New Owner of Baby Aldabra Tortoise

[Smith.Tyler]

Hey all, so this past weekend a got a baby Aldabra at Daytona. It is currently 3 1/2 inches and 149 grams. I have been doing as much research as I can, but still am left with some questions. Really looking to take the best care of it as I can so here are some questions I have. First off, diet, I know variety is key so what is some good staple food that I can feed it, and what are some good occasional foods/treats. Secondly, I currently have it in a zoomed wood tortoise house. I was wondering what I should keep the humidity levels at since I can't find a clear answer online, also wondering whats a good basking area temperature and whats a good cool/hide area temperature. I also am currently soaking for about 20 minutes daily before feeding. Lastly, I was wondering about growth rate, unsure of exact age right now but I know for sure he is a baby, I am wondering what a good growth rate for it would be, currently planning and weighing and measuring weekly.

Thanks in advance for the help!

I attached a link below to a video on imgur of my Aldabra taking a stroll in the front yard

My Aldabra Stroll In Grass

 

[wellington]

That tortoise house you have him in is way too small.
He needs room to roam as he will be big and heavy and needs to build muscle and strength.
Humidity should be 80%
Basking temp 95-100
Over all temp should be 80 day and night.
Diet should be grass, mulberry leaves, hibiscus leaf and flower, cactus pads, mazuri tortoise food. Grocery greens can be arugula, ridicchio, spring mix with little to no spinach.

 

[Smith.Tyler]

That tortoise house you have him in is way too small.
He needs room to roam as he will be big and heavy and needs to build muscle and strength.
Humidity should be 80%
Basking temp 95-100
Over all temp should be 80 day and night.
Diet should be grass, mulberry leaves, hibiscus leaf and flower, cactus pads, mazuri tortoise food. Grocery greens can be arugula, ridicchio, spring mix with little to no spinach.

Thanks for the advice, in regard to the tortoise house what do you think I should keep him in then. What size enclosure should he be in at this size. Thanks!

 

[wellington]

I would have to say at least a 4x8 foot. With a hide, food dish, clay water saucer big enough to get into, that should be good for a year maybe. I believe a new hatchling group was kept in a 4x4 or 4x5. I would get a pop up greenhouse to house him in. I think you can get a 3x8 or 3x10 maybe 3x12. This would give the closed chamber.

 

[wellington]

One like this and just reinforce the bottom portion and add a tarp for the floor under the substrate.

 

[Smith.Tyler]

I would have to say at least a 4x8 foot. With a hide, food dish, clay water saucer big enough to get into, that should be good for a year maybe. I believe a new hatchling group was kept in a 4x4 or 4x5. I would get a pop up greenhouse to house him in. I think you can get a 3x8 or 3x10 maybe 3x12. This would give the closed chamber.

Do you have any good recommendations for brand wise for greenhouses, also do you know of any that have flooring, or do you have any recommendation for flooring, since I'm inside.

 

[Smith.Tyler]

One like this and just reinforce the bottom portion and add a tarp for the floor under the substrate.
View attachment 360667

just saw this after my last comment, ill look into this now. Is there a way to secure the tarp that you know of?

 

[Smith.Tyler]

also since it would be indoors how would you recommend mounting/placing the UVB light

 

[wellington]

also since it would be indoors how would you recommend mounting/placing the UVB light

I used one like this for my leopards. I was able to hang lights from the frame. If needed, which I did, I tied a piece of rope from one side of the frame to the other side and then hung lights/heat from the rope.

 

[wellington]

I think there are a few with floors but I think they are the bigger/taller ones.

 

[dd33]

You should keep him indoors for the first year or so. I would guess that you could move him outdoors permanently late spring/early summer next year. If you start him off inside now it should help his growth start out nice and smooth. It must be a closed chamber type enclosure though, the humidity in our houses is WAY too low for them and they will pyramid very badly if you keep them in an open top enclosure.
As far as size goes, 2x8 will be big enough until he is ready to move outside. Bigger wouldn't hurt if you have room and can find an enclosure that size.

Overall temperature should be 80 or more. Humidity at least 80%. They don't really need a basking area, just overall warm temperatures. You will need a UV light for him when he is indoors. Our Aldabras have always been very shy, he should have some stuff to hide behind and a "cave" of sorts to retreat into completely.

