Hi! Soon to be Hermann Tortoise owner! I have a lot of questions!

mushroomandcucumber

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Hi, soon I will be welcoming a baby Hermann tortoise! I'm really excited because I've never owned a tortoise before even though I've wanted to ever since I was a child

However, I have a lot of questions that I'm struggling to find answers for, and I would greatly appreciate any help you could give me!

1. What temperature should the water be that they are bathed in?
2. How much food should I give to a baby tortoise?
3. I've heard that humidity is important in order to prevent pyramiding, but I've also heard that since Hermann tortoises are more of a desert species, they don't need so much humidity? What should the humidity be?
4. Is Tortoise Terrain from Pets at Home (UK) any good?

I'm sure I will have many more, but I would be grateful for any help with these for a start!

Thank you!
 

Bee62

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Hi, soon I will be welcoming a baby Hermann tortoise! I'm really excited because I've never owned a tortoise before even though I've wanted to ever since I was a child

However, I have a lot of questions that I'm struggling to find answers for, and I would greatly appreciate any help you could give me!

1. What temperature should the water be that they are bathed in?
2. How much food should I give to a baby tortoise?
3. I've heard that humidity is important in order to prevent pyramiding, but I've also heard that since Hermann tortoises are more of a desert species, they don't need so much humidity? What should the humidity be?
4. Is Tortoise Terrain from Pets at Home (UK) any good?

I'm sure I will have many more, but I would be grateful for any help with these for a start!

Thank you!
Hello and a very warm welcome to the forum.
Congrats that you soon get your baby tort. To answer your questions:
1. The temps of the soaking water should be around 30 C. Put your hand in the water. The water should be comfortable warm but not hot. It is important that the water stays warm during the soak.
2. Give a baby tortoise so much food that there is always a little bit left in the evening. You can`t overfeed a growing tort. Feed enough that the baby is fed every day.
3. Hermann tortoises are no desert tortoises ! They need humidity as well as other tort species to stay healthy. Humidity in the enclosure should be around 65 %.
4. What is tortoise terrain ? I don`t know that.

Can you please post pictures of the enclosure that you have for your tort baby ?
 

mushroomandcucumber

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Hello and a very warm welcome to the forum.
Congrats that you soon get your baby tort. To answer your questions:
1. The temps of the soaking water should be around 30 C. Put your hand in the water. The water should be comfortable warm but not hot. It is important that the water stays warm during the soak.
2. Give a baby tortoise so much food that there is always a little bit left in the evening. You can`t overfeed a growing tort. Feed enough that the baby is fed every day.
3. Hermann tortoises are no desert tortoises ! They need humidity as well as other tort species to stay healthy. Humidity in the enclosure should be around 65 %.
4. What is tortoise terrain ? I don`t know that.

Can you please post pictures of the enclosure that you have for your tort baby ?

Thank you so much for replying and answering my questions! I feel so much more confident now :) I haven't got the set up ready yet because I am waiting for a few parts to arrive but hopefully everything should be here and ready soon and I will definitely post some pictures up then :) I won't be picking him/her up for a few weeks so I have plenty of time to gather everything together :)

Again, thank you so much :)
 

Bambam1989

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Thank you so much for replying and answering my questions! I feel so much more confident now :) I haven't got the set up ready yet because I am waiting for a few parts to arrive but hopefully everything should be here and ready soon and I will definitely post some pictures up then :) I won't be picking him/her up for a few weeks so I have plenty of time to gather everything together :)

Again, thank you so much :)
It's always good to have your enclosure setup and running for several days so that you can monitor temps and humidity before getting your tort. Once he/she arrives it will be very stressed and a stable home will help it relax faster.
Once your setup, we will happily look it over to see if there are any potential problems.
 

RosemaryDW

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Welcome, can’t wait to see pictures!

Here is the forum thread on raising Russian babies; it can be used for Hermann’s as well: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/b...or-other-herbivorous-tortoise-species.107734/

If it’s the type of Tortoise Terrain that has bits of limestone or sand in it, do not buy it; babies can ingest the sand and eventually get an impaction. If it’s “plain” brown stuff, it’s probably just coco coir or small grade orchid bark, both of which you can find for far less at a nursery/plant store. They are both fine substrates.
 

mushroomandcucumber

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Welcome, can’t wait to see pictures!

Here is the forum thread on raising Russian babies; it can be used for Hermann’s as well: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/b...or-other-herbivorous-tortoise-species.107734/

If it’s the type of Tortoise Terrain that has bits of limestone or sand in it, do not buy it; babies can ingest the sand and eventually get an impaction. If it’s “plain” brown stuff, it’s probably just coco coir or small grade orchid bark, both of which you can find for far less at a nursery/plant store. They are both fine substrates.
Awesome! Thank you so much!
 

Bee62

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I am looking forward to see your enclosure and your tort baby too. We all here are addicted to tortoise pics !:D
 

mushroomandcucumber

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I have another question..
I've set up my tortoise table, and the basking temperature seems to be around 29-3C. Is this ok? The humidity seems to be quite high too, 60-80%? Could I see some pictures of your indoor tortoise set ups so I can get an idea of what mine should be like?
 

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