- Joined
- Jul 25, 2012
- Messages
- 77
I have a huge terrarium and love my Sulcatas. When my first Sulcata grew out of it and moved outside, I was incredibly excited to raise my next baby. Of course, I wanted the best deal. So I did my "bargain hunting" and found a guy on Craigslist selling his babies for only $40 each. That was my mistake. I should habe forked out the extra $20 for a reliable person that knew what they were doing. It was such a waste. After $400 of wasted vet bills, Ive learned the hard way. Tom, maybe you can add this to your list of "things you learned the hard way so we dont have to"
When I went to buy one from this guy, I was shocked to hear that he kept all of his sulcatas in his back yard, and simply fed them once a day. They dug their own holes for shelter, and the eggs incubated naturally. They received no vitamins, no humidity,no incubation, nothing. I never got to see what the adults looked like, and when I asked for a picture he didn't reply. That's Craigslist for you. They were probably horrifyingly pyramided.
All of the babies had weird patterned shells, many were cracked, there were tons of extra scutes; something I had never seen in Sulcata hatchlings.
Still, I ended up buying 2 from him, quantity over quality was my mindset: i picked through his huge selection of about 50 babies and picked out the least deformed ones.
one died a couple weeks later after an expensive vet trip (that's on another thread somewhere) and he was kind enough to "replace" it with another at "half price".
I just said goodbye to that "replacement" last week. He seemed healthy, but one morning I found him completely limp. I have absolutely no idea what could have happened; he was heavy, eating, pooing and active.
The other, last remaining baby tortoise has been sick for ages. I've been nursing him back to health for ages. Last week I was expecting to lose him, which is why losing his brother came as such a shock. Fortunately, I tried an "electrolyte" soak that I found the recipe for on here, and it may have saved his life. He's opened his eyes and started eating for the first time in weeks. I thought he was at least going to be blind; but he's recovered miraculously from his downfall.
Just for those wondering, he is in large terrarium with 40-80% humidity, 80-100 degrees. I feed him Mazuri, grass and lettuce. He's shown no interest in Mazuri this week, but he's been eating grass.
When his brother died, I threw out the cypress mulch that id been keeping them on and they're now on reptile carpet. I know many people say that it's not the best: but my tortoise has no interest in burrowing, he's perfectly content sleeping in his food dish, and I feel like having a mulch, dirt, bark substrate is a breeding ground for too many things, like bugs, diseases, etc. I can keep it clean much easier. I keep a humidifier turned up at all times, and he soaks daily, so I feel that the repti-carpet will suffice. That's what I kept my older sully on for 3 years, and he's thriving.
Just thought I'd share my experiences with everyone. When you're tortoise shopping, do it on here. Go to someone reputable. Look for quality. Don't let a budget allow you to settle. Don't settle. I should have walked away from that guy when I saw them, but I'm a sucker. I'm a sucker for cute disabled torts, and I'm a sucker for a good deal. And now I've had all my money and a whole lot of energy sucked out of me.
Tomorrow, I'm getting a real, healthy, beautiful baby Sulcata from a local breeder that I found here on TFO. (Don't worry, Sicky is in a hospital tank, and they will likely be separated indefinitely in case of diseases)
When I lost my second sulcata baby, I was heart broken and extremely angry: at myself. When I accepted the responsibility of bringing home baby tortoises, I had the obligation of keeping them alive and well. But I failed, and I still feel miserable for it. But I've come to realize that I've done all that I can, and I'm still doing my best. I love my tortoises. I do a lot more than the Craigslist guy, but it just wasn't enough to beat the odds. At least I'm trying, and I'm doing my research.
Sicky, alive and well, contemplating whether he wants to eat some Mazuri, or just sleep on top of it. (He later chose the latter).
When I went to buy one from this guy, I was shocked to hear that he kept all of his sulcatas in his back yard, and simply fed them once a day. They dug their own holes for shelter, and the eggs incubated naturally. They received no vitamins, no humidity,no incubation, nothing. I never got to see what the adults looked like, and when I asked for a picture he didn't reply. That's Craigslist for you. They were probably horrifyingly pyramided.
All of the babies had weird patterned shells, many were cracked, there were tons of extra scutes; something I had never seen in Sulcata hatchlings.
Still, I ended up buying 2 from him, quantity over quality was my mindset: i picked through his huge selection of about 50 babies and picked out the least deformed ones.
one died a couple weeks later after an expensive vet trip (that's on another thread somewhere) and he was kind enough to "replace" it with another at "half price".
I just said goodbye to that "replacement" last week. He seemed healthy, but one morning I found him completely limp. I have absolutely no idea what could have happened; he was heavy, eating, pooing and active.
The other, last remaining baby tortoise has been sick for ages. I've been nursing him back to health for ages. Last week I was expecting to lose him, which is why losing his brother came as such a shock. Fortunately, I tried an "electrolyte" soak that I found the recipe for on here, and it may have saved his life. He's opened his eyes and started eating for the first time in weeks. I thought he was at least going to be blind; but he's recovered miraculously from his downfall.
Just for those wondering, he is in large terrarium with 40-80% humidity, 80-100 degrees. I feed him Mazuri, grass and lettuce. He's shown no interest in Mazuri this week, but he's been eating grass.
When his brother died, I threw out the cypress mulch that id been keeping them on and they're now on reptile carpet. I know many people say that it's not the best: but my tortoise has no interest in burrowing, he's perfectly content sleeping in his food dish, and I feel like having a mulch, dirt, bark substrate is a breeding ground for too many things, like bugs, diseases, etc. I can keep it clean much easier. I keep a humidifier turned up at all times, and he soaks daily, so I feel that the repti-carpet will suffice. That's what I kept my older sully on for 3 years, and he's thriving.
Just thought I'd share my experiences with everyone. When you're tortoise shopping, do it on here. Go to someone reputable. Look for quality. Don't let a budget allow you to settle. Don't settle. I should have walked away from that guy when I saw them, but I'm a sucker. I'm a sucker for cute disabled torts, and I'm a sucker for a good deal. And now I've had all my money and a whole lot of energy sucked out of me.
Tomorrow, I'm getting a real, healthy, beautiful baby Sulcata from a local breeder that I found here on TFO. (Don't worry, Sicky is in a hospital tank, and they will likely be separated indefinitely in case of diseases)
When I lost my second sulcata baby, I was heart broken and extremely angry: at myself. When I accepted the responsibility of bringing home baby tortoises, I had the obligation of keeping them alive and well. But I failed, and I still feel miserable for it. But I've come to realize that I've done all that I can, and I'm still doing my best. I love my tortoises. I do a lot more than the Craigslist guy, but it just wasn't enough to beat the odds. At least I'm trying, and I'm doing my research.
Sicky, alive and well, contemplating whether he wants to eat some Mazuri, or just sleep on top of it. (He later chose the latter).
