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  1. ShirleyTX

    Sandy Substrate

    They also use the term clay powder sometimes. They are referring to what we know as excavator clay from EXO terra.
  2. ShirleyTX

    Sandy Substrate

    Hello @Tom, Are you mellowing a bit? You didn't tell me I'm killing tortoises LOL. I hope you read my post closely to see how I use sand. Here is how I use it: 1) Sand mixed with Excavator dries to a hardened finish, much like packed sand on a beach. It would be hard for a tortoise to...
  3. ShirleyTX

    Sandy Substrate

    I use a 4:1 mix of sand:Excavator for 2-3 inches in the bottom of the enclosure. I cover this with about an inch of oyster shell. I soak the enclosure fairly thoroughly using a battery-operated plant sprayer. Many people use a fogger, which I think replicates the morning coastal fog even...
  4. ShirleyTX

    Minimum Enclosure Size for Egyptian Tortoises

    Hi @Glockfu. Many tortoises share the same requirements. For example, recommended foods are about the same for all testudo tortoises, no matter the species. But there are a few details about Egyptians that are different, due to their size and their native environment. Some keepers do keep...
  5. ShirleyTX

    Scared tortoise

    I am doubtful that your problem is their enclosures. You have set up the enclosures the same way; Trevor is doing fine and Luna is not. The enclosure does not sound like the variable to me. I have this very situation with my two tortoises. They are not Russians but they are Mediterranean. They...
  6. ShirleyTX

    Juvenile Grouping

    I think it will be okay to put them together; just keep an eye on them during feeding time. The size of your enclosure is fine for now. When my 170 g female was about 3 1/2 years old, I added a tiny six-month-old, 13 g, who was incubated to be male. My enclosure is 2‘ x 6‘. From the beginning...
  7. ShirleyTX

    Fogger hide for all tortoises?

    What Chris created was a humid hide using an aquarium fogger that costs about $15 plus a plastic box or piece of plexi. I don't think this is necessarily good for all tortoises as many need higher humdity all the time. For the Egyptian tortoise who moves between microclimates all day (native to...
  8. ShirleyTX

    Looking for female testudo Kleinmanni

    Those babies are almost three? Holy Toledo, time has flown by. I saw the pics. Those tails are certainly quite large. I would have said that three years old is too young to sex but gosh, you really can’t argue with those tails. They have really grown, those two!
  9. ShirleyTX

    Terrarium

    I have mine in an open enclosure. The average relative humidity where I live is around 50%. By keeping a layer of sand below my oyster shell, I am able to mist the enclosure throughout the day to increase the humidity. You have probably seen other methods on youtube for open enclosures as...
  10. ShirleyTX

    Sleeping

    I have a four-year-old and a one-year-old. Today they were awake for about 10 minutes, I swear. And that was because I woke them up to offer them food LOL. Some days they are very active and stay awake for hours. Other days they sleep and sleep. I think that when they are slightly cooler and...
  11. ShirleyTX

    Two 40+ year female Negev Tortoises

    @wellington Oyster shell is calcium. It is food grade and edible. Chickens eat it to harden egg shells. It allows a good grip for the Egyptian and makes it possible to humidify without the tort ever having wet feet. In the wild, Egyptians live on a calcium-based sandy substrate. My...
  12. ShirleyTX

    Dusting...

    I put calcium powder into a tea ball, the type of device you use to make tea with tea leaves. The screening on the tea ball is very fine and it is easy to sprinkle very small amounts of calcium. I store the tea ball in a plastic food saver box.
  13. ShirleyTX

    Mahé & Moyenne, my tortoises from the Seychelles

    These might be the most beautiful tortoises in the whole wide world. Ma is fearless, isn’t she? and seeing Mo zoom towards the other side of the enclosure is very endearing. The way their shells are growing in such high domes is a tribute to you as a tortoise keeper.
  14. ShirleyTX

    Need advice RI outbreak.

    And I am so very very sorry this is happening to you. I have always thought of you as an excellent keeper. And I’m sure you are.
  15. ShirleyTX

    Need advice RI outbreak.

    I had the same thought, that perhaps the bacteria or virus is airborne. Just as others have said, I am certainly not a turtle person. But if you go with the theory that it’s airborne, then maybe your idea to separate them all from each other is a good one. I don’t know if separating them in...
  16. ShirleyTX

    Female tortoises having a flexible plastron at adulthood

    I've read in multiple articles that the small Egyptian tortoise also has a hinge that will be slightly moveable for egg laying, especially important since Egyptian eggs can be large in relation to the female's body size.
  17. ShirleyTX

    Kapidolo Farms Review

    Food items from Kapidolo Farms can't be beat. Fresh, uniformly processed, aromatic, and packed with instructions on how to feed. Great source for dried plants!!!
  18. ShirleyTX

    Turtle is streatching neck, gaping, and making the sound!

    I guess we all knew it was coming... but he had cheated death so many times, a part of me thought him immortal. Your patience and love are a model of commitment to an animal, and I’ve been inspired. Thank you for sharing turtle’s journey with us. R.I.P. Turtle.
  19. ShirleyTX

    Commercial Tortoise Food Questions

    Here is some information already posted, but in a comparative format: My vet pointed me in this direction. (He is a tortoise-keeping chelonian lover.) He told me the Mazuri LS is a newer, lower sugar/less starch product. Better for the tort but lots of torts won't eat it. He feeds mostly...
  20. ShirleyTX

    Could it be?

    @Yvonne G Any thoughts for this excited family? Thank you.
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