need large enclosures, and preferably not a tank.  If your tortoise is in a small tank, get him out ASAP.  For his current size, he needs about 3' x 4' minimum.  The more room, the better.  Too small enclosures are cruel and just not good for them.

You need a substrate that will hold a lot of moisture.  You can mix coir (bed-a-beast, ecoearth), playsand, and sphagnum moss (Lowe's sells it as orchid moss).  Make sure it stays moist.  Also provide a dish of water that's big enough for your tortoise to get into and soak himself.  Redfoots often like to sit in water.

You should be using a basking light that provides a basking temperature of 90-95 degrees (measure it on the substrate directly under the lamp), but also allows for a cooler temperature of about 78 degrees.  You also need to provide a source of UVB.  I use combination bulbs (ZooMed Powersun) which provide both heat and UVB in one (they need to be replaced yearly).

Redfoots are omnivores.  Their base diet should be greens (turnip, mustard, collards, kale, endive, romaine, spring mix, dandelions, chicory, etc.), with fruit and veggies (any fruit but citrus; veggies can include mushrooms, squash, sweet potato, peppers, etc.) fed several times a week and a source of animal protein once a week.  Plenty of variety is VERY important; don't just feed one or two types of food.  Mealworms are OK, but not as the sole source of animal protein.  Pinkie mice or superworms are a better choice, along with boiled chicken, shrimp, and egg; earthworms, snails, etc.  Also put a cuttlebone in his enclosure so he can get extra calcium when he needs it.

If you've been keeping him dry, I'd start by making the changes I outlined above, along with soaking him daily for 15 minutes for about a week.  See if that helps the swelling.  If it doesn't, you need to take him to a good reptile vet.  If you see any change in symptoms--especially if he becomes lethargic or loses his appetite--take him to the vet.

Please post back if you have more questions or if I can clarify anything for you.  Here's some websites to read over for more information:

www.tortoiseyard.com
www.redfoottortoise.com