Baby comes tomorrow!

Tom

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The big dome is my 150W basking bulb (I know Tom mentioned downgrading it, but when I did that it wasn't getting warm enough)
the little due dome has a 100W CHE in the right side. The left side is empty/unplugged.

110 is a little too warm. It will contribute to pyramiding. The idea is to use any bulb you want and adjust the height of the bulb to get the correct temperature under it. Lower wattage bulbs are less desiccating, and more energy efficient too. You just have to lower it down a little bit to get the correct basking temp.
 

CincyTort26

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110 is a little too warm. It will contribute to pyramiding. The idea is to use any bulb you want and adjust the height of the bulb to get the correct temperature under it. Lower wattage bulbs are less desiccating, and more energy efficient too. You just have to lower it down a little bit to get the correct basking temp.
Oh ok!! Thank you! That makes a lot of sense, I will do that (and check the care sheet for the ideal basking temp again)
 

Tom

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Oh ok!! Thank you! That makes a lot of sense, I will do that (and check the care sheet for the ideal basking temp again)
95-100 is a good basking temp range. Slightly lower on a cool morning, or slightly warmer on a hot afternoon is fine too. I change bulbs from summer to winter in most of my enclosures. Lower wattage during our hot summers, and higher wattage for colder winter days.
 

haydog_99

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Rocklin, CA
I'm waiting on my hygrometer to arrive, but according to my little laser thermometer its about 110 degrees directly under the basking bulb, and 80 on the far side.

The flat bulb on top is my UVA/UVB
The big dome is my 150W basking bulb (I know Tom mentioned downgrading it, but when I did that it wasn't getting warm enough)
the little due dome has a 100W CHE in the right side. The left side is empty/unplugged.
It should feel like a sauna in there. I’ve found when the CHE goes on and the basking light goes off the humidity goes up.
 

Summerthetort

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Mar 14, 2020
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Vancouver
Hi guys!!

It’s been a while since I posted, I had a baby sulcata for 3 years, he/she never really thrived, and last summer my significant other was tort sitting for me and he managed to escape his outdoor enclosure (it had been moved to mow the lawn and my guess is my SO did not get it close enough to the ground, so he got underneath it).

I contemplated getting another for a while now, but I'm planning on buying a home this fall (assuming the world doesn’t come to an end before then) and decided to go ahead and get a new baby!!!
I’m spending today setting up his enclosure! Here’s what I have so far.View attachment 289949

it’s 4’ x 2’ and I’m hoping it will be his home for the first year.
its a rabbit cage I ordered off chewy. it came with a metal top that I am encasing in clear plastic as soon as I post this ;) so it will be a closed chamber
Substrate: 50% organic topsoil, 50% peat moss, soaked in TONS of water. Pressed down firm. If I push on the substrate the smallest amount of water squished out.
On the left is the built in hide for the bunnies, which I’ve also put dirt on top of so he can climb atop the hide too.
the plants are Romain lettuce (green and red), two plaintain lillys, and a rex begonia. Everything g I read said those are non toxic. I expect they will be munched on/trampled. I’d they survive, great, if not, I won’t be heart broken.
His main diet will be good ‘ole Kentucky bluegrass. And all the dandelions my yard will produce!

the plan is for the hideside to be the cool side, the pot farthest to the left the basking spot/food spot,the one in the middle the water dish.
I have a long bulb UVA/UVB bulb, a 150watt zoo med basking light, and a small ceramic heat emitter I’m waiting to arrive from Amazon.

I would LOVE any input or suggestions you guys have!!!!!
P.s. he’s coming from Arizona Tortoise Compound
Plantain Lilly is safe. It's another name for Hosta which is totally edible by tortoises.?
 

DesertGirl

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It looks mostly good, but I see a few problems.

  • I don't know what "plantain lily" is. Plantain weeds (Plantago) are great, but lily's are almost all toxic. I don't see any plantain in your enclosure, so I fear you have a type of lily.
  • That substrate is a no go. Soil should never be used under tortoises. It is made from composted yard waste, and there is no way to know what it is, and it could be something toxic. Its also muddy and messy.
  • Peat moss will cause shell rot even on species that don't normally get it like leopards or sulcatas. I would have any of that in the substrate.
  • That substrate is too wet. It will cause problems.
  • Fine grade orchid bark works best. 3-4 inches. Damp on the bottom layers and dry-ish on top where the tortoise will walk.
  • Grass and dandelions are both great tortoise foods, but he'll need much more variety than that.
  • 150 watt basking light is going to dry out the carapace and cause pyramiding. You shouldn't need anything bigger than a 65 watt flood.
  • That enclosure will not last a year, unless you buy a dry started baby and it grows very slowly. A well started baby housed in a warm humid closed chamber can easily reach 800-1000 grams in its first year. Your current enclosure will be too small when the baby is half that size.
This next thing is more of a philosophical question about where you are getting your tortoise. You've clearly read the care sheets and understand the importance of a warm humid environment, hydration, and proper housing, but you are buying from someone who does the opposite. He does not soak daily, and he does not house his tortoises indoors in warm humid enclosures. Why not buy from someone who starts their babies more in line with what you think is the right way?

Here is what can happen when they are started dry, housed outdoors all day, and not soaked enough: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/hatchling-failure-syndrome.23493/

By contrast, here is how they should be started:


Here is all the sulcata info in case you haven't already seen these:

Questions and conversation are welcome.
Thanks Tom for your time putting up all these links. Shows you care.
 

Myakoda

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Feb 11, 2020
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125
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AZ.
Awww, Mya was that tiny when we found her. Cute baby. :) I'm curious as to what kind of plastic that you're using. Is it toxic free? Animal grade,
I'm not really up on plastic for torts. I need something for the top of Myakoda's enclosure. I use the orchid bark Tom recommended, it lasts a long time, we clean it a lot. It holds in humidity, however we need to cover the top. Long story, we've had her since last September. We found her wandering in the road!! I've tried grasses in her teranium, she wants nothing to do with them,. She'll only eat her grasses, minced up with dandelion, collard greens, and a ton of other assorted greens. Also wheat grass, and bok choy, endive, and cati pads. She's very paticular lol. Of course calcium, and a cuddle bone. PS, Myakoda was a hatchling when we found her. So she was smaller, hard to believe how tiny.
 

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CincyTort26

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Cincinnati, OH
Awww, Mya was that tiny when we found her. Cute baby. :) I'm curious as to what kind of plastic that you're using. Is it toxic free? Animal grade,
I'm not really up on plastic for torts. I need something for the top of Myakoda's enclosure. I use the orchid bark Tom recommended, it lasts a long time, we clean it a lot. It holds in humidity, however we need to cover the top. Long story, we've had her since last September. We found her wandering in the road!! I've tried grasses in her teranium, she wants nothing to do with them,. She'll only eat her grasses, minced up with dandelion, collard greens, and a ton of other assorted greens. Also wheat grass, and bok choy, endive, and cati pads. She's very paticular lol. Of course calcium, and a cuddle bone. PS, Myakoda was a hatchling when we found her. So she was smaller, hard to believe how tiny.

I just used painters plastic. It’s not specifically non toxic, but the tort doesn’t have direct contact with it so I’m not worried about it. The amount of any toxic material transfer would be minimal.
 

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