My baby Cherry Head's first enclosure

[killuchen]

Please throw in any suggestions lol. I want what is best for my baby

Right now it's just a regular 100watt bulb for lighting on the right side. The left is a 100watt Ceramic Heat Emmiter. I could prolly make his hut smaller I think the current one is an overkill size wise.

 

[Madkins007]

Things look good. I'd give you an solid C+. Your tortoise will be happy there! There are things you could do to make things better, but none of them are a big deal.

1. Change the 100w bulb to a 40 or even smaller. We would normally light an entire bedroom with a 100w bulb- it is a bit overkill for a small habitat.

2. Long-fibered moss is an OK substrate, but it is not easy for them to walk on and it is acidic and when wet, may contribute to plastron rot. My personal preference is cypress mulch.

3. Food dish might be easier to use if it was flatter. I prefer things like plastic lids. I personally use a folded piece of newspaper I can toss afterwards. There is also a LOT of food in there for that little guy- his tummy is not that big!

4. The habitat is a bit on the small side. The smallest I like to see is 8 shell lengths by 4 shell lengths, and more is great when possible. Besides, more space means more room to work and play.

5. I dislike 'box' hides. Baby tortoises in the wild dig in and snuggle up against things so they can feel secure. I prefer things like clean chunks of bark or big leafy plants. Kind of like how you would rather snuggle into a bed with covers than sleep in a shed. This may not really matter to the tortoise at all, though. My personal experience is that if I offer both kinds of hides, my torts always seem to prefer 'snuggle' hides to 'box' hides.

6. Add things to make it more interesting for the tortoise- live plants are great as are things to climb on (like bark for the hide).

A lot of this reflects a difference in philosophies. There are many who feel that the simpler the better- minimalistic, easy cleaning, low-maintenance. Then there are those who feel that more naturalistic habitats help stimulate cognitive development. There is a lot of solid research supporting the second view, but little that directly involves tortoises.

There are other ideas in the Tortoise Library, as well as links to other sites that may help.

 

[DixieParadise]

Agree with everything just posted. For the food dish, just turn the one you have upside down, level in the substrate and use the bottom as a smooth surface. Tort might find that easier to eat off of.

Definately smaller watt light and smaller hide. Other than that looks like you have a basic idea of what your tort needs.

 

[Angi]

Mark,
What are your thoughts on moss in the hide to keep it moist and snuggly? I think Killuchen and I can both benifit from your expert oppinion

 

[killuchen]

Hehe I use spag moss for the hide and a thin layer of it throughout the enclosure. Underneath is about 2-3" of cypress mulch

 

[Madkins007]

A lot of people like and use sphagnum moss. My experience has been that my torts usually get a mild plastron rot when I use it, mostly because it is so hard in my climate to keep it slightly damp and it tends to get too wet.

 

[killuchen]

Yea, I'm keeping an eye out for rotting. I really need to come up with a way to make him/her a new hide. He/she doesn't even use the current one haha.

So tomorrow is fruit day for my baby. You think some mango/strawberries is a good start?

 

[terryo]

The only place I use sphagnum moss is in the hide. It's a natural wood hide that I fill with the moss. I wet it and then squeeze it out and fluff it up. She has to dig her way into it.

 

[killuchen]

Wow, I love it. Did you buy the hide?

I've been watching my little guy for the past few days and he seems to like 1 corner of the enclosure. He burrows himself underneath the moss right under the CHE.

I also moved the enclosure to my garage since it is warmer in there.

 

[Madkins007]

I made one hide from a big chunk of store-bought cork bark, and another from chunks of bark I found in the park. If you find yourself a nice big piece of clean bark, you can prop one end up on a rock or something and brace the lower end against a wall and dig it into the soil a bit.

Outside, one hide is a bunch of sticks driven in to hold a pile of leafy branches, and the other is an old foam sleeping pad (Ensolite) folded into three layers with one end staked down. Sometimes I find them all in the leafy pile, other times they are all in the folds of the pad.

 

[killuchen]

I'm heading to Lowes/Home Depot today to see if I can find anything for a new hide. I soaked my little guy in warm water for about 10mins than took him out to the backyard for a good 10-15min bask while spraying him a few times. He also pooped and it was green in a cylinder shape. Is that good?

I also noticed that this morning when he woke up his eyes were kind of watery so I think the humidity level is too low? Do you guys have any suggestions on how I can keep the humidity level up? I spray down his hide/enclosure before I go to bed and I cover the cage.

 

[killuchen]

I bought a thermometer today and I put it on the cool side. The temps read 80-85F and Humidity is 80-88% on the cool side. Is that a little too warm? I'm not using any type of heater during the day.

 

[lynnedit]

Not a Redfoot owner, but look at post #2 and 10 in this thread (madkins07) and click on 'Tortoise Library' at the bottom. Lots of information on Redfoots including temps.

 

[terryo]

Yes, the Tortoise Library is a great place to learn. I couldn't help you with temp. I keep my whole enclosure in the high 80's. I don't have a cool side. If they want to cool off, they will sit under a wet plant, or dig in the moss in their cave.......just how I do it....not saying it's right.

 

[killuchen]

Yea, my little guy isn't very active right now. Has just been staying in the hide for the past 3 days that I have had him