These are the contents.
Thursday, January 30, 2020
Wednesday, January 29, 2020
Late Feeding Not Good
So today I worked hours of overtime. Which means I get home 6 hours later than normal to feed Rocky. My darling husband but the dog but could not go up the stairs because of the arthritis in his knees to feed Rocky this morning.
So I come home and go upstairs. And Rocky is under his log sleeping. So I pull him out and he gives me such a look. It was like a mix of your late and why are you waking me up... expletives deleted.
He got a tiny bit less grumpy when I put them on the food bowl full of food.
Tuesday, January 28, 2020
Forgot to go Grocery Shopping
I forgot to go Grocery shopping yesterday so Rocky is having the last of my salad. Tonight on my way into work I will get another head of lettuce and Rocky's food. Yesterday while I was at Christmas Tree Shop I got salad mix which had red and green lettuce like he likes but in seeds so I can grow them in a planter out back. I also got a grow your own basil kit. Pinch of nutrients on top of the salad.
Monday, January 27, 2020
Tortoise potty training?
Does anyone know if it's possible to potty train a tortoise? Now he's going not only in his food bowl but his water bowl as well. It is almost enough for me to miss the days when he was not pooping. I just cleaned the water bowl and refilled it yesterday, not even 24 hours ago.
Saturday, January 25, 2020
Saturday Soak
Wednesday, January 22, 2020
Changing of the bowls
Success.
Monday, January 20, 2020
Saturday, January 18, 2020
Cucumber Slices
Today we tried cucumber slices from Grandma Horn. Ate its end.
Even some by hand.
Unfortunately, when I went up tonight Rocky didn't finish all of it.
UPDATE
I might need to feed Rocky twice a day. He ate it all between last night and this morning. Just look.
Friday, January 17, 2020
Perennial Garden Planning
So in my email tonight I had a link for perennial veggies. Of the 18 options they listed according to tortoise table only Rhubarb, Sorrel, Chives, Garlic, Onions, Ramps, Three Cornered Leek, Ferns, Lovage, and Good King Henry are on the do not feed list.
Horseradish is on the feed sparingly list and never feed the root to tortoises. Asparagus is also on the feed sparingly list.
Watercress can be fed to tortoises but it contains goitrogens which can interfere with the thyroid if eaten in excess. It can also cause liver flukes if harvested from non-free-flowing water. Not something I am willing to try with Rocky.
Jerusalem Artichoke A.K.A. Sunroot can be fed in moderation. Only the leaves and flowers can be fed to tortoises. The tuberous root cannot be fed to tortoises but can be eaten by humans.
Daylilies are another that the leaves and flowers can e fed to tortoises but the tuberous root cannot. Also leaves should not be eaten in large quantities as they can cause hallucinations. How do you know if your tortoise is having hallucinations? I do not want to find out.
Also the Globe Artichoke is safe to feed all parts of the plant to tortoises.
Radicchio leaves can be fed to both humans and tortoises.
Kale is the best on the list for tortoises. High in calcium and better than dandelions. That being said, Rocky will be the only one in our house eating kale if I decide to plant it.
While the fruit of the grape vine can only be fed sparingly, the young fresh leaves are fine in moderation. I really want to grow grape vines across the back and side fence in the backyard. They were something I wanted to plant before I got Rocky because I wanted to use the grapes to make wine, like my Mother used to. Now I have a use for the leaves too.
The link for perennial veggies also led me to 62 edible wild plants. The list has Dandelion which I really want to plant the entire lawn with. The list also has Fireweed, Chickweed, Chicory, Broadleaf Plantain, Forget-Me-Not, Garlic Mustard, Harebell, Coneflower, Mallow, Pineapple Weed, Red Clover, Shepherd's Purse, Sunflowers, Spring Beauty, Teasel, Wild Grape Vine, Bergamot A.K.A. Wild Bee Balm, Prickly Pear Cactus, Herb Robert, Knapweed, Cleavers, Sow Thistle, Evening Primrose, Pansy, Milk Thistle, Queen Anne's Lace, and Deadnettle which can be eaten by both tortoises and humans. In the flower box with the roses that I want to plant (which Rocky can eat) now I want to add Evening Primrose, Forget-Me-Nots, and Harebells. Inside the new terrarium perhaps I can plant Prickly Pear Cactus?
