New Tort

[Derby]

Hello,
My name is Brody and I now own a beautiful Russian tortoise named Derby :]. I'm not sure of his/her age or sex, so I'd like someone to help me out with that. (though I do believe Derby is about a year or two old).
I previously owned a Redfoot tortoise, but he died shortly after I got him due to his previous living conditions.

I have made an outdoor enclosure for Derby. It is a 5x6 fenced enclosure. Inside of it, I have a mound of dirt (incase it rains and Derby needs higher ground), a large broken pot, a shallow dish for water, and quite a bit of timothy hay. I do live in South Florida so it gets pretty hot, but half of the enclosure is shaded mid-day. In the morning, it's completely shaded, and towards the afternoon, it's generally full sun.

So far, I am feeding Derby some green leaf lettuce, romaine, and radicchio. I have heard they need calcium, so I was considering buying a calcium powder, but a friend said their tortoise used a cuttlebone, so I decided to try it?


Does anyone have any suggestions on something I should be doing differently? Thanks

 

[Derby]

he looks like a male cuz he tail is to the one side.

Thanks :] I'm really hoping he's a male.

 

[travisgn]

I really like the name Derby. And the use of the top of a plastic tote for water is very resourceful.

The only suggestion I would have is trying out some additional hides. That pot is very big and might not feel secure. If he's a committed burrower he might never use the hides, especially with plenty of hay and dirt available, but I like having options. Mine has a log hide, a small pot hide and a section of his table enclosed in wood, and he only rarely uses any of them, preferring to burrow instead.

And I hope the fencing is nice and secure both above and below ground.

 

[Derby]

I really like the name Derby. And the use of the top of a plastic tote for water is very resourceful.

The only suggestion I would have is trying out some additional hides. That pot is very big and might not feel secure. If he's a committed burrower he might never use the hides, especially with plenty of hay and dirt available, but I like having options. Mine has a log hide, a small pot hide and a section of his table enclosed in wood, and he only rarely uses any of them, preferring to burrow instead.

And I hope the fencing is nice and secure both above and below ground.

I'll definitely try out some different hides, thanks. And the fencing is very secure above ground and goes into the ground about an inch and a half, which I'm hoping is enough. So far, he's only tried to go through the fence, not underneath it.

:]

 

[madiekins]

Congrats. on the new tort. He looks like he'll be happy in the home you made for him.

 

[dmmj]

Age will be next to impossible to say simply because unless you know his ( ooks male to me also) hatchdate you simply can't tell. He looks wild caught to me and depnding on the pet store you got him from most sell almost exsclusivly WC. Petsmart and petco = WC and most likely will need a vet visit for a parasite test. Sorry to hear about your RF and welcome to the forum.

 

[Yourlocalpoet]

So far, I am feeding Derby some green leaf lettuce, romaine, and radicchio. I have heard they need calcium, so I was considering buying a calcium powder, but a friend said their tortoise used a cuttlebone, so I decided to try it?

Cuttle bone is fine but I'd recommend buying calcium powder too, my tortoise always ignores the cuttlebone. The madam.
Welcome to TFO.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Brody:

Welcome to the forum!!

I also think you have a male tortoise.

The picture looks like a little princess in her 4-poster canopy bed all draped with gauzey cloth!

 

[Derby]

Cuttle bone is fine but I'd recommend buying calcium powder too, my tortoise always ignores the cuttlebone. The madam.
Welcome to TFO.

OK, I'm going to get a calcium powder then! :] Is a generic brand from Wallgreens alright? Or does it have to be something specific?

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Age will be next to impossible to say simply because unless you know his ( ooks male to me also) hatchdate you simply can't tell. He looks wild caught to me and depnding on the pet store you got him from most sell almost exsclusivly WC. Petsmart and petco = WC and most likely will need a vet visit for a parasite test. Sorry to hear about your RF and welcome to the forum.

I'll be sure to bring him to a vet ASAP. Thanks :]

 

[Yourlocalpoet]

Cuttle bone is fine but I'd recommend buying calcium powder too, my tortoise always ignores the cuttlebone. The madam.
Welcome to TFO.

OK, I'm going to get a calcium powder then! :] Is a generic brand from Wallgreens alright? Or does it have to be something specific?

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I'm not from the US so I'm not familiar with what you have available, I use Nutrobal or Arkvits but you can use pure calcium carbonate powder or even human calcium tablets, the latter will probably be cheaper.

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