Anyone here use or have used egg flats for incubation? This is mainly just for discussion. I have used vermiculite successfully for years but was thinking that putting a cardboard egg flat ontop of the vermiculite would be cleaner, less likely for hatchlings to eat vermiculite, a bit more...
Does anyone know if lighting can affect tortoise egg incubation? I have a large incubator that has always worked well. This year however, my eggs do not look chalked at all so a lot look bad. The only difference is now my large incubator has a light on for the hatchlings since I keep them in...
Love traveling to shows. I live in Texas and go to NARBC each year in arlington along with some smaller shows. I also sometimes drive to Daytona for that show as well. Usually disappointed in the lack of our shelled friends.
Anyone know the best show to go to in the USA for tortoises and turtles?
Trying to figure out bulk calcium options and I am confusing myself.... Agriculture Lime or "aglime", typically used as a soil amendment and is SUPER CHEAP at <$10 for 50 pounds, appears to basically be pulverized limestone which I always thought is calcium carbonate. I have been using this...
Looking to redo some enclosures. Going for a good consistent design that will work for most species. The current target species would be leopards though. They are my first priority.
Here are my thoughts:
-Keep group numbers a bit smaller. I plant to keep no more than 4 adult leopards in these...
What size group do you guys typically limit hatchling's to? While on the subject, yearlings and adults? I have typically stuck with 10 or so before I feel it is overcrowded.
For the sake of discussion, would you rather have 50 tortoises in a 5x10 or divide it up into 5 different enclosures...
Just curious on people's thoughts. Most desert tortoise species specific sites seem to indicate that Agave is good to feed.... somewhat like cactus is. However, one tortoise plant database site indicated that it should be fed moderately. I have a bunch of it.
I have multiple tortoise houses and rely on cheap controllers. I had a heater fail on me and kill a tortoise this winter. Does anyone have any good options for temperature monitoring? The inkbird looks decent but it is just Bluetooth so no monitoring from inside the house or at work. I am...
This conversation is in regards to adult tortoises, not hatchlings. I will agree that all species of tortoise thrive in high humidity at young ages <2 years. Here in East Texas we do get quite a bit of rain and humidity. The redfoots, yellows, manouria, aldabras, and even sulcatas seem to do...
The vet around me is little help... he still uses a 1984 drug and dosage reference. I had a group of 7 leopards and made the mistake of adding 2 more (large outdoor pen). The result was all tortoises becoming ill. The smallest one immediately died. The others I began a regiment of injected...
Alright,
picking up a couple new tortoises locally. According to the owner, the problem is this female was living with a much much bigger male and he over mounted her daily causing wear on her shell as well as a broken marginal anal scute.
The best course of action that I can see would be...
Alright, I am a tortoise guy but for some reason I own a bunch of albino-ish RES turtles. Trying to find out best breeding combo & what I got. I was told I have some pure albinos, soem hypos, and a leucistic male. Im am just not sure what this means though and how to tell the difference...
About to order me one of these pads but have never used one so not sure what to go with on the controller.
Background: 4'X8'x2'T wooden enclosure, insulated, 3 large sulcatas, and ordering a 3'x3' pad. Going to be their source of heat all winter long down here in East Texas.
OK, so is...
Alrrrrighhhttty as most of yall know, a tortoise keeper's favorite time of the year is upon us.....WINTER :(
I got a pair of sulcatas which will potentially become a trio in the near future that are all three approximately 75 pounds. This past weekend I finally got around to building them an...