Horseradish is on the feed sparingly list and never feed the root to tortoises. Asparagus is also on the feed sparingly list.
Watercress can be fed to tortoises but it contains goitrogens which can interfere with the thyroid if eaten in excess. It can also cause liver flukes if harvested from non-free-flowing water. Not something I am willing to try with Rocky.
Jerusalem Artichoke A.K.A. Sunroot can be fed in moderation. Only the leaves and flowers can be fed to tortoises. The tuberous root cannot be fed to tortoises but can be eaten by humans.
Daylilies are another that the leaves and flowers can e fed to tortoises but the tuberous root cannot. Also leaves should not be eaten in large quantities as they can cause hallucinations. How do you know if your tortoise is having hallucinations? I do not want to find out.
Also the Globe Artichoke is safe to feed all parts of the plant to tortoises.
Radicchio leaves can be fed to both humans and tortoises.
Kale is the best on the list for tortoises. High in calcium and better than dandelions. That being said, Rocky will be the only one in our house eating kale if I decide to plant it.
While the fruit of the grape vine can only be fed sparingly, the young fresh leaves are fine in moderation. I really want to grow grape vines across the back and side fence in the backyard. They were something I wanted to plant before I got Rocky because I wanted to use the grapes to make wine, like my Mother used to. Now I have a use for the leaves too.
The link for perennial veggies also led me to 62 edible wild plants. The list has Dandelion which I really want to plant the entire lawn with. The list also has Fireweed, Chickweed, Chicory, Broadleaf Plantain, Forget-Me-Not, Garlic Mustard, Harebell, Coneflower, Mallow, Pineapple Weed, Red Clover, Shepherd's Purse, Sunflowers, Spring Beauty, Teasel, Wild Grape Vine, Bergamot A.K.A. Wild Bee Balm, Prickly Pear Cactus, Herb Robert, Knapweed, Cleavers, Sow Thistle, Evening Primrose, Pansy, Milk Thistle, Queen Anne's Lace, and Deadnettle which can be eaten by both tortoises and humans. In the flower box with the roses that I want to plant (which Rocky can eat) now I want to add Evening Primrose, Forget-Me-Nots, and Harebells. Inside the new terrarium perhaps I can plant Prickly Pear Cactus?
Wednesday, January 15, 2020
Monday, January 13, 2020
Massive Pooping the the soaking tub
Today I use the new baking pan as a soaking tub, it's a 9 x 13. Rocky made a big mess. I am not going to include pictures, it's gross. I cannot clean it so I'm throwing it out and getting him a new one next time I go grocery shopping, probably on Thursday.
I also tried him on the new red lettuce that I got from the grocery store. The one that I hope to regrow in water. I can get two days of food from it before I start trying to regrow it.
I also think it's time to harvest the carrot greens.
Sunday, January 12, 2020
First time in the front yard
It is a semi-warm day, 64 degrees. Rocky wanted to run around in the house. So since Brian was working on the truck I took Rocky outside.
He even tried to make a burrow.
Saturday, January 11, 2020
Free Food
Brian got Rocky free food from a local business that he frequents. I am not going to name the great business without their permission. They gave my husband carrot peels for Rocky. It is so nice of them.
I also got a red lettice at the TOPS grocery store in Coxsackie with the base still on it so now I can start growing more food for Rocky.
Wednesday, January 8, 2020
Monday, January 6, 2020
White Tortoise Inn
From https://slwhtortoise.blogspot.com/2019/12/first-rocky-inspired-short-story-done.html
There are multiple ways to travel between the capital city of Xicusrtiw and the metropolis of Ravena. Both are port cities, so you could take the long, dangerous journey around the desert continent by ship. Then there is the highly expensive and occasionally unreliable option of magical teleportation. Lastly, there is the option of transportation across the desert between those two major cities.
