New Tort owner needs Support

[IRISHD15]

Hi all,
This is Sheldon, my 3yr old spurthigh tortoise (adopted in december 2011 from a friend)

I'm hoping some of u good people can steer me in the right direction because alot of info online seems to contradict itself from site to site......

My main concern right now is his Diet and enclosure.....
I went to a local pet superstore (whose advice i dont trust) to buy stuff when i first got him.
As a substrate they advised Repti Bark and the light which i picked up online for half the price is called Solar-Glo , in the same corner as the light theres a heat-mat underneat.

His diet consists mainly of Lettuce (not iceberg), cabbage, rocket and sometimes dandelion from the garden which he seems to love.
Petshop also said he loves blueberry and to let him have this once a month.

I have very little knowledge of these guys but im learning, i kept snakes in the past but they were easy compared to this....seems theres ALOT of bad information out there re proper tort care...

1 of the pics shows an area of my garden i dug and reseeded which im hoping to create a tortoise area...I'm in Ireland so due to weather/temps i presume i'll be heavily restricted in the amount of time he can spend outdoors but i'd still like to give him some time in the sun when weather permits.

I have some really good local access to garden stores but i have no idea what to plant ? Advice much needed here.
Another thing i've been trying to figure is what substrate i should use (indoor and out) for a burrowing area ? He always tries to burrow in his enclosure but i dont hav enough depth in there right now but want to fix this by adding something.
The bark in his enclosure dries out pretty quick and becomes dusty, will this cause him breathing issues ?

I have lots of questions but i think this post is long enough (sorry) :shy:

All and any advice, comments or criticism will be warmly welcomed

Thanks,
Dave.

 

[yoda3106]

Here's our outdoor enclosure

 

[JoesMum]

can I start by suggesting you read Tom's Beginner Mistakes it contains much information that will be useful to you.

How big is the enclosure and how long is your tortoise? The floor space looks very small for your tort. generally you should make a tortoise table as big as possible - they like to roam.

Your tort needs shelter. Somewhere to escape prying eyes and snooze. Some plants that he can browse and hide under would be good too. Look up plants on The Tortoise Table database (link below)

You appear to only have a heat lamp. Your tort needs UVB either in artificial or natural (i.e. sunlight form) to help him process the calcium necessary for healthy bone and shell growth. If he's not going outside regularly, you need to incorporate a UVB lamp in your enclosure. Lighting (both basking and UVB should be on for 12-14 hours per day) and then it should be dark for sleeping. Use a timer if you can.

A piece of cuttlebone is very cheap and your tort can gnaw on that to help with beak maintenance and the calcium is a boost for him.

His diet should be mostly leafy green weeds which provide vitamins, minerals and most importantly fibre. These can be supplemented by salads and green vegetables from the shop - look up which ones are good to feed on The Tortoise Table Plant Database

Don't feed fruit... your tort will love it, but his body can't process the sugars and its not good for him.

Sterilised soil from a garden centre makes a good substrate. It's easy to keep moist and oesn't throw up dust.

 

[wellington]

WELCOME . Substrate-I like coconut coir for indoor. Outside, you can use plain dirt, just make sure there is no chemicals, fertilizers, etc. in it. His diet should consist of a more varied diet. Very little lettuce if any. Dark greens, weeds, etc. Check out the "tortoisetable.org" for safe edible plants. That is to start. I will let the more experienced with your species fill in any blanks.

 

[IRISHD15]

Thanks very much guys !!
I've been checking back for the last 2 days but out on the main threads page it shows me that this thread has 0 replies so i never clicked in to see...my bad

Sheldon is 13cm long (jus measured) and his enclosure is 100cm x 55cm....He's already let me know its not big enough by always scratching and trying to climb the walls , so I let him out now and then to let him explore but i never leave him unattended and was unsure if the cold laminate flooring would be doing him harm so he usually only gets about 30mins or so....He could be given alot more roaming time but is it safe to let him loose in a room ?

As for the lamp....Yes i do have concerns about it too,
heres what the box says....

'The Exo Terra Solar Glo Sun Simulating Lamp is the solution to one of the most important aspects of keeping reptiles and amphibians, providing the benefits of natural sunlight. The proper balance of ultraviolet light (including UVA and UVB), visual light and infrared light (heat) in one easy-to-install bulb makes the Exo Terra Solar Glo the choice of professional breeders. The Solar Glo is a full spectrum light with carefully tuned peaks to ensure appetite, activity, brilliant colours, and calcium absorption through Vitamin D3 production, and above all to prevent metabolic bone disease.'

I'm thinking even if this is all true its still limited to the 1 corner that i have the light in, so to try compensate i've been carrying the enclosure out to the garden during any sunny spells but i still feel its not enough.

The cuttlebone sounds like a good idea, i'll try source some asap.

He also gets calcium supplement with his food (advised by petshop), its called 'Komodo calcium supplement for herbivores' [LINK]

I also picked up a bag of coco fibre from a garden store and added some to his enclosure but ive since found out on here that the included perlite in the mix is bad so i'll be swapping it out for a sterile topsoil with no additives.

Thanks again and i'm gonna read them links you posted.

 

[yoda3106]

Did you get my inbox message??

 

[IRISHD15]

Yes...after i figured out i had an inbox lol

Just replied

 

[yoda3106]

Here's the winter pen

 

[JoesMum]

If you are looking for cuttlebone, go to the Budgie section of your nearest petshop... They are very cheap.

Your table sounds too small in all honesty. It could do with a floor area double what you have at a minimum

 

[IRISHD15]

Thanks JoesMum !!
That plant database is very useful,, was able to get a list of plants from it and to my surprise they had alot available here locally
Am sure this little guy will have a ball when he eventually gets out to the garden but will look at getting him a bigger indoor enclosure too.

Thats a nice looking enclosure yoda but you mentioned about hibernation,, is that something these torts must do ?
I've read very little so far about hibernation because i was told torts kept indoors didnt need to but maybe this was bad info, i'll start researching what i can on here.

thanks again,
Dave.

 

[JoesMum]

Hibernation is optional. Some of us with old guys have done it every year because that was what you always did with Testudo torts. Others will argue vehemently against doing so. It's not something I'd advise with a very small tortoise. You have to be certain that your tortoise has put on weight through the summer before attempting it... and for for first hibernations, I'd only do it for 4 weeks max... but you'd be better off investigating it other threads (there are loads) than discussing it in this one.

Joe didn't hibernate last winter because he got ill and didn't put on weight. Assuming all goes well, he'll be back in his box this winter. It's less stressful for both of us. A 10.5 inch tortoise used to roaming free in a garden isn't used to being held captive in a 'tortoise table' even if it does measure 5' x 6' ... it's just not big enough for him.