Newbie chimming in... Hello eveybody!!

[TPayne12]

Hi, everybody! I am a newbie to this forum - and a newbie at raising a young sulcata... I have a lot of questions, so I've been reading a ton of threads on this forum looking for the answers. So far, the answers I've found have been very helpful... but I can't seem to find anything that reassures me my lil' Sully Sulcata is on target with his growth, (weight and girth). Also, how active should a 1 1/2yr old sulcata be? Mine is out and about in his terrarium approx 30min/day, otherwise, he is sleeping in his hide. Any ideas, suggestions, opinions, comments or points in the right direction?

Sully's home is kept at 95°f - 100°f on the warm side, and 70°f -75°f on the cooler side. I'm using a MedZoo 150w ceramic infrared heat lamp, and a MedZoo UVA/UVB tube light. His light is on a timer, so, from 6:30am to 7:30pm the light is on. Heat is on 'round clock... but I'm wondering if I should be also shutting the heat off at night, as our house is kept at about 70°f at all times. He gets a warm 10-20min bath/soak 3-5 times/week. He has cuttlebone chunks and fresh food and water available to him at all times. Food is a mixture of Timothy, alfalfa, lawn clippings, (no chemicals, fertilizers, etc.) dandelions and Gourmet Tortoise Food. I also sprinkle his food with vitamins 2 times/week. He gets Aloe vera plant and destined prickly pear 2-3 times/month.

He is 1 1/2 - 2yrs old... not sure of exact age at time of purchase. He weighs just under 5oz and is about 3" from head to tail.

I love my lil' Sully Sulcata!! I want him to be happy and healthy - so I need to be sure I'm doing everything right that I can for him.

 

[BILBO-03]

Hi and Welcome!

 

[wellington]

Hello and Wdlcome. You need a proper substrate, coconut coir is my fave. You need to keep temps at 80 day and night with only the basking spot being 95-100, this is with a humidity of 80%. The diet seems good, how often do you give warm water soaks? Every day or every other is needed, 20-30 minutes, warm water the whole time. You also need to take out some decorations and give more walking room. These changes are needed asap

 

[Yvonne G]

Welcome to the Forum, Tara!

It will be almost impossible to have the proper humidity that the tortoise needs with carpet. Besides that, the tortoise needs substrate he can dig into. I like about 4 or 5" of substrate. Then I pour water over it and mix it up with my hand to get it evenly moistened. I also cover the habitat to keep the warm, moist air inside.

 

[Speedy-1]

Hi and welcome Tara . You have been given good advice ! If your CHE was on a thermostat set at 80 with the probe on the coolest side , it would turn off and on as needed , so that it would never drop below 80 !

 

[TPayne12]

Hello and Wdlcome. You need a proper substrate, coconut coir is my fave. You need to keep temps at 80 day and night with only the basking spot being 95-100, this is with a humidity of 80%. The diet seems good, how often do you give warm water soaks? Every day or every other is needed, 20-30 minutes, warm water the whole time. You also need to take out some decorations and give more walking room. These changes are needed asap

Thank you! I truly appreciate the help!

...Removing some of the décor immediately...

The temps might take a couple days to get dialed in just right, but I'll get them where they need to be!

He gets a soak almost everyday, but if I miss a day, he for sure gets one the next day! I wasn't sure about the humidity - I know it's a must, but now I know the correct percentage I need to keep it at, (I'm sure the coconut coir will help with that, a little...Any suggestions on the best place to get it from?).

 

[TPayne12]

Hi and welcome Tara . You have been given good advice ! If your CHE was on a thermostat set at 80 with the probe on the coolest side , it would turn off and on as needed , so that it would never drop below 80 !

Fantastic suggestion! I don't know why I hadn't thought of it before... we use one in our hen house in the winter, to keep them from freezing! Thank you!

 

[TPayne12]

Welcome to the Forum, Tara!

It will be almost impossible to have the proper humidity that the tortoise needs with carpet. Besides that, the tortoise needs substrate he can dig into. I like about 4 or 5" of substrate. Then I pour water over it and mix it up with my hand to get it evenly moistened. I also cover the habitat to keep the warm, moist air inside.

Thank you! I'm going to try the coconut coir that was suggested. Is that what you use, too? Where would you suggest I get the substrate from??

I have a glass cover, however, I won't be able to fully enclose it, because of the UVA/UVB tube lighting, as well as the heat/basking elements - half a top is better than none, though, I suppose.

 

[wellington]

I look online for my coir.

 

[saginawhxc]

It's one of the few things I buy from the pet store. Petsmart and Pets Plus both have a three brick value pack for like $12.

 

[Mortis_thetortoise]

would anyone else agree that is tiny for a year.5 ?

 

[kalei01]

Welcome to the Forum, Tara!