Desert transport was deemed safer than sea transport, due to storms, sea monsters, and other risks. Plus, there are a lot of varieties on how desert transport can be accomplished. Depending upon the type of transport used the crossing over the sand could be faster than the crossing via the sea.
General Waverly was fond of the desert tortoise. Early in his career he sent home an albino, large-sized desert tortoise for his daughter to use as a mount. When the general retired from the army he arrived home to find that the desert tortoise had grown to a gargantuan size. His daughter planned to build an inn atop its shell and use the tortoise to transport people across the desert between Ravena and Xicusrtiw. It would be a slower trip than most ships but still safer.
The White Tortoise Inn was just one building at the beginning and within was an everflowing spring in the form of a fountain, a gambling hall, a restaurant, a laundress/seamstress, and a bathing facility. Eventually they had become such a popular mode of transportation that the Generals granddaughter posed the idea of seeing a druid to grow the tortoise even bigger so that they could put multiple buildings upon his shell. The girls’ mother, father, and most importantly her grandfather agreed to this idea.
On their next trip across the desert instead of passengers they transported professionals to build the new inn buildings. The tortoise was now able to have one building per scute. The original inn building was lifted off before the growth spell and then placed on the center scute. Two more smaller inn buildings, with more numerous but smaller rooms, were built on either side of the original inn in the center of the shell. Around the three inns were built three food establishments, one restaurant and two taverns, and six shops. The shops inspired by the original inn included a haberdashery for the seamstress/laundress, as well as a separate bathing house and a gambling hall. They also built a temple to the goddess Tswaftss, a shop that was rented to a kobold who used it as a pawn shop, a smithing facility, and another storefront that was rented by a vintner.
When they arrived at Ravena they began to question their improvements. They had been able to entice very few people to travel with them on their tortoise-shell thorp. There was nobody occupying the two new inns. The original inn was itself not even half full upon their departure.
While they were at the metropolis the kobold rebranded his pawn shop into a curio shop. As soon as they were underway, he resumed the pawn business with the few patrons they had acquired.
The two smiths who had used the smithing facility on the trip over both abandoned the tortoise upon arrival to the metropolis to set up their own forges. The smithing facility was thus unoccupied on the return trip.
With no patrons for the restaurant, taverns, bath house, nor gambling hall they all became little more than upscale residences for their proprietors.
Only the haberdashery had a successful business, after all people wanted their clothing clean. It was the same woman who had been doing the job for years as an employee of the inn so she had the experience.
The vinter had sold off all his stock in Ravena and used the proceeds to buy raw materials and new equipment so his business could be seen as flourishing as well. He spent the trek back to the capital brewing new batches.
In the overall, the inn was less profitable on the return trip to the capital then it had been on many previous trips. The former General was concerned mostly because the new proprietors, whose businesses did not seem successful, would most likely jump shell at the capital and then there would be six vacant businesses, not including the two currently unoccupied inns.
They arrived at Xicusrtiw exactly one year to the day from their departure date from Ravena. The kobold rebranded his shop back to that of a curio dealer. The vinter proceeded to sell off all his alcohol and begin restocking materials for the return trip. As expected, all the others except the seamstress refused to renew their leases.
On their fifth day in the capital the king died in a teleportation mishap and his son, distraught, handed down a decree that spellcasters would no longer be welcome within the walls of the capital. Many experienced spellcasters had the ability to just teleport themselves elsewhere and did so. Some boarded or had built ships and took to the sea. For the White Tortoise Inn this royal tragedy became a windfall. Many spellcasting shopkeepers who were looking to set up again in the metropolis of Ravena booked a room for a trip across the desert. All three inns were full. The spellcasters were happy to use the year-long expected duration to craft stock for their new shops. Most needed no more space than their simple rooms provided.
