Is this a good routine for my russian tortoise

[Claud_the_tortoise]

I'll let him out for a little stroll for about 15 minutes then give him a little tub time in the bath to keep him hydrated

Every other day I'll give feed him some lettuce and cucumber and every 2 weeks I'll give him peas and chamomile flowers as a treat

He has a wierd obsession with my Dyson and he will hump it so I'll just let him do that for a little bit before bathing him

He has a heat lamp so I don't think he has to hibernate (and he has a little hiding spot and fresh water at all times)

And Every 2 weeks I'll do a full clean of his enclosure and give him a little scrub with a Toothbrush (he loves it)

Anything to add or change?

 

[SuzanneZ]

I'll let him out for a little stroll for about 15 minutes then give him a little tub time in the bath to keep him hydrated

Every other day I'll give feed him some lettuce and cucumber and every 2 weeks I'll give him peas and chamomile flowers as a treat

He has a wierd obsession with my Dyson and he will hump it so I'll just let him do that for a little bit before bathing him

He has a heat lamp so I don't think he has to hibernate (and he has a little hiding spot and fresh water at all times)

And Every 2 weeks I'll do a full clean of his enclosure and give him a little scrub with a Toothbrush (he loves it)

Anything to add or change?

Do you feed him more than lettuce and cukes?

 

[TammyJ]

I'll let him out for a little stroll for about 15 minutes then give him a little tub time in the bath to keep him hydrated

Every other day I'll give feed him some lettuce and cucumber and every 2 weeks I'll give him peas and chamomile flowers as a treat

He has a wierd obsession with my Dyson and he will hump it so I'll just let him do that for a little bit before bathing him

He has a heat lamp so I don't think he has to hibernate (and he has a little hiding spot and fresh water at all times)

And Every 2 weeks I'll do a full clean of his enclosure and give him a little scrub with a Toothbrush (he loves it)

Anything to add or change?

From what you've said here, there is a lot to add and change. @wellington

 

[Claud_the_tortoise]

Do you feed him more than lettuce and cukes?

Yes I do I just put in would I usually feed him but be does have a very varied diet

 

[SuzanneZ]

Yes I do I just put in would I usually feed him but be does have a very varied diet

Great.

 

[wellington]

Roaming your floors is not good, very dangerous and can be deadly and too cold. He just needs a proper sized enclosure.
What kind of heat lamp? What other lighting is there? He needs a tube florescent for uvb and an incandescent flood bulb for basking and a ceramic heat emitter for added day heat if needed and night heat.
Just one heat lamp is not proper heat/lighting
Also, you are feeding every day correct?
If you post pics and give info on the equipment you are using and all the temps, basking, all over, night, we can help tweak if needed

 

[Claud_the_tortoise]

From what you've said here, there is a lot to add and change.

Roaming your floors is not good, very dangerous and can be deadly and too cold. He just needs a proper sized enclosure.
What kind of heat lamp? What other lighting is there? He needs a tube florescent for uvb and an incandescent flood bulb for basking and a ceramic heat emitter for added day heat if needed and night heat.
Just one heat lamp is not proper heat/lighting
Also, you are feeding every day correct?
If you post pics and give info on the equipment you are using and all the temps, basking, all over, night, we can help tweak if needed

We where planning on getting him a bigger enclosure but he is happy in the one he has now. Alot of the time he wants to go out and have a little roam (he will have a little scratch on the glass). Currently the light is coming from the heat lamp but light from inside the house also goes into his enclosure. I don't feed him everyday I feed him every other day so for instance Monday Wednesday Friday and Sunday

 

[wellington]

You need to feed every day, enough food that he can graze off and on throughout the day. He needs have uvb bulb in the enclosure on for 2 hours at least daily, he needs a basking incandescent flood bulb to bask under that reaches 95-100 or he can't properly digest his food.
Make changes now before it's too late and stop letting him roam your floors.
Another new member let's his roam the floor and now the poor thing may not live!!!
Please read our caresheet and forget all the bad info you are using!

 

[wellington]

Post in thread 'I think my turtoise is dying' https://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/i-think-my-turtoise-is-dying.208365/post-2083842

read this. Listen to the advice being given so this doesn't happen to you.

 

[Tom]

Answer to your title question:
No it is not. I agree with what other members have said, and you need to make some changes ASAP if you want this tortoise to survive.

I'll let him out for a little stroll for about 15 minutes then give him a little tub time in the bath to keep him hydrated

Soaking is great. Free roaming on the floor is not good and will likely result in death or injury. It is not safe and cannot be made safe.

Every other day I'll give feed him some lettuce and cucumber and every 2 weeks I'll give him peas and chamomile flowers as a treat

Feed the tortoise every day. Try to find broadleaf weeds, leaves and flowers of the right types near you to feed him. Avoid grocery store foods when you can, and when you can't avoid them, add the proper amendments. More here:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

He has a wierd obsession with my Dyson and he will hump it so I'll just let him do that for a little bit before bathing him

He should not be out loose and have access to the Dyson.

