New Hermann

[Hershel]

Hi all,

We have a new hermann, about 6 months old, and just wanted to make sure we're doing our best for him.

He's in a tortoise table 90x60cm with a uv/heat lamp at one end, focused towards one corner, and a shady hide at the other. We've left him alone as much as we can since he got home yesterday and he's been quite active. We've fed him fresh lettuce, endive and watercress mostly, and he's eaten most of what he's been given.

Our biggest worry is that he's the right temp. We have an infra red themometer and its reading 34C under the lamp, 29C in the corner at the lit end and 19C in the shady box (these are soil surface temps). Last night and this evening he's buried himself in a corner reading 29C and has fallen asleep while the lamp is on, we turned it off around 10pm and back on at 8am and he woke up, warmed up for while and went for food, so far he hasn't used the cooler shady hide at all that we've seen (other than an initial exploration). We've bought a little log shelter for him too today but he's been asleep since we put it in.

Also we've read a lot about regular bathing and also how beneficial it is to allow tortoises to settle in for a while. How often should we bathe him and when should we start.

Any help and advice on any of this would be great, this forum has been really helpful already.

 

[Careym13]

Welcome to TFO!! I don't keep Hermanns and don't know much about them but while you are waiting for others to chime in here is a link to the Hermanns care sheet in the species specific forum http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/sticky-hermanns-tortoise-care-sheet-updated.101410/

 

[Hershel]

Thanks Careym, I'll give it a read

 

[Matt j Harris]

Great looking tortoise I have the same enclosure and same substrate my tortoise is also very similar to yours I've had a hermanns tortoise in my family all my life but I'm new to owning a baby one so I'm not the best person on here for advice but there's plenty of people on here with great advice I bathe my tort daily for about 20mins I dunno if I'm over doing it but I've heard younger tortoises need to be well hydrated I also spay my substrate to moisten it hope this helps

 

[WithLisa]

What a cutie!

I always recommend to take nature as an example.
In the wild, such a big dark cave would probably be some bigger (dangerous) animal's burrow, it doesn't make any sense for a baby tortoise to use it as a hide. A wild hatchling would also never stay in such a clear area, they always hide between plants so predators can't find them.

I would remove the big hide, the whole enclosure should have bright light (maybe you even want to add a second light instead?), and put lots of plants, a few stones, small hides,... in the enclosure. I'm sure it would make your baby feel more safe.

Give it a try, your tortoise will show you what it likes and dislikes!

 

[Matt j Harris]

 

[Matt j Harris]

This is mine I chose not to have the box fitted

 

[Hershel]

Thanks everyone, we appreciate the advice.

I'm gonna take out the hide when we bath him tomorrow and get some plants in there as soon as we can. Hersel has spent most of his time in the open, he doesn't seem to shy, and has been in his log a bit but only to pass thru. Ive give his whole enclosure a spray today too, including him, it was getting a bit dry.

Can anyone tell me if the fake plants are OK to put in? They have a selection in our local petstore in the reptile section. Also does it matter what kind of stones you use? Hershel has been biting at his food and water bowl a bit and wouldn't want to put a softer rock in that could make him ill. They have some aquarium rocks in the pet store but they were quite chalky and I wasn't sure if they would be suitable.

 

[Matt j Harris]

I've seen mixed reviews about fake plants I like the look of some so I might buy a couple of the cactus ones tomorrow I put in real spider plants today either side of the half log it looks pretty cool if you have any of them they are OK for torts and pebbles I'd get ones like you'd get at the beach more natural looking them with cuttlefish for his beak

 

[WithLisa]

In my opinion real plants are much better. You don't have to buy them, just take dandelion, clover, plantain, grass,... from outside (they are for free and healthier because almost all plants from shops are treated with chemicals).
This way your tortoise would always have fresh food available, the plants are perfect humid hides (fake plants can't increase humidity) and the roots are wonderful for babys to dig into.

I only use stones from my garden but I don't think aquarium rocks would be harmful.

 

[Hershel]

I've seen mixed reviews about fake plants I like the look of some so I might buy a couple of the cactus ones tomorrow I put in real spider plants today either side of the half log it looks pretty cool if you have any of them they are OK for torts and pebbles I'd get ones like you'd get at the beach more natural looking them with cuttlefish for his beak

Thanks Matt. We'll be at home a lot more after tomorrow and better able to kelp an eye on the little monkey so might try some fake plants and real ones and see what he likes.

We found him on his back today but has seemed ok since, in fact he's eaten well and has been running around for a while. We've made some changes to his environment now to help guard from this. Luckily he wasn't too near his lamp.

 

[Matt j Harris]

Yeah mine has done that a couple of times what I've done is slope the substrate by his hide where he nose dives off it and lands on his back to hopefully make it easier to upright himself

 

[FLGirl41]

Congratulations on your new hatchling. He's a really cute little guy!

I agree with the others, in that he needs a lot of plants and a humid hide (something small where he'll feel secure, filled with moistened sphagnum moss). Low humidity is linked with shell pyramiding in several species including Hermann's, so it would really benefit him to have at least one. Also, while he may appear to like being in the open, he may actually be pacing for a suitable spot to hide and feel secure. Hatchlings really thrive on spending most of their time tucked away from predators, where they can rest and grow to a larger, less vulnerable size. That being said, as you provide more shelter and plants for him, this will make him feel more secure and he may venture out more often. I see from the above posts that you've been pointed to the Hermann's care sticky. It really is an invaluable information source for setting your little guy up correctly. Best of luck and happy holidays!

 

[Hershel]

Thank you for you're advice, especially for explaining why Hershel is wondering about so much. We've been doing further reading and think we have better understanding of Hershel's needs now. It sounds, like you've all said, real is better, but buying plants from store means bringing pesticides and chemicals into his enclosure so we'll get some fake for now and keep a close eye that he doesn't eat them while we work out how best to proceed.

 

[Matt j Harris]

Where did you buy him from? If you don't mind me asking he's a little cracker

 

[Hershel]

I'm sad to say it was from a garden centre, found information after he arrived saying it's not the best place to get them from.

 

[Matt j Harris]

Mine was from a garden centre aswell I'm from Surrey and there's a big one near me the way to look at it is you've bettered a tortoises life

 

[Hershel]

You're right there, thanks, better than where he was. I'm sure he'll be fine, the guys there seems quite clued up and he wasn't there very long coz I'd been waiting for them to get some in, as long as we do our best for him. We live in worcestershire. Do you feed your tort every day and does he always eat what you give him? Hershel hasn't eaten anything today but has eaten well before now, and pooed well too.

 

[Matt j Harris]

I do feed mine everyday I found dandelions yesterday after about an hour searching he liked them plus mixed salad I brought him some dried tortoise food today and he's basically screwed his nose up at it I'll keep going with it tho yours might still be settling in when my parents adult tortoise is at there friends when my folks are on holiday it takes it a few days to eat and gain confidence to stroll around

 

[Hershel]

It's all good, he's feeding now, i gave him some food earlier but he just walked thru it. Put the fake plants in and he tried to eat them immediately so took them out and gave him fresh food, which he's currently devouring. I've put the plants back in while he eats to see how he reacts on a full stomach, might not be for him tho, can't risk him eating them