New sulcata owner! Would like advice

[sabnic]

Hello everyone. 5 weeks ago I got my cousins sulcata turtle, we changed his name to perry. Anyways, perry is 5 years old and he got pneumonia when he was about 2. The vet did tell my cousin his shell would grow abnormal from it. I think it's relatively cool looking, but am worried as to if it's from the pneumonia or this "pyramiding" I'm hearing about. She has had him kept in a 50 gallon tank with a heat lamp. Not knowing much about these tortoises I've been doing the same. However he does go outside for hours at a time to roam. And he roams around my house as we'll. usually I keep him in the tank over night. Is there something different I should be doing? He seems happy over all. I do live in Pennsylvania as well..so I'm worried once I move him outside ...what should I do about housing over the cold months which are about October to April. Can people who have sulcatas post pictures of their outdoor winter homes ? I'd love any input, but please keep in mind I am new to this and I'm reaching out for help, and new ways. Please do not criticize, or be rude!

 

[mainey34]

Hello and welcome.. you are right to come here for help and advise. His shell is pyramided from lack of calcium and D3. Along with dry conditions. The vet did not say that he has MBD? Right now you are doing some very good things by, taking him outdoors, letting him get exercise. Is he getting sunlight outside? And what are you feeding him? Do you let him have access to water at all times?

 

[mike taylor]

A sulcata that size needs a big outdoor enclosure for summer.
A tank inside is not big enough for him. I would build him a enclosure in your garage or maybe a tool shed that can be heated . Here is what I use for winter in the pictures below. A must read is the threads at the top of the sulcata section pay attention to Tom's threads .

 

[Sulcata_Sandy]

That is indeed pyramiding, and sadly it's from chronic dehydration as a baby....i.e. No moisture, no humidity, overall inappropriate housing for a baby. As you are quickly finding out, it's not all that simple to raise these guys. Thankfully adults are much easier, and Perry, with the right food and environment, will not develop any more pyramiding.

He will need a PowerSun to bask under to receive warm UVA/UVB light. There are several other types of UV light, but after reading and using many of them myself, I will only buy a PowerSun. I have four of them. They retail for $60 but you can find them on eBay or Amazon and not pay more than $45-50 or even less. I got one for $20. Make sure you get a brooder lamp at a feed store...they have the ceramic bases and metal guards in case the fall to prevent a fire. If you use anything other than a big brooder fixture, you are possibly going to burn out your expensive PowerSun...as I've already done three times before I bought a bunch of brooders.

I'd soak him in warm water twice a week, or more often if you can to help hydrate him.
And yes, the tank is way too small. For a few laughs, and hopefully some practical info on living with a large tortoise over the winter, check out this thread .....

http://tortoiseforum.org/thread-81012.html


I admit I have a lot to learn, but I am doing my best, and I offer info and ideas, with lots of pictures.
If it's warm enough in your area, you should keep him outdoors with a warm hide for cool nights. They like to dig and explore, as they are intelligent and curious reptiles.

 

[sabnic]

Thanks for the responses everyone! It's very helpful! I knew he would be a bit if work in the beginning, but I just love him so much. He does have a basking light with the shield . And a UVB light, I actually just had to buy a new one bc I dropped the other fixture and it broke, yay for me! He does get light outside. He just wonders all over, pretty quick too ! I feed him romaine lettuce. And I pick the grass from outside as we'll. he loves the clovers. Before we got him my fiancé and I were planning on getting our yard treated due to all the weeds, but perry takes a liking too then so we will keep the weedy yard for his liking he does soak in the tub 2-3 times a week, not his favorite thing to do. And since he has had the pneumonia every time I feed him I sprinkle a vitamin d supplement on his food. My house has the original wood floors so I'm just afraid of him getting chilly from the floors, but he maintains his body temp rather well, every time I pick him up he is still warm. Maybe I'm just being a worry wart. I do have this build in closet type space in my living room, I got a tension rodand just hung a curtain there and made it a coat closet...bit I was thinking about making that his new basking area for the night and then he can always just be wondering. I love that he free roams my home, it's cute. And I know it's better then the tank. But my cousin always had him in the tank bc her dogs would bat him around and try to play with him. I did read that once the pyramiding happens, it's none reversible ..is this true ?

 

[Tom]

A few things:
Pneumonia does not cause pyramiding. Growth in conditions that are too dry does.

Pyramiding is not reversible, but new growth can be corrected with the right conditions.

Roaming loose on the floor is an accident waiting to happen for a variety of reasons. He needs a large properly heated indoor enclosure for cold days and nights, and a large outdoor enclosure for nice weather.

Romaine is not a good food. The weeds and grass outside are ideal though. If you must use grocery store foods, favor endive and escarole most heavily, but also use, turnip, mustard and collard greens. Mix in kale, cilantro, carrot tops and any other leafy greens in smaller amounts. Spineless opuntia cactus pads, Mazuri tortoise chow, and ZooMed tortoise chow are good additions too.

Vitamins only need to be given once a week or so. Calcium powder is good twice a week for most situations. If you give it too often it can cause problems. Hypervitaminosis, or in the case of calcium, it can interfere with the absorption of other important nutrients and trace elements.

 

[sabnic]

@tom you are the first to say about his free roaming being bad. I don't have chords and stuff for him to get into. He never seems cold when I pick him up, I just don't like the thought of keeping him contained. I've seen a lot of healthy torts sobs owners say they just free roam, as long as he as a space to get warm that's not okay ? And romaine I read was okay, so I'll keep up the outside weeds, as well as trying to add kale in vs the romaine.

 

[Tom]

When you think of keeping him "contained" you are thinking of his little glass tank. I am envisioning "containment" in a room sized heated enclosure with substrate, hide boxes, a water dish, plants, etc...

