Little white bugs in enclosure, help!

[tortilla4]

Hello! I acquired a four year old Redfoot tortoise in August. I don't know much at all about taking care of tortoises so I have been doing a lot of research on them and it lead me to you guys! This is my question. The substrate she came with is a red mulch. Recently I've noticed small white bugs running around in the mulch, basically everywhere in the enclosure except for on her. They don't seem to be bothering her, but lately I've noticed more of them and she seems to be rubbing her face on her leg more as if something may be itching her? I had read somewhere that maybe these bugs were a good thing and were not harmful but rather a cleaning bug. Could that be the case? I don't want her to be living with bugs in her home if they're harming her but if they're helping her I want to know that too. I'm just trying to learn about how to best take care of her and I need some wisdom!

 

[T Smart]

Hello! I acquired a four year old Redfoot tortoise in August. I don't know much at all about taking care of tortoises so I have been doing a lot of research on them and it lead me to you guys! This is my question. The substrate she came with is a red mulch. Recently I've noticed small white bugs running around in the mulch, basically everywhere in the enclosure except for on her. They don't seem to be bothering her, but lately I've noticed more of them and she seems to be rubbing her face on her leg more as if something may be itching her? I had read somewhere that maybe these bugs were a good thing and were not harmful but rather a cleaning bug. Could that be the case? I don't want her to be living with bugs in her home if they're harming her but if they're helping her I want to know that too. I'm just trying to learn about how to best take care of her and I need some wisdom!

How damp is the mulch? Her itch might be from it being too dry.

You'll probably have to switch out the substrate to get rid of all the bugs. I'm not too familiar with Redfoots, but I believe orchid bark, cypress mulch, or coconut coir is more of an ideal layer.