advice on a species that might like rainy, humid Kaneohe?

[manda]

Okay, so I know that "tortoises" and "wet and cold" don't go together, no matter what the breed- but what about wet and warm? I live in Kaneohe Hawaii, where it is very humid, rains almost every day, and never usually gets below 70-75 degrees F. I know that galapagos would like it here but, I would really love to have a smaller breed because my tortoise will necessarily be an indoor/outdoor pet. We've built a 4 ft by 3 ft wooden indoor enclosure for nighttime and rainy days, and have a large "playpen" area fenced off (Approximately 10 ft by 7 ft) with wooden fencing and heavy duty chicken wire outside. It's got a nice cool spot under the eaves where we built a little bamboo house/cave for a hidey-hole, and I've let the dandilions flourish for the last several weeks. I know there are a few types of box turtle that might be happy with this setup but I'm hesitant to choose this breed because of the problems that Hawaii already has with non-native turtles in the ecosystem. I'm a very responsible pet-owner, but... Well, I guess I'm just worried about unforeseen mishaps.

I would welcome any suggestions or advice on picking a breed compatible with my set up as well as any suggestions to improve our new tort-vironment .

 

[manda]

RE: advice on a breed that might like rainy, humid Kaneohe?

Wow- update! First off, re-reading my initial post makes me feel silly. Even though I thought I'd done some pretty thorough info gathering on tortoise-keeping in the last two weeks, I realized I hadn't been looking in the right places, or doing sound research at all! I should know better! This morning, I read through Tom's 3-year experiment thread about humidity and his Sulcatas, and that led me to several other pages about humidity and smaller breeds and the dangers and possible causes of RI, etc. Around lunch time, I'd made up my mind to order a cute little Greek next week through a breeder recommended by a colleague in the micro-bio department, when BAM! A friend from the SPCA in Kapolei called to let me know of a juvenile Russian that was recently confiscated from a family who had apparently been keeping her in a tiny cardboard box, in a closet, with no lamps or sunlight for the last two months. (As an aside, I truly do not understand how a person could willfully neglect or abuse an animal dependent upon them. You'd think that even if the human being was lacking in a normal amount of empathy sufficient to care for an animal, he or she would at least desire to protect their investment- tortoises aren't cheap!) My friend asked if I would be willing to foster or adopt the Russian after the little tortoise got a checkup and spent a night at the VCA. Long story short- I pick up the little gal tomorrow! My son has already dubbed her "Kip" and is very excited about helping me transplant some dandilion, oregano, and parsley into the indoor enclosure. Hopefully the vet will have some good advice about nursing the poor thing back to health, since I'm definitely a noob.

 

[wellington]

RE: advice on a breed that might like rainy, humid Kaneohe?

I don't know what to say. You kinda answered all your own questions and even got a tortoise. Russians are a great tortoise. Be sure to double check info you find in other places like, books, pet stores, and yes, even the vet. So many have no clue about tortoises, or they are stuck on the old bad ways. Most questions you might have can be searched on the forum and also there are a lot of members very willing to help. Exciting day tomorrow, don't forget to post pics.

 

[lynnedit]

RE: advice on a breed that might like rainy, humid Kaneohe?

Congratulations! Make sure you have a couple of nice hides and some broad leafed plants for your little Russian to hide under when it rains harder. Hostas are nice!
Sounds like he can stay outside year round. Best thing you can give him/her is being outside and sun, even if intermittent!
Give him a good soak when you get him.

A nice link to safe plants:
http://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk/site/tortoise_home_1.asp

 

[Yvonne G]

RE: advice on a breed that might like rainy, humid Kaneohe?

We have several members who keep and raise tortoises in Hawaii. Some types that spring to mind are redfooted, sulcata and leopards.

I think your new Russian will be fine, but after she's back to health, think about making an outdoor habitat for her. They do much better outside.

 

[mike taylor]

Re: advice on a breed that might like rainy, humid Kaneohe?