An alchemist took over one of the taverns and renaming it Liquid Magic began selling fluid food, alcohol, and potions. A fellow worshiper of Tswaftss took to the smithing facility and began crafting magical shields. A somewhat morbid spellcaster set up shop in the restaurant, calling it the Rabbit Hutch and selling rabbits, living, roasted whole, or stewed. A mermaid witch took over the bath house and ran it as an inn for other aquatic spellcasters and stable for aquatic familiars and animal companions from one of the bathing pools. The second tavern was taken over by the vintner, who used it to not only brew his wares but after the first batch was complete, sold them to the guests. The vintners’ former shop was taken over by a woodworker, who sold both magical and mundane wooden items. The generals granddaughter took over the gambling hall and ended up with a thriving business, better than even the kobolds pawn shop, as she allowed the spellcasters to bet using spellcasting material components.
When they arrived at Ravena, all the spellcasters that had rented rooms left the White Tortoise Inn, Meanwhile, all of those who had rented buildings renewed their leases. Even though only the original inn had rooms occupied for the return trip to the capital, the trip was still profitable. Perhaps if this becomes a trend then the poor inns rooms will be used to transport materials instead of guests.
Submitted by Shana Horn to Contest #21 in response to: Write a short story about an inn-keeper wondering whether this will be their last holiday season in business....
Desert transport was deemed safer than sea transport, due to storms, sea monsters, and other risks. Plus, there are a lot of varieties on how desert transport can be accomplished. Depending upon the type of transport used the crossing over the sand could be faster than the crossing via the sea.
General Waverly was fond of the desert tortoise. Early in his career he sent home an albino, large-sized desert tortoise for his daughter to use as a mount. When the general retired from the army he arrived home to find that the desert tortoise had grown to a gargantuan size. His daughter planned to build an inn atop its shell and use the tortoise to transport people across the desert between Ravena and Xicusrtiw. It would be a slower trip than most ships but still safer.
The White Tortoise Inn was just one building at the beginning and within was an everflowing spring in the form of a fountain, a gambling hall, a restaurant, a laundress/seamstress, and a bathing facility. Eventually they had become such a popular mode of transportation that the Generals granddaughter posed the idea of seeing a druid to grow the tortoise even bigger so that they could put multiple buildings upon his shell. The girls’ mother, father, and most importantly her grandfather agreed to this idea.
On their next trip across the desert instead of passengers they transported professionals to build the new inn buildings. The tortoise was now able to have one building per scute. The original inn building was lifted off before the growth spell and then placed on the center scute. Two more smaller inn buildings, with more numerous but smaller rooms, were built on either side of the original inn in the center of the shell. Around the three inns were built three food establishments, one restaurant and two taverns, and six shops. The shops inspired by the original inn included a haberdashery for the seamstress/laundress, as well as a separate bathing house and a gambling hall. They also built a temple to the goddess Tswaftss, a shop that was rented to a kobold who used it as a pawn shop, a smithing facility, and another storefront that was rented by a vintner.
When they arrived at Ravena they began to question their improvements. They had been able to entice very few people to travel with them on their tortoise-shell thorp. There was nobody occupying the two new inns. The original inn was itself not even half full upon their departure.
While they were at the metropolis the kobold rebranded his pawn shop into a curio shop. As soon as they were underway, he resumed the pawn business with the few patrons they had acquired.
The two smiths who had used the smithing facility on the trip over both abandoned the tortoise upon arrival to the metropolis to set up their own forges. The smithing facility was thus unoccupied on the return trip.
With no patrons for the restaurant, taverns, bath house, nor gambling hall they all became little more than upscale residences for their proprietors.
Only the haberdashery had a successful business, after all people wanted their clothing clean. It was the same woman who had been doing the job for years as an employee of the inn so she had the experience.
The vinter had sold off all his stock in Ravena and used the proceeds to buy raw materials and new equipment so his business could be seen as flourishing as well. He spent the trek back to the capital brewing new batches.
In the overall, the inn was less profitable on the return trip to the capital then it had been on many previous trips. The former General was concerned mostly because the new proprietors, whose businesses did not seem successful, would most likely jump shell at the capital and then there would be six vacant businesses, not including the two currently unoccupied inns.
