hungry boys

[tczar]

my two year old sulcatas are never full. they will eat three times a day on dandelions romaine lettuce and tortoise chow. 7 pounds 2 1/2 years no pyramiding and living large in the west tx desert in a burrow that i cant figure out how deep it is. i shovel 6 to 10 shovel loads of sand out each week. i love to see them burrow naturally. last year on this sight i was put down for letting them stay outside for late fall but they have come through like champs. better than a humid garage !

 

[Yvonne G]

I would love to see pictures of your "hungry boys."

I think that sulcatas are quite hardier than we give them credit for. I received a call from a woman who asked me how she can get her tortoise to stop digging a burrow. He was digging under the cement patio. He started it last winter and she laid a blanket over the opening, but now he's expanding and deepening it and she doesn't like it. I asked her what kind of tortoise she had. She said she didn't know, someone had given it to her last summer. When describing it to me, she described a sulcata to a T. Our winters freeze almost every night. We don't get any snow, but its always down in the 30's and the days don't get much over 45.

I hear this story over and over again...and the sulcatas don't seem to suffer because of it.

Yvonne

 

[Laura]

Just be carefull the burrow doesnt flood or collapse..
So far I offer a place for mine to go to, dog houses etc.. and they dont dig. I can control them better that way, and I fell they are safer.
Ive heard stories about them plowing thru snow drifts.. Mine seem to know when its 'ok' to come out and some days when its cold. .I dont see them out at all.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Does that mean I can just throw Bob out in the cold and not have to spend a fortune on electricity keeping him warm???

 

[aktech23]

maggie, i think you would be surprised if you left the door open more. I know your environment is nothing like mine, but during the winter tortimer would be out every day.

He'll pop out for some grazing and basking and go in to warm up, in and out, whenever he was out his shell felt warm. He'd be out three times a day.

with warm resources at hand the tort will keep comfortable.

I noticed my sully trying to dig under things.
In his enclosure I made the top of his hide angled. he likes to go down into the corner, and get under the substrate, but doesn't start digging. I haven't found the tort trying to dig in his usual spots since he took to his house.

I think he just likes to feel the roof right on top of himself. our ground is kinda hard but i hear these guys can be diggers.

 

[tortoisenerd]

I have also heard torts will adjust to different temperatures. The only thing I think of off the top of my head is that leaving the shed open might actually increase heating costs since you'd want to leave some type of heat on in there for Bob to return to, and the heat will dissipate quicker with the open door (unless it's a doggie type door?). Of course you have to keep an eye on the dampness too. I assume when you have the heat on in the shed it dries out pretty quick though.

 

[Crazy1]

tczar I too would love to see pics of your boys. Please post some.

 

[Yvonne G]

The only thing I think of off the top of my head is that leaving the shed open might actually increase heating costs since you'd want to leave some type of heat on in there for Bob to return to, and the heat will dissipate quicker with the open door (unless it's a doggie type door?).

I think she has plastic strips over the doorway when the plywood part is taken off.

Yvonne

 

[aktech23]

I forgot that bob was an escape artist.

How long until he figures out he can knock over two sets of cinder blocks and escape again??