Diet is critical for these guys. Don't get in the habit of feeding him bad things. At this size I would feed hibiscus leaves, weeds, vines, cactus pads and limited amounts of Mazuri LS and Zoo Med Forest Tortoise Diet. You can offer some fresh grass but he might not be crazy about eating it yet. No fruit, no carrots, nothing sugary ever. They can tolerate eating stuff like that when they are bigger but there is no good reason to feed it to them if you have other choices. Hibiscus flowers and cactus pads are appreciated as treats just as much as any fruit.
During the summer when it is easy to find food outside limit the pellets to once a week or so. In winter when weeds are harder to find you can feed it a bit more frequently. As it gets larger you can start to introduce finely chopped Orchard Grass hay. It probably wont be big enough for un-chopped hay for 3 years or so but once you get to that point you are home free and it should make up the majority of his diet other than grass he should be grazing on in the yard.

How much space to you have for him outside? They grow faster than you expect. In 5 years it could be over 100lbs.

 

[wellington]

You should keep him indoors for the first year or so. I would guess that you could move him outdoors permanently late spring/early summer next year. If you start him off inside now it should help his growth start out nice and smooth. It must be a closed chamber type enclosure though, the humidity in our houses is WAY too low for them and they will pyramid very badly if you keep them in an open top enclosure.
As far as size goes, 2x8 will be big enough until he is ready to move outside. Bigger wouldn't hurt if you have room and can find an enclosure that size.

Overall temperature should be 80 or more. Humidity at least 80%. They don't really need a basking area, just overall warm temperatures. You will need a UV light for him when he is indoors. Our Aldabras have always been very shy, he should have some stuff to hide behind and a "cave" of sorts to retreat into completely.

Diet is critical for these guys. Don't get in the habit of feeding him bad things. At this size I would feed hibiscus leaves, weeds, vines, cactus pads and limited amounts of Mazuri LS and Zoo Med Forest Tortoise Diet. You can offer some fresh grass but he might not be crazy about eating it yet. No fruit, no carrots, nothing sugary ever. They can tolerate eating stuff like that when they are bigger but there is no good reason to feed it to them if you have other choices. Hibiscus flowers and cactus pads are appreciated as treats just as much as any fruit.
During the summer when it is easy to find food outside limit the pellets to once a week or so. In winter when weeds are harder to find you can feed it a bit more frequently. As it gets larger you can start to introduce finely chopped Orchard Grass hay. It probably wont be big enough for un-chopped hay for 3 years or so but once you get to that point you are home free and it should make up the majority of his diet other than grass he should be grazing on in the yard.

How much space to you have for him outside? They grow faster than you expect. In 5 years it could be over 100lbs.

They actually do need to bask. Why do you say they don't?
I believe the OP is planning on keeping him inside too. The enclosure they mentioned is one of those horrible tortoise boxes with open top, they are not made for outside use.

 

[Tom]

They actually do need to bask. Why do you say they don't?
I believe the OP is planning on keeping him inside too. The enclosure they mentioned is one of those horrible tortoise boxes with open top, they are not made for outside use.

I love you Barb, but this is way outside your lane. dd33 has more experience with Aldabras in FL than anyone on this forum outside of Aldabraman. I've spent a fair amount of time observing some pretty amazing stuff with raising and housing giant torts in FL, and dd33 is right on, as usual.

 

[Tom]

Hey all, so this past weekend a got a baby Aldabra at Daytona. It is currently 3 1/2 inches and 149 grams. I have been doing as much research as I can, but still am left with some questions. Really looking to take the best care of it as I can so here are some questions I have. First off, diet, I know variety is key so what is some good staple food that I can feed it, and what are some good occasional foods/treats. Secondly, I currently have it in a zoomed wood tortoise house. I was wondering what I should keep the humidity levels at since I can't find a clear answer online, also wondering whats a good basking area temperature and whats a good cool/hide area temperature. I also am currently soaking for about 20 minutes daily before feeding. Lastly, I was wondering about growth rate, unsure of exact age right now but I know for sure he is a baby, I am wondering what a good growth rate for it would be, currently planning and weighing and measuring weekly.

Thanks in advance for the help!

