Does my tortoise look ok?

[Martin Clarkson]

I’ve had a Russian tortoise for 6 months now, he’s about a year old and is called Panzer, just want to check with you guys if he looks healthy or not

 

[zovick]

I’ve had a Russian tortoise for 6 months now, he’s about a year old and is called Panzer, just want to check with you guys if he looks healthy or notView attachment 307492

The tortoise looks reasonably healthy (as much as one can tell from a photo), but it is getting some pyramiding, so somethings that you are doing is not right. Probably it is not getting enough humidity. I will leave that for others to discuss with you if you wish to post pictures of his enclosure and its lighting, substrate, etc.

 

[KarenSoCal]

For me, it's difficult to tell with him being so far away, and not brightly lit.

He might have a bit of pyramiding, but that could be seen from a side view.

Is there a reason you think he might not be healthy?

 

[Martin Clarkson]

The tortoise looks reasonably healthy (as much as one can tell from a photo), but it is getting some pyramiding, so somethings that you are doing is not right. Probably it is not getting enough humidity. I will leave that for others to discuss with you if you wish to post pictures of his enclosure and its lighting, substrate, etc.

His enclosure is rather dry, the light is on for about 12 hours a day. The enclosure itself it’s about 1.5x3.5 feat, but I do plan to get him a bigger one soon. The substrate is coco fibre and a tiny bit of Sandy soil. I give him Romaine lettuce most days with bindweed leafs and dandelion.

 

[Martin Clarkson]

For me, it's difficult to tell with him being so far away, and not brightly lit.

He might have a bit of pyramiding, but that could be seen from a side view.

Is there a reason you think he might not be healthy?

Is that a better photo? And the only reason I ask if he’s not healthy is just that it’s a first for me to have anything like a tortoise, only being worried for nothing I hope...

 

[zovick]

View attachment 307500
His enclosure is rather dry, the light is on for about 12 hours a day. The enclosure itself it’s about 1.5x3.5 feat, but I do plan to get him a bigger one soon. The substrate is coco fibre and a tiny bit of Sandy soil. I give him Romaine lettuce most days with bindweed leafs and dandelion.

The enclosure is too dry and the light is probably not correct either. As I said once others see this photo, they will begin helping you to correct the issues which need to be changed. The diet you are feeding needs a lot more variety also.

@KarenSoCal , @Tom can you give us the link for how to properly raise a Temperate/Russian Tortoise, please?

 

[Tom]

Hi @Martin Clarkson
Give this a read:

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...

tortoiseforum.org

 

[Martin Clarkson]

The enclosure is too dry and the light is probably not correct either. As I said once others see this photo, they will begin helping you to correct the issues which need to be changed. The diet you are feeding needs a lot more variety also.

@KarenSoCal , @Tom can you give us the link for how to properly raise a Temperate/Russian Tortoise, please?

So I’ve watered the enclosure down a bit, the temperature in the basking spot is around 33-38C and the box hut thing is around 21C. I’ll start soaking him everyday now instead of once a week and a varied diet will start right away!

 

[KarenSoCal]

? Like Zovick said, he looks healthy as much as can be seen from a photo.

I see Tom has just posted the care sheet. It's the best place to start. I'm going to add a couple more links for more info to help you understand what needs to be done.

Are your parents cooperative when you need things for your tortoise?

? 4 elements of heating: By Tom

There are four elements to heating and lighting:

Basking bulb. I use 65 watt floods from the hardware store. I run them on a timer and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb.

Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species. You'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT.

Light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish.

UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. If you want it anyway, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html

? Here's a very long list of foods that are good for tortoises. You really need to give him lots more different kinds of foods. To stay healthy, you eat all kinds of veggies, not just one. Your tort is the same way. Variety is important. Also, your UVB bulb is not a good type. Any screw-in UVB bulb has serious issues. What you want is a fluorescent tube type. Here's a link to the kind some of us use.

Arcadia ProT5 UVB Kit (Includes Hood)

ProT5 is a highly adaptable lighting kit with high quality internal electronics, a high effective but removable reflector, power cable, fittings kit, free link cable and choice of Arcadia Reptile HO-T5 UV-B lamp. ProT5 uses the very finest electrical components to ensure safe running and long...

reptilighting.com

?Read all this info, then come back and ask questions. We can help you make the changes that should be made. For instance, for a closed chamber, you don't need to stop using your enclosure. I've linked a thread to help you see what can be done.

? Panzer seems to be healthy right now. But he's only a year old. We want to help you keep him healthy over many years to come.

