New Member with housing questions.

[cdr]

Good Morning All,

I am new to the forum, and I have started to research the Russian Tortoise for a life time family member. Unfortunately, my husband and I are not handy woodworkers, but the homes I see on the forum are fabulous. As an alternative would it be possible to use a large vegetable table with wheels to house our friend? We understand the lining process, substrate, plants, food, water dishes needed as well as lighting.
Our other question is for the bathing process, is there any special water we should use, bottled, etc.,

I know we will have more questions as we move along the process, our goal is to have our set up prior to bringing our new family member home. Of course, we are debating do we rescue a tort from the local pet store, or work with Turtle Town in NJ for a captive raised tort. We live in Delaware and found this location to be the best rated.

Our experience with exotics is only our 3 hermit crabs we have had for over 10 years, and a new found salamander, Sally in our basement. We also have our vet on standby for any health concerns she will need to assist us with.
Thank you all for your help and suggestions.

 

[TechnoCheese]

Welcome to the forum! Give these links a read
Russian Tortoise Care Sheet
https://tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/Russian-Tortoise-Care-Sheet.80698/
Beginner Mistakes
https://tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/Beginner-Mistakes.45180/
If the vegetable table is 8x4 feet or larger, then sure, it would be great. But if not, you will almost certainly have to build a table. Don’t worry, it’s not that hard
I can’t answer your water question, because I use well water. I’m sure someone will come along and give a good answer.
It’s great that you joined before getting one!

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Welcome
From what I (think) I know about Russians they are very smart and scrappy. Don't Think About Buying A pair...And they are master climbers.
Be sure that there is nothing that your tortoise can climb up and then fall out of ANY raised up enclosure.

 

[Cheryl Hills]

Good Morning All,

I am new to the forum, and I have started to research the Russian Tortoise for a life time family member. Unfortunately, my husband and I are not handy woodworkers, but the homes I see on the forum are fabulous. As an alternative would it be possible to use a large vegetable table with wheels to house our friend? We understand the lining process, substrate, plants, food, water dishes needed as well as lighting.
Our other question is for the bathing process, is there any special water we should use, bottled, etc.,

I know we will have more questions as we move along the process, our goal is to have our set up prior to bringing our new family member home. Of course, we are debating do we rescue a tort from the local pet store, or work with Turtle Town in NJ for a captive raised tort. We live in Delaware and found this location to be the best rated.

Our experience with exotics is only our 3 hermit crabs we have had for over 10 years, and a new found salamander, Sally in our basement. We also have our vet on standby for any health concerns she will need to assist us with.
Thank you all for your help and suggestions.

Please be careful. Tortoise Town does not have the best rating for torts. We have a tortoise vender review section and there are a lot of bad reports coming out of there, of torts dying and such. You would be better off getting one from someone here on our forum. We have several breeders. Just a warning. Hope this helps

 

[Yvonne G]

Welcome!

 

[cdr]

Thank you all for the wonderful welcome. I like the idea of the vegetable table, and thank you for the specifics of the size, we knew it needed to be large, but this is confirmation. I will also check on the forum for breeders, just a little concerned regarding shipping to us rather than picking up. We would like to avoid as much stress for the tort as possible. We once thought we wanted a pair, but after researching, not a great idea. This weekend will be our set up project, wish us luck.

 

[RosemaryDW]

Welcome! Any water is fine for soaking, just regular tap water.

I have a raised vegetable bed (no wheels, darnit!) and the construction (liner and such) seem good to me. I would expect the walls to be too low, however; mine certainly are. You would have to build them up higher and also cap the corners; Russians are absolute escape artists.

This enclosure built by Tom is pretty simple and will give you an idea of the necessary height. His is screened in because he’s got small tortoises in there who might be eaten by predators outside. You won’t need this with an indoor table. https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/easy-inexpensive-portable-but-safe-outdoor-baby-enclosures.30683/

 

[cdr]

Thank you!
The information is very helpful, and glad we can use regular tap water.

Glad you have experience with a vegetable table, I will double check to make sure the walls are tall enough. I am enjoying the forum, there is so much good information!

Thank you again for the quick response.

 

[Tom]

Good tips from previous posters!

Here is what I just found on a forum search in our vendor reviews. I would not buy from them:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/tortoise-town.145811/#post-1491618

I have bought russians from @Carol S and @kanalomele and highly recommend both of them. There are other good breeders here who start their babies right, but I have not bought from them directly.

Read this for some info, so you know what question to ask a prospective breeder: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-incubate-eggs-and-start-hatchlings.124266/
Most breeders start babies too dry. I would not buy from a breeder who houses them outdoors all day, on dry substrate indoors, or doesn't soak daily. Dehydration is a major killer of baby tortoises of all species.

 

[cdr]

Thank you!
I saw the most recent posts on Tortoise Town and immediately moved on. Thank you for confirming. I am trying to reach Carol S, she seems to be well liked and has a great reputation. I don't tweet but will start my search for her now.

Thank you all for everything!!!!