Advice on general redfoot care

[janebartley]

So I’ve been looking to buy a Redfoot and I’ve been researching about their needs for a while but obviously there is a lot of wrong information online, so I decided to check in the best place I can think of, which is here!


So basically just wanting to know the best things to feed them, and how often.. ive read that garden worms/boiled eggs/ other protein sources are needed sparingly?

Substrate? I’m hoping to buy a baby so I was planning on using coco coir and switch to orchid bark when older..

Humidity? Is this needed for redfoot babies?

And temperatures for the enclosure.. I have a zoo med powersun uvb and heat lamp.. 35 degrees ok for the basking area?

I joined this forum when I got a baby horsefield a while back and unfortunately he was badly kept at the pet shop (I know we shouldn’t have purchased from there and would never consider in the future) he was poorly from when we got him and after a few vet trips they sadly had to put him to sleep, but this forum has been an amazing help and information source since I joined

 

[daniellenc]

Most feed protein once a month or so though some choose not to at all with no ill effects. Mine gets shrimp monthly plain boiled and deshelled which is another favorite protein source for red foots.

For substrate I like coco coir with the orchid bark over it. Coir holds humidity great but is messy and gets all in their food, eyes, and water.

RF's need a minimum of 80% humidity ALL the time so plan on a closed chamber and swamp like conditions to mimic this. Most soak their substrate before putting it in the cage then mist daily, and add water to the corners every week or so to keep it damp.

As far as temps RF's prefer temps from 80-85 degrees Fahrenheit which I think is 26-29 degrees celcius.....they are not baskers for the most part and shouldn't as they are prone to pyramiding. The powersun MVB will be too hot in a closed chamber and they can't be controlled by a thermostat so because they don't need a "hot spot" use a CHE (ceramic heat emitter) or a RHP (radiant heat panel). .

 

[Trev1010]

Hi, I breed redfoots, and I have a group of adults and 8 babies right now that hatched awhile ago, so I wouldn't consider myself a expert. But I know what I'm doing. For a substrate I used sphagnum moss mixed with eco earth (coconut coir) and Cyprus mulch, which need to be finely chopped. Lighting: redfoots are a cool species of tortoise because they can make their own viatmin d3, so uvb isn't necessary for redfoots. You can use it if you want to though, you want a ambient temperature for babies around 85 degrees, and a basking spot 88, but never above 90. For a feeding dish I would get a Terra Cotta dish, so it will grind Down their beak when they eat greens. For feeding, Greens: spineless prickly pear, dandelion greens, Endive, escarole, Romain lettuce, collard greens and spring mix. Veggies: zucchini, cucumber, peppers, yellow squash, butternut squash and pumpkin. Fruits: Mango, watermelon, pear, apple, pineapple,. Blueberries and strawberries. Proteins, I personally like chicken hearts and chicken liver, rehydrated cat food (dry food soaked in water) no red meat. Feed protein every month. Humidity: you want to mist your baby tortoise every day till it's nice and damp. Make sure you don't use a fish tank it just doesn't let enough air flow in and tortoise don't comprehend glass so they can hurt their noses. And I do sell my torts if your interested send me a dm! Good luck with your new tort!

 

[janebartley]

Thankyou for the replies! Big help, that’s interesting about them not needing a hot spot!

Trev- I would have loved to buy one of your babies but I see your in the US, sadly I live in the uk! Seems so hard to find breeders over here, I’ve seen a few adds in pet shops but don’t want to go down that route again..

 

[Trev1010]

Okay, good luck on finding your redfoot!

 

[daniellenc]

Hi, I breed redfoots, and I have a group of adults and 8 babies right now that hatched awhile ago, so I wouldn't consider myself a expert. But I know what I'm doing. For a substrate I used sphagnum moss mixed with eco earth (coconut coir) and Cyprus mulch, which need to be finely chopped. Lighting: redfoots are a cool species of tortoise because they can make their own viatmin d3, so uvb isn't necessary for redfoots. You can use it if you want to though, you want a ambient temperature for babies around 85 degrees, and a basking spot 88, but never above 90. For a feeding dish I would get a Terra Cotta dish, so it will grind Down their beak when they eat greens. For feeding, Greens: spineless prickly pear, dandelion greens, Endive, escarole, Romain lettuce, collard greens and spring mix. Veggies: zucchini, cucumber, peppers, yellow squash, butternut squash and pumpkin. Fruits: Mango, watermelon, pear, apple, pineapple,. Blueberries and strawberries. Proteins, I personally like chicken hearts and chicken liver, rehydrated cat food (dry food soaked in water) no red meat. Feed protein every month. Humidity: you want to mist your baby tortoise every day till it's nice and damp. Make sure you don't use a fish tank it just doesn't let enough air flow in and tortoise don't comprehend glass so they can hurt their noses. And I do sell my torts if your interested send me a dm! Good luck with your new tort!