Many tortoises have been killed or injured from letting them free roam in the house. They will eat just about anything they happen to find, they can be stepped on, hit by doors, and yes it's too cold, unless you somehow keep your floors in the 80s and offer a basking spot. We have a member named Maggie who suggests you take off all your clothes and lay naked on your floor for a few minutes to discover just how cool it really is. Or I suppose you could just use a temp gun. letting them run loose on the floor is a really good way to bring back that respiratory infection too.

Romaine is not harmful, but it lacks nutrition and fiber. They sure eat it like candy though. You might need to chop up mother new stuff in small amounts and mix it in with chopped up romaine to get him to eat it. This might takes weeks or months.

 

[sabnic]

@tom I guess that's a good way to look at it. My floors defiantly aren't 80 degrees. I wish. But I could keep him in the living room and put a doggy gate up and convert the closet to area with heat and boxes. Right ? Feelings in that ? Or could you post pictures if your indoor home? I live in PA so I know once he's moved outside that the home will need to be insulated and warm. Winter can get cold here.

 

[Tom]

I don't know how to keep a giant tropical tortoise over winter in the frozen north. I wouldn't even attempt it myself. Others should advise you on that. Basically you will need to maintain a large area with tropical temps 24/7.

Down here, I just move mine outside when they hit about 8-10", and provide them with a heated box for cool days and nights. They are able to sun themselves and run around their large outdoor enclosures all year long.

We have lots of members in climates similar to yours. I would PM a few of them and ask what they do.

 

[morloch]

Hi sabnic!! I am from Canada and here we have crappy cold winters! I would not recommend keeping a large tortoise normally under these conditions!. However,, I'm doing it and only because I love my tort , I'm selfish, and very patient with lots of free time to kill! Lol. Morloch is out spring, when it's warm enough,all summer,, and still a little now. Winter he stays indoors in our house. He gets free roam when supervised and when not, he has half a room to himself. There he can bask , eat , pee and poop. However, right now his favourite is the shoe closet! I love my tort and bend over backwards for him!! So if your ready for all of that, go for it! But it's not for everyone!! [SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES][SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES][SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES]
Best of luck!!

 

[erica anne]

Good for you for being dedicated to giving Perry a great life! It is obvious you love him already.[WHITE SMILING FACE] Getting them set up properly can be a bit of work but once you figure that out it is pretty smooth sailing. Looks like you are already getting some good advice!

 

[sabnic]

Hi sabnic!! I am from Canada and here we have crappy cold winters! I would not recommend keeping a large tortoise normally under these conditions!. However,, I'm doing it and only because I love my tort , I'm selfish, and very patient with lots of free time to kill! Lol. Morloch is out spring, when it's warm enough,all summer,, and still a little now. Winter he stays indoors in our house. He gets free roam when supervised and when not, he has half a room to himself. There he can bask , eat , pee and poop. However, right now his favourite is the shoe closet! I love my tort and bend over backwards for him!! So if your ready for all of that, go for it! But it's not for everyone!! [SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES][SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES][SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES]
Best of luck!!

thank you for your great feed back! i do work full time but i am more then willing to bend over backwards for perry! hes great, and so fun. i plan on making him a great outside house for the spring/summer months! i think that i will keep him to the living room while i am gone and just move his warm place to the built in wall closet. its close to an outlet for me to plug into! i know he loves to roam, and i want him to have that luxury after 5 years are staying in a tank. can you show pictures of your outside enclosure?

 

[morloch]

Sounds like a great idea! , they are definately worth it!!. Mine also likes a cardboard box that he likes to ram into or just hide in it. Be creative and give them things to see and do!! Morloch loves obstacles to climb. And at this age there are not to many worries about flipping over!

 

[Sulcata_Sandy]

Did you check out my thread on Oliver? [GRINNING FACE WITH SMILING EYES]
Until I get moved, I have no choice but to keep him indoors.
The house is carpeted, and kept at 75° because I'm a wimp, and I have show Basenjis and one of them likes to sprout fuzzies over the winter, and looks silly.

Feel free to PM me, you can also email me, check out my Webpage www.oregontortoiserescue.org and you can email me from there. I'd love to chat and share experiences!!!! I don't have kids or a husband, so I'm a 41 year old nerd. [SMILING FACE WITH SMILING EYES][GROWING HEART][TURTLE]

 

[morloch]

Lol,,, oh geez, your a pro!![SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES][SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES]. And here I am ,, feeling like,,, I just jumped off the plane,, and my parachute is a knapsack!!! [SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES]

 

[sabnic]

Lol,,, oh geez, your a pro!![SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES][SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES]. And here I am ,, feeling like,,, I just jumped off the plane,, and my parachute is a knapsack!!! [SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES]

I'm sure you're talking about sandy, bc I'm jumping off a plane with a boulder as my chute ! Lol

 

[Sulcata_Sandy]

Hahaha....that's pretty funny, especially considering I am a commercial helicopter pilot and we've done parachute jumps....which I am a pilot...I don't jump out of perfectly good aircraft. [GRINNING FACE WITH SMILING EYES]

Anyway, I am no expert....if you were indeed referring to me. But I have a lifetime of working professionally with animals, I'm a quick study, have excellent resources both here and at work with experienced reptile and wildlife DVMs. And I'm sorta ballsy and I just jump in...as you are doing.

Ask those tough questions, expect criticism and some mix answers. What you need to do is listen, learn, and pick what works for YOU, and observe your animal.

 

[morloch]

I couldn't agree more!!! Ditto. [GRINNING FACE WITH SMILING EYES][SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH AND SMILING EYES]