They arrived at Xicusrtiw exactly one year to the day from their departure date from Ravena. The kobold rebranded his shop back to that of a curio dealer. The vinter proceeded to sell off all his alcohol and begin restocking materials for the return trip. As expected, all the others except the seamstress refused to renew their leases.
On their fifth day in the capital the king died in a teleportation mishap and his son, distraught, handed down a decree that spellcasters would no longer be welcome within the walls of the capital. Many experienced spellcasters had the ability to just teleport themselves elsewhere and did so. Some boarded or had built ships and took to the sea. For the White Tortoise Inn this royal tragedy became a windfall. Many spellcasting shopkeepers who were looking to set up again in the metropolis of Ravena booked a room for a trip across the desert. All three inns were full. The spellcasters were happy to use the year-long expected duration to craft stock for their new shops. Most needed no more space than their simple rooms provided.
An alchemist took over one of the taverns and renaming it Liquid Magic began selling fluid food, alcohol, and potions. A fellow worshiper of Tswaftss took to the smithing facility and began crafting magical shields. A somewhat morbid spellcaster set up shop in the restaurant, calling it the Rabbit Hutch and selling rabbits, living, roasted whole, or stewed. A mermaid witch took over the bath house and ran it as an inn for other aquatic spellcasters and stable for aquatic familiars and animal companions from one of the bathing pools. The second tavern was taken over by the vintner, who used it to not only brew his wares but after the first batch was complete, sold them to the guests. The vintners’ former shop was taken over by a woodworker, who sold both magical and mundane wooden items. The generals granddaughter took over the gambling hall and ended up with a thriving business, better than even the kobolds pawn shop, as she allowed the spellcasters to bet using spellcasting material components.
When they arrived at Ravena, all the spellcasters that had rented rooms left the White Tortoise Inn, Meanwhile, all of those who had rented buildings renewed their leases. Even though only the original inn had rooms occupied for the return trip to the capital, the trip was still profitable. Perhaps if this becomes a trend then the poor inns rooms will be used to transport materials instead of guests.
Worldbuilding - Deity
For whatever settlement I end up using I have the deity ready. I created her quickly for the short story I recently finished. Her name Tswaftss was supposed to be merely a placeholder. It stood for:
Now I am thinking since we are speaking of a true neutral deity that could easily have started as an awakened colossal tortoise why not have a name that is an acronym of her qualities?
The Flotsam domain is supposed to be for items found washed up on coastlines and riverbanks but finding similar items in the desert is not unheard of, especially on a well traveled trade route. The 6th level Flotsam ability for Sift could work just as well in sand as in water. The fact that Sift replaces Cold Resistance is a bonus. Granted the Water domain spells of water breathing, elemental body (water only), and elemental swarm (water only) do not work well in the desert but nothing is perfect.
When I think of tortoises I think of their shells which shield their bodies. Thus the reason why having shields as the favored weapon for any deity with tortoises as a favored animal makes sense. I mean, what other weapon would you picture with a tortoise? Note, the teenage mutant ninja turtles were not tortoises.
I was thinking of adding the Sun domain too, especially for the desert environment. Also the Thirst subdomain would be fitting, especially with the Water domain.
Origionally, I had the Travel domain but then I replaced it with Flotsam just because I did not think Travel was really fitting.
- Tortoise, the Goddesses favored animal.
- Shield, the Goddesses favored weapon.
- Water, the domain so that she could have the flotsam subdomain.
- Artifice, the most fitting domain that starts with a vowel.
- Flotsam subdomain, my favorite.
- Thirst subdomain, because water in the desert...
- Sun domain, for thirst subdomain and because it is traditional for all desert deities.
- Scalykind domain, because tortoises are reptiles.
Now I am thinking since we are speaking of a true neutral deity that could easily have started as an awakened colossal tortoise why not have a name that is an acronym of her qualities?
The Flotsam domain is supposed to be for items found washed up on coastlines and riverbanks but finding similar items in the desert is not unheard of, especially on a well traveled trade route. The 6th level Flotsam ability for Sift could work just as well in sand as in water. The fact that Sift replaces Cold Resistance is a bonus. Granted the Water domain spells of water breathing, elemental body (water only), and elemental swarm (water only) do not work well in the desert but nothing is perfect.
