Hello,
i am a resident of arizona (mesa), and yesterday my parents brought home 2 baby (3 day old today) Desert Sonoran Tortoises without doing any prior research, and are now expecting me to care for them (they will pay for stuff they said). [i am 21 and living at home while going to school]. before anyone spews out stuff about legality, i did their research for them, and it *is* legal, we got them from a captive bred source(who should not have been breeding them, but whatever).
now i have kept fish, cats, dogs, birds, and even bugs (my room was dubbed a "zoo" by my dad), reptile wise however, i have only ever read stuff, and even then only about snakes and some lizards. i have never dabbled in tortoises much less read anything about them since yesterday.
right now we have them in a Rubbermaid container maybe 10" x 10". . . which way to small i know. the substrate us garden dirt and we have provided spinach and a shallow dish of water. i had an empty 10 gallon aquarium i have emptied of water where i can keep them temporarily. . . at least its bigger :/
now i have read a lot of info on these guys over the past night, but there seems to be a major lack on hatchling care.
here is what i couldn't find a sure answer on
1) can they be kept inside until spring? (so we can get a proper enclosure built during the winter months)
1a) if yes, what kind of supplies do we need? (lamps, heaters, caves, etc)
2) do we let them/make them hibernate their first winter? (some places say yes, others no), if yes, how do we do that, if no, how do we stop it?
3) what to feed them, they seem to ignore the spinach? do we need to feed any supplements?
4) what substrate is best for them? i read sand and small gravel is bad, all the petco/petmart sells is wood mulch type stuff or coconut fiber, i havent had a chance to go to the specialty reptile/fish store yet, we read "sterelized topsoil" is good, but where can we find that? or how can we sterilize our own?
5) how often and for how long should we take them outside (i know they need sun (UVB) to metabolize D3 and calcium properly)
6) i am pretty sure these guys dont need the be kept in a humid environment right, being desert tortoises?
i am sure i will think of many more questions, and any additional advice you have to give is greatly appreciated.
-ben
i am a resident of arizona (mesa), and yesterday my parents brought home 2 baby (3 day old today) Desert Sonoran Tortoises without doing any prior research, and are now expecting me to care for them (they will pay for stuff they said). [i am 21 and living at home while going to school]. before anyone spews out stuff about legality, i did their research for them, and it *is* legal, we got them from a captive bred source(who should not have been breeding them, but whatever).
now i have kept fish, cats, dogs, birds, and even bugs (my room was dubbed a "zoo" by my dad), reptile wise however, i have only ever read stuff, and even then only about snakes and some lizards. i have never dabbled in tortoises much less read anything about them since yesterday.
right now we have them in a Rubbermaid container maybe 10" x 10". . . which way to small i know. the substrate us garden dirt and we have provided spinach and a shallow dish of water. i had an empty 10 gallon aquarium i have emptied of water where i can keep them temporarily. . . at least its bigger :/
now i have read a lot of info on these guys over the past night, but there seems to be a major lack on hatchling care.
here is what i couldn't find a sure answer on
1) can they be kept inside until spring? (so we can get a proper enclosure built during the winter months)
1a) if yes, what kind of supplies do we need? (lamps, heaters, caves, etc)
2) do we let them/make them hibernate their first winter? (some places say yes, others no), if yes, how do we do that, if no, how do we stop it?
3) what to feed them, they seem to ignore the spinach? do we need to feed any supplements?
4) what substrate is best for them? i read sand and small gravel is bad, all the petco/petmart sells is wood mulch type stuff or coconut fiber, i havent had a chance to go to the specialty reptile/fish store yet, we read "sterelized topsoil" is good, but where can we find that? or how can we sterilize our own?
5) how often and for how long should we take them outside (i know they need sun (UVB) to metabolize D3 and calcium properly)
6) i am pretty sure these guys dont need the be kept in a humid environment right, being desert tortoises?
i am sure i will think of many more questions, and any additional advice you have to give is greatly appreciated.
-ben