Hi everyone!

[kires mom]

Hi, I'm Beth and new to the forum. I have 4 box turtles, 1 eastern, 1 ornate and 2 three toed. I've had my eastern for 20 years this summer! Box turtles are my first love.
I recently got a russian named George at the end of March. He is 20 years old and quite the grumpy old man. I'm a RVT at a hospital in Ohio. His previous owner brought him to us for beak trims and general care. She had a child and felt that she was no longer able to properly care for him. I'm pretty confident in his age because she's had him the majority of his life.
It has been quite the learning experience to say the least. I knew there would be many differences between caring for my box turtles and George and the trial and error of it all has been quite enjoyable.
I'm not sure if I should ask this question on this thread, but I'm going to give it a try. Now that all the turtles are spending so much time outside, I have stopped using my mercury vapor bulbs. Does anyone know how many hours of natural sunlight a week is sufficient to completely remove all UVA/UVB sources from the inside enclosures? I've searched everywhere I can think of and I've read anywhere from 15 minutes a day to 5 hours per week.

 

[ascott]

Ok so if I have been paying attention . The more the better.....but they should have the uv's at minimum of 20 minutes straight per day......now wait a little bit and let's see if I have paid attention (disclaimer: my answer is based on summer sun and if none...then the uv rays light should be on 12 hours?) Ok....let's see...if I am not recalling correct we will see....I am too learning about those guys

 

[dmarcus]

Hello Beth and welcome to the forum. I don't even own a MVB bulb, lol. My hatchling get several hours outside almost every day and I am constantly spraying his shell and he has a place to get out of the sun and water if he feels the need to soak or have a dip.. I think the times will vary but the more the better.

 

[kires mom]

They are all outside more than enough now but I wonder about when it starts to cool down in fall/winter when they will be out little to no time. The box turtles are outside full time now, but I still bring George the russian in at night and when I'm working. Sometimes we get a lot of rain and I don't want him to get soaked/chilled. (It was 52 degrees two night ago.) He has been out at least 20 hours in the last week which far more than he was out in with his previous owner. I see you're in Texas kalano73. I would love to live there and be able to keep everyone out year round.

 

[dmarcus]

They are all outside more than enough now but I wonder about when it starts to cool down in fall/winter when they will be out little to no time. The box turtles are outside full time now, but I still bring George the russian in at night and when I'm working. Sometimes we get a lot of rain and I don't want him to get soaked/chilled. (It was 52 degrees two night ago.) He has been out at least 20 hours in the last week which far more than he was out in with his previous owner. I see you're in Texas kalano73. I would love to live there and be able to keep everyone out year round.

I have a 30 pound Sulcata who is outside year round and my hatchling is only outside when we are home but we only use the normal uv bulbs for both of them. We only had to bring our big one inside once this year and that was during the superbowl when he had that freak ice storm. I had never even heard of a MVB bulb until I joined the forum and since the normal bulbs have always done the job for me I can't see myself getting one, but I do understand those who live in places where they don't get a lot of good weather or those who's tortoises spend most of there day inside having one.

 

[81SHOVELHEAD]

Hello Beth
Welcome to the forum .
Thats a nice looking Russian tort.
Nice colors on the box turtles as well .
Very knowlegable & nice people here.
Mike D.

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

Welcome.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Beth:

Welcome to the forum!!

Your grumpy old man is really quite pretty for a Russian tortoise. But, you're correct in thinking he needs his beak trimmed. You can have it done at the vet's, or you can do it yourself. Most people use a Dremmel, but you can also use a nail nipper. Just don't try to take it all down at once. Do a little bit at a time.

As long as the turtles and tortoise are getting SOME outside time, you don't need the UV light indoors any more. Save it for winter.

 

[kires mom]

He is notoriously difficult when it comes to beak trims. We usually have use anesthesia in order to do it. In the meantime, I have added a rough slate feeding area in hopes of slowly grinding it down as he prehends his food. I have a dentistry drill at my hospital that I use when extracting canine/feline teeth that works well because it sprays water at the same time, cooling the area as I file the beak. If I don't notice a difference soon, I will consider bringing him to work to trim his beak. Thanks for the input everyone. So glad I get to keep them outside, they are much happier!

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Beth:

I misinterpreted your first post when you referred to yourself as an RVT at an Ohio hosp. I presumed it meant you were a nurse at a human hospital. Does it mean you are a reptile vet? That's wonderful news for our forum!! The more vets we can get involved in our little show here, the better it is for all of us! Great to have you here.

 

[kires mom]

Yes, I am a technician and my boyfriend is the veterinarian at my hospital. He does not have as much interest in exotic medicine as I do, but I'm trying to educate him at every possible chance I get!

 

[Tom]

Hello and welcome. That is a nice looking Russian.

I base my opinion about the UV on personal experience with many species of reptiles over three decades. There is not any real scientific studies on how much UV a given tortoise needs. There are just too many variables to make it so simple. They need less during hibernation. Temps, diet, species, time of year, weather, intensity of UV where you live, etc... There are literally millions of factors that would determine the exact minimum that a tortoise would need.

Generally, it is my opinion, that 20-30 minutes twice a week is good enough for a minimum. I usually put babies out for an hour or two 5 or 6 times a week. For an adult like him, I'd just let him live outside in a secure safe enclosure as much as the weather would permit. I don't think Ohio is all that different than where they occur naturally as far as weather goes, so, in theory, they could live outside all year and just hibernate through your cold weather.

 

[Neal]

Welcome. I have not seen a three toed with yellow spots like yours on the left. Can you get some close ups of him?

 

[relaxkuma123]

Very beautiful torts!.. for UVB, I agreed with Tom's

 

[RV's mom]

Welcome to TFO and thanks for sharing the pics of your beautiful babies....

teri

 

[kires mom]

Welcome. I have not seen a three toed with yellow spots like yours on the left. Can you get some close ups of him?

Sorry, just got around to hosing him off. He was covered in mud because of all the rain we had a few nights ago. His name is Koby and came to me together with the red female to his right in the pic. They mate quite often, but otherwise, he is a shy boy.

 

[dmarcus]

Koby is a very nice looking fella...