Enclosure size for baby greek

M0bi0us0ne

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Mar 13, 2019
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2
Location (City and/or State)
NY
I got surprised with a baby Greek (no bigger than 3") and I have place him (looks like a him) in a 30"x20" ventilated Wardian Cases. We are planning on creating an enclosure in our garden but at the moment the temperature is too cold (we barely reach 60 during the day). The temperature in the inclosure it's constantly kept at 79f and the hotspot is around 86f when it's on. I feed him salad and once a week I add some calcium powder to it. There is mountain of hay, in the bottom right corner where he likes to go to sleep. The light, the heat and the fan are on a 12h on 12h off cycle (the temperature inside the house never gets lower than 68f). The substrata is made of small wood chips and it's deep and lose enough for him to burry himself.
It's the space enough for now? I know the bigger the better but I'm somewhat limited in how big I can make the enclosure. How fast do they grow?
I know glass enclosures are not the best but this is what I have to work with.
Any thoughts on how it can be improved?

Thanks

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SweetGreekTorts

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Jun 12, 2018
Messages
980
Location (City and/or State)
Tucson, AZ
Welcome to the Forum! What subspecies of Greek do you have? Some require more humidity than others which is why I ask.

After looking at your enclosure, I do have some recommendations that I would make, as I also raise Greeks.

Swap out the substrate for a mixture of organic topsoil (no additives or fertilizers), coco coir, and forest floor (cypress mulch). That is much softer for burrowing and holds humidity a lot better.

I would increase the basking spot to 95 degrees Farenheit (the heat is needed for basking which aids in the process of digestion). The overall temp in the enclosure should not drop below 80 degrees Fahrenheit, even at night, so you'll want to get a CHE to keep it warm at night while lights are off.

Here is a link to my website page that describes in detail how I care for my hatchlings. Like a care sheet with pictures and links to products I use.

If you have any other questions, ask away and we are happy to help!

https://sweetgreektorts.com/hatchling-husbandry
 

M0bi0us0ne

New Member
Joined
Mar 13, 2019
Messages
2
Location (City and/or State)
NY
Welcome to the Forum! What subspecies of Greek do you have? Some require more humidity than others which is why I ask.

After looking at your enclosure, I do have some recommendations that I would make, as I also raise Greeks.

Swap out the substrate for a mixture of organic topsoil (no additives or fertilizers), coco coir, and forest floor (cypress mulch). That is much softer for burrowing and holds humidity a lot better.

I would increase the basking spot to 95 degrees Farenheit (the heat is needed for basking which aids in the process of digestion). The overall temp in the enclosure should not drop below 80 degrees Fahrenheit, even at night, so you'll want to get a CHE to keep it warm at night while lights are off.

Here is a link to my website page that describes in detail how I care for my hatchlings. Like a care sheet with pictures and links to products I use.

If you have any other questions, ask away and we are happy to help!

https://sweetgreektorts.com/hatchling-husbandry

Thanks for the info, it's a Testudo graeca marokkensis.
I was reading on other forums that the temperature should be between 75 and 80.5 during the day an as low as 64 during the night, but I guess that is for adults.
I just ordered a humidity sensor, what's the appropriate humidity?
also I'm using a full spectrum UVB for desert reptiles and a ceramic heater. Do I need to also get a UVA light for the day? the guy at the store sold me the ceramic one as a more durable alternative to the classic basking light
 
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SweetGreekTorts

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Joined
Jun 12, 2018
Messages
980
Location (City and/or State)
Tucson, AZ
Thanks for the info, it's a Testudo graeca marokkensis.
I was reading on other forums that the temperature should be between 75 and 80.5 during the day an as low as 64 during the night, but I guess that is for adults.
I just ordered a humidity sensor, what's the appropriate humidity?
also I'm using a full spectrum UVB for desert reptiles and a ceramic heater. Do I need to also get a UVA light for the day? the guy at the store sold me the ceramic one as a more durable alternative to the classic basking light
Yeah, babies need a higher temp. Use the ceramic heat emitter to maintain 80 degrees Fahrenheit at night.

I keep the humidity for my marokkensis around 60%. All my babies are soaked daily. I use a UVA basking light and have an Arcadia T5 HO fluorescent UVB too. They also have a humid hide (I provide a "how to" make one on my website link I shared already), that they both sleep in at night. Here are my two...IMG_20190201_094138.jpegIMG_20190201_093959.jpegIMG_20190201_094105.jpeg
 

Reptilony

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Jul 5, 2018
Messages
935
Location (City and/or State)
QC, CAN
I would suggest removing that hay, changing the substrate as sweetgreektorts said, rising temperature to a minimum of 80 in the coldest place but also no tortoises should only eat salad, they need much more variety, I even never feed salad to mine as it’s more like a treat that contain almost no nutrient. Change these white plates as the coating remove the ability to naturally trim the beak and might end up with a tort that needs to have his beak manually trimmed which is no fun for everyone. Choose regular low sided plant clay saucers instead. One last thing, your enclosure is way too empty, your tort wil not feel secure and always hide in the corners, place a few natural things in there like rocks and plants or even a piece of wood. That glass thing is gorgeous tho!
 
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