I would think the best tortoise would be a red foot tortoise . Hawaii would be perfect for them year round .

Sent from my C771 using TortForum mobile app

 

[FLINTUS]

RE: advice on a breed that might like rainy, humid Kaneohe?

You're going to have to be very careful with a Russian there. They do not like high ambient temps, 70 should be about right, if a bit lower, and definitely do not like constant high humidity.

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

RE: advice on a breed that might like rainy, humid Kaneohe?

You're going to have to be very careful with a Russian there. They do not like high ambient temps, 70 should be about right, if a bit lower, and definitely do not like constant high humidity.

2nd this...Russians are from a much more arid part of the world. No idea how you'd resolve this issue outside...maybe set it up an indoor home, but take it outside for a couple hours 2-3 X a week.

A redfoot, otoh, would be VERY comfortable with you and would live happily outside year-round..

 

[FLINTUS]

RE: advice on a breed that might like rainy, humid Kaneohe?

Agreed, a red foot would be perfect. Other species that might fit the climate depending on how much $ and effort you've got would include: yellow foots, forstens, elongateds, Serrated/Forest Hingebacks, Homes Hingebacks, Western Hingebacks-Kinixys Nogueyi, possibly a Burmese Mountain Tortoise if you have space, and possibly an indian star.

 

[lynnedit]

RE: advice on a breed that might like rainy, humid Kaneohe?

The OP is adopting an unwanted Russian; it already lives in Hawaii, so someone has to take care of it. (Ideally a Redfoot, but this is the situation).
At this point, making sure he has dry areas to retreat to is important, but I still think outside is better. It is certainly not cold and wet, at least.
The set up with a drier area under the eaves is a good idea. It would be a good idea to make sure there are basking stones and areas of gravel.

 

[manda]

Thank you all so much- we p/u Kip in a couple of hours and I'm pretty nervous. It's been super rainy, even for kaneohe. I've actually had to drain several gallons of water from my aquaponics tanks and put up a series of giant umbrellas over my traditional garden bed.

I'm thinking that, depending what kind of shape the newest member of our family is in, I'll be keeping her mostly in the indoor enclosure for the first several months and we'll take her out daily for sunshine and grazing in the playpen. As she heals, I was thinking that we'll slowly transition her to the outdoors and only bring her into the indoor enclosure when the weather is super rainy- like it is this weekend. Does this sound about right?

I'll post some more pictures over in either the enclosure thread or the Russian specific thread later today, but currently, I have slate piled into a "cave" directly under the mercury vapor light that she can either climb on top of or hide in, as well as another fake log hide in the middle of the enclosure and a hide spot in the shaded, cooler end of the enclosure. The temp in the cool end is 70 F, and from yesterday's readings (I left the bulb on for 12 hours and took intermittent readings to get a good idea of the average temps in the tortoise box.) the area directly under the lamp ranges between 92-115 from the beginning of the second hour to the end of the 12th. With all the rain, the humidity is way up at 70 in the cool, covered end, and down slightly to 60 under the lamp.

Hopefully Kip will be comfortable, even with all the humidity. If we can get her flourishing, I think I'll take your suggestions and set up a new, raised tortoise garden for Kip and purchase a redfoot for the larger outdoor enclosure.

Thank you again for all the wonderful advice! I suspect I'll be a nuisance on the forum for a while until I get the hang of tort care. Sorry for the wall of text, I'll keep you updated with pics and posts as soon as we get her home!

 

[kanalomele]

Aloha from the mainland. I have choke ohana in Kaneohe! Love it there! Since your little russian has already been living in the tropics it has probably adjusted pretty well. The important part about the humidity for russians is that they dont get cold. WARM and humid is fine. Ambient humidity should be enough. No need to add more water to his enclosure. Learn and constantly watch for signs of Respiratory Infection. But that is really the biggest risk to having a Russian in your environment. I hope all goes well and let us know if you have any issues with him!