He has a heat lamp so I don't think he has to hibernate (and he has a little hiding spot and fresh water at all times)

There are four elements to heating and lighting, and you have one of them. You need to sort out the other three ASAP. More here:

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...

tortoiseforum.org

None of them "have to hibernate". The correct term for reptiles is brumate. They don't have to, but they really should if that is what the species would be doing in the wild in its native range. Regardless of what we want or think, they sometimes have ideas of their own about brumation and you need to take steps to prepare for this one way or the other. More here:

Tom's Brumation Thread

Every fall we get bombarded here on the forum with all sorts of questions and problems regarding hibernation and tortoises "slowing down" for winter. The purpose of this thread is to talk about all aspects of this subject, to dispel some of the myths and mysteries, and give a "how to" list of...

tortoiseforum.org

And Every 2 weeks I'll do a full clean of his enclosure and give him a little scrub with a Toothbrush (he loves it)

In most cases, there is no need for this. Spot clean any feces or left over food daily, and there is really no need to do a "full clean" or replace your substrate. Its actually stressful on your tortoise, expensive to replace the substrate, and since it is not necessary, it is a waste of your time.

Anything to add or change?

Yes. Please read the links that I posted here for all the correct care info.

We where planning on getting him a bigger enclosure but he is happy in the one he has now. Alot of the time he wants to go out and have a little roam (he will have a little scratch on the glass). Currently the light is coming from the heat lamp but light from inside the house also goes into his enclosure. I don't feed him everyday I feed him every other day so for instance Monday Wednesday Friday and Sunday

Happy? Please teach me how to assess that in a tortoise.

If your tortoise is an adult, it needs something around 4x8 feet for indoor housing. Scratching on the glass is not an indicator of happiness, and the tortoise needs an enclosure that is large enough to meet all of its needs.

There are four elements to heating and lighting. You are only providing one.
Here is a breakdown of the four heating and lighting essentials:

1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt incandescent floods from the hardware store. Some people will need bigger, or smaller wattage bulbs. Let your thermometer be your guide. I run them on a timer for about 12 hours and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb. You need to check the temp with a thermometer directly under the bulb and get it to around 95-100F (36-37C).
2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species. In most cases you'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT, as long as your house stays above 60F (15-16C) at night. Some people in colder climates or with larger enclosures will need multiple CHEs or RHPs to spread out enough heat.
3. Ambient light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. Strip or screw-in LED bulb types are both fine.
4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. In colder climates, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. I like the 12% HO bulbs from Arcadia. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html A good UV bulb only needs to run for 2-3 hours mid day. You need the basking bulb and the ambient lighting to be on at least 12 hours a day.

I don't feed him everyday I feed him every other day so for instance Monday Wednesday Friday and Sunday

Your tortoise should be fed every day. They are grazers. They need to be able to graze. Lettuce, peas, and other grocery store foods can be used as part of a varied diet, but the bulk of the food should be an assortment of broadleaf weeds, leaves and flowers of the right types. Please read the care sheet and other info above for what to do and how to improve your tortoise's routine and living conditions before it is too late.

 

[SuzanneZ]

You need to feed every day, enough food that he can graze off and on throughout the day. He needs have uvb bulb in the enclosure on for 2 hours at least daily, he needs a basking incandescent flood bulb to bask under that reaches 95-100 or he can't properly digest his food.
Make changes now before it's too late and stop letting him roam your floors.
Another new member let's his roam the floor and now the poor thing may not live!!!
Please read our caresheet and forget all the bad info you are using!

Really important. I just learned lately that info I'd read out in the world and that people are told by those who make $$ on false claims can kill your tortoise.

 

[TammyJ]

I just hope that, for your tortoise's sake, you will heed all the good and crucially important advice that you have been freely given here. Because it seems that you think that you already know what is best for your tortoise. Please take the time, and make the recommended changes!

 

[Claud_the_tortoise]

Feed the tortoise every day. Try to find broadleaf weeds, leaves and flowers of the right types near you to feed him. Avoid grocery store foods when you can, and when you can't avoid them, add the proper amendments.

I've been told by my exotic veterinarian to only feed him every other day and I do feed him dandelion and other foods I just put his favourite ones up

 

[Claud_the_tortoise]

Answer to your title question:
No it is not. I agree with what other members have said, and you need to make some changes ASAP if you want this tortoise to survive.


Soaking is great. Free roaming on the floor is not good and will likely result in death or injury. It is not safe and cannot be made safe.


Feed the tortoise every day. Try to find broadleaf weeds, leaves and flowers of the right types near you to feed him. Avoid grocery store foods when you can, and when you can't avoid them, add the proper amendments. More here:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

He should not be out loose and have access to the Dyson.


