#substrate

Hi Im getting my russian tortoise a 6 foot by 3 foot gardenbed as a enclosure. I need to put this enclosure on a 2nd floor so it can't be heavy. I was thinking all coco coir but I heard it can cause my tortoise irritation and orchid bark is too expensive. Let me know what substrate i should use...

Hi everyone, I’ve been using Reptibark in my tortoise’s enclosure since I first got her (about 4 years now). This year she has been eating the bark, so recently I switched to coco coir thinking it would be safer. Unfortunately, she had a bad reaction. Her eyelids swelled up, and I had to take...

How does everyone feel about the newer substrate from exo terra stone desert? Just saw a video from Garden State Tortoise — and he says it’s one of the closest natural substrates out there for Greeks. Wanted to see if anyone has used it, or had any input. Thanks! 😊

I have 2, 8 year old sulcatas I keep in a large indoor enclosure, but every substrate I come across is been dusty, I tried sand/top soil mixture, coco fiber/forest floor mixture, Even tried orchid bark, that would work, but my one tortoise, thinks it’s food and tries to eat it, I heard hemp...

After reading about the fine orchid bark on here for substrate I went ahead and used that instead of the hay pellets that came with the tortoise table. Turtle the tortoise (Horsefield) seems a lot happier and is out more exploring since the bark was introduced. I posted a photo of the tortoise...

Is this a good cage or whatever u say it for sulcata?? Im using uva exoterra 25 watt, is that ok? or what uva should i use? And what substrate that are good for sulcata? im using coco husk right now And I need help to raise humidity. I always spray the coco husk with water but it didnt raise...

Hi everyone, looking for substrate advice. My 3 month old Hermann’s tortoise recently got a respiratory infection, after a vet examination she also noticed he was a bit dehydrated and recommended me changing his current substrate (coconut fiber, she mentioned it was drying) to damp paper towels...

How often do I have to change my substrate? I have soil, coco coir and some sphagnum moss. I also have live plants, Boston ferns and herbs. Aside from spot cleaning everyday, is there a need to completely change the substrate? I’m not particularly interested in putting bugs in there to make it...

Hi All, I am a newbie member to the forum (in fact its my first time ever posting on any forum!) and to Tortoise ownership in general. We purchased Twig the Horsfield (which I think I am right in saying is aka a Russian tortoise) on 28th April and we think 'he' is approx. 6 months old. I wanted...

hello i have a western Hermann tortoise; in the day time hours the range of humidity in the vivarium is anywhere from 34% to 46%. i think this is a problem as i can see that there is potential pyramiding and i want to prevent this as best as i can, this is my first time looking after a tortoise...

So is pool filter sand safe to use or not? I just spent HOURS rinsing and adding 100 pounds to my tank and then looked at the bag and read the warning so then I spent hours again removing all of it and cleaning everything. BUT everyone says it’s safe to use. I don’t understand.

What substrate should I use for my Eastern Hermann Tortoise? I was using coco fiber but then it got all in his water and now i’m using coco husk and he absolutely loves burrowing in it, but i’m not sure if that’s the best option. Recommendations?

I have been looking around in bahrain for a while and only found UVB lighting in pet shops but other than that I have yet to find any shops locally. Ordering online is incredibly bad, items are either really bad delivery prices (like 3 times the price) or completely out of stock. Does anyone...

Hi! I’m planning on getting a baby sulcata in a couple months and was curious about substrate. I’ve heard that cypress mulch is one of the best things. I also heard you can mix in a bit of soil for added humidity. So I was just wondering peoples opinions! Also, if I go with the cypress mulch can...

Hi guys. I have a 1 year old horse field tort that currently has Coco coir for substrate but we're really struggling with fungus gnats and keeping his table clean I've been recommended herbifloor pellets could any one please advise? He loves to dig and burrow so I wasn't sure if the pellets...

Recommended substrates (from info here) for baby sulcutas are: cypress mulch, coco coir, and orchid bark I have used cypress mulch + soil (50:50) before and noticed my tortoise keep eating the cypress mulch, so then I switched to coco coir + soil (50:50), and then recently my vet said to change...

Hey guys! We are planning on switching Shelldon into a larger enclosure once we get into a new apartment and have a bit more space. I would like for him to have different textures for him to dig through and explore. Thing is my pet store doesn’t really sell any type of dirt or any finely ground...

Hi everyone, I’m going to be bringing home my first tortoise very soon, it’s a Herman and Iv been spending a lot of time trying to make sure I know everything I need to know and to make sure iv the perfect set up iv bought a 2ft wooden vivarium that will be upgraded once my tort gets bigger and...