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Thank you all so much- we p/u Kip in a couple of hours and I'm pretty nervous. It's been super rainy, even for kaneohe. I've actually had to drain several gallons of water from my aquaponics tanks and put up a series of giant umbrellas over my traditional garden bed.

I'm thinking that, depending what kind of shape the newest member of our family is in, I'll be keeping her mostly in the indoor enclosure for the first several months and we'll take her out daily for sunshine and grazing in the playpen. As she heals, I was thinking that we'll slowly transition her to the outdoors and only bring her into the indoor enclosure when the weather is super rainy- like it is this weekend. Does this sound about right?

I'll post some more pictures over in either the enclosure thread or the Russian specific thread later today, but currently, I have slate piled into a "cave" directly under the mercury vapor light that she can either climb on top of or hide in, as well as another fake log hide in the middle of the enclosure and a hide spot in the shaded, cooler end of the enclosure. The temp in the cool end is 70 F, and from yesterday's readings (I left the bulb on for 12 hours and took intermittent readings to get a good idea of the average temps in the tortoise box.) the area directly under the lamp ranges between 92-115 from the beginning of the second hour to the end of the 12th. With all the rain, the humidity is way up at 70 in the cool, covered end, and down slightly to 60 under the lamp.

Hopefully Kip will be comfortable, even with all the humidity. If we can get her flourishing, I think I'll take your suggestions and set up a new, raised tortoise garden for Kip and purchase a redfoot for the larger outdoor enclosure.

Thank you again for all the wonderful advice! I suspect I'll be a nuisance on the forum for a while until I get the hang of tort care. Sorry for the wall of text, I'll keep you updated with pics and posts as soon as we get her home!

Never feel like you're being a nuisance by asking questions...we're all here for you and "Kip", and are happy to help.

The only foolish question is the unasked one!

 

[lynnedit]

Never feel like you're being a nuisance by asking questions...we're all here for you and "Kip", and are happy to help.

The only foolish question is the unasked one!

I second this.
And your plans to watch Kip inside are good. If Kip seems healthy, transition her/him outside sooner than later.
Exciting!

 

[manda]

Hello all! Sorry it's been so long since my last post, but I just wanted to give you all an update on the newest member of our family.



This is Kip. She was rescued from an older couple whose son thought a tortoise would be a neat pet, but then left her behind when he went to the mainland for college. The couple thought that "tortoises like the dark and wet because they're diggers" and correspondingly kept her in a dank, mud-filled cardboard box in their garage with no type of heating lamp or UVA/UVB source. For nearly four months she was in that box and was fed only ZooMed tortoise pellets (which are clearly intended for supplemental use during the winter or other grass-lean times... some people!) Luckily, a mutual family friend who works with the Honolulu SPCA went to the couple's house for a neighborhood luau and saw Kip's living conditions. The couple was appalled to find out that they might have permanently damaged Kip, and signed her over to Momi (the SPCA friend) right away. Momi brought Kip to DR Lamb at the VCA- who is actually already our vet for our mini-dachsie- where Kip was diagnosed with a mild respiratory infection. Dr Lamb prescribed some antibiotic nasal drops, and then sent her home with us.

Fast-forward a month until now and Kip's nose is no longer runny (although we're still administering the drops daily, and making frequent vet visits) and she is eating plenty of yummy weeds regularly. We are still keeping her inside for another week or two, but in the meantime, we have gone ahead and built a raised tort-garden for her, since the bigger enclosure in the yard has too many escape opportunities for a little thing like Kip.

It's 48 ft sq and we've got Bermuda grass (just starting to sprout in this pic), Zinnias, Marigolds, Rosemary, Nasturtiums, Petunias, Manoa Lettuce, and Chard planted in there along with a 'house,' a log hide, and a rock garden for sunning. As soon as the grass is well established, in a week or so, Kippie will be introduced into her new environment. (I built it and planted it by hand. I took pics of the whole process and will post them in the enclosures forum, but any advice would be very appreciated.) Hopefully she'll be happy in there for a long time to come.

