New enclosure.. safe plants?

[Naturelover]

Hi all,

I am getting my first star tortoise today and I have lots of questions. I have kept turtles and fish since 3 years but this will be my first tortoise. I have been researching since a week and I liked this type of enclosure..

http://www.stormthecastle.com/terrarium/large-terrarium.htm

I have a 34x22x18 (lxwxh) aquarium which I would like to use for this tort. The tort I am getting is 4 inches... The temp here is around 80 degrees F around the year.... The tank is in the balcony and I have the option to close the shades when it gets hot. The tank will get sunlight and fresh air.

The tank will be ready within 48 hours and for now he will be living in a tub with topsoil and stones..

I am concerned which plants I should use in this enclosure... I also want to know if I should keep a bowl of water in the tank for the tort to cool off in when it gets hot...

Any help is appreciated! Thanks

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Welcome to the show...aquariums are for fish, not tortoises. Your new tort would be better off in that tub you mentioned. Air flow is difficult to manage in an aquarium so it is difficult to maintain a constant temp, and just as difficult to maintain a cool side and a hot side. Then you mention a water bowl "so he can cool off"...your basking temp should be around 95 degrees, your ambient air temp close to 80-85 degrees and your cool end 70 degrees. It's hard to do that in an aquarium.
Now with that said, I have successfully raised several tortoises in aquariums. It's hard and you need to be VERY aware of what is happening in the tank all the time. It's so easy to cook a small tortoise, but if you constantly pay attention you can raise this new guy in that tank. But he'd be better off in a tort table. While I said I DID raise a few tortoises in aquariums, it's just not a good idea and tort tables are so much better for the tortoise and easier for you...

 

[Naturelover]

Hi,

Thank you for responding..

The aquarium will not be covered so there will be ventilation.. I will be getting a UVB light within a day and attaching it so that the turtle can bask there... The balcony has 3 fans to lower the temperature during the afternoons and at night we close the door and the glass along with the shades so the temperature drops by a maximum of 1 degree.... I have kept all sorts of mammals, birds and some reptiles before so I am sure that I can manage to make the turtle happy.

I am interested in knowing which plants are safe for an enclosure.. I do not want to add toxic plants to the enclosure since that will be terrible.. This is the list I found on the internet, can anyone verify?
http://www.tortoisetrust.org/articles/houseplants.htm
Thanks!

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Naturelover:

to the forum!

We really need to know what kind of tortoise you are planning to get before we can offer any more than just "general" tips. Different types of tortoise require different care. A full grown tortoise would not do well in an aquarium. So, give us a little more info, please!!

Yvonne

 

[Naturelover]

Hi,

Thank you for the warm welcome..

I am planning to get an Indian Star tortoise. We are moving out to a larger house within 2 years and when we move out I will be making a 10 x 10 sq feet enclosure for him.. In the meanwhile when he starts to get larger I have a 54x22x18 tank waiting for him.. I have used up all the space in my house to make aquariums so I really cant make any other enclosure...

If you guys feel that a glass aquarium will be unsuitable then I shall get an aquatic red ear slider turtle. The reason I will opt for a turtle instead is because I do not want to cause any stress to the tortoise... I love both the species equally but I have kept turtles before so I wanted to try out a tortoise..

Let me know what you feel since I will have to make the trip after 6 hours...

 

[Naturelover]

This is the setup as of now. I added some plants like tulsi, marigold, aloe vera, mint and cactus.... I dont know the names of some plants but I think that they are safe.. If they are not safe then I shall remove them asap.. The tortoise will arrive in 5 hours, I couldnt ask the shop guy to keep him for me any longer and I couldnt cancel the order... I plan to add a small water fountain after a month...

 

[Naturelover]

I am sorry for the multiple posts.. Am really nervous about the new tort and I am hoping that someone will reply..

Three websites suggested that marigolds and periwinkles are toxic.. I am now left with aloe vera, a thornless cacti, tulis and mint....

 

[Yvonne G]

I moved your thread to the Stars forum hoping that more Stars keepers would see it and help you.

I don't keep stars, and know nothing about their care, but from reading what others have said here on the forum, it seems to me that planting REAL plants in the viv will raise the humidity too much. I think I remember reading that stars have to be kept pretty dry.

Yvonne

 

[samstar]

Your aquarium looks nice but I would suggest the tortoise table which is what I will be constructing by next year.

 

[Naturelover]

Thank you for moving the thread. I appreciate the help

I shall remove the plants if they are going to cause trouble.. I am quite new to keeping star tortoises and I really want to do this right.. I am willing to learn...

The tortoise table looks really nice but as I mentioned my house is filled with tanks.. When I move out of this house I shall definitely create a tortoise table in the larger enclosure....

