some questions about keeping Indian star

Hi everyone, I have 4 questions regarding the tortoise<Indian star>.Please help me

1-What is the most appropriate moisture for keeping the tortoise or to what degrees the enclosure should be moisturized and how can we provide it?

2-For how many hours the UV lamp and warming light bulb of the enclosure should be turned on during the day? In which times of the day they should be turned on? How will its required heat be provided during winter nights when the lamps are off?

3-How many times should we do its soaking during a week and how long should each soaking last? Does it need drying after soaking?? While soaking does it drink water or we should give drinking water to it separately?

4-Does it need to be cleaned by water and brush by its keeper? How many times a week?

1. For mine I never let the humidity drop below 60%. Try to aim for 70 to 80%. However temps must also always be high with this set up. So no lower than 80. I aim for 90. And basking at 95-100f.

2. Uv lights are good. Even better is direct sunlight. Unfiltered not through a window. However 10 to 12 hours of light is ideal. For night make it dark. And I use I ceramic heater. Gives off only heat with no light. Attach that to a heat regulator.

3. I rarely soak my adults as they do it themselves. Soaking is done about 3-4 times a week for babies. Some do it every day. Should sit in warm water for about 15 minutes. I always offer water to mine as I see them drinking and soaking themselves from time to time. However water bowl should be safe as they can flip themselves in there and drown.

4. I only clean mine with a soft toothbrush as needed. No soap. Just water when being soaked.


Hope this helps. Good luck with your star. Post some pics.

Thanks a million. It was very helpful
And one more question, Is it necessary to dry the tortoise with a towel, tissue, etc. after soaking or cleaning?

I promise I will post my star pics in these days. I bought it recently. It is a bit shy and not coming for camera. As soon as possible I take pics and post.

No don't dry. As a matter of fact I mist all of mine with warm water 2-3 times a day and then just let it air dry. Also wet and cold temps are bad especially for these guys. Always do wet with good temps. When soaking it should be like warm not boiling haha.

Thanks, what do you mean by misting it with warm water 2-3 times a day? 3 more questions
1-Should I change the UV lamp every 6 months??

2- How many centimeters the distance between the UV lamp and the bottom of enclosure should be??

3-How can the humidity of enclosure reach to 70%? Should I use a mist maker to increase humidity??

I mist them with a spray/mist bottle. Directly on their shell until it's soaked and drips off.

1. Depending on what uv light you have then yes I would. Even better is outside with direct light and also areas to hide from the sun.

2. If your using the light as a basking spot then when the temps are around 95-100f. I use a rock to put under it then use a temp gun to get the correct distance.

3. Many ways to increase humidity one way is to create a humid box inside the enclosure. Another way is to put water under a hot spot. And yet another way is to mist the enclosure. Or install a humidifier. All can work. Just make sure you have something to read your humidity and temp levels at all times.

Thanks a lot,and what of these ways you use for increase humidity? If I use humidifier it must be turned on always or when humidity of enclosure reaches to 70% should be turned off? You feed yours with natural foods or use vitamins and manufactured foods with natural foods?

I use all of those depending on the enclosure. Is your star a baby? Juvie? Or adult? Humidity with a humidifier if done correctly should be pretty high mine is at about 90% on one end and about 70% on the other end. I only have it one when they are in there. My adults are in a different enclosure with no humidifier but I get it up to 60-70% using other methods. At about 90-95f on warm side. I feed mazuri and all kind of greens. Must be high fiber for these guys. Try not to feed fruit or vegetables.

For more info read this care sheet. I know it's for leopards but Neal uses it and so do I for indian stars.

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/leopard-tortoise-care-sheet.63792/

Thanks,Do you hear about moon light lamp (it used for nights)?? Is it necessary?? Or must be all dark in nights?? Is hide area the place that it sleeps??

http://startortoises.net/ You might consider this non-commercial husbandry based website. No website has 'perfect info' but this one is pretty good and there are many practical aspects to our interest I have not seen elsewhere.