So i got a baby Sulcata 2 days ago and so far he is good as far as i can tell, i have him in a 40 gallon tank meant for desert animals, i have the light that produces uv and i have a lamp for the day and the red one that i turn on for the night. I have a small water dish as i heard they sometimes like to go and soak, and i have a big piece of wood in case he wanted to go into there. He sleeps alot but i do see him moving and he is eating just fine, ive been feeding him little amounts of romaine lettuce with his tortoise food spread over top as he wont eat it by itself and i cant get him to eat hay or grass. He sleeps but not in his shell he kinda just sprawl's out. I keep the temps at between 80-90 during the day on one side with one side between 70-80. at night i turn on his red light and it dips to the 70s. Any suggestions, im new to this and want to do my best
New to sulcata tortoises and this site need help
- Thread starter Adam775
- Start date
welcome to the forum! 1. baby sulcatas hatch during the wet season, there is puddles everywhere and humidity is high and even during the dry season they spend a lot of there time in deep moist burrows in the ground. enclosure humidity should be at 80%+. 2. soak him everyday in a tub of water water for 30 minutes. 3. do not lets the temps go down past 80 during the night and his basking spot should be around 95. 4. baby sulcatas do not eat hay, feed him/her nontoxic weeds from outside with fresh grasses cut up real small. 5. red lights damage tortoises eyes replace it with a ceramic heat emitter light, they need to sleep in the dark. read this entire care sheet. http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/ please post pics of the enclosure and the tortoise so we can see if its all good. are you using a coil bulb? whats the cage humidity?
Hi Adam. Welcome to the forum. Mr. r/s/t gave you some good tips above.
I still like to say it in my own words.
1. Sulcatas are NOT desert animals. They hatch in the monsoon season when its hot, humid and rainy. They spend the majority of the rest of their lives underground, away from the heat above ground. The area where they come from is grassland bordered by forests. You need a lot of annual rainfall to maintain grass and trees. You don't get that in a desert.
2. Sounds like you went to a pet store and took their advice. Sorry to hear that. Most pet stores give terrible tortoise advice. Most pet store products are not good for tortoises too. Get to know your local hardware store instead. Red bulb make everything look "funny" to tortoises. It messes with their day/night cycle and sometimes it makes them eat the substrate. A ceramic heating element set on a thermostat will serve you much better.
3. If your UV bulb is the coil type cfl, turn it off and return it. Those sometimes damage tortoise eyes.
4. Terra cotta plant saucers sunk into the substrate make the best water bowls. You have to be careful here as the wrong bowl could kill them.
5. Here is a diet thread: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
After you read the care sheet that r/s/t posted for you, read this one too:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
I still like to say it in my own words.
1. Sulcatas are NOT desert animals. They hatch in the monsoon season when its hot, humid and rainy. They spend the majority of the rest of their lives underground, away from the heat above ground. The area where they come from is grassland bordered by forests. You need a lot of annual rainfall to maintain grass and trees. You don't get that in a desert.
2. Sounds like you went to a pet store and took their advice. Sorry to hear that. Most pet stores give terrible tortoise advice. Most pet store products are not good for tortoises too. Get to know your local hardware store instead. Red bulb make everything look "funny" to tortoises. It messes with their day/night cycle and sometimes it makes them eat the substrate. A ceramic heating element set on a thermostat will serve you much better.
3. If your UV bulb is the coil type cfl, turn it off and return it. Those sometimes damage tortoise eyes.
4. Terra cotta plant saucers sunk into the substrate make the best water bowls. You have to be careful here as the wrong bowl could kill them.
5. Here is a diet thread: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
After you read the care sheet that r/s/t posted for you, read this one too:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
