sulcata problems

[turbospeeps]

question about our little turbo, a hatchling sulcata .... we recently changed his substrate from rabbit alfalfa type pellets to coco coir and reptile bark on top -- ever since we have changed the substrate our little guy has become less active. We have a basking light on one side of the 20 gallon tank and a reptile coil desert UVB 150 light on the cooler side of the enclosure. From reading this forum we have figured out that the coil light has got to go but we want to know exactly what we should buy for our little guy. We are soaking regularly since we noticed the change and we have turned off the coil light and taken him outside for 15-20 minutes a day (we live in south florida) --- and we definitely need a better thermometer to monitor the temps. any and all suggestions are welcomed.

 

[RuthJanice]

Hi. Below is a thread that contains information re lighting that you can refer to. I recently purchased a hand held therm. gun which is really nice to have. I thought my temps were off and it was actually my gages that were off. You can get one for 40-60 bucks. Not a bad investment. Pictures of your set up would also help to figure out why lil' turbo is becoming less active.

 

[mike taylor]

Ok lets see you did the right by changing out the rabbit pellets and the wrong lamp . He will get used to the new enclosure set up and part acting normal in a day or so . You can get a tube uvb lamp and fixture like a t5 or t8 10% combo at any pet store for 20/30 bucks . As for a good humidity and temperature meter Home depot has some good ones for ten dollars . Here is a picture of the ones I use .

 

[TiyahLove]

Repti sun bulbs are fantastic! They emitt heat and UVB, best of both worlds. Just don't use them all day and night just use it during the day with a ceramic heat emitter at night.

 

[erica anne]

If I read this right you are using a coil type bulb which can be harmful to tortoises and can be related to eye problems. I would consider switching to either a tube uvb bulb or MVB...it is a step by step process to get all of this down right!

 

[Dizisdalife]

What is the night time temp? What are you using for heat at night?

 

[wellington]

Please read Toms threads below in my post for proper housing. The temp should be 80 day and night, with the humidity being no less then 80% and a basking of 95+. A good temp gun or gauge is a must for achieving proper temps. Soak in warm water every day for 20-30 minutes. Living in Florida, you should be able to get your baby outside everyday for at least an hour and then you won't need a UVB light for inside. Have a proper water dish available 24/7

 

[Tom]

Please read the first link in my signature below. Temperatures are critical to reptiles and especially hatchling tortoises.

The care sheet at the top of the sulcata page will explain everything you need to know to raise a healthy baby.

 

[Zamric]

Ok lets see you did the right by changing out the rabbit pellets and the wrong lamp . He will get used to the new enclosure set up and part acting normal in a day or so . You can get a tube uvb lamp and fixture like a t5 or t8 10% combo at any pet store for 20/30 bucks . As for a good humidity and temperature meter Home depot has some good ones for ten dollars . Here is a picture of the ones I use .

I use this same temp/humidity gauge. I highly recommend it also!

 

[turbospeeps]

Okay we started over lol. We got a 100 w che and a t5 type bulb 24w and the acurite. The temp reading in the cage at 8pm was 74F and 56% humidity. Im going to post a pic of the cage.

 

[mike taylor]

75 is to cold . You need to get it to 80 at night . Lower your che and see if that helps .

 

[turbospeeps]

 

[turbospeeps]

we just got the stuff and I got everything hooked up now but I haven't turned it on yet. Should I have the che on all night?

 

[erica anne]

Yes the CHE should stay on all night to keep the enclosure warm. Good job on all the work you have put in to this. Your tort is one lucky little guy.

 

[mike taylor]

Cover the top of your screen lid with tin foil . It will help holding heat and humidity.

 

[Tom]

What is in the double hood? Coil type UV bulbs can damage reptile eyes. I wouldn't use one.

Your CHE needs to be set on a thermostat so it will hold your ambient at 80 or higher.

The screen top is going to let all of your heat and humidity out. Its going to block a large percentage of the UV from your bulb. And it will prevent you from getting your basking temps under the fixture correct since you can't go any lower than the screen.

Those dial type thermometers are inaccurate and unreliable. You don't need to know the temp in the upper corners of the enclosure, you need to know the temp where the tortoise actually is. You can get a thermometer/hygrometer with a moveable remote probe at any hardware store.

 

[pfara]

we just got the stuff and I got everything hooked up now but I haven't turned it on yet. Should I have the che on all night?

If you hook up a thermostat to the CHE, then you can leave it on all day as supplemental (daytime) or main (nighttime) heat.

Eek! Tom beat me to it.

 

[turbospeeps]

What is in the double hood? Coil type UV bulbs can damage reptile eyes. I wouldn't use one.

Your CHE needs to be set on a thermostat so it will hold your ambient at 80 or higher.

The screen top is going to let all of your heat and humidity out. Its going to block a large percentage of the UV from your bulb. And it will prevent you from getting your basking temps under the fixture correct since you can't go any lower than the screen.

Those dial type thermometers are inaccurate and unreliable. You don't need to know the temp in the upper corners of the enclosure, you need to know the temp where the tortoise actually is. You can get a thermometer/hygrometer with a moveable remote probe at any hardware store.

The double hood has the basking lamp and the che. The other fixture is the t5 uvb bulb. We had the coil in the other one because that's what the store where we bought him gave to us. We realized that it was bad for him and that's why we have all this new stuff. We just bought a new temp/humidity gauge tonight as well.

Where can we get a thermostat for our che. The big pet stores didn't have them and I didn't know I could get them at home depot. I will be pitting the foil on tomorrow.

 

[BrinnANDTorts]

Tom's care guide is amazing, and so is his advice. My only add on is that the cage looks way too dry, make sure you get the temps up to much warmer before you increase humidity though. Cold and wet are NOT a good combo. HEAT AND HUMIDITY are what a sulcata thrives in, once the temps are up take a pitcher of hot water and dump it into the cage and mix it all in the substrate till its good and moist and steamy in the cage. The tin foil advice is also very good! Your baby needs a humid hide too, something plastic that you can put moss or something that holds moisture real well inside and put it close to the Basking spot so it's really steamy inside.
Every time I walked by my Tortoise cages I always spray the whole cage down, Tortoise and all, with warm water. Get the cage nice and steamy for your baby Tom's care sheet as more detailed advice about the humidity and temps

 

[Tom]

http://www.tortoisesupply.com/zilla-temperature-controller-thermostat/

Here is a good place to get a thermostat.