Another new owner

William14

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Mar 6, 2019
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Hey everyone! I recently got a Russian tortoise that is a retired classroom pet.
I’ve been super stoked and owned him for about 6 weeks now, give or take. His name is Raphael and he’s pretty cool! This forum has been a major resource to help guide me through and I was hoping to join the members!
Anyways, here’s some pics of Raphael and his enclosure

0443695A-4DF5-445F-9844-22AE37C32BEC.jpeg DCC43FA6-DB06-48CD-B42E-095E38D479BA.jpeg 36D38F43-0EAE-4B4B-9989-D1B62F2D3238.jpeg
I try to keep his basking area and right side of enclosure around 90-100. It can be hard to regulate it exactly. The opposite side by the log is usually around 75-85

Under the log stays under 70 though. My biggest problem has been keeping humidity above 30% But I think he’s doing well so far!
 

KarenSoCal

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Hi, and welcome to the forum!

I've never kept a Russian, so will leave details for a Russian keeper.

But since Raphael is an adult, he might not need lots of humidity. But if you want to keep it higher, the only way is to put a lid of some sort on his enclosure.

Search the forum for "closed chambers"...you will find many threads about them.

And Raphael looks great! He seems to have been well cared for in the classroom. How long was he "in school"?
 

William14

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I think he was there for 3 years or so? I met the woman on Craigslist and she had a decent enclosure for him but I changed it up

It seemed like he was acting kinda weird so I upped the moisture and he started munching again. It’s tough getting him to eat consistently

The woman I got him from only fed him endive and Romain lettuce. Seemed minimal so I try to change it up
 

KarenSoCal

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Low desert 50 mi SE of Palm Springs CA
I think he was there for 3 years or so? I met the woman on Craigslist and she had a decent enclosure for him but I changed it up

It seemed like he was acting kinda weird so I upped the moisture and he started munching again. It’s tough getting him to eat consistently

The woman I got him from only fed him endive and Romain lettuce. Seemed minimal so I try to change it up
Remember that he needs to be plenty warm enough or he won't eat. They can't digest their food if they are cold.
 

William14

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Probably the temp. I recently got a heat lamp added in with his mercury bulb. Defiantly rose the temps and that probably helped a lot. Sometimes I’m worried it’s too hot during the day and too cold at night. Day temps get close to 100 and night gets down to 60’s

Thank you so much for your help already
 

Yvonne G

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Hi William, and welcome!
 

KarenSoCal

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Tortoise Club
5 Year Member
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Messages
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Location (City and/or State)
Low desert 50 mi SE of Palm Springs CA
Probably the temp. I recently got a heat lamp added in with his mercury bulb. Defiantly rose the temps and that probably helped a lot. Sometimes I’m worried it’s too hot during the day and too cold at night. Day temps get close to 100 and night gets down to 60’s

Thank you so much for your help already
Again, I'm not sure about Russians in particular, but most torts need warmer temps at night. A CHE, ceramic heat emitter is the best way to solve that. Gives out heat but no light. It does need to be on a thermostat though.

Be careful with the mercury vapor bulb (MVB). Again, maybe not as critical as with babies, but they have been known to cause pyramiding, no matter how high the humidity.

Have you read this yet? Very good info...
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/
 

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