- Joined
- Jul 28, 2012
- Messages
- 2
My love and I just brought home a baby Sulcata today, and have affectionately named him (or her) Gandalf.
We unwisely did this before doing much research, and so we have already made mistakes, no doubt. But we want to raise a healthy and happy tortoise, and am willing to do anything to make sure we do it the right way. There is so much conflicting information out there, and we need help to make sure we do the right things to take care of little Gandalf. (And yes, before you mention it, we know very well that he will grow very big, and be very expensive, and we are willing to learn as we go and do whatever we need to-make a much larger enclosure, etc.- as he grows. Getting him was a huge commitment.)
We're from Missouri, and we found him in a local pet store. He was in a small glass cage with a couple of Redfoots and a Leopard. The bottom was covered with grass pellets and a bit of mulch, and they were munching on some lettuce. There was no hiding spot, but a heat bulb was above them.
The lady at the store urged us to get grass pellet for the bottom, and a rather expensive heat bulb contraption. She told us that we should feed him dark greens, veggies, and fruit, as well as soak him every two weeks. She also said that his temperature should stay between 85-90 degrees. So, the setup consisted of this: a 20 gallon aquarium we already own, grass pellets, a bit of spinach, a little tree thing (without the fake leaves) and a box he could hide in, with a lamp placed on the top of the cage to keep him warm. We soon after began to question her judgement, as the lamp brought his temperature up to about 100 degrees. He was cowering inside the tiny box, poor thing! So, what else was she wrong about?
We have since gone to a different store to get Gandalf a nice half-log he could hide under. He crawled right under it and fell asleep. Today must have worn him out! We also got a heating pad to place under his cage, to keep him warm. As well as a different light bulb with a lower wattage.
What temperature is he supposed to be, really? And what can I put his water in? I'm scared of his getting stuck in there, or drowning! He's only about 3", a little tiny baby. What should we really put in there, and what and how much should we feed him? What's the best way to keep him warm, and how often and how do I soak him? We're so concerned about him, and want him to be happy. We're already making plans about a bigger aquarium, probably 50 gallons. Would that be okay, and for how long?
Bless you if you bothered reading this. We're such concerned new parents, and we want our little Gandalf to be happy and healthy.
We unwisely did this before doing much research, and so we have already made mistakes, no doubt. But we want to raise a healthy and happy tortoise, and am willing to do anything to make sure we do it the right way. There is so much conflicting information out there, and we need help to make sure we do the right things to take care of little Gandalf. (And yes, before you mention it, we know very well that he will grow very big, and be very expensive, and we are willing to learn as we go and do whatever we need to-make a much larger enclosure, etc.- as he grows. Getting him was a huge commitment.)
We're from Missouri, and we found him in a local pet store. He was in a small glass cage with a couple of Redfoots and a Leopard. The bottom was covered with grass pellets and a bit of mulch, and they were munching on some lettuce. There was no hiding spot, but a heat bulb was above them.
The lady at the store urged us to get grass pellet for the bottom, and a rather expensive heat bulb contraption. She told us that we should feed him dark greens, veggies, and fruit, as well as soak him every two weeks. She also said that his temperature should stay between 85-90 degrees. So, the setup consisted of this: a 20 gallon aquarium we already own, grass pellets, a bit of spinach, a little tree thing (without the fake leaves) and a box he could hide in, with a lamp placed on the top of the cage to keep him warm. We soon after began to question her judgement, as the lamp brought his temperature up to about 100 degrees. He was cowering inside the tiny box, poor thing! So, what else was she wrong about?
We have since gone to a different store to get Gandalf a nice half-log he could hide under. He crawled right under it and fell asleep. Today must have worn him out! We also got a heating pad to place under his cage, to keep him warm. As well as a different light bulb with a lower wattage.
What temperature is he supposed to be, really? And what can I put his water in? I'm scared of his getting stuck in there, or drowning! He's only about 3", a little tiny baby. What should we really put in there, and what and how much should we feed him? What's the best way to keep him warm, and how often and how do I soak him? We're so concerned about him, and want him to be happy. We're already making plans about a bigger aquarium, probably 50 gallons. Would that be okay, and for how long?
Bless you if you bothered reading this. We're such concerned new parents, and we want our little Gandalf to be happy and healthy.
. First thing get rid of the substrate the pet store sold you. Read the threads at the bottom of my post. They give you a great way to raise your sulcata to be healthy and smooth. You will need a UVB light, not the coil kind. Lots of us like the MVB (mercury vapor bulb) it gives heat, light and UVB. the flourescent is fine too, does not give heat. You will also need a Che(ceramic heat emitter) for night time heat. A good heat and humidity gauge would be very helpful. The round puck like kind are not very accurate. A varied diet of weeds, flowers, greens and Mazuri tortoise diet. Most of us like the soaking every day in warm water for 20-30 minutes. Keep him warm while soaking. Basking temps should be 95-100, all over temps and night time temps should not be below 80 with a humidity of 80 or more. Keeping humidity will ve easier if you cover at least have the enclosure. Get him outside for some good sunshine everyday that the temps permit. Good luck, it's not as hard as it might sound.
