Introducing Tibby

TriciaStringer

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2018
Messages
1,186
Location (City and/or State)
Louisiana
3516D4B9-365C-4A06-856E-5800B489BA6D.jpeg 7DA223A4-98F7-4AE3-9077-6CB6C4DA7AAF.jpeg C6A13B87-3722-4919-8D24-74698914B68F.jpeg 5B2A01C7-70FD-44C3-9D51-EAFF4055304B.jpeg We’ve had Tibby since the end of April. I found her on Craigslist. She is about 19 months old. She was supposed to come with her enclosure which wasn’t ideal but it would give us time to build her new one. Her new one is 8x3 and a closed chamber with all the good things, high humidity, basking spot with flood bulb on a timer, CHE on a thermostat, a couple of hills for fun, a humid hide, all things to make her thrive and stop the pyramiding. When we went to pick her up, her enclosure wouldn’t fit in our car (they measured it wrong). We drove 2.5 hours home with nothing for her to live in. PANIC!!! I had to improvise while we took up our weekends building her new enclosure. We used a not ideal 50 or 55 gallon Sterilite container. We cut holes in the top for the lights and covered it with an emergency blanket. It did an amazing job keeping in the humidity and heat. I had to drag it outside a couple of times to air out a little while she was in her outside enclosure. It was stinking from the water not evaporating. I highly recommend those blankets to help close an open top table. I wrapped the light domes with a couple layers of foil to protect the blanket from the high heat. Anyway, remember though, it was not an ideal enclosure for an 18 month old. She repeatedly tried tipping herself over by getting between the side of the container and her humid hide. I couldn’t wait to finish the new one. Of course she didn’t like the change, but she is adjusting. I’ve caught her basking the last two days. She had previously been raised dry but in MS, so some outside humidity. Her enclosure was kept under the carport with only a UVB bulb, no heat bulb. We went to get her a week earlier than expected because the night temps in Jackson, MS were in the 40s and I was a bit panicky. She now gets soaked daily, many times twice, and has only skipped one day. She was 5.5 inches and 860g when we got her. She is now 7 inches and 1010g. She is learning how to graze and I catch her doing it but she won’t touch the grass when I cut it and put it in her food saucer. She’s a bit picky and just wants her old diet of romaine but we are working on it. Lots of grass sticking to it and mazuri mashed up and stuck to it too. Two of the pictures are from before we picked her up. The other pictures are from today and a few days ago. She came out for some afternoon sunlight today. If I’m home all day, she gets to be out all day so I can move her enclosure to follow the shade. My kids take turns spraying her enclosure to cool her down during the middle of the day. We are really enjoying her and want to thank all of you for telling us how to raise her. Our other sulcata was five when we got him so we missed this stage. After finishing a night box (next project), we will get busy repairing our house to sell it and buy more land for our tortoises.
 

ascott

Well-Known Member
10 Year Member!
Joined
Apr 10, 2011
Messages
16,138
Location (City and/or State)
Apple Valley, California
We’ve had Tibby since the end of April. I found her on Craigslist. She is about 19 months old. She was supposed to come with her enclosure which wasn’t ideal but it would give us time to build her new one. Her new one is 8x3 and a closed chamber with all the good things, high humidity, basking spot with flood bulb on a timer, CHE on a thermostat, a couple of hills for fun, a humid hide, all things to make her thrive and stop the pyramiding. When we went to pick her up, her enclosure wouldn’t fit in our car (they measured it wrong). We drove 2.5 hours home with nothing for her to live in. PANIC!!! I had to improvise while we took up our weekends building her new enclosure. We used a not ideal 50 or 55 gallon Sterilite container. We cut holes in the top for the lights and covered it with an emergency blanket. It did an amazing job keeping in the humidity and heat. I had to drag it outside a couple of times to air out a little while she was in her outside enclosure. It was stinking from the water not evaporating. I highly recommend those blankets to help close an open top table. I wrapped the light domes with a couple layers of foil to protect the blanket from the high heat. Anyway, remember though, it was not an ideal enclosure for an 18 month old. She repeatedly tried tipping herself over by getting between the side of the container and her humid hide. I couldn’t wait to finish the new one. Of course she didn’t like the change, but she is adjusting. I’ve caught her basking the last two days. She had previously been raised dry but in MS, so some outside humidity. Her enclosure was kept under the carport with only a UVB bulb, no heat bulb. We went to get her a week earlier than expected because the night temps in Jackson, MS were in the 40s and I was a bit panicky. She now gets soaked daily, many times twice, and has only skipped one day. She was 5.5 inches and 860g when we got her. She is now 7 inches and 1010g. She is learning how to graze and I catch her doing it but she won’t touch the grass when I cut it and put it in her food saucer. She’s a bit picky and just wants her old diet of romaine but we are working on it. Lots of grass sticking to it and mazuri mashed up and stuck to it too. Two of the pictures are from before we picked her up. The other pictures are from today and a few days ago. She came out for some afternoon sunlight today. If I’m home all day, she gets to be out all day so I can move her enclosure to follow the shade. My kids take turns spraying her enclosure to cool her down during the middle of the day. We are really enjoying her and want to thank all of you for telling us how to raise her. Our other sulcata was five when we got him so we missed this stage. After finishing a night box (next project), we will get busy repairing our house to sell it and buy more land for our tortoises.

Super awesome and lovely tort :)
 

Yvonne G

Old Timer
TFO Admin
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 23, 2008
Messages
93,390
Location (City and/or State)
Clovis, CA
What a pretty tortoise!
 
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