Baby Eastern Hermann Enclosure

• ExoTerra Pro Medium Low (24" x 18" x 12")
• 2x ExoTerra ReptiSoil Bags (I understand soil isn't recommended for tortoises)
• Some Coconut Chips we've spread into the soil to help him gain some footing
• 24" ReptiSun T5 HO Hood with Bulb
• Flukers 75w Basking Bulb (With Dome and Ceramic Holder)
• Hide
• Cuttlebone
• Basking Rocks
• Wheat Grass Plants
• Little Drift Wood Log

COmtnLady said:

Welcome to The Forum!

So many sources elsewhere repeat the old info that only had one-size-fits-all, marginally acceptable, outcomes. The expert members here have discovered much better ways, through hands-on experiences and controlled studies over the last thirty or forty years.

For your own peace of mind don't listen to the "advice" given by other sources (like: pet shops, social media sites, people at reptile shows, official sources - eg: many government and university links, many of the YouTube videos, lots of the care books you can borrow from a library or buy, and even most veterinarians). They're still using old info that doesn't work as well. Settle in here instead.

Ask questions, become part of this community. Everyone will do their best to help you help your tortoise have the most optimal and healthy life possible.

Before I go any farther, this is really important ~
Remove the moss. It can cause intestinal blockages. The old ways of keeping recommended it, but people here have discovered it to cause problems that can kill a tortoise. Never use sand, moss, or soil in an enclosure - all are health hazards. Coco Coir (not Coco Fiber), Orchid Bark (also called Fir Bark) or Cypress Mulch are far superior and safer.

Put more foil to cover the open area around the light. Crimp the foil to edge of the light's bell/shade and completely seal the top closed. Unless you completely enclose everything (lights included) inside a tent-like cover, this is the next-best way to make it work. Unless you seal the top tightly you will constantly have a hard time keeping the heat and humidity inside. Think about heating your own house in winter without a roof, or with only a quarter or half of the roof. Even tiny openings will act like chimneys and vent away the heat and humidity into the rest of the room.

Don't worry about your tortoise running out of air. EVERY time you open the enclosure to feed, soak, just talk to your tortoise, or to take a peek at, there is a HUGE exchange of air. Think of the size of your tort's lungs, and the several cubic feet of air in the enclosure. Running out of air is not even a consideration.

Have you had a chance to read this yet?

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...

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Every species of tortoise needs to be in a very warm (mid-80sF) and humid (also mid 80%) or higher enclosure for the first two or three years of life to thrive.

Here are some threads you may want to read through:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

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Housing young Russian/Herman

Hello there! In this thread, I’m going to include some information on an effective way to tackle a starter set up/a way you can build a bigger size once your baby is an adult. I know it looks a lot to go over, I like to make sure all bases are covered, I’m happy to break down any information...

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Common keeping errors

Hello everyone! I’d been a long time lurker on this site long before joining just under a year ago now, over that time I’ve seen these husbandry issues come up time and time again, sometimes with dire consequences☹️ I thought this thread might serve as a good visual guide for these common...

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Housing adult Russian and Hermans indoors

Hello there! In this thread I’m going to include some information an example of an appropriate indoor set up for an older Herman/russian. As much as it’s encouraged to have tortoises in a safe outdoor enclosure, I understand being from the uk myself, that some climates make it difficult to...

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Ask questions. We're here to help.


Welcome aboard!


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Shrime said:

Thanks you so much for your advice I have took the moss out and I’ll try and replace the soil ASAP. Tonight I’ll do as you’ve suggested with the tin foil. I really appreciate it!

I’ll take a look through all of your articles after work today!

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Shrime said:

So in one of the articles it says for UV to be set for 4hrs does that only apply if they go outdoors or also if they live indoors as well?

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Tom said:

That is for indoors. If they are going outside regularly, they don't really "need" indoor UV at all. We make that recommendation because of how UV from the sun works outside each day. There is no UV at all in the morning light or the late evening. UV levels build slowly as the morning progresses and peak mid day. The UV levels are only high for a few hours mid day, and then fade away back to zero in the afternoon and evening. Having mid day levels of UV for 12+ hours a day makes no sense, and it is certainly unnatural.

Because of all of the above, it is necessary to have bright LEDs in the correct color spectrum to keep the enclosure looking bright and "sunny" even when the UV tube is not on. Your UV tube is not for lighting. It is for UV. Use lights for lighting.

Coco chips, and the fiber that came with it in your batch isn't great. Coco coir, without all the hair like fibers, is great for baby Testudo. Having your lights outside and on top will create a chimney effect that draws your heat and humidity up and out into the room. This will dry out your substrate, whatever substrate you use, and this is why it's best to use a large closed chamber of one sort or another for housing baby tortoises. Adult Testudo can be housed in open topped enclosures once they are mostly grown, and as long as the room conditions are suitable for what the tortoise needs.

There is no harm in leaving the wheat grass in, but Testudo are generally not grass eaters. Just letting you know. This doesn't mean he won't nibble on it in an indoor enclosure, but this species does not "need" grass in the diet.

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Shrime said:

I see! Thank you so much Tim. I’ll change the timer to be 4hrs and see about getting a suitable LED for daylight simulation in that case.

I’ll also remove the coconut chips.

I’m wondering if I’m able to get silicone mats and cut them to size to cover the mesh if that would be a suitable solution for the heat and moisture escaping?

Click to expand...

Shrime said:

I see! Thank you so much Tim. I’ll change the timer to be 4hrs and see about getting a suitable LED for daylight simulation in that case.

I’ll also remove the coconut chips.

I’m wondering if I’m able to get silicone mats and cut them to size to cover the mesh if that would be a suitable solution for the heat and moisture escaping?

Click to expand...

Visual inspiration

Hi guys! I’ve had some lovely messages complimenting me on my care sheets I made for all the visuals they include! That makes me so happy because as a visual learner myself, that was my goal🥰 I’ve recently had some requests for some more visual inspiration for set ups that can house babies/...

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