My setup for now

TheTOAD

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[split] temporary enclosure for baby sulcata

Is this substrate setup OK until I can make a tortoise table? Its sphagnum moss. My tort seems to like it she walked around all over the place exploring it
 

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Yvonne G

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RE: [split] temporary enclosure for baby sulcata

Hi, and welcome to the Forum!

The moss and aquarium look ok to me as a temporary enclosure, however, I'm not a big fan of having a hatchling tortoise in with a lizard.
 

TheTOAD

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Is this setup OK for now? Its 100% organic sphagnum moss. My tort seemed to like it, she's a sulcata almost 1 year old.
 

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Levi the Leopard

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To start, I'd remove the lizard, add a lid and supply a night heat source if there isn't one already.

Because you ask if it's "ok for now", does that mean you plan to do an improved enclosure in the near future?
 

TheTOAD

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Lizard stays lol I do have a lid and night source and yes I plan on making a tortoise table this spring :) I live in upstate new york so out doors is a no no haha


The lizard and her have been together for a year now or close to it, I've read on other posts that its a bad idea but I've never once had a problem. They actually sleep curled up together its the funniest thing lol
 

Levi the Leopard

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My suggestion for a lid was so you could raise the Sulcata in hot and humid conditions. It's easier to keep high humidity when it's covered.
But, you can't keep the lizard like that... And you aren't open to separating them. So, I don't know what to say.

My new answer to your question is NO, it's not ok "for right now" by my standards. If you'd like suggestions on how to improve it to provide the best conditions for the tortoise then you'll have many more who are willing to chime in to help you.

You might have someone else tell you they think the set up is just fine.
 

TheTOAD

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I only took the lid off to take the pic, its always covered and temps are usually 80- 85 going down to about 60-64 at night. I'm always open for suggestions but as far as removing the lizard that's a no. Theyve always been together and I've never once had an issue. When I get another tort I will remove jack aka the dragon to his own cage cuz he really doesn't do much but sunbath


But for now he stays lol :)
 

TheColossus

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TheTOAD said:
Is this setup OK for now? Its 100% organic sphagnum moss. My tort seemed to like it, she's a sulcata almost 1 year old.

...Nothing about that setup is ok. You should be in NO way housing those two species together, and if you can't afford to separate the and give them each a proper habitat ASAP, you need to re-home them to someone who can.

Honestly... -_-
 

TheTOAD

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My mind is set for keeping them together but I'll still change it. Never once had an issue with it the whole year I've had them so separating them isn't a priority right now, come spring then yes I will becuz I will have the tortoise table.
 

Grandpa Turtle 144

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Why did you come to the TFO I would hope its to learn the best ways to care for your tort but it looks to argue . We are adults we want to learn so we can teach others great cares for our torts . But I feel I know why you choose the name toad just to put warts in this great forum . But to hurt those that try so hard to help others . Is just wrong , god bless you
 

TheTOAD

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I'm not here to argue, but to tell me that housing them together is very bad and causes many problems when I've done it for a year now with NO problems at all isn't helping anyone.


And for your info just to correct your thinking, toads do not in any way shape or form create warts :) just an FYI cuz a lot of ppl believe that myth :) thank you for the advice tho :)
 

TortoiseWorld

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Putting them together is not in the best interest of the tortoise. Maybe if it was an emergency situation like power outage in winter or something extreme.
Reasons why it's not wise to house them together.
1. Your young tortoise needs special warm humid micro climate closed enclosure environment for proper development and stable health.
2. Tortoises can become stressed by the presents of the lizard in this small space, even if you can't see stress it's there. Could be territory, fear, confusion etc.
3. Dissimilar micro gut fauna, tortoise likely eat the lizard droppings, the explosion of massive gut pathogens.
4. Transfer of preexisting diseases.
All these could lead to disease, illness and death. My advice find a good home for your tortoise and stick to lizards.
 

Sulcata_Sandy

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The beardie and the Sully require very different climates. If they lived in more similar conditions, I'd be supportive, but the sully needs warm and humid, and the beardie needs more arid.

I do things that the general consensus on this forum recommends against. So I'm not going to "scold" you over mixing species. I'm simply pointing out that long-term, they require different micro climates. Probably ok for now, but make sure there is reasonably high humidity for the Sully, or at least a moist, warm humid hide for him. They are not desert tortoises like people seem to think. They love mud, water, rainfall.
 

TheTOAD

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I make sure its always warm and humid :) I mist the cage and keep temps around 80°. In spring and summer its always 85° and up


And I did say come spring I will be switching to a tortoise table so my dragon will have the cage too himself. Also I know their not desert torts believe me :/ this is my second tort from a pet store I won't name. When I got my first one I didn't do much research and listened to the employees and my tort died becuz of it. Never again will I let that happen. Thank you all for the advice


This is how they sleep almost every night for those that don't believe me lol and I hear a lot that torts eat their own feces but I've never seen her do it, do they do it as a last resort or do not all of them do it?
 

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Barista5261

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It's good that you mist the cage for the tortoise, but probably not so much for the beardie :/

Also just a note about housing the sully and beardie together without restating what everyone else has already- just because you've had them together for a year and nothing's happened between them, doesn't mean nothing WILL happen. Just some food for thought.
 

TheTOAD

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My beardie likes the water lol whenever I'm misting he runs over to get sprayed. I found him like this once too haha
 

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bouaboua

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TheTOAD said:
My beardie likes the water lol whenever I'm misting he runs over to get sprayed. I found him like this once too haha

This is one of the reason we all suggest to take the dragon out.

You know your Sulcata also drink from that water bowl right???? This is not funny..........
 

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