Hi! New here

Hey! I am looking for the "frequently asked questions" and do not see it. Can someone guide me? Thanks

www.tortoiseforum.org

? Compiled by Tom:

Good foods for tortoises are "chicories," types of lettuce that are likely to be on the far side of the more common floppy green heads of lettuce most people buy. Anything labeled as simply "chicory" is good, as are radiccio, frisee, escarole, and endive; you might even find something labeled as dandelions. You may find a bag of "Spring" or "Spicy" mix that is good, just check the label to be sure it has some of the chicories I just mentioned. The leaves (just the leaves) of turnips and radishes are also good, as are carrot tops. Collards, mustard greens, bok choy, and other dark, leafy greens are okay as well. If you have any kind of Mexican/hispanic market near you, they will sell cactus, labeled "nopales." Cactus is a great food to rotate in the diet, as it is high in calcium.

You don't need to feed all of these at one time, just make sure your tortoise is getting access to different types of food. As you get more experienced, you can find the better types of food listed on the care sheets.

Here are a whole bunch of non-grocery store suggestions.

Mulberry leaves
Grape vine leaves
Hibiscus leaves
African hibiscus leaves
Blue hibiscus leaves
Rose of Sharon leaves
Rose leaves
Geraniums
Gazanias
Nasturtium
Lavatera
Pansies
Petunias
Hostas
Honeysuckle
Cape honeysuckle

Leaves and blooms from any squash plant, like pumpkin, cucumber, summer squash, etc...

Young spineless opuntia cactus pads

Weeds:

There are soooooooo many...

Dandelion
Mallow
Filaree
Smooth Sow thistle
Prickly Sow thistle
Milk thistle
Goat head weed
Cats ear
Nettles
Trefoil
Wild onion
Wild mustard
Wild Garlic
Clovers
Broadleaf plantain
Narrow leaf plantain
Chick weed
Hawksbit
Hensbit
Hawksbeard

Other good stuff:

Category: Organic sourced diet items

kapidolofarms.com

"Testudo Seed Mix" from http://www.tortoisesupply.com/SeedMixes

Pasture mixes or other seeds from http://www.groworganic.com/seeds.html

Homegrown alfalfa

Mazuri Tortoise Chow

ZooMed Grassland Tortoise Food

Ones that you can buy in every store:
Arugula
Lambs lettuce
Chicory
Kale
Mustard greens
Organic kohlrabi leafs
Organic carrot leafs
Organic radish leafs
Dandelions
Radiccio
Their main diet should be broad leaf weeds, succulents and grasses. Store bought foods are okay, but not the best. Collards and dandelions are a good food, but neither should be used every day. Check out the plant ID section for lots of ideas on weeds to feed. You can get spineless opuntia cactus pads from most Mexican grocery stores, or grow them yourself. You can also easily grow grape leaves, african hibiscus, regular hibiscus (if it will survive in your area), and mulberry leaves. You can try red apple, ice plant, and jade plant too. Also look into Gazania, pansies, nasturtiums, carnations, geraniums and many others. At the grocery store, favor endive and escarole, but also use cilantro, carrot tops, mustard and turnip greens, bok choy, radiccio, swiss chard, watercress, parsley, all the lettuces, etc. Lots of variety is best. There are also tortoise "weed" seed mixes that you can grow. I like the "Testudo Mix" from Tortoisesupply.com.
Buckwheat; cactus; vetch; Mohave aster; creosote bush; desert four o’clock; tacoma stans; bladderpod; globe mallow; goldenhead; burro weed; so many things!

 

[Martin Clarkson]

My parents let me get him, but they are not the most helpful at getting anything for him, everything thing must come out of my pocket, and since I’m 14 buying online is almost never going to happen. I love my tortoise, and I’ll do everything I can to help him thrive, I just don’t know how long I can do that...

 

[KarenSoCal]

My parents let me get him, but they are not the most helpful at getting anything for him, everything thing must come out of my pocket, and since I’m 14 buying online is almost never going to happen. I love my tortoise, and I’ll do everything I can to help him thrive, I just don’t know how long I can do that...

This is often the way it is with parents. And they can be especially difficult to convince that Panzer really needs this stuff.

Not being able to buy online is going to make this more difficult, but hopefully we can work something out that is satisfactory.

Are you able to do some basic carpentry work? Are there some boards or 2x2's laying around? Do you have some tools?

Do you think you could build something like this to be put over your current enclosure?

 

[Happytort27]

I believe @Agathaade made something similar to what Karen showed above...she may be able to give you some tips?

 

[Agathaade]

Hi there,

There are different ways you can go about this. I ended making something more complicated than what Karen showed.

- For about $30 I got some pine 1x2s from Lowes, plus two shower curtains, and built a cover with a hinged door on top of my tortoise table. Picture below. Now that might be a bit complicated depending on how handy you are and what you have at your disposal.
The triangle shape Karen showed was what I originally was going to make, it would work and be an easier build, and use less materials.

- Some people have been adding mini greenhouses on top of their set-ups. They can easily be found on Amazon or ebay and require no building.
They usually cost between $35 and $45 or so.
Here’s an example : https://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/new-cover-for-table-top-enclosure.186369/#post-1875733

- If you were to get a little money, you could get a grow tent. Many here have done that, the results are very nice.

