• Posted 12/19/2024.
    =====================

    I am still waiting on my developer to finish up on the Classifieds Control Panel so I can use it to encourage members into becoming paying members. Google Adsense has become a real burden on the viewing of this site, but honestly it is the ONLY source of income now that keeps it afloat. I tried offering disabling the ads being viewed by paying members, but apparently that is not enough incentive. Quite frankly, Google Adsense has dropped down to where it barely brings in enough daily to match even a single paid member per day. But it still gets the bills paid. But at what cost?

    So even without the classifieds control panel being complete, I believe I am going to have to disable those Google ads completely and likely disable some options here that have been free since going to the new platform. Like classified ad bumping, member name changes, and anything else I can use to encourage this site to be supported by the members instead of the Google Adsense ads.

    But there is risk involved. I will not pay out of pocket for very long during this last ditch experimental effort. If I find that the membership does not want to support this site with memberships, then I cannot support your being able to post your classified ads here for free. No, I am not intending to start charging for your posting ads here. I will just shut the site down and that will be it. I will be done with FaunaClassifieds. I certainly don't need this, and can live the rest of my life just fine without it. If I see that no one else really wants it to survive neither, then so be it. It goes away and you all can just go elsewhere to advertise your animals and merchandise.

    Not sure when this will take place, and I don't intend to give any further warning concerning the disabling of the Google Adsense. Just as there probably won't be any warning if I decide to close down this site. You will just come here and there will be some sort of message that the site is gone, and you have a nice day.

    I have been trying to make a go of this site for a very long time. And quite frankly, I am just tired of trying. I had hoped that enough people would be willing to help me help you all have a free outlet to offer your stuff for sale. But every year I see less and less people coming to this site, much less supporting it financially. That is fine. I tried. I retired the SerpenCo business about 14 years ago, so retiring out of this business completely is not that big if a step for me, nor will it be especially painful to do. When I was in Thailand, I did not check in here for three weeks. I didn't miss it even a little bit. So if you all want it to remain, it will be in your hands. I really don't care either way.

    =====================
    Some people have indicated that finding the method to contribute is rather difficult. And I have to admit, that it is not all that obvious. So to help, here is a thread to help as a quide. How to become a contributing member of FaunaClassifieds.

    And for the record, I will be shutting down the Google Adsense ads on January 1, 2025.
  • Responding to email notices you receive.
    **************************************************
    In short, DON'T! Email notices are to ONLY alert you of a reply to your private message or your ad on this site. Replying to the email just wastes your time as it goes NOWHERE, and probably pisses off the person you thought you replied to when they think you just ignored them. So instead of complaining to me about your messages not being replied to from this site via email, please READ that email notice that plainly states what you need to do in order to reply to who you are trying to converse with.

Red Foot Tortoise Health Concern

F

FCExotics

FCExotics
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Hey everyone! I need some opinions from those of you more experienced with tortoises than myself. I've always admired them, and this is my first pair. I picked them up over the weekend at the Hamburg reptile show, and have them all set up in a 6' by 2.5' enclosure. They're breathing normally and have clear eyes and nose and are absolute little eating machines! However upon getting them situated I gave them their first soak last night and noticed what appears to be the start of shell rot or some sore of shell fungus on their underside. It's not flakey and doesn't scrape off (I gave them a light scrubbing with betadine and treated with 1% clotrimazole antifungal cream as a preventative last night - it still looks the same tonight). The plastron is also not as solid as the carapace - it's softer - but it is my understanding to be normal as they are so young. What do you all think? Should I keep treating with the clotrimazole (brand name Lotrimine) and how often?

I'm not sure how great of care they under before I picked them up but I have them under heat and UVB and feeding on endive, radicchio, romaine, escarole and the occasional strawberry or prickly pear fruit. They also get Mazuri tortoise diet offered daily; and everything is dusted with calcium + D3. I've only had them for a couple days now. Lemme know what you all think. Pictures attached and thank you in advance!!!


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FCExotics said:
However upon getting them situated I gave them their first soak last night and noticed what appears to be the start of shell rot or some sore of shell fungus on their underside. It's not flakey and doesn't scrape off (I gave them a light scrubbing with betadine and treated with 1% clotrimazole antifungal cream as a preventative last night - it still looks the same tonight). The plastron is also not as solid as the carapace - it's softer - but it is my understanding to be normal as they are so young. What do you all think? Should I keep treating with the clotrimazole (brand name Lotrimine) and how often?
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Yes, that looks to be a touch of fungal attack. I like your treatment plan. I would keep up the clotrimazole daily for a while and then drop back in frequency after a week. Be careful about soaking since you would want to avoid ingestion of the medication. Maybe a rinse with a light scrub (more like wiping with wet paper towel) prior to soaks if you do them. If I have a water dish present that I know (observe) the animals to regularly drink from, I tend to skip soaks, but having the dish and still doing soaks is not a problem.

A plastron with some give is normal in younger animals. It should become more rigid with time and growth. I do not make a habit of testing that frequently for somewhat similar reasons to why I would not want to compress a human baby's ribcage.

I would keep the air humid, but have most of the substrate's surface layer relatively dry with a section of moss or soil (or moss and soil) that is moist (not sopping wet) to dig into (I see moss already). Be careful selecting the moss and/or soil to avoid introducing pesticides or potentially toxic byproducts. The diet is good. I would bring the food dish further from the light if you are using an MVB or something. Food will wilt or dry out faster when especially close to the bulb. Papaya and mango are other nice fruits to add into your rotation, but the options are really vast. Turnip greens for a greens option addition. You can give some hard-boiled egg (crushed with the shell), shrimp, fish, or other flesh to their diet for additional protein and mineral content. I would add a cuttlebone, broken into two or three pieces, into the cage for nibbling if not already present. For live whole prey that provides some cleanup activity and serves as the occasional snack for a nutritional boost, I recommend isopods. I prefer Armadillidium vulgare, but you have options when choosing an isopod type (or types).

There are as many care style nuances as there are people and several things can work well, so do not be afraid to chart your own path instead of following anyone else's particular dogma. What I do works well for me. Many others handle things differently to similar degrees of success. I would not want them to change to my style just because it is what I happen to use. Question anything at any time. If someone else's advice fails for your animals, they are not on the hook and the animals pay the price.
 
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