I attached a link below to a video on imgur of my Aldabra taking a stroll in the front yard

My Aldabra Stroll In Grass

You can't get better advice than what dd33 said. He knows what he is talking about from a tremendous amount of first hand experience. It would be very smart of you to tag him whenever you have questions about how to house and care for your tortoise. Congrats on the new baby and I hope we get to see pics as it grows.

 

[dd33]

They actually do need to bask. Why do you say they don't?
I believe the OP is planning on keeping him inside too. The enclosure they mentioned is one of those horrible tortoise boxes with open top, they are not made for outside use.

I would guess that most people think of basking in lizard or snake terms where the animal seeks out a hot spot in the sun to warm up on a cold day. Aldabras haven't evolved to need that, where they come from it doesn't get cold and the sun is deadly. Their entire day is planned around avoiding the sun, the first time they stray too far from cover on a clear day they are dead.

Thats not to say that they won't sit in the sun if they get cold. Larger Aldabras kept outdoors definitely warm up for a bit in the sun when they crawl out of bed in the morning. I think this is only in response to them not having the proper overall temperatures. If it was 80 in the morning they would not do it.

 

[wellington]

I love you Barb, but this is way outside your lane. dd33 has more experience with Aldabras in FL than anyone on this forum outside of Aldabraman. I've spent a fair amount of time observing some pretty amazing stuff with raising and housing giant torts in FL, and dd33 is right on, as usual.

Really, cuz the only thing different was the basking.

 

[wellington]

Maybe @ALDABRAMAN will add is experience, that's who I rely on.

 

[Smith.Tyler]

Let me go farther into detail about my plans etc... I plan to keep him outside once he gets the age/size just since he is small right now he is inside. I ordered the 8x4 greenhouse that was suggested earlier. I have the space for him outside when the time comes but for now I will be moving him into the greenhouse and keeping him inside in that. Since you are local to Florida @dd33 I was wondering where you get or suggest getting hibiscus leaves, weeds, vines, cactus pads, and any other types of food you suggest. Thanks all for the help!

 

[Smith.Tyler]

You can't get better advice than what dd33 said. He knows what he is talking about from a tremendous amount of first hand experience. It would be very smart of you to tag him whenever you have questions about how to house and care for your tortoise. Congrats on the new baby and I hope we get to see pics as it grows.

Thank you, ill definitely keep this thread updated with photos throughout its growth!

 

[dd33]

Let me go farther into detail about my plans etc... I plan to keep him outside once he gets the age/size just since he is small right now he is inside. I ordered the 8x4 greenhouse that was suggested earlier. I have the space for him outside when the time comes but for now I will be moving him into the greenhouse and keeping him inside in that. Since you are local to Florida @dd33 I was wondering where you get or suggest getting hibiscus leaves, weeds, vines, cactus pads, and any other types of food you suggest. Thanks all for the help!

Not to be captain obvious but make sure you don't use that greenhouse outside, it will heat up like a car in the sun and roast him. You are going to need to get a tube UV bulb like an Arcadia Desert 12% T5 bulb and you will probably need several heat sources and thermostats for an enclosure that large.

As far as food sources go, You have to go outside and find it as well as grow some yourself. Plant hibiscus everywhere you can around the house. We have ripped out almost all of our hedges and replaced them with hibiscus. Ask your friends and family to grow it too and have them save the trimmings. I would suggest planting the variegated leaf variety if you can find it, it tends to produce much more foliage than flowers which is what you want.
Weeds are easy too, we can feed anything we find around our property with the exception of Lantana. Use the Picture This app on your phone to see what is growing around you. You can look up the plants on tortoise table or ask here. Usually you can look on the internet and find someone asking if their horse can it it, if it is safe for a horse we usually feed it.
Vines are everywhere. Grapevine and Virginia Creeper smother everything around here.
Spineless Opuntia Cactus pads can be found at your local Mexican/Latin market. You can and should grow them yourself too. Keep an eye out for it when you are driving around, you can always stop and ask if you can have some. Most people are happy to get rid of it and are thrilled to find out you are feeding it to a tortoise. We actually printed flyers that we put in the mailbox of houses that have tons of cactus, we also check Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace for people that want to get rid of it. We need a lot of it though so that is a bit extreme. It is a fantastic food because it lasts for weeks or months.
The pellets can be ordered off Chewy, make sure you get the Mazuri LS type.