Attempting to provide the best life possible, but need HELP!

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Andrea Emshousen

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Hello!

This is my first thread other than my Introduction one, so sorry if I didn't post this in the right place or if I am re stating some things. I'm trying to get used to the forum since I'm new and also trying to read so much so quickly so I can start making the changes that are needed to better my torts lives'. I would just like to say a HUGE thank you to all of you that commented back to me on my Introduction post. You would not believe how much I appreciate all of you taking your time to help me out. I have already started adjusting and changing some of the things you all pointed out that needed changing. I've also started reading a LOT of the posts on here about Sulcatas & Russians and have learned a ton in just a few short days, and I have a ton more to read which I might be able to answer all of my answers just be sorting through the posts and reading them, but it reassures me SO much to actually talk to people who have experience with the same tortoises I own. The only thing is.. the more I read, the more questions I have along with a few concerns so I thought I'd make this post since you were all more than helpful on the last one. I'll post our story below and hopefully you all will know what I should do! Thank you in advance from Marley, Little Foot, and myself!

Here we go:

We can start with Marley since he was the first tortoise to ever come into my life. Marley is my Russian tortoise and he was previously owned by this girl I went to high school with as I believe he was a birthday or christmas gift to her. Well, this girl was getting ready to graduate and planned on going away to a university, but could not take her tortoise. I wasn't that close of friends with this girl so when she had contacted me about taking in her tortoise, I had only said yes due to the fact that I didn't know much about tortoises at all, but I knew enough about them to know you cannot just set them free into the wild as this girl was planning on doing if she could not rehome her tortoise. So, the next day she showed up at my house with a terrarium with little Marley inside. He was so cramped in there that he could barely walk a few steps without running into something, so that was the first order of business I set out to change. She also had him on " Repti Bark " as substrate which I'm still not sure weather or not that is suitable. I've heard some say yes and others say no, but regardless it was changed because I wanted to be 100% sure that he was on something safe and comfortable for him. She was feeding him out of a normal ceramic bowl, and in the bowl she had fresh green beans that looked to be frozen along with the pellets they sell in the pet store that are different colors such as red, green, and I think yellow. I took the pellets out because I had read they were bad for them and I wasn't sure about the green beans, but I replaced it with some Romaine lettuce even though I know that also should not be fed daily it was all I had at the time being. The only thing she had to say about the care of the tortoise was that I could feed him " any vegetable or fruit " and that I didn't keep the UV light on at night, but to keep the heat on 24/7 which is what I had done until I joined this forum and read that Russians do not need heat on during the night. Marley now lives in a small/medium sized bookcase laid on its back which is still not enough room for him, I know but he is going to be moved onto a tortoise table as soon as we get it completely built. The girl had given me a long, tube like bulb for the UV which I think is whats best from what I've read so I've stuck with it but I think it needs replaced soon. The heat bulb she gave me doesn't put off any light at all, it just gets hot. I do not know the type of heat bulb it is as it didn't come in the box obviously and she had no clue, so I probably need to change that as well but wasn't sure. I feed Marley a variety of things such as spring mix, endive, collard, turnip, & mustard greens, romaine, kale, chopped up carrots. I am also going to grow my own weeds and plants from the safe plants I've found on here for both of my tortoises, but he hasn't had any access to that yet though. I try to get him to eat the Grassland Tortoise Food but he has absolutely no interest in that as well as orchard grass or timothy hay.. He will not eat them no matter what although I've read that russians don't mainly eat hays and grasses which may be why. I always thought I was encouraging him to eat right.. whoops. I soak Marley at least 2 times per week, if not 3. He's went outside for sunshine and fresh grass before and loves exploring my yard ( I'm always outside with him ) . I do supplement his food with calcium a few times a week and also top his veggies with " Herbal Hay " from Tortoise Supply. I use coco coir as his substrate now.. I don't spray his substrate or anything so it is dry, please correct me if thats wrong. He has a rather big log hide in his enclosure that he sleeps in.. and thats pretty much the care of my Russian tort. If I'm missing something, tell me or ask and I will explain. I have so many things running through my head as I type this that I'm probably going to miss something somewhere... Silly me.

Next up is my Sulcata tortoise : Little Foot ( Sully )

Little Foot is a Sulcata hatchling. I think he is still considered a hatchling as he can fit in the palm of my hand and I've only had him for just a month. My dad bought him from a Reptile Show for me since he knew how much I dearly love Marley even though they are different types of tortoise. The man selling him at the Reptile Show was VERY unhelpful and personally I don't think we should have bought him from that man just because of how poorly his attitude was like he didn't care about anything other than getting done with the show and leaving, but I just couldn't leave without little Sully. ( Sully is his nickname by the way, given by my dad due to him being a Sulcata tortoise and my dad says if he turns out to be SHE, we can just call her Sullena. Hahaha )
Anyways, we brought little Sully home and it was a very unplanned new arrival so the only thing we had to house him in was a normal glass tank and even though its a pretty large tank, I know that is not good for them and we are currently working on changing his housing so we're working on it, I promise! Since he is little, the tank does give him a lot of room to roam around, also big enough to allow a hot/warm & cooler side which I have thermostas and humidity gauges on both sides. I keep him on the same substrate as Marley which is coco coir and I now know to keep his substrate damp so I've recently started keeping it damp and spraying it daily rather than just several times a week. He has a shallow water dish available to him in his enclosure and also has log hide with some fake moss stuffed in the very back thats kept damp to make the hide humid. I soak him once daily for 20 minutes now, and his enclosure never gets below 80 degrees. I feed him mustard and collard greens, endive, romaine lettuce, kale, dandelion, and I try to encourage him to eat orchard grass and I top his veggies with Herbal Hay. I am growing him weeds/plants as well but haven't got to feed him them yet. I supplement him with calcium on his veggies a few times a week and have provided him with a cuttlebone. I don't know the brands of the heat/uv bulbs that I have for him either, but I do know my UV one is a coil type bulb and I've read those are bad so I will switch that to the long tube UV bulb ASAP. The only concerns I have for my Sulcata is that I don't think he is eating as much as he should.. Some days he goes with only taking a few bites of just one thing and that worries me to death. He is active.. and is always out of his shell, will even let me pet him on his head gently. I've seen him dip his head into the water and drink while soaking him too. I've offered him all types of the safe veggies and he seemed to like his Herbal Hay a lot, but I just feel like he isn't taking in enough food. Also, I read about the urine an such... I think its call urcates? I could be wrong but you all will know what I mean, the white stuff that comes out with pee/poop.. His does look gritty like itty bitty gravel almost or like how salt looks.. it doesn't look creamy an I was actually able to get a picture so I will post that in a bit via my phone since its not on my computer and thats why I am typing this on.

I know that was long, and for all of those who took the time to read it all the way through - thank you SO SO SO much. I am just a worried tortoise owner. I am used to my rabbits, ferrets, chinchillas, etc.. and even though they hide stress/illness pretty well they