New to all this

[Lauratyler25]

Good morning, My name is Laura.

I have no idea if Forums work but will give it a go. I am a new Tortoise owner and new to using Forums so patients is appreciated

A rather generous uncle bought my children their Christmas presents early, My little boys present was ,,, wait for it a ...Tortoise. It was dropped off on Saturday in a box with minimal information.! I do not have a clue what to do.!

I realise that clueless armature’s must post messages like this all the time and people must get fed up of answering the messages but any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.

What I know so far.
We think the tortoise is a girl?
2 year old Russian Tortoise? ( so I’m told)

Surprised at
how friendly the little thing is and likes a rub on her shell.

We have so far been told conflicting information that I really don’t know where to start so thought i would list a few points and if anyone can tell me yay or nay that might be a start.

Do not hibernate your tortoise until it’s at least five years old?

Do not let your children handle the tortoise if they are under 9 years old, they carry salmonella.

Do not feed young tortoises the pellets you soak with water, it’s like feeding a baby mc Donald’s?

Do not give a two year old tortoise lettuce?

The place it came from was a breeder, now she keeps her tortoises in doors during winter, some hibernate some don’t. she has a tortoise garden in the summer. BUT NEVER has had a light on them????

Is a bulb/light essential?

Gosh that’s rather a lot of questions to start with so will see where that gets me.

Many thanks in advance for any advice/ information

Laura
UK
Coventry

 

[Spn785]

Welcome to the Forum! If you post pictures of the shell from directly above and the plastron (the bottom) someone on the forum will be able to tell you what species and sub species it is, but it may still be too young to tell the sex. You should not brumate (hibernate) your tortoise the first year it is with you, but waiting until they are 5 is not necessary, but it also isn't necessary to brumate your tortoise at all. Tortoises sometimes do carry salmonella, but if you make sure the child waashes their hands afterward, there shouldn't be a problem. Recently there was a few cases of salmonella that were attributed to tortoises, and if I'm not mistaken it turned out to be from peanut butter. There are plenty of pellets (like Mazuri) that are great for young tortoises and you should soak them in water to soften them up when they are very young, but pellets should only supplement a diet, they should not be the main part of the diet. It depends on what kind of lettuce you want to give. Iceberg lettuce has no nutrients and should not be given to tortoises, but Kale, Romaine (only a little) and others are okay, the dark leafy greens are best. Your tortoises definitely needs at least a basking light, and unless it spends time outside everyday, it will need a UVB light. You can get a Mercury Vapor Bulb (MVB) and that will work for both basking and UVB. Also don't worry about asking any questions, this Forum is to help anyone and everyone learn about tortoise care, and it is definitely better to ask the questions than to do something wrong. Now some questions for you. First is what size is your tort? What size container do you have it in? What type of bedding are you using? Do you have something to measure them temps? You need to know a few different temps, basking, cool-side (opposite from the basking area), and night-time. I would also check out www.russiantortoise.net. Post some pictures of everything if you can, and keep us updated! Others will come along with more advice.

 

[Lauratyler25]

Spn785

Brilliant! Thank you for the quick reply, already you have helped me lots.
Er not sure how big will measure and post pictures on here later when I get in from work. ( how do I add pictures? lol)
I shall also purchase a bulb on the way home. Thank you for that.
At the moment he/she is in a very large box with hay at the bottom, some tunnels, hiding place etc. My father in law is making what I can only describe as a very large draw type thing for him/her. It is about 6ft by 6ft so going to do in the conservatory. I have read to add play sand in there and tunnels and rocks etc. Then planning on tort proofing an area of the garden when the weather is better and creating like an outdoor rockery area. ?? Again any advice or tips is welcome. To be honest it seems happy strolling around the living room exploring or sitting having its head petted! Did not realise how affectionate a tortoise can be, which sounds weird I now.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Laura and welcome to the Forum!

 

[Spn785]

Hi again! I would suggest using topsoil/sand mixture, 2/3 topsoil and 1/3 play sand, but this is debated and some will suggest orchid or cypress mulch, coconut coir is a good substrate too, but I would suggest getting rid of the hay. Having plenty of rocks and tunnels is a good idea, just make sure there is no way the tortoise can escape, because Russians are great escape artists, someone told me that if you have a 100acre enclosure they will still go out of their way to try and get out. LOL But 6ft x 6ft is certainly big enough, the absolute minimum it should be is 4ft x 4ft.

