From Orange County, Southern California

[WOWitsREAL]

Hey there everyone,

I'm new here. I'm also new (about a week) to raising tortoises. I have two baby sulcatas right now.
From the pictures, they're originally in a 20x10x12 tank. I just moved them into a bigger tank today (24x12x15).
In the old tank, temperatures on the right side were mid to low 90s. I'm not sure about the temperatures on the left though.
The first picture is the girl (I don't actually know if she really is a girl or not, I'm kind of based it on how I felt). I don't have a name for her yet. you can see that she doesn't have much of a spot on her backside (the little areas of the shell?? what are those called?).

The boy (second pictures) does. This is how I tell them apart.

The third pictures is the older enclosure.

The fourth picture is a closeup of the boy, and the fifth is a closeup of the girl.


I have a couple questions concerns;
I have had them for a little less than a week now. I haven't seen them eat!! I see that some of you give them fresh greens. I assumed (wrongly?) that they just eat the orchard grass (which I thought was best for them?).
Also, what is a humid hide? I realize that they need high humidity, and I have already soaked them twice so far. Is it just a cave with a sponge?
Also, any suggestions for anything would be welcomed and greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance for any help.

[wayne.bob]

you have come to the right place to get your questions answered. the proper name for the little places on the outside of the shell is a Nutchel.
you said that you keep your torts in a tank. you probably would want to make a tort table for them.

I'm glad your here, enjoy the Forum
wayne.bob

[Crazy1]

Here are a few links t get you started on Sulcata care first one is for hatchling care.

http://www.chelonia.org/Articles/hatchlingdaily.htm
http://www.chelonia.org/Articles/sulcatacare.htm
http://www.anapsid.org/sulcata.html

I would read these two Posts here at TFO These have some great info on enclosure or habitats.
http://tortoiseforum.org/leopard-doesnt-...463-2.html
http://tortoiseforum.org/enclosures-f-7.html

The area of shell that has the dots in them are called scutes. Here is a link of anatomy of the shell
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?articleid=2700

A humid hide can be a cave like structure with a damp sponge or it could be damp moss to burrow in. Use the search function at the top of the forum page and type in “humid hide”. It will bring up all the post about humid hides. Oh and Sulcatas are from a dryer habitat. They need some humidity but not high humidity.
I’m not sure what type of substrate you have your new shelled babies on but it looks like hay and glass. This gives them little traction and will not wear down their little nails nor will it give them the ability to dig. You might want to look into more hay or use a mixture of coco fiber and play sand or Aspen. I would stay away from alfalfa hay or pellets they are too high in protein.
I have my Sulcata on backyard dirt with orchard grass on top. She loves to dig in and cover herself up even though she has a wooden hide. And she nibbles on the grass. I have some plants in her enclosure and I water them so it does help with the humidity. I would read up on Sulcata care, especially hatchlings. The pet stores are not always the best at telling you what is best for your tort. I’ve given you a lot of info, so I will stop for now so you can digest some of it.
Oh and I almost forgot Welcome to the forum.

[WOWitsREAL]

Crazy1 Wrote:Here are a few links t get you started on Sulcata care first one is for hatchling care.

...

I’m not sure what type of substrate you have your new shelled babies on but it looks like hay and glass. This gives them little traction and will not wear down their little nails nor will it give them the ability to dig.

...

Oh and I almost forgot Welcome to the forum.

Thanks Crazy1 for all the info. I actually do have "Cage Carpet" on the bottom of the tank in the pictures. I am also using it in the new tank as well.

wayne.bob Wrote:you have come to the right place to get your questions answered. the proper name for the little places on the outside of the shell is a Nutchel.
you said that you keep your torts in a tank. you probably would want to make a tort table for them.

I'm glad your here, enjoy the Forum
wayne.bob

Thanks wayne.bob. I actually am thinking about how I could fit a smaller tortoise table in my room. I have the tools and everything, and it would be ideal, but not realistic for me right now. Currently, I do not have room for it in my house (too much stuff in my house). I do have a good sized backyard, but I don't think they're ready to live out there yet...

Thanks for the welcome guys!!

[jenrell23]

Welcome to TFO, If space is a factor you could alsways use a 55gal rubbermaid tub, a large rabbit cage, or a tort table (mine are 5'x2'). For substrate you want to change from the carpet, I keep mine on aspen and they are doing really well. Food: I feed my 6 month olds, a variety of greens and then they always have some orchard grass to chew on if they would like. Make sure when you feed them you put calcium w/ D3 on there food, if you can find one with phosphorus use that. Also use a good multivitamin 3 to 4 times a week, so you can make sure there shells stay hard and they grow. When you soak them put vitasol bird vitamins in the water. I soak mine daily. Make sure you have a good uvb bulb along with the basking bulb. Good Luck with your little ones they are so cute.
Here are a few pics of my enclosures I use, the only one I don't have is the rabbit cage. But they work great.

[CGKeith]

Welcome. There is a lot of great info here to help you out.

[Jacqui]

Hi! Welcome to not only this wonderful site, but to the wonders of tort ownership. You have already gotten some great advice, so I won't add to it. Don't get over whelmed with all the new information. Keep processing it and applying it to your situation. Just keep making changes and improving the habitat your tort calls home step by step.

[WOWitsREAL]

Thanks for the welcomes and the advice!!


-Paul

[josh]

paul, if you dont mind me asking, where in orange county are you from?

[WOWitsREAL]

josh Wrote:paul, if you dont mind me asking, where in orange county are you from?

La Palma, in the middle of Cerritos, Cypress, and Buena Park.

[jlyoncc1]

Welcome to the forum! Sulcatas are my favorite!! I think they really have personality.