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Hello all! Sorry it's been so long since my last post, but I just wanted to give you all an update on the newest member of our family.



This is Kip. She was rescued from an older couple whose son thought a tortoise would be a neat pet, but then left her behind when he went to the mainland for college. The couple thought that "tortoises like the dark and wet because they're diggers" and correspondingly kept her in a dank, mud-filled cardboard box in their garage with no type of heating lamp or UVA/UVB source. For nearly four months she was in that box and was fed only ZooMed tortoise pellets (which are clearly intended for supplemental use during the winter or other grass-lean times... some people!) Luckily, a mutual family friend who works with the Honolulu SPCA went to the couple's house for a neighborhood luau and saw Kip's living conditions. The couple was appalled to find out that they might have permanently damaged Kip, and signed her over to Momi (the SPCA friend) right away. Momi brought Kip to DR Lamb at the VCA- who is actually already our vet for our mini-dachsie- where Kip was diagnosed with a mild respiratory infection. Dr Lamb prescribed some antibiotic nasal drops, and then sent her home with us.

Fast-forward a month until now and Kip's nose is no longer runny (although we're still administering the drops daily, and making frequent vet visits) and she is eating plenty of yummy weeds regularly. We are still keeping her inside for another week or two, but in the meantime, we have gone ahead and built a raised tort-garden for her, since the bigger enclosure in the yard has too many escape opportunities for a little thing like Kip.

It's 48 ft sq and we've got Bermuda grass (just starting to sprout in this pic), Zinnias, Marigolds, Rosemary, Nasturtiums, Petunias, Manoa Lettuce, and Chard planted in there along with a 'house,' a log hide, and a rock garden for sunning. As soon as the grass is well established, in a week or so, Kippie will be introduced into her new environment. (I built it and planted it by hand. I took pics of the whole process and will post them in the enclosures forum, but any advice would be very appreciated.) Hopefully she'll be happy in there for a long time to come.

Fine looking enclosure for a porch or deck, but watch him/her, to make sure he/she can't climb out over the wall (Steppe tortoises are notorious escape artists!)...if so, make the walls about 6" taller.

Other than that, it looks like Kip will be very comfortable there!

 

[kanalomele]

Kips new outside enclosure looks great! Watch the corners because Russians are notorious wall climbers. Additionally I would suggest a basking area with slate, flagstone or some other sort of solid stone that will warm up in the sun. So long as he can warm up to at least 90 degrees then he will be totally fine outside.

 

[wellington]

That is a beautiful enclosure. I agree with the higher sides or you could put a board along the parameter that has a overhang to the inside. Also unless I missed it, there needs to be a water dish. A clay saucer, the kind that you put under flower pots work great.

 

[lynnedit]

Looks fantastic. What a lucky tortoise.

I agree with a few tweaks:
*clay water dish (maybe you have one)
* a wood lip around the edge. This will prevent climbing out and save you having to raise the sides.
* a basking slate or paver, or two. I also like to add some large gravel on top of the soil in several areas, perhaps even some flat stones and a branch or two.

Nicely done!

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I saw your other post and can see some rocks and a water dish!

 

[Jabuticaba]

I was going to say that your enviro sounds much like the Amazon Basin, only your temps are about 5 to 10 degrees cooler. So, I was going to suggest looking into a species from that area. But it seems like a Russian has found you. Congrats! [SMILING FACE WITH OPEN MOUTH]


May[CHERRY BLOSSOM], Hermann's [TURTLE][TURTLE], & Aussies (@YWG)

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Great looking enclosure! The other members have made great suggestions, so I look forward to seeing Kip in her new home. Very happy for Kip and your family!


May[CHERRY BLOSSOM], Hermann's [TURTLE][TURTLE], & Aussies (@YWG)