Edited : to add pics

I took just 1 pic since I dint want to scare him/her.. I havnt touched him/her much and I am not sure of the sex.. I put him in the tank for a while but the mud was wet so now he is in a bucket with a small soft cloth...

This is the pic in the tank..

 

[Naturelover]

Will a thick layer of newspapers and a soft blanket be a good base for the tank?

I am quite sure that the mud is a bad idea since its gonna stay wet due to the humidity in the atmosphere.... I was so eager to make the terrarium that I forgot to wait for a moment and think....

 

[JourneyTort]

As others have suggested an aquarium is not a good enclosure for Stars, they keep humidity in and the sides are pretty tall and prevent good air circulation.

Personally I feel the mud is not a good idea for Stars, especially the consistency you have right now, it is probably way too humid and high humidity plus low temps can cause respiratory infections. I house my Stars in a tub with a warm end and a cool end, 95 being warm with MVB for basking and 85 being cool for daytime temps, 75 for nighttime temps. I use Aspen shavings for part of the enclosure (they like to burrow in this) and coconut coir for the other half which is kept moist but not soaking wet.

If you say you want what is best for your tort then personally I feel you will be able to house your Star in a rubbermade tub or a plastic tote box used for xmas tree storage and have consistent temps and environment.

If you still insist on the aquarium as an enclosure please keep an eye on your temps and ensure that there is a warm and cool end for your tort to regulate his/her temps. Also keep your eye on the humidity levels.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[Naturelover]

Thank you for replying..

The aquarium has doesnt have a lid so there is plenty of air circulation... The humidity in any case is a lot in our city so even if I keep him in a tub the situation will remain the same...

I have removed the mud as mentioned in the previous post. I am now using a thick layer of newspaper with a soft blanket on top...

 

[Millerlite]

sounds to me like you dont even want to change anything, and are pretty confident in your enclosure... we are throwing advice out but its up to you to take it and use it.

I use to have 7 stars, and had my young ones in a Rubbermaid, and adults in a tortoise table, Used aspen and hay as the substrate, and had a hot end at 90-95, with a cool end of 80-85, night temps. i would not allow it to get below 70, 75 is safer... I also had a humid hide and water available at all times. aquariums are alright if its a big aquarium, yours looks to small, and has high sides. I would switch him out and put him in a Rubbermaid. The newspaper would work as a substrate, but i would just switch it to aspen, or something different. I would stay away from real plants as they are maintenance and give off humidity (its better if you had a bigger open enclosure if you were to have plants in an indoor enclosure.)

 

[Naturelover]

Incase you dint notice I removed the plants and the mud since you guys suggested this...

The tank has a capacity of 65 gallons that is 34 inches length x 22 inches width and 18 inches height... The tortoise is 4 inches... so this tank is definitely bigger than a rubbermaid container... Once again the tank doesnt have a lid and the temperature in my city is 80 degrees through out the year with a minor change in winters... I shall add a shallow dish of water in the tank so that he will have a wet end... I plan to take him out for 30 minutes every morning before 10 am so that he can get healthy rays of the sun....

The title of the thread is safe plants and everyone here has been talking about the enclosure..

I stay in a small city where aspen is not available but I can get hay.... Shipping is not really an option for me...

I think all my answers have kind of been answered so thank you everyone...

 

[Yvonne G]

Yeah, I'm sorry that we kinda' got off the mark on this one. We only have the best interest of your tortoise in mind, so don't think badly of us. As for safe plants for a dry-type habitat...I'd go with any of the succulent plants, maybe a clump of ornamental grass, some wandering jew...anything that doesn't need to be watered too much. I don't know Stars, but I've heard that you're supposed to keep them on the dry side, so you don't want too many plants that you have to water. Shoot us a picture when you have your habitat all set up.

Yvonne

 

[Naturelover]

Its perfectly all right.. I really like this website, all of you have helped me a lot

I shall try to get wandering jews and ornamental grass and probably pot them in the side of the tank.. Will that be ok?

I shall get some greens, carrots, turnip leaves for him today so that he can have a varied and healthy diet .....

I do have a question.. Would play sand be a good substrate for him?

He is doing fine with the newspapers and bedsheet but I want him to be happy.. I wont make any changes for 3 - 4 days since I dont want to stress him out.. Btw the anal scutes are in a V shape.. I have a boy

Now I need a name.. any suggestions?

Here are some pics.. He is mostly hiding and I am not bothering him too much..

Sleeping

 

[Naturelover]

I can get clean dry hay every week.. Should I use this as the substrate or the sand?

Also other than potted plants what should I put in the enclosure?

 

[samstar]

Careful it does not eat the threads from the bed sheet

 

[Naturelover]

I tucked in the lose ends today so he is safe

I will be changing the substrate as soon as the experts tell me if hay is better or sand is better...