Newbie here

[BradyCardia Salmonella]

Hi, my name is Sue and I am a proud tortoise parent of an almost one year old sulcata named BradyCardia Salmonella. Well that's his long name, my family and I call him Brady for short. BradyCardia means slow heart and well he is a reptile that can carry Salmonella. His initials BS fits the name of my cat, WTF....there is a story there. Both pets are loved and treated well. I look forward to reading more about properly caring for my little future trust fund baby.

Sue

 

[TechnoCheese]

Welcome! Please give these a read and come back with questions-
How To Raise A Healthy Sulcata Or Leopard, Version 2.0 https://tortoiseforum.org/index.php...ealthy-Sulcata-Or-Leopard,-Version-2.0.79895/

For Those Who Have a Young Sulcata... https://tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/For-Those-Who-Have-a-Young-Sulcata....76744/

Beginner Mistakes https://tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/Beginner-Mistakes.45180/

Could we see a picture of your enclosure?

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Sue, and welcome to the Forum!

Love Brady's name, and the "selfie" he posted!

 

[EllieMay]

Hi, my name is Sue and I am a proud tortoise parent of an almost one year old sulcata named BradyCardia Salmonella. Well that's his long name, my family and I call him Brady for short. BradyCardia means slow heart and well he is a reptile that can carry Salmonella. His initials BS fits the name of my cat, WTF....there is a story there. Both pets are loved and treated well. I look forward to reading more about properly caring for my little future trust fund baby.

Sue View attachment 246752

I think you have wonderful pet names!!! [emoji23]

 

[EllieMay]

Welcome!!! How much does Brady weigh as an almost 1 yr old? Have you had him since a hatchling?? Cute pic!

 

[BradyCardia Salmonella]

Welcome! Please give these a read and come back with questions-
How To Raise A Healthy Sulcata Or Leopard, Version 2.0 https://tortoiseforum.org/index.php...ealthy-Sulcata-Or-Leopard,-Version-2.0.79895/

For Those Who Have a Young Sulcata... https://tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/For-Those-Who-Have-a-Young-Sulcata....76744/

Beginner Mistakes https://tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/Beginner-Mistakes.45180/

Could we see a picture of your enclosure?

Alright, I need to clean his enclosure soon but attached are some pictures. If u have a suggestion on substrate I'm open to a change, since I have to go to the store to get some new stuff anyways. I live in Phoenix Arizona.
I use orchard bark and some Timothy hay. I threw in the hay this last time around due to buying some stuff I thought he would eat....I was wrong....I was wrong on a lot of things I thought he would eat...I have a small bail of orchard grass, he won't even touch.
I read about the humidity needing to be in his enclosure, the vet advised against it since he already had some bottom shell problems due to water exposure.
I used to soak him everyday when I first got him, but after the vet visit I soak him every two to three days. He has fresh water available in his cage.
I love the little dude and will make changes if needed.
He gets about an hour every other day of supervised exercise in the living room.
Thanks in advance for any advice.
Sue

 

[BradyCardia Salmonella]

Welcome!!! How much does Brady weigh as an almost 1 yr old? Have you had him since a hatchling?? Cute pic!

I don't know weight, but his shell is 5 inches long. I bought him October 17th last year at a pet store in Phoenix, Az. I can never go back to that pet store again though, since the baby salcatas are all in one aquarium with no hides, no fresh water, on rabbit pellets. The first one I picked had a scute coming loose. Then I picked Brady. He has a cute little extra scute on the back of his shell.
I will take a picture later today of it.

 

[EllieMay]

He’s handsome!

 

[BradyCardia Salmonella]

He’s handsome!

Thank you! I adore him and send pictures to all my friends. It's gotten to the point one of my friends stated he has seen more pictures of Brady than of me in the last year.

 

[RosemaryDW]

Welcome!

 

[TriciaStringer]

He is so cute. Love your pics.

 

[Tom]

Hello and welcome.

• I don't see any water damage on the plastron, and I'm wondering what that was all about? It is extremely rare to see shell rot on sulcatas, even when they are living in wet swampy conditions. They need warm, damp, humid conditions as babies.
• The hour on the floor of your living space should stop immediately. Many of them get injured, impacted or killed this way, and every single time the person is closely supervising and is sure that everything would be safe. It isn't safe and it frequently ends in disaster. Most people get defensive or insulted at this point. Please don't. I only have your tortoises well being in mind and I don't want to see yet another preventable disaster. Make the indoor cage large enough to meet the tortoise's exercise needs and make a large safe outdoor enclosure for fair weather. In your area, he might be able to get a couple hours outside in the morning before it gets too hot. In spring, fall and your "winter" he can probably spend a lot more time outside when the temperatures are less extreme.
• Those ZooMed tortoise houses are no good for any species of any age. You can't maintain the correct conditions in them due to the open top. Damp substrate will leak and cause them to rot, and they are much too small for a tortoise the size of yours.
• In the last few years we've learned that mercury vapor bulbs are not a good way to go for tortoises any more. There is a list of reasons why: Too expensive, too fragile, too unreliable, at least some of them stop producing any UV after 3 months, and most importantly, they excessively dry out the carapace and cause pyramiding.
• The orchid bark you are using is good, but you need a 4-5 inch layer of it, and it needs to be damp. Spraying water on top won't work. You'll need to regularly dump water into it to keep it damp. This won't work in the current enclosure.
• Hay is for older tortoises. I don't bother with it until they move outside full time and reach about 10-12". At that time, I put a bed of the grass hay on their feeding tray, and put their food on top of the hay. Usually within a couple of weeks, they start eating the hay. I prefer orchard grass hay or bermuda hay. Timothy is too stemmy. Dry hay mixed with damp substrate will also mold.
• I only see the one bulb in your pics, and no mention of night heat or UV. There are four elements to heating and lighting:
  
  1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt floods from the hardware store. I run them on a timer and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. You can use smaller or larger wattage bulbs to help you get the desired temperature under them too.
  2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for this tropical species. If your room temp is 80 or higher 24/7/365, then you don't need this.
  3. Light. I use florescent tubes for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most tubes at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. If the room where the enclosure sits if well lit, and the tortoises behavior is normal, you don't "need" this, but it doesn't hurt.
  4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. If you want it anyway, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height.

Give these a read through for more information and please come back with lots of questions.
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/