Hide humidity

Aidan814

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Joined
Aug 27, 2019
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Location (City and/or State)
Newton NJ
Hello I’m in the process of getting a baby Russian and right now I think I almost ready to purchase him but my last problem is hide humidity. Right now his heat lamp is heating his basking spot to about 97 degrees while also producing uva and uvb I don’t know how to get his hide humid though.
 

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SweetGreekTorts

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Those half log hides aren't made to be humid. You need an actual humid hide. Here's a link to my website where I show step-by-step how to make a humid hide, cheap and easy!

You can also dampen the substrate and enclose the top to keep humidity up inside the entire enclosure, which is what I do for all my Russian and Greek hatchlings.

https://sweetgreektorts.com/hatchling-husbandry#c5b1b3d5-d0ae-4ee3-9433-1e1a663cba03

Also, that looks like sand you have as substrate? Not good for babies. It can cause impaction if ingested, and it easily irritates the eyes. I would change it out and provide proper substrate before your baby arrives.
 

Aidan814

New Member
Joined
Aug 27, 2019
Messages
7
Location (City and/or State)
Newton NJ
the substrate is the eco earth coco fiber you have listed on your website but yeah i figured the hide I got wouldnt work but what you show on your website seems like a good idea that I will try and use.
 

Tom

The Dog Trainer
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Hello I’m in the process of getting a baby Russian and right now I think I almost ready to purchase him but my last problem is hide humidity. Right now his heat lamp is heating his basking spot to about 97 degrees while also producing uva and uvb I don’t know how to get his hide humid though.
I see a few things. All constructive criticism intended to help:
  • Low sided tubs like that are good for sunning enclosures if you make a top for it and keep a really close eye on temperatures during hot weather. They are not good for starting babies. Much too dry. You can't keep humidity and temps up with these low sides. A large aquarium or closed chamber will work much better and make it easy to maintain the correct conditions. Russians don't need high humidity like a tropical species, but they do much better with moderate humidity. I like 50-70% for them.
  • That substrate is my first choice for babies, but you need to make it much deeper and it needs to be damp. Not wet, just damp. You need about 8-9" of loose damp coir and when you hand pack it down, it should be good for walking and just the right thickness. You'll need to dump water into the substrate periodically to keep it damp. How much and how often varies a lot. In some of my enclosure, I just dump and rinse the water bowl (assuming no poop) into the substrate and that is enough to maintain the correct moisture level. Other enclosures ned more or less than that. If you pick up a handful and squeeze it, no water should drip out. If the substrate is dry or dusty, or won't hold a shape when you squeeze it, its too dry.
  • I see a little green water bowl over there on the right, right? The sides are too steep. Terra cotta plant saucers sunk into the substrate work best. You also don't want it in a corner. The tortoise will walk in it and you'll be changing it 10 times a day. Put the bowl in the middle. Get another saucer for food.
  • It looks like your lamp is hanging from a lamp stand? If yes, GREAT job! If not, it should be. However, deep dome fixtures will make MVBs burn pout prematurely. You need a much wider dome for that bulb. About the bulb...
  • I used to recommend MVBs, but now I know they cause too much desiccation and pyramiding. Best to not use them. I prefer regular incandescent flood bulbs from the hard ware store. I use 65 watt floods and adjust the fixture up or down to get the correct basking temp directly under the bulb.
  • UV is best provided by one of the HO type florescent tubes on the market. I live the Arcadia, but Im' told the ZooMed is good too.
  • You need an upside down plastic tub with a small door hole cut out for a humid hide.
More tips here:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/
 
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