KerryK
New Member
Hello! Loving the forum, even though the quantity of info is overwhelming me...to make a long story short (er)
I’m a recent transplant to Palm Beach County (June 2020) having lived in NJ my entire life. My husband and I didn’t think we would make it to FL until retirement, circumstances gave us the opportunity and we jumped. When I learned we were actually going to live here I decided I wanted a tortoise, began the research and decided on a red foot due to the suitability of the climate. We rented for a year, I somehow managed to stop myself from IMMEDIATELY acquiring one. We just bought a house in The Acreage and I could no longer control myself, found a local breeder and got the most handsome cherry head...we’ve decided he’s a boy and named him Koopa (we have a Mario Bros loving 10 year old son, and amazingly enough his 12 year old brother agreed on the name)
Here is what we are doing, and what we intend in the future...
He is currently in a contractor tub, on a covered, screened porch. Substrate is mostly coir with scattered spaghnum moss. We are feeding him mostly leafy greens (kale, romaine, escarole, and parsley so far), 30% fruit (mango, papaya, watermelon) and mazuri LS diet coming from Amazon soon, from the breeders’ suggestion (I’m planning on Mazuri once a week to easily keep track). I have calcium powder ready if suggested but haven’t used it yet. One corner of the porch gets direct sun for about an hour a day but he’s not living in that corner yet as I have no cover for his temporary enclosure and I don’t want my dog to notice him, so his tub is on a table. I ordered a 5 UVB 13 watt light to clip on the side of the tub if necessary/suggested while we decide on a full time enclosure (I’m leaning toward a cedar wood planter box on wheels as a portable tortoise table) I’ve been unable to figure out if UVB will get to him through the screens, so I ordered the bulb to be ready. I want to build him tortoise paradise in our yard as soon as he will be safe out there, we have plenty of room. I mist him once a day, soak him for 15 minutes a day, mostly let him be, leave food down for about an hour (I take his hide off him at feeding time and find him mostly buried in his bedding - he seems sleepy for 10 minutes or so, blinking like a tired little guy, it’s ADORABLE) he eats, then I bath him, he poops, and I put him back...he usually explores for a couple of minutes then goes back in the hide.
soooo, for those in the know, is this living setup / care routine suitable until FL “winter”? He seems happy, and he’s gorgeous, and I want to keep him that way! As I have no prior tortoise experience, I’d welcome suggestions from those who do. Thank you so much, look forward to hearing from you!
I’m a recent transplant to Palm Beach County (June 2020) having lived in NJ my entire life. My husband and I didn’t think we would make it to FL until retirement, circumstances gave us the opportunity and we jumped. When I learned we were actually going to live here I decided I wanted a tortoise, began the research and decided on a red foot due to the suitability of the climate. We rented for a year, I somehow managed to stop myself from IMMEDIATELY acquiring one. We just bought a house in The Acreage and I could no longer control myself, found a local breeder and got the most handsome cherry head...we’ve decided he’s a boy and named him Koopa (we have a Mario Bros loving 10 year old son, and amazingly enough his 12 year old brother agreed on the name)
Here is what we are doing, and what we intend in the future...
He is currently in a contractor tub, on a covered, screened porch. Substrate is mostly coir with scattered spaghnum moss. We are feeding him mostly leafy greens (kale, romaine, escarole, and parsley so far), 30% fruit (mango, papaya, watermelon) and mazuri LS diet coming from Amazon soon, from the breeders’ suggestion (I’m planning on Mazuri once a week to easily keep track). I have calcium powder ready if suggested but haven’t used it yet. One corner of the porch gets direct sun for about an hour a day but he’s not living in that corner yet as I have no cover for his temporary enclosure and I don’t want my dog to notice him, so his tub is on a table. I ordered a 5 UVB 13 watt light to clip on the side of the tub if necessary/suggested while we decide on a full time enclosure (I’m leaning toward a cedar wood planter box on wheels as a portable tortoise table) I’ve been unable to figure out if UVB will get to him through the screens, so I ordered the bulb to be ready. I want to build him tortoise paradise in our yard as soon as he will be safe out there, we have plenty of room. I mist him once a day, soak him for 15 minutes a day, mostly let him be, leave food down for about an hour (I take his hide off him at feeding time and find him mostly buried in his bedding - he seems sleepy for 10 minutes or so, blinking like a tired little guy, it’s ADORABLE) he eats, then I bath him, he poops, and I put him back...he usually explores for a couple of minutes then goes back in the hide.
soooo, for those in the know, is this living setup / care routine suitable until FL “winter”? He seems happy, and he’s gorgeous, and I want to keep him that way! As I have no prior tortoise experience, I’d welcome suggestions from those who do. Thank you so much, look forward to hearing from you!