There are four elements to heating and lighting, and you have one of them. You need to sort out the other three ASAP. More here:

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...

tortoiseforum.org

None of them "have to hibernate". The correct term for reptiles is brumate. They don't have to, but they really should if that is what the species would be doing in the wild in its native range. Regardless of what we want or think, they sometimes have ideas of their own about brumation and you need to take steps to prepare for this one way or the other. More here:

Tom's Brumation Thread

Every fall we get bombarded here on the forum with all sorts of questions and problems regarding hibernation and tortoises "slowing down" for winter. The purpose of this thread is to talk about all aspects of this subject, to dispel some of the myths and mysteries, and give a "how to" list of...

tortoiseforum.org

In most cases, there is no need for this. Spot clean any feces or left over food daily, and there is really no need to do a "full clean" or replace your substrate. Its actually stressful on your tortoise, expensive to replace the substrate, and since it is not necessary, it is a waste of your time.


Yes. Please read the links that I posted here for all the correct care info.


Happy? Please teach me how to assess that in a tortoise.

If your tortoise is an adult, it needs something around 4x8 feet for indoor housing. Scratching on the glass is not an indicator of happiness, and the tortoise needs an enclosure that is large enough to meet all of its needs.

There are four elements to heating and lighting. You are only providing one.
Here is a breakdown of the four heating and lighting essentials:

1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt incandescent floods from the hardware store. Some people will need bigger, or smaller wattage bulbs. Let your thermometer be your guide. I run them on a timer for about 12 hours and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb. You need to check the temp with a thermometer directly under the bulb and get it to around 95-100F (36-37C).
2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species. In most cases you'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT, as long as your house stays above 60F (15-16C) at night. Some people in colder climates or with larger enclosures will need multiple CHEs or RHPs to spread out enough heat.
3. Ambient light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. Strip or screw-in LED bulb types are both fine.
4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. In colder climates, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. I like the 12% HO bulbs from Arcadia. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html A good UV bulb only needs to run for 2-3 hours mid day. You need the basking bulb and the ambient lighting to be on at least 12 hours a day.

Your tortoise should be fed every day. They are grazers. They need to be able to graze. Lettuce, peas, and other grocery store foods can be used as part of a varied diet, but the bulk of the food should be an assortment of broadleaf weeds, leaves and flowers of the right types. Please read the care sheet and other info above for what to do and how to improve your tortoise's routine and living conditions before it is too late.

Thank you for all of this, I'm sorry I don't know alot about tortoises (he is my first one that I got from a family friend) so I'm just looking for help. This has been really helpful and I'll look into it ASAP.

 

[Claud_the_tortoise]

I just hope that, for your tortoise's sake, you will heed all the good and crucially important advice that you have been freely given here. Because it seems that you think that you already know what is best for your tortoise. Please take the time, and make the recommended changes!

Yes I'm going to go to my local exotic pet shop and get the stuff I've been told to ASAP!

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Yes I'm going to go to my local exotic pet shop and get the stuff I've been told to ASAP!

You can start with a hardware store first. UVB lamp is the only thing you need to buy from a pet store (or Amazon).
Substrate, lamps, thermostats and etc. could be found in Lowe's, Home Depot, however it depends on location.

 

[zolasmum]

I've been told by my exotic veterinarian to only feed him every other day and I do feed him dandelion and other foods I just put his favourite ones up

Your vet is wrong - he needs the chance to eat every day -partly to help his digestion, but mainly because that's what he would do in the wild to be healthy. It is unfortunately the case that even exotic pet vets may not know much about tortoises , as they may rarely come across them, and their information may be well out of date ! Please take note of what you are told here,from real experts like Tom.
Is Dunstable the one in the UK ?
Angie

 

[Tom]

Yes I'm going to go to my local exotic pet shop and get the stuff I've been told to ASAP!

Pet shops will sell you the wrong products. Both vets and pet shops will give you the same old wrong care info. That is why our care info contradicts theirs.

 

[Claud_the_tortoise]

Pet shops will sell you the wrong products. Both vets and pet shops will give you the same old wrong care info. That is why our care info contradicts theirs.

There is a shop near me that specialise in exotic pets and reptiles called wrigglies. They know all about tortoises, they even have a Croc in their shop! (Not for sale though obviously)

 

[Claud_the_tortoise]

Pet shops will sell you the wrong products. Both vets and pet shops will give you the same old wrong care info. That is why our care info contradicts theirs.

There is a shop near me that specialise in exotic pets and reptiles called wrigglies. They know all about tortoises, they even have a Croc in their shop! (Not for sale though obviously

Your vet is wrong - he needs the chance to eat every day -partly to help his digestion, but mainly because that's what he would do in the wild to be healthy. It is unfortunately the case that even exotic pet vets may not know much about tortoises , as they may rarely come across them, and their information may be well out of date ! Please take note of what you are told here,from real experts like Tom.
Is Dunstable the one in the UK ?
Angie

Yes I'm in the uk, I go to wrigglies which is a little reptile and exotic animal place that also double as a vet