- Or there’s the large plastic tote bin/christmas tree bin.

You’ll have to do searches for these two last options bc I don’t have examples in mind.

Perhaps you can nudge your parents by printing things out and showing them how much you are learning, researching and taking things seriously.

If you can’t go online to buy anything, or don’t have the funds, can you look around for what you have in your house or garage that you might be able to use? Large pieces of plastic, wood, etc... Maybe you can work something out. I’m happy to help.

Good luck.

 

[KarenSoCal]

Hi - For about $30 I got some pine 1x2s from Lowes, plus two shower curtains, and built a cover with a hinged door on top of my tortoise table. Picture below.

Ummm...could we have the picture?

 

[Martin Clarkson]

Hi there,

There are different ways you can go about this. I ended making something more complicated than what Karen showed.

- For about $30 I got some pine 1x2s from Lowes, plus two shower curtains, and built a cover with a hinged door on top of my tortoise table. Picture below. Now that might be a bit complicated depending on how handy you are and what you have at your disposal.
The triangle shape Karen showed was what I originally was going to make, it would work and be an easier build, and use less materials.

- Some people have been adding mini greenhouses on top of their set-ups. They can easily be found on Amazon or ebay and require no building.
They usually cost between $35 and $45 or so.
Here’s an example : https://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/new-cover-for-table-top-enclosure.186369/#post-1875733

- If you were to get a little money, you could get a grow tent. Many here have done that, the results are very nice.

- Or there’s the large plastic tote bin/christmas tree bin.

You’ll have to do searches for these two last options bc I don’t have examples in mind.

Perhaps you can nudge your parents by printing things out and showing them how much you are learning, researching and taking things seriously.

If you can’t go online to buy anything, or don’t have the funds, can you look around for what you have in your house or garage that you might be able to use? Large pieces of plastic, wood, etc... Maybe you can work something out. I’m happy to help.

Good luck.

I live in the U.K. and there are Lidl’s everywhere, they sell plastic greenhouses for about £15, would I need the greenhouse to keep humidity and heat? Even if I can’t get a green house, my grandpa was a joiner and the worlds biggest hoarder, so I think he would probably make something up

 

[KarenSoCal]

I live in the U.K. and there are Lidl’s everywhere, they sell plastic greenhouses for about £15, would I need the greenhouse to keep humidity and heat? Even if I can’t get a green house, my grandpa was a joiner and the worlds biggest hoarder, so I think he would probably make something up

Show your grandpa the pictures in the link I posted in post # 9, "Hi! I'm new here". It sounds like he would have what you need to make a cover for your enclosure.
Just remember that whatever you make has to have a bar of some kind above the middle of the enclosure to hang lights from.

 

[Martin Clarkson]

Show your grandpa the pictures in the link I posted in post # 9, "Hi! I'm new here". It sounds like he would have what you need to make a cover for your enclosure.
Just remember that whatever you make has to have a bar of some kind above the middle of the enclosure to hang lights from.

Will do, and I’ve changed his diet today, it’s got thistle, bindweed, romaine lettuce, geranium and bramble leafs. The portions are obviously small for him. Should that be enough verity? I may be able to sway my parents to get me seeds to
grow over the winter for him.

 

[KarenSoCal]

Will do, and I’ve changed his diet today, it’s got thistle, bindweed, romaine lettuce, geranium and bramble leafs. The portions are obviously small for him. Should that be enough verity? I may be able to sway my parents to get me seeds to
grow over the winter for him.

Romaine lettuce has very little nutrition in it. Look around your neighborhood and see if you can find any of the plants listed in that long list I posted. Or at the grocery store, look for some of the items like endive, escarole, radicchio, mustard greens, dandelion, bok choy, anything on the list.

If you find something not on the list, use this app to find out if it's safe to feed. The 3 you mentioned here are "feed in moderation". That means not every day. Not real often, maybe every 2 weeks or so.

Wild Flowers

Wild Flowers

www.thetortoisetable.org.uk

Don't feed any plant that you are unsure what it is. You have to be certain!

It would be great if you grew something for him. There are flowers on the list. Or wheat grass, oat grass, African violets...lots of stuff.

 

[Agathaade]

Ha! I must have forgotten to attach the photo.
Here’s my diy shower curtain cover.
You can’t see it at this angle, but as Karen says, there is an extra bar in the middle at the top that I attach the lamps to.
The basking lamp has a stand, and is attached to that top bar with a small chain, although it’s not on that photo bc I took it on a day I was moving things around. So that one has two ways of being held up for safety.
That’s bc a hot basking lamp falling down for whatever reason would be catastrophic.

Very glad to hear about the affordable mini greenhouses where you are.