I've never heard they make their own D3. How is that without UV?

 

[Toddrickfl1]

I've never heard they make their own D3. How is that without UV?

I've never heard that either? I don't think that's so.

 

[Trev1010]

Here is a article posted by Terry Kilgore Lighting. Unlike most other tortoises, redfoots do not have to bask in sunlight to maintain vitamin D3 in their system. The only lighting needed for an indoor redfoot habitat is a low-wattage UVB bulb over the tortoises’ food plate and shallow water dish, and even that is optional. A good 75 percent of my indoor redfoot habitats, for both hatchlings and adults, do not utilize supplemental lighting of any kind. I can’t count the number of times redfoot keepers have asked me, “Why won’t my redfoot come out of its hide?” only to find they have been keeping their redfoots under a high-wattage UVB bulb they thought the tortoises needed to bask under. Once I tell them to discard that lighting, they get back to me all excited, “I’ve seen my redfoot out exploring for the first time during the day!”

 

[Jollyrogers]

So I’ve been looking to buy a Redfoot and I’ve been researching about their needs for a while but obviously there is a lot of wrong information online, so I decided to check in the best place I can think of, which is here!


So basically just wanting to know the best things to feed them, and how often.. ive read that garden worms/boiled eggs/ other protein sources are needed sparingly?

Substrate? I’m hoping to buy a baby so I was planning on using coco coir and switch to orchid bark when older..

Humidity? Is this needed for redfoot babies?

And temperatures for the enclosure.. I have a zoo med powersun uvb and heat lamp.. 35 degrees ok for the basking area?

I joined this forum when I got a baby horsefield a while back and unfortunately he was badly kept at the pet shop (I know we shouldn’t have purchased from there and would never consider in the future) he was poorly from when we got him and after a few vet trips they sadly had to put him to sleep, but this forum has been an amazing help and information source since I joined

Hi Jane,

I too am in the UK, Manchester to be precise. I just wanted to share my experiences with you from last year.

Like you after doing lots of research and buying the setup, I took what I was told was a healthy 6 month old "cherry head" from a reptile pet shop not too far from me. At first I thought everything was fine, eating, pooing etc. To cut a long story short, the little thing died after several vet visits. The point of telling you this, is firstly that he / she wasn't a cherry head at all and secondly the vet severely questioned the age so be wary.

Fast forward to today, at first I wasn't going to get another but over the past 6 months, I have been regularly going to a shop that I know and trust, they have had a red foot in, I kept looking at he / she and observed for what must have been an hour each time. Anyway last week I decided he / she needed a home so took the plunge. Like you have said there aren't many breeders here in the UK, perhaps you could consider one slightly older?

As other people have told you, a basking spot of 88 degree Fahrenheit (31 degrees celcius) is ideal, best achieved using a CHE with a pulse thermostat, depending on the size and type of housing, this should create a good temp gradient. Humidity should be 80% throughout, for substrate try using hydro balls as the bottom layer and eco earth as the top layer with a hydro sheet between the layers. The substrate should be damp but not wet, as said above, some water in each corner once a week should keep the conditions you need or daily spray or look at a fogger. As for UV, then I find there is a lot of conflicting information, some say a UV strip (no more than 5%), some say UV spot over food bowl, some say not needed. Currently I have a UV strip and I am just seeing how it goes.

I would recommend, if you do purchase a red foot of any age then set the habitat up and have it running for a week minimum. This will allow you tomake adjustments and get the temps / humidity correct prior and will improve the settling in process.

As for food, pretty much what has been said above, do bear in mind that here in the UK we don't have the same veg / fruit / weeds available all year round.

If you have any other questions then feel free to get in touch.

 

[JoesMum]

@Anyfoot is in Sheffield and is very experienced with Redfoots in the UK

 

[Anyfoot]

So I’ve been looking to buy a Redfoot and I’ve been researching about their needs for a while but obviously there is a lot of wrong information online, so I decided to check in the best place I can think of, which is here!


So basically just wanting to know the best things to feed them, and how often.. ive read that garden worms/boiled eggs/ other protein sources are needed sparingly?

Substrate? I’m hoping to buy a baby so I was planning on using coco coir and switch to orchid bark when older..

Humidity? Is this needed for redfoot babies?

And temperatures for the enclosure.. I have a zoo med powersun uvb and heat lamp.. 35 degrees ok for the basking area?

