New Member- New Tortoise

[cassieopia]

Hello, All!
I am a new member and a new Sulcata Mama. I got him/her December 1st from my sister (who got him/her from a friend). He/She wasn't taken care of well, and from what I can gather- especially here- they did the opposite of everything right with him/her. All that I read not to do, they were. Living on calcisand, only feeding iceberg and processed nuggets, cage too small, no standing water, never been outside on the ground or in sunshine... I have since corrected most/all of this and hope for a speedy change. He already has about 1/4 inch of growth since I got him! According to weighing myself and adding him, he weighs 3 pounds and 9 ounces. He is almost 8 inches across. Does this sound right for a (maybe) 4 year old tort?

 

[wellington]

Hello and Welcome. Sounds like the tortoise is very lucky you finally got him.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Sounds like a good weight for an 8 incher! Welcome.

 

[cassieopia]

Thank You. I am happy to have gotten him, as well! I have wanted one for the last 5 years or so! I have always had box turtles and stuff! I also keep a red eared slider. We have had him for years!

 

[cassieopia]

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi, and welcome to the forum!

That tortoise is way too big to be kept in an aquarium. If weather doesn't permit an outdoor yard for him, then blocking off a section of a room or garage or basement is in order. Most of us have heated shelters outside for our large tortoises. He also needs some substrate so his legs don't slip and slide.

 

[cassieopia]

This reptile enclosure (not an aquarium- it is short sided) is twice as wide as he is. It is also 3.5 feet long. He spends most of his time free range through the house. He only spends nights and when the dogs (2 Great Danes) are inside, actually inside the enclosure.
Also, he has both blue fescue and newspaper in his enclosure for substrate. I live 150 miles from the nearest pet store and can't do more yet. He has piled it into the corners where he wants it. The front section was only cleared because I wanted a good picture and had just cleaned copious amounts of poo!
We are acquiring untreated 6×6s from my dad (he trucks steel and each load has some on it) and will be making him an outdoor enclosure as soon as the weather permits. Hopefully in the next 2 months. We haven't had snow- YET... it has been super cold, but it hasn't made it to us just yet. It has fallen just next to us, so there is no telling if it will actually get us this year or not. He will have a couple hundred square feet of room by Spring. Right now I am doing right by him, I promise. His conditions are by far better than they were.
BTW- when he can't be in the rep cage or loose in the floor, I put him in the kennel. It is 6 feet long and 4 feet wide. Until the weather turns, this is better than anything anyone else around here would offer /

 

[Mavrik]

Very lucky for you have to be taking care of him now. Seems like he's got a good life ahead of him, with plenty of loving to boot!

I found my Thor under my car on the hottest day of this past summer, incidentally I was parked in a large lot that was shared by the restaurant I had just come out of and a pet store... Turns out, a few hours earlier a lady had been walking around the store with Thor in a cardboard box trying to give him away, but when nobody took him she must have abandoned him in the parking lot... Hottest day of the year... Hot asphalt... Poor Miss Thor was just trying to find a place to cool down and chose my car of all the cars in the lot. I can tell that Thor wasn't all that well taken care of, having some pretty significant pyramiding for such a small body (guesstimate is going on 2yo, vet has backed me up on this). But now Thor spends her days happily munching on timothy hay and trucking around her enclosure (4' x 4' tortoise table is her winter quarters) as well as begging for greens when I open the fridge door.

 

[Moozillion]

Very lucky for you have to be taking care of him now. Seems like he's got a good life ahead of him, with plenty of loving to boot!

I found my Thor under my car on the hottest day of this past summer, incidentally I was parked in a large lot that was shared by the restaurant I had just come out of and a pet store... Turns out, a few hours earlier a lady had been walking around the store with Thor in a cardboard box trying to give him away, but when nobody took him she must have abandoned him in the parking lot... Hottest day of the year... Hot asphalt... Poor Miss Thor was just trying to find a place to cool down and chose my car of all the cars in the lot. I can tell that Thor wasn't all that well taken care of, having some pretty significant pyramiding for such a small body (guesstimate is going on 2yo, vet has backed me up on this). But now Thor spends her days happily munching on timothy hay and trucking around her enclosure (4' x 4' tortoise table is her winter quarters) as well as begging for greens when I open the fridge door.

Thor was MEANT to be with you!!! What a neat beginning for you two!

