substrate confusion for young sulcata

[Kessie]

I just got my 2 Sulcatas a few days ago and I've been online doing quite a bit of research. Hall and Oates are about 4 inches long, so still pretty young.

I'm trying to figure out what the best kind of substrate for them will be. I actually went into a store called Prehistoric Pets today and asked their opinion on the bedding, since they themselves have many different types/sizes of turtles. They guy told me rabbit pellets would be good. I told him that online they recommend grass hay, but he said that since mine are so small it wouldn't be good.

So I went out and bought a bag of rabbit pellets. Before putting it in their enclosure, I decided to double check. What do you know. Some sites say that rabbit pellets are not good for the Sulcatas because it might retain moisture and become moldy, or they might be allergic to it, etc. Other sites say that it is fine.

I am very confused. I don't want to put in anything that might be harmful to them.

Would you guys have suggestions for this newbie?

 

[reptylefreek]

You want a substrate that is going to retain moisture but not mold. How old are Hall and Oats? If they are babies they need a fair amount of humidity for smooth shell growth. Some use soil and sand mixture, some use coconut coir mix. I also hear cypress mulch works really well. I would not recommend rabbit pellets or hay. Though after you get your substrate in you can add hay on top, a little. They like to hide in it.

 

[ChiKat]

Do not use the rabbit pellets. Like Jessica said, you need a substrate that will retain moisture (but not mold) to keep up humidity. Humidity is VERY important for smooth growth.
Many people here recommend cypress mulch. I personally use topsoil/coconut coir and I'm happy with it.

We have a lot of sulcata experts here so I will wait for them to help you out

 

[Scooter]

I use cypress mulch and it works great for me. Then I also have some sphagnum moss inside his hide to help with the humidity.

 

[Kessie]

Thanks for all the help.

I am not sure how old they are. Size-wise they are about 4 inches. I would say that is still pretty young, no?

 

[Maggie Cummings]

As far as rabbits pellets I add to what has already been said, they can cause splay leg. They are hard to walk on and they are bad for the tortoises legs.Splay leg is a condition where the tortoises begin to walk on the inner part of their feet and eventually lose the ability to walk up right. You want something like cypress mulch that gives a good walking surface and you can keep moist to help create humidity which helps prevent pyramiding...

 

[Kessie]

Yikes! The pellets are definitely going back to the store then.

Cypress mulch should be available in places like Home Depot or Lowes, right?

I'll look up the coconut coir as well. Not entirely sure what that is, but i'll go find out.

Thank you so much! I am so glad I decided to double check instead of just pouring in the pellets.

As soon as i get the babies settled I will try to post up pictures.

 

[chadk]

Coconut coir is the only good thing you'll find at the pet store. It comes in bricks that expand when you add water. Mix it with organic top soil and you are set. Then just keep it moist.

Read this:
http://www.sulcata-station.org/pdf/hatchfail.pdf[hr]
And some good threads here:

http://tortoiseforum.org/thread-13370.html

http://tortoiseforum.org/thread-13795.html?highlight=moist

 

[reptylefreek]

Coconut coir you can find in chain pet stores now... when I first looked for cypress mulch at home depot, they didn't have the right kind. It cant have pine or certain other types of wood. Forget which are bad but Im sure someone will pop back on here and tell you. Cant wait for the pix...

 

[Kessie]

Went to Walmart and Home Depot in search for the coconut coir and cypress mulch, but no luck. Will try to hit Petco later.

Out of curiosity, does the availability of these things depend on where you live? I live in Southern California. Wonder if that makes a difference.

Took the little ones out yesterday for a bit of supervised playtime on the grass yesterday. They are so cute when they're munching on the grass blades!