I joined this forum when I got a baby horsefield a while back and unfortunately he was badly kept at the pet shop (I know we shouldn’t have purchased from there and would never consider in the future) he was poorly from when we got him and after a few vet trips they sadly had to put him to sleep, but this forum has been an amazing help and information source since I joined

Jane. They need to be kept extremely humid. To do this you need a closed chamber. Temperature 80/86f throughout the enclosure. No basking spot required until they are older. Drying the carapace just promotes pyramiding. Use a CHE for heat on a thermostat 24/7. And use a uvb tube for lighting and vitamin D. Light up half the enclosure and leave half in dark.
Use a 4” layer of coir with some orchid bark on that over about half the enclosure. Hide with spagnhum moss in and around it. Feed on a slate under the uvb light. Humidity wants to be around 90%.
Feed greens and weeds daily, feed fruit or mushroom sparingly with the greens. Like one piece of fruit or mushroom the size of your torts head. Sprinkle calcium powder 2 or 3 times a week. Protein once or twice a month.
Spray your tort down daily too.
I’m on hols soon for a couple week. If your serious and set up an enclosure correctly you can come see what we have if your still interested.
You need to think about when they are older. They grow to about 12/14” SCL. So at that size you need a dedicated enclosure. Something like a heated shed in this country.

 

[janebartley]

Thankyou again for the replies! Yes that’s what I was thinking, I’m not going to rush into it as i did with our last tort, I will definitely be collecting all this information in and if I find one and purchase will definitely be setting things up for a while first to make sure it’s right with help off you guys! - and to get used to the new way of doing things myself. The lights really confused me when I got my horsefield so finding now that redfoots have different requirements I for sure want to have peace of mind I’m doing things correctly!

I see a few first time keepers online who are very defensive over the way they do things when experienced keepers are offering help and advice, I however really appreciate the advice and will be asking for a lot more in the future! I’m a big worrier so I want to be confident I’m doing the best for my tort.

Anyfoot that would be amazing, thankyou! The enclosure we are getting is 150x61 cm, how long would we be able to use this?

 

[janebartley]

Oh wait, I thought closed chamber meant something completely diferent! Have you got any advice on where to buy? Pet shops around mine are limited, and size to start off with?

 

[Anyfoot]

5ftx2ft will house up to 3 redfoots for an absolute maximum of 2 yrs old. If you can get a 3x6ft it would house them for a fair bit longer.

There are 2 main types of enclosures, open and closed. An open enclosure is known as a table. This type of set up is virtually impossible to maintain an ambient temp with high humidity. A lot use open enclosure for med species. A closed system is something with a lid on it to hold humidity and create an ambient temp. Vital for tropical species like redfoots. I’ve used vivariums and it worked very very well.
I’ve experimented with many care techniques, fed every type of diet you can think of.
Every single successful breeder who I talk to use some sort of hydration. This could be someone who doesn’t monitor humidity levels but soaks daily, to someone who doesn’t soak but offers extremely high humidity and obsessively sprays their torts. Again I think I’ve tried every method possible with varying results. From super smooth to minor pyramided carapaces. I think for the person who just wants a pet the most certain way is to soak daily for 20 to 30 minutes. This with a good mixed diet and no dry basking spots seems to work.

 

[janebartley]

I see, so would it be alright to use the table I was going to get (possibly in the bigger size) with something fitted over to cover the top? Or would I be better off buying a vivarium?

And so I would need the uvb tube but no basking lamp at all needed at all in the enclosure as long as the right temperature was maintained?

 

[Anyfoot]

I see, so would it be alright to use the table I was going to get (possibly in the bigger size) with something fitted over to cover the top? Or would I be better off buying a vivarium?

And so I would need the uvb tube but no basking lamp at all needed at all in the enclosure as long as the right temperature was maintained?

Yes. You can use an open table and but a cover on it. I don’t feel safe just draping something over it though. Build a prober apex shape lid for it where one side hinges open for access.
All you need is a CHE on a thermostat and a tube type uvb for uvb and light. Leave the light on 12/14hrs a day and CHE on 24/7 on a thermostat.

 

[Anyfoot]

This was a small 3x1.5ft viv I was setting up. Lasted 6 months. But you get the gist. I blocked the CHE off so they could not sit under that causing the drying process. Also no dome on the CHE so heat spreads out, the dome just concentrates the heat. I think @Will has hit the nail on the head with his set ups. Will, can you load that video in here you showed me please.

 

[janebartley]

Ah that looks great! So much easier to grasp when you can put the words to pictures haha, also I was planning to grow live plants in the enclosure, is this do-able with the humidity?

And the che emitter, what are your recommendations on brand/ wattage? Is it easy to starch to the table?

Sorry for bombarding you with all these questions! Just want to get confident about everything well in advance

 

[Anyfoot]

I’ve always failed with plants. They get trampled on or eaten. I got some banana plants growing in my tortoise house that seem to be thriving. I think lighting has to be very good to grow plants.

CHE emitter can be a cheap one. Don’t by an expensive brand. Wattage depends on enclosure size. I have a 200watt in a 4x6 viv that is perfect.

 

[Anyfoot]

A friend of mine is in the process of converting her shed for redfoots. This is not finished. But you get the idea.
You can see the heat panel for ambient temp. Hides have lids that can be lifted off. Although she has ornaments on the lids . Think this is 8x10ft. Needs a thick layer of bark in there.