Feedback Needed On Russian Tortoise

[Brandon Huf]

Hi, This is my Russian tortoise Torkoal, who I've had for almost a month now. I am new to tortoise owning and would love some feedback on my setup and the overall appearance of my tortoise.

Torkoal is a female russian tortoise who I purchased from a local pet store after doing some intensive research. She is housed in a terrarium with a mesh top. The tank is temporary while I build a table for her, but if there are any issues that might cause stress or harm to Torkoal please let me know! There is a UV lamp as well as 100watt basking lamp. The temperature underneath is around 87 degrees and the temperature on the other side of the tank is about 75.koal eats 3 times a day with a meal consisting of spring mix leaves and some carrots. I also occasionally feed her some tomatoes and the rare apple slice. There is a water dish in the back left corner. I also have been soaking her in lukewarm water twice a week for about 10 minutes a session. She poops a lot in the bath.

Torkoal sleeps through almost all the day, but wakes up to eat and occasionally roam around. She loves laying on her rock under the "sun"

Mostly, I'm looking for some feedback on the following: Apparent health concerns, issues with tank, diet, shell appearance,is it okay for her to sleep buried in the dirt link in the picture, and is it normal for a tortoise to poop a lot in the bath. Thanks in advance!

 

[teresaf]

Pooping in bath. yes normal. I hear Russians are great beginner torts but require room to move around(larger cages-4x4 at least). They're climbers too and escape their boxes. They do bury themselves while sleeping quite often. It fine. Welcome to the best forum for the most up to date info on torts....ALOT has changed in tort care in the last few years....

Oh! His beak may be overgrown. I can't really tell...His shell is pretty.

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

Welcome!

Your basking temperature should be higher, 95-100F. You can usually achieve this by lowering the bulb closer to the tortoise but if that isn't possible, a higher wattage bulb may be needed.

Your enclosure is too small if it were a permanent home, but as it is temporary, it'll do fine in the short term (once you add a water dish - something shallow and easy to climb into like a terra cotta saucer works best).

Sleeping buried in substrate is very natural - you have a burrowing tortoise, after all.

Pooping in the bath is also very natural (and something many of us encourage to keep poop out of indoor enclosures).

She needs more variety of greens in her diet and less fruit. Dandelion, chicory, endive, collards, turnip greens, and prickly pear pads are all sold in my grocery store and good, healthy tortoise options if you don't have access to outdoor weeds to browse on.

Her shell looks good - I can't see any issues from the photos you posted. A closer shot of the face will make the beak clearer.

 

[MadameFizzgig]

Her beak looks a bit overgrown from what I can see. That may resolve itself as it appears that you have rocks that she can sharpen it on. Rough textured flat rocks are the way to go for that (make sure you feed her on top of them), it also helps to ensure that their nails don't get overgrown. Good luck, she looks great to me!

 

[Oxalis]

Awesome start for your cute Russian! I wanted to chip in that the substrate looks a little dry. What kind of dirt are you using? I have switched over to coconut fibers and I'm loving its ability to retain water. I've read that tortoises can burrow to seek moisture, which may be what she's doing. Russians do love to burrow nonetheless.

I'm glad to hear you're working on a new enclosure since Russians love their space. Feel free to add some more rocks for her to walk on; this will help keep her claws naturally filed. You may want to add a calcium block as well, which she may nimble to file her beak. Also, the room where the enclosure is housed looks dark in your photo (I'm not sure if it was taken at night though), and adding some light to the room will help your tort wake up in the mornings. I keep my enclosure under a window so my Russian can catch a little sun during the cooler months when he's stuck indoors.

Keep up the hard work! Can't wait to see more photos of your Russian and her habitat.