Is Turbo a good weight for his age?

[erdavis]

So I know that all Sulcata's grow at different rates. But the other day I was showing my boyfriend some threads on here and how big they can get. And we saw a few that were the same age as Turbo who is WAYYY bigger! And it got me a little concerned.

I estimated a long time that his birthday was around October 1, 2011. So that would make him about 2 years and 5 months.

Today before his bath he weighed in a 1,147 grams, and after his bath he weighed in at 1,087 grams. So about 2.4 pounds.

How does this sound??

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Also, I was wondering when a good age to try to sex him is?

 

[diamondbp]

So I know that all Sulcata's grow at different rates. But the other day I was showing my boyfriend some threads on here and how big they can get. And we saw a few that were the same age as Turbo who is WAYYY bigger! And it got me a little concerned.

I estimated a long time that his birthday was around October 1, 2011. So that would make him about 2 years and 5 months.

Today before his bath he weighed in a 1,147 grams, and after his bath he weighed in at 1,087 grams. So about 2.4 pounds.

How does this sound??

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Also, I was wondering when a good age to try to sex him is?

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That is small for his age but with proper care it shouldn't stunt growth long term. My 1.5 year olds are 2.5 lbs roughly and they aren't on the fast side with growth. I've seen some yearling sulcatas that are quite mind blowing. As long as the growth is relatively smooth than I think he should be fine. COuld you possibly post some pictures of your sulcata? You can tell alot about a tortoise from a picture.

 

[Tom]

There is a lot of variation in sulcata growth rates. One major factor in this is how they were started right after hatching. The typical old way is to treat them like a desert animal, keep them dry, soak them infrequently or never, etc. I call this old way the "dry routine". The new way is to raise them in a simulation of the african rainy season, which is what they actually hatch into in the wild. I call this "the wet routine". Its warm all the time, very humid, and I soak them daily. The dry routine typically results in very slow growth for the ones who manage to survive it. The wet routine, in comparison, promotes very smooth healthy growth at a much faster rate. My babies are typically around 1000 grams at one year old.

For you, at this point, just offer the best care and diet you can, and don't worry about it. He will continue to grow and within a few more years you will still have a big honkin' giant tortoise on your hands.

 

[erdavis]

That is small for his age but with proper care it shouldn't stunt growth long term. My 1.5 year olds are 2.5 lbs roughly and they aren't on the fast side with growth. I've seen some yearling sulcatas that are quite mind blowing. As long as the growth is relatively smooth than I think he should be fine. COuld you possibly post some pictures of your sulcata? You can tell alot about a tortoise from a picture.

Here are some pictures of him. I know he is pyramided. My sister got him for me years ago for my christmas present. She had to keep him for a while so that she could wait until x-mss and she used the dry technique and he probably didn't have water for the entire time :/ Since I've found out I have been soaking him and using humidity in his indoor enclosure. However I understood that I should leave him outside as often as possible. So he really only came indoors at night. So that was the only humid time for him. I know you can prevent further pyramiding but is it really supposed to take this long? He doesn't seem to be getting better and its very frustrating because I feel so bad but I believe I am doing everything right. He gets 3-7 soaks per week and has a humid enclosure indoors.












This is his indoor enclosure. There are the two lights, the UVB during the day and just the warmth on 24/7. I make sure that his substrate is always wet. He always has water (this water is dirty because it is from yesterday), and I make sure it is not too hot, yet his substrate is never cold to the touch so he won't get sick.





He does go outside for a few hours a day when the weather is nice. We are still under construction. The doors on his upper enclosure will be hinged on. His ramp will not have duct tape on it (lol) but we are carving out steps for him like his old ramp had, we just made his ramp part about a week ago and he needs grip to get up there so I taped a rubber grip mat and twigs to it for now. And his entire enclosure will soon have chicken wire on it. We've been using this enclosure for a couple of years for him, but the ramp and upper part are being made because he just recently outgrew his old ramp. He really loves going up and down! He also has water downstairs. And he has sulcata seed mix to munch on. Plus a little bit of spring mix when he comes inside just to keep him occupied because I'm scared he'll flip if he's bored, but he won't eat it if he ate enough outside. And he gets occasional pumpkin, aloe, and squash. I also spray his outdoor enclosure with the hose daily while he's out there. And soon he will have a humid hide outdoors as well.


This is under his big cover.






Going upstairs


Relaxing in the sun


Also, upstairs his corners are 45 degree angles so he's less likely to climb and flip. And we are doing this to all of his ground corners as well within the next couple of days.
Andd I was really excited because today was the first time in a LONG time that he actually walked up to me when I went out too look at him! He usually just continues walking around or will walk semi toward me, scare himself, and hide in his shell. It was a big deal to me today

Any advice would be appreciated because I just want to do what is best for my baby.

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Oh! Another thing I forgot to add is that when I first did all of my research on him, I understood that if he eats mainly weeds, grasses, and dark greens, that will most likely be enough calcium for him. And so I only occasionally sprinkled calcium on his food. Like maybe once a month :/ I recently read that I should either put a calcium thing in his cage, or sprinkle it on about 2 times per week. I felt terrible when I read this. I've been doing this the past couple of weeks, but do you think that could have contributed to why his pyramiding hasn't gotten better?

Also, I understood that Mazuri was unsure of and wasn't necessary. But now I am thinking about giving it to him about 2 a week, does that sound right?

Also thinking about putting hay down on the top part of his outdoor enclosure for him to eat if he wants. But am worried about if it gets wet (because I water his entire enclosure daily) it will get moldy. So I am unsure.

 

[Yvonne G]

Turbo's lookin' pretty good! I love the double decker. On the paint tray...dig out the substrate from underneath it so it sits down deeper and more level to the substrate.

 

[erdavis]

Turbo's lookin' pretty good! I love the double decker. On the paint tray...dig out the substrate from underneath it so it sits down deeper and more level to the substrate.

Do you think that his pyramiding is getting better, honestly? Because I can't tell if his new growth is starting to be more smooth. I'm afraid it's not :/
And thanks! For months I've had the top part for months just for shade but didn't even think of putting a ramp on it and making him able to go up there until he outgrew his other one a couple of weeks ago That one was probably only a foot wide and a foot long. So this is a great improvement and I can already tell how much he loves it. I even think he likes it better up there than on the ground floor. He sun bathes on top a lot On the old one he only ate up there.
And I try to but literally every night he rearranges his cage that he won't let it stay like that! Sometimes I even find the whole thing tipped upside down with no water in it of course!

 

[Tom]

Your tortoise has barely any pyramiding at all and his shell looks great. The change in the angle of that very mild pyramiding indicates that things did indeed get better at some point in the past.

You live in Gainseville FL and you think his only humid time is inside? Ummmm....

You need to know his indoor temps. Not feeling "cold to the touch" is not good enough. Get a remote probed thermometer from the hardware store or garden center for about $20 and check those temps. Adjust the height of your fixtures if necessary.

In high rainfall areas the soil tends to be lower in calcium. No way to know your soil's calcium content without testing it. In all likelihood, your tortoise is fine with that excellent diet, but supplementing with A LITTLE BIT of calcium powder twice a week won't hurt anything either.

Sexing them isn't an age thing, its a size thing. You can usually tell by 10-12".

Over all, your set up and routine sound great to me, and your tortoise looks very healthy.

 

[bouaboua]

Your Sulcata looks very health and nice looking.

I also love both of his indoor and outdoor enclosure. Great job is all I can say. Of cause plus few things that Tom mentioned.