I got my hermanns tortoise 10 years ago when I was 11. My parents were obviously responsible for her when I was that young but they'd never had a reptile before. We are a family of animal lovers and would be devastated to think we'd ever harmed an animal in any way, so they went on a tortoise course to learn how to care for her before we bought her. As I've grown up I've just followed their advice on how to care for her since they did the course and paid good money for reliable information.
Now I'm preparing to buy my first home with my fiance and he suggested that since we're getting a new home, Hermione should get one too (his way of saying "I'm not having that tatty old vivarium in my house!"). I started researching and was distraught to discover that vivariums are now considered evil little hell boxes. So I've just dropped £100+ on a massive custom made tort table. I then discovered that the strip style lights combined with heat pads are satans lightbulbs/heaters so I've spent £50 on a basking light. In hindsight it makes sense to give the tortoise the option of moving in and out of the heat source, but as I said, my parents were supposed to have received reliable information. Anyway, to summarize, today I have bought a 48 x 24 inch tort table, a uva/uvb/heat basking lamp, a basking rock, decorative/climbing rocks, decorative lump of wood and orchid bark to use as substrate (reptile shop we purchased her from told us wood shavings were fine!) I was tempted by some plastic foliage designed for fish but I wasn't sure if that was ok.
I'm so upset that we've been doing everything wrong for 10 years. I feel like I've failed her and made her life miserable. When I look at her I just want to cry, I feel so guilty.
We weren't like those idiotic people who go out and buy an animal with no idea how to care for it, we tried to get educated. But I can't change the past. So my question is, does this new stuff sound ok??
Now I'm preparing to buy my first home with my fiance and he suggested that since we're getting a new home, Hermione should get one too (his way of saying "I'm not having that tatty old vivarium in my house!"). I started researching and was distraught to discover that vivariums are now considered evil little hell boxes. So I've just dropped £100+ on a massive custom made tort table. I then discovered that the strip style lights combined with heat pads are satans lightbulbs/heaters so I've spent £50 on a basking light. In hindsight it makes sense to give the tortoise the option of moving in and out of the heat source, but as I said, my parents were supposed to have received reliable information. Anyway, to summarize, today I have bought a 48 x 24 inch tort table, a uva/uvb/heat basking lamp, a basking rock, decorative/climbing rocks, decorative lump of wood and orchid bark to use as substrate (reptile shop we purchased her from told us wood shavings were fine!) I was tempted by some plastic foliage designed for fish but I wasn't sure if that was ok.
I'm so upset that we've been doing everything wrong for 10 years. I feel like I've failed her and made her life miserable. When I look at her I just want to cry, I feel so guilty.
We weren't like those idiotic people who go out and buy an animal with no idea how to care for it, we tried to get educated. But I can't change the past. So my question is, does this new stuff sound ok??