It will be almost impossible to have the proper humidity that the tortoise needs with carpet. Besides that, the tortoise needs substrate he can dig into. I like about 4 or 5" of substrate. Then I pour water over it and mix it up with my hand to get it evenly moistened. I also cover the habitat to keep the warm, moist air inside.

is it better to own more than one tor toilet at the time if so can you mix sulcata and leopard or better to do 2 sulcatas

 

[cmacusa3]

is it better to own more than one tor toilet at the time if so can you mix sulcata and leopard or better to do 2 sulcatas

No you shouldn't mix species and no 2 is not a good idea

It's also better to learn how to care for one and wait until you've gotten the hang of it before getting another and it should be kept in a separate enclosure

 

[Tom]

is it better to own more than one tor toilet at the time if so can you mix sulcata and leopard or better to do 2 sulcatas

Species should never be mixed and tortoises should not be kept in pairs.

 

[Tom]

would anyone else agree that is tiny for a year.5 ?

Its a little on the small side, but not unexpected for a dry started baby. I wouldn't call it "tiny". I've seen 3 year olds that were less than 100 grams. Now that would be tiny.

 

[Tom]

Hi, everybody! I am a newbie to this forum - and a newbie at raising a young sulcata... I have a lot of questions, so I've been reading a ton of threads on this forum looking for the answers. So far, the answers I've found have been very helpful... but I can't seem to find anything that reassures me my lil' Sully Sulcata is on target with his growth, (weight and girth). Also, how active should a 1 1/2yr old sulcata be? Mine is out and about in his terrarium approx 30min/day, otherwise, he is sleeping in his hide. Any ideas, suggestions, opinions, comments or points in the right direction?

Sully's home is kept at 95°f - 100°f on the warm side, and 70°f -75°f on the cooler side. I'm using a MedZoo 150w ceramic infrared heat lamp, and a MedZoo UVA/UVB tube light. His light is on a timer, so, from 6:30am to 7:30pm the light is on. Heat is on 'round clock... but I'm wondering if I should be also shutting the heat off at night, as our house is kept at about 70°f at all times. He gets a warm 10-20min bath/soak 3-5 times/week. He has cuttlebone chunks and fresh food and water available to him at all times. Food is a mixture of Timothy, alfalfa, lawn clippings, (no chemicals, fertilizers, etc.) dandelions and Gourmet Tortoise Food. I also sprinkle his food with vitamins 2 times/week. He gets Aloe vera plant and destined prickly pear 2-3 times/month.

He is 1 1/2 - 2yrs old... not sure of exact age at time of purchase. He weighs just under 5oz and is about 3" from head to tail.

I love my lil' Sully Sulcata!! I want him to be happy and healthy - so I need to be sure I'm doing everything right that I can for him.

Give these a read though to see what is different from your set-up.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

Over all, I think things are good, but it looks like you need a bigger enclosure, and warm cool side and night temps.

This species does not need a night time cold down like the Mediterranean species do.

I don't like coir for this species. I find it too messy. I prefer fine grade orchid bark. It can be bought in bulk at a garden center.

 

[cmacusa3]

would anyone else agree that is tiny for a year.5 ?

It says 1 1/2 to 2 year old in the original post


"He is 1 1/2 - 2yrs old... not sure of exact age at time of purchase. He weighs just under 5oz and is about 3" from head to tail."

 

[Bee62]

Hello Tara,

the enclosure of your sulcata looks great for human eyes, but not for tortoise eyes.
I mean the decorations look fine to me and you, but your tort needs other things.
Sulcatas needs a lot of space to wander around. They are very curious and active.
If your tort is so inactive, I think he or she is bored by his surrounding.

How big is the enclosure of your tort ? It seems to me much too small.

Think of a natural habitat with gras and small hills to climb on. With soil to dig in.
With the right warmth and humidity.
If you change these things, I bet with you that your sulcata will be more active.

 

[kalei01]

Hello Tara,

the enclosure of your sulcata looks great for human eyes, but not for tortoise eyes.
I mean the decorations look fine to me and you, but your tort needs other things.
Sulcatas needs a lot of space to wander around. They are very curious and active.
If your tort is so inactive, I think he or she is bored by his surrounding.

How big is the enclosure of your tort ? It seems to me much too small.

Think of a natural habitat with gras and small hills to climb on. With soil to dig in.
With the right warmth and humidity.
If you change these things, I bet with you that your sulcata will be more active.

good point think I might try that as well when is a good time to move from a terrarium or reptile tank to a tortoise table I know the open top will cut out heat and humidity so kind of wandering if too early other wise I probably could build a lid for the table where half of it is the screen top for lighting/heat

 

[Mortis_thetortoise]

It says 1 1/2 to 2 year old in the original post


"He is 1 1/2 - 2yrs old... not sure of exact age at time of purchase. He weighs just under 5oz and is about 3" from head to tail."

yeahhh i when i seen 5oz hes not that tiny, sorry about that.