When I think of tortoises I think of their shells which shield their bodies. Thus the reason why having shields as the favored weapon for any deity with tortoises as a favored animal makes sense. I mean, what other weapon would you picture with a tortoise? Note, the teenage mutant ninja turtles were not tortoises.
I was thinking of adding the Sun domain too, especially for the desert environment. Also the Thirst subdomain would be fitting, especially with the Water domain.
Origionally, I had the Travel domain but then I replaced it with Flotsam just because I did not think Travel was really fitting.
Saturday, January 4, 2020
Soaking with the Carrots
I had the bright idea of putting the carrots
Rocky would rather eat the root than the leaves
Into the soaking bowl with Rocky. I thought he can eat the leaves on top as he soaks. Especially when we go to get him the bigger soaking container later today.
Friday, January 3, 2020
Rocky Doesn't Prefer a bowl.
This morning I gave Rocky two options for eating. Actually I put them right in front of the bowl and I had The Leftovers on the substrate. My plan was to carefully move the leftovers into the bowl. Rocky decided he would start with the leftovers. There were a few books and online things that said to feed the tortoise on the substrate but that's usually for multiple tortoises. I am not worried because the substrate that's in there, the Alfalfa pellets, is edible for Rocky as well.
Tonight I checked and found this.
Thursday, January 2, 2020
Snack and Soak
I felt Bad about running late so I gave him a little snack in his tub. That gave me an idea about possibly taking the carrot tops that are growing and putting them directly into his soaking tub for him to have a snack while he soaks. After all he didn't try to escape when he was eating carrot peels.
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
Melon might be the issue
I found tonight a great website for looking at what I can and cannot feed Rocky. It is The Tortoise Table and it has changed more than a few of my plans.
This research all started when a nice lady at work was going to give me a celery root to regrow. I was looking up how to regrow it, which is very similar to how I am doing the carrots. Then I realized I was not sure if Rocky could have celery leaves. The tortoise forum had many responses of celery leaves being alright. the last post had a link to The Tortoise Table and it said there that tortoises should not have celery.
I was planning of feeding Rocky red maple leaves from the tree in the backyard but apparently those are not good for him too.
Under melon The Tortoise Table says "These sweet-fruited relatives of squashes and gourds should not be fed to most species of tortoise, as their digestives systems are not designed to cope with the sugar in the fruit, although they can be given to fruit-eating species." Now I am freaking out. Rocky has had melon and is still not pooping really. PetSmart says "Fruit: Apples, melon and grapes should make up no more than 20% of a tortoise’s diet. Offer your tortoise fruit every third or fourth feeding." Another site on Russian Tortoise Diets states "Fruits should only be given in moderation. This is because of their high sugar content, which will cause bloating, parasite blooming, and discomfort from excessive fruit." No more melon for Rocky until the vet signs off on it.
This research all started when a nice lady at work was going to give me a celery root to regrow. I was looking up how to regrow it, which is very similar to how I am doing the carrots. Then I realized I was not sure if Rocky could have celery leaves. The tortoise forum had many responses of celery leaves being alright. the last post had a link to The Tortoise Table and it said there that tortoises should not have celery.
I was planning of feeding Rocky red maple leaves from the tree in the backyard but apparently those are not good for him too.
Under melon The Tortoise Table says "These sweet-fruited relatives of squashes and gourds should not be fed to most species of tortoise, as their digestives systems are not designed to cope with the sugar in the fruit, although they can be given to fruit-eating species." Now I am freaking out. Rocky has had melon and is still not pooping really. PetSmart says "Fruit: Apples, melon and grapes should make up no more than 20% of a tortoise’s diet. Offer your tortoise fruit every third or fourth feeding." Another site on Russian Tortoise Diets states "Fruits should only be given in moderation. This is because of their high sugar content, which will cause bloating, parasite blooming, and discomfort from excessive fruit." No more melon for Rocky until the vet signs off on it.
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