 

[cherylim]

Hi Laura,

Welcome. I'm also in the UK. Sounds like your tortoise is going to have a nice big enclosure! A lot of people would recommend against using play sand, as it can cause health issues if swallowed. Homebase do a great organic topsoil, which is what I use (it's in their '4 for the price of 3' range) and it's cheap but Emrys loves it. We experimented with a few different substrates from pet shops, but we discovered that plain old garden centre soil was better for all involved. If you do go to Homebase, their terracotta dishes also make great water bowls for your tortoise and are just a few £s.

Regarding pellets, Spn765 mentioned Mazuri above. Unfortunately, we can't get that in England. There's loads of speculation as to why. Apparently, tortoises love Mazuri. The best alternative we have is Zoo Med pellets but I'd recommend just buying a very small tub if you're trying them out. Emrys absolutely hates the things. Also, a cuttlefish bone should be included for calcium - powder it and put it over your tortoise's food, or put it in whole. Not all tortoises will eat the cuttlefish unless it's put on their food, but Emrys likes nothing more than taking big bites out of his!

 

[mainey34]

Hello and welcome...here is a care sheet that may help...
http://russiantortoise.net/

 

[Lauratyler25]

Hi Laura,

Welcome. I'm also in the UK. Sounds like your tortoise is going to have a nice big enclosure! A lot of people would recommend against using play sand, as it can cause health issues if swallowed. Homebase do a great organic topsoil, which is what I use (it's in their '4 for the price of 3' range) and it's cheap but Emrys loves it. We experimented with a few different substrates from pet shops, but we discovered that plain old garden centre soil was better for all involved. If you do go to Homebase, their terracotta dishes also make great water bowls for your tortoise and are just a few £s.

Regarding pellets, Spn765 mentioned Mazuri above. Unfortunately, we can't get that in England. There's loads of speculation as to why. Apparently, tortoises love Mazuri. The best alternative we have is Zoo Med pellets but I'd recommend just buying a very small tub if you're trying them out. Emrys absolutely hates the things. Also, a cuttlefish bone should be included for calcium - powder it and put it over your tortoise's food, or put it in whole. Not all tortoises will eat the cuttlefish unless it's put on their food, but Emrys likes nothing more than taking big bites out of his!

Oh brilliant thanks for that! i will get down to home base Thank you for clarifying about the pellets was looking on line and was starting to wonder where to get them from. Have found the zoo pellets.
Cuttlefish, wow who would have thought, am i right in thinking that's the same a budgies eat?

I am struggling with what lights to get and where in the UK to purchase them from? went to a reptile shop but the bulb the guy recommended ( a man over heard and told me it was way to strong?) so left empty handed :-(

 

[Lauratyler25]

Hello and welcome...here is a care sheet that may help...
http://russiantortoise.net/

Thank you

 

[mattgrizzlybear]

Welcome!

 

[cherylim]

Oh brilliant thanks for that! i will get down to home base Thank you for clarifying about the pellets was looking on line and was starting to wonder where to get them from. Have found the zoo pellets.
Cuttlefish, wow who would have thought, am i right in thinking that's the same a budgies eat?

I am struggling with what lights to get and where in the UK to purchase them from? went to a reptile shop but the bulb the guy recommended ( a man over heard and told me it was way to strong?) so left empty handed :-(

Yep, cuttlefish the same as a budgie eats. As for bulbs, I've always used (and been very happy with) this Arcadia D3:

http://www.surreypetsupplies.co.uk/arcadia-d3-uv-basking-lamp-100w.html

If you do get that, scroll down to the bottom of the page where you'll see some 'related items'. You need the 'Arcadia Reflector Dome Clamp Lamp 200mm' that's listed there, too. I buy a new bulb at the start of winter, so that it's brand new when it's needed the most. Over time they stop being as effective, which will happen in the summer when I can get Emrys outside most days, and then as winter starts he gets a replacement bulb for the new year.

 

[luvpetz27]

Hi and welcome!
You are lucky you found this forum! I have learned so much from here!
Everyone is very helpful!!