Building the baby cheery enlcosure

[Hotsause]

After all my research the tort is coming Wednesday. My plan is based on the easy baby enclosure sticky. Im gunna keep updating the progress.

 

[Hotsause]

Ended up buying this thermostat instead tho. Also another brick of coco coir , two diffract brands Eco earth and something called thrive, they were identical looking bricks. I’ve got the 2 bricks soaking with 2 gallons of water in a tub for the hour an hour the directions said.

 

[Hotsause]

I’m torn between live plants or plastic. I’m worried he might try to eat the small plastic fern things even though I like them a lot. So I also bought some real plants. None of them came up when searched basic names for plants toxic for torts, and I don’t know if they live in the climate I’m making. So fake or real ?

 

[Hotsause]

Substrate in. I took both tubs outside and squeezed the water out onto the grass with each handful before throwing it into the habitat tub. Now I’m not sure if this is right but I’m going to mix a few handfuls of damp spagnmoss into the soil, then a few more on the top into the corners

 

[Hotsause]

 

[Blackdog1714]

Sorry for this just trying to help before something happens
!. I would use just Reptibark, but you can put coco choir down first and put the Repibark over. Fine Fir Bark is so much cleaner and holds moisture well.
2. No Fogger- cold wet air is bad for a tort
3. No Peat Moss- it has an impaction hazard when ingested.
Just putting the lid on and having the lights inside will create a closed chamber which will make maintaining heat/Humidity very easy. Sorry gotta run be back soon

 

[Blackdog1714]

As far as plants I would not use ivy of any type. Pothos does very well and will vine out. Spider plants do well also.

 

[Krista S]

Please also keep in mind that freshly bought plants should never go straight into a tortoise enclosure. There’s always some kind of harmful pesticides/chemicals used on commercially sold plants that will make a tortoise very sick, or worse. I would be concerned that some of the chemicals may have already leached into your substrate. Any store bought plants should be removed from the soil they came in and re-pot them. It’s recommended that you grow them out for several months to 1 year to ensure all the chemicals are out. I have found it works best to plant into heavy pots that can’t easily be pushed over. Also, please make sure the plants are tortoise safe. Croton is a no go with tortoises and I believe most ivy is well. As @Blackdog1714 recommended, pothos and spider plants are safe and hardy. I would check with family or friends to see if anyone has pothos already growing in their house that you could take cuttings from.

 

[Hotsause]

Ok yea last night I figured out I had use the Latin names to look up the plants . All them have to come out. I never removed them from the pots and it’s only been 12 hours and I didn’t put any water in them so hopefully it’s fine. I have those fake ferns I was going to put in put I was worried he’d try to eat those

 

[Blackdog1714]

Ok yea last night I figured out I had use the Latin names to look up the plants . All them have to come out. I never removed them from the pots and it’s only been 12 hours and I didn’t put any water in them so hopefully it’s fine. I have those fake ferns I was going to put in put I was worried he’d try to eat those

If you find a big pothos plant you can separate part and repot it does fairly well. Another member recommended putting the pot above tort height and use wire across the enclosure for the pothos to grow over. Canopy and no nibbles!

 

[Hotsause]

So no peat moss at all ? Not even in the hides ? Ive never heard that before.

 

[Blackdog1714]

So no peat moss at all ? Not even in the hides ? Ive never heard that before.

Yep better safe than sorry. Moss is right there with sand

 

[Hotsause]

@Blackdog1714 so is there any guide out there that meets your standards ?

 

[Hotsause]

Im willing to throw out all the coco substrate and replace it with the reptibark if that’s what better. Just is different than everything else I’ve read.

 

[Blackdog1714]

Im willing to throw out all the coco substrate and replace it with the reptibark if that’s what better. Just is different than everything else I’ve read.

The thread is to a guide Tom has put together that has helped me go from Newb to keeper of one Russian and one Leopard - both of which are very healthy. The Quick Reference guide is good for plant/weed identification. We do not suggest topsoil as when it gets wet (humidity) it becomes mud. The other thing TFO is looking at is UVB-in the wild babies hide from predators hence avoid the sun. So if you have the ability to get your tort outside 2-3 hours a couple of days a week you may not need a UVB. Also I have used the choir for my baby russian and it was fine until he started digging and it got messy. I use cypress mulch for my adult russian and he loves digging into it to sleep and use 3"-4" of cypress with 1" of reptibark on top to cover for my Leopard. If I lived out west I would only use Fine Fir Bark (what reprtibark is made of) as they can get it a garden centers in large mulch bags for about the same price as the fancier mulches. Fin Fir Bark just looks so nice, holds moisture so well, handles the tromping of your tort, and lasts.

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

www.tortoiseforum.org

 

[Hotsause]

So I‘lol be grabbing some food for it tonight after work. I know that spring mix without spinach is good, but it has to say organic on it ? I was also planning to get some strawberries and romaine. Basically what food food is safe for them to eat from the grocery store.

Also what temp should the water I soak him in be ? I’d assume around 85, same as his enclosure.

 

[Hotsause]

@Blackdog1714 also remember mine is a redfoot so the care is different. Thanks again for the help. I’ll be finishing the enclosure late tonight .

 

[Yvonne G]

So I‘lol be grabbing some food for it tonight after work. I know that spring mix without spinach is good, but it has to say organic on it ? I was also planning to get some strawberries and romaine. Basically what food food is safe for them to eat from the grocery store.

Also what temp should the water I soak him in be ? I’d assume around 85, same as his enclosure.

I use endive, escarole, raddichio, romaine, greens - turnip, mustard, dandelion (chickory), butter lettuce, carrot and radish tops

 

[Cherryshell]

@Blackdog1714 also remember mine is a redfoot so the care is different. Thanks again for the help. I’ll be finishing the enclosure late tonight .

Here is one of the more detailed caresheets for Redfoots:

Redfoot Care Sheet(hopefully final draft) | Tortoise Forum

 

[Hotsause]

BIGGMANN has arrived.