 

[TeguBuzz]

How do you maintain proper humidity levels in all the setups you mentioned, if you don't mind me asking? A sulcata should not be housed in any form of a glass tank/glass bottom.

Welcome to TFO.

 

[cassieopia]

I live in Arkansas. Right now it is 50 outside and 65% humidity. It is between 65-100% all year. I keep his hay substrate damp, and he settles himself in wherever he is comfortable when he is loose. Once outside, humidity won't be an issue at all- this place has the worse/best humidity ever!

 

[omgdoubletacos]

You don't want to dampen hay. It will mildew.

 

[cassieopia]

He/She eats it so fast it doesn't have time to mildew!

 

[TeguBuzz]

Won't say much, but I'd get that proper enclosure set up as soon as possible. The conditions to which your sulcata is living in are less than adequate and free range of a house does not make it alright.

 

[DeanS]

Welcome! You mention that he is 8" across...how long is he Straight Carapace Length (neck to tail). Also...he is slightly pyramided...but not bad at all! He's small enough that you can stunt it right now and as he grows it can become less apparent! There are lots and lots of threads for you here...I have a care sheet at the top of the sulcata page
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/african-spurred-tortoise-sulcata-care-sheet.52524/

...and my buddy Tom has a GREAT place for new owners to start...
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/

Read up and keep us posted!

 

[Tom]

I live in Arkansas. Right now it is 50 outside and 65% humidity. It is between 65-100% all year. I keep his hay substrate damp, and he settles himself in wherever he is comfortable when he is loose. Once outside, humidity won't be an issue at all- this place has the worse/best humidity ever!

Welcome to the forum and congrats on the new tortoise. He doesn't look bad at all considering what his routine was.

Please don't get defensive with us. We all want what is best for tortoises, yours included. The intention is not to lecture you, but to warn you of things that experience has taught us will be a problem. Letting the tortoise run loose in the house is mistake. I've seen lots and lots of cases of tortoises getting sick, injured or killed that way. Every single person that this has happened to did not think it would happen. They all thought they were keeping an eye on things and and nothing bad would happen. We had a member here a few months ago that accidentally killed her sulcata while it was out loose. It is also just too darn cold down there on the floor for this heat loving species. They need warm temperatures or they can get sick pretty quickly. What this all means is that your tortoise needs a much larger enclosure and he needs to stay in it until the outdoor enclosure is ready for him in spring.

While we are on the subject of tortoise safety, please don't ever leave your dogs alone with the tortoise. Not ever, not for one second. Same story. Everyone whose tortoise gets mauled thought they had the sweetest most loving dogs ever and their dogs would never harm their tortoise. They had to learn the hard way and if their tortoise survives, it will bear the scars of the owners mistake forever.

Please check out these threads for some care tips that you might not have though of:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

And here are some outdoor housing ideas:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/enclosure-expansion.38788/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/another-night-box-thread.88966/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/my-best-night-box-design-yet.66867/

 

[cassieopia]

I'd NEVER leave the dogs alone with him/her! I only let Kronk loose if the dogs are outside. Thanks for the outdoor area links, as that is my next big step! Oh, and he is 9 inches, and has grown 1/4 inch since I got him! I properly measured in the soak yesterday!

 

[cassieopia]

I also wanted to say I never meant to seem cross- I hate text for that reason!
Also, I will clarify: Kronk is never left to roam free... there is always a child following his every step to ensure his safety. Otherwise when left to "roam", he is in an 8×10 wire enclosure over our living room rug.
He also gets cuttlebone, but I buy 2 a month and he eats them before we get paid again! (We are on disability- one money a month, hence the speed of our building, aside from weather. I have Lupus and my husband has a deformity in his back. We are quite limited on mobility and assistance, lol.)

 

[Barrysulcata]

Hi cassie
Ur doing well keep up doing good work it takes a it of time to get sorted but things will come together and ur have a good companion for years to come
I've had my for just three weeks he's 11 year old got some pyramiding just over 37 lb
He's grown with confidence
I've had to build a box for him with strip light for daylight to heat lamps one side and cool end by opening I've also put plastic strips down opening ( like freezer room strips )
The box is in a shed which he can come into then out shed into a compound then open gate onto garden
He's learnt were is bed and heat is learnt were is food is
Like I said he's learnt so quickly so have I keep up good work
Tim

 

[Gillian M]

A warm welcome to the forum!

I think you are doing very well so keep up the good work.