general tortoise care for amateurs

[frankwright]

hi, we introduced ourselves the other day and are just after for help and advice seen as the only advice we have had so far is from the shop we bought our little frank from, which obviously may be biased advice.

Housing

we currently house frank in a vivarium, its 2 foot by 1 foot, with him only been just over a year old hes still fairly small, will we need to buy him something larger in the near future?

he has a uv light and a heat lamp in there which he basks under, the usual temperature in there is between 85 and 90 degrees. he also has a heat mat for at night.

he only really spends time in there wen were out as when we are in the house he has free reign of the place, although he seems to spend his time curled up against the radiator pipe lol.

we currently used wood chippings as his substrate and give him ample amounts of hay to bury himself under.

im considering using the compacted hay pellets as his substrate, is this the better option?

Food

weve tried him with all kinds of vegetables and some fruit, hes a fussy eater though. his main diet consists of: carrots, cucumber, mixed salad leaves, mint, coriander, pepper and occasionally brocolli. he also eats through the majority of his hay through the week.

he is constantly pecking away at his cuttle fish and we also give him calcium powder on his food.

is there anything on the list we shouldnt be feeding him?

he also has a none feeding day, which we have every thursday, this was advised from the shop we got him from. is this correct? on a side note he tends to destroy his home and be a real blighter on non feeding day.

hibernation

we were told from the shop he doesnt need to hibernate although im unsure of this, as it seems to be messing with natural order of tortoises. is there any advice on this?

vetting

is there any check ups we should be taking him to a vets for?

sorry about the in depthness(not sure if thats a word), we really do love the little man and want to care for the best we can and have him grow old with us. he has a real personality and loves nothing more than coming out to play with us wen he sees us come into the house.

any advice or help would be greatly appreciated, thank you for your time

Harry and Rhona

 

[Jacqui]

Hi! I myself like the coir and sand combo for the bedding because it is soft enough to burrow in and holds a nice amount of humidity. What your using is okay. However, I would advise against the pellets as they don't give proper traction, causing leg isssues in a young tortoise especially. Plus when they get wet, they mold rather quickly.

He is cuddled next to the radiator because of how cold the floor is. The smaller the tortoise the more quickly they lose body heat. That heat (along with lighting) is needed to process food.

For diet, he really should not be getting any fruits or veggies. Try to keep him with greens and especially weeds (no chemical treated ones) are the best thing for him. Think things like mulberry leaves, hibiscus, Althea bush (Rose of Sharon), dandelions, clover, plantain, cactus just to name a few.

I would suggest instead of a day with no food, make it just a day a bit lighter on food, especially as he is a little one. Even as an older animal, I think taking two days worth of food and using it for three days is a better option. In the wild they have to eat each and every day they find food as their active year is a short one. In captivity they try to do the same thing.

Hibernation/brumation is a choice thing with pros and cons on both. Most folks advise not doing it the first year you have a tortoise just to be sure he is healthy.

You could take him to the Vet for a healthy tortoise check if you want to, your option. A stool check would be a good idea, if you are going.

 

[laney]

Congratulations

It is a constant learning curve having a tortoise which is a good thing. You will improve on his care as you go along and it sounds like you have a great little one there
I think you need some more space for him but your viv is not wasted, you can easily extend it by taking the glass out and using some old furniture or bits of wood. After I had my first tort a little while I realised more room is better but I had just spent a fortune on a viv so I just extended it like this

I'd say broccoli is something not to feed. Do you have weeds growing anywhere near your house that don't get chemicals sprayed on them? Dandelions are a favourite . There aren't much weeds near me yet as its so cold so I have to rely on the supermarket but weeds are best. This is a good food website
www.thetortoisetable.org.uk/

 

[biochemnerd808]

Congrats on your new tortoise! Sounds like you already got some good advice. My go-to site for everything RT is www.russiantortoise.net - they have a great care sheet, a list of edible plants, and much more. All free.

How long is your tortoise's shell, approximately? In the picture you posted it is hard to tell. At least in the US, pet-stores can only sell tortoises 4 inches or larger, in which means they are at least 5-ish years old... in which case 1'x2' is very small for an RT... these guys need a ton of room to roam, so even for a juvenile tortoise 4'x2' is the minimum. There are a lot of cost-effective options, such as getting a shelf at Goodwill or on Craigslist, turning it on its back, taking out the shelves, lining it with a tarp or shower curtain liner, and putting the substrate in there. You will find that you get to see much more tortoise-ish behavior, the more room your tortoise has...

I am so glad you are on here, and are asking questions. That's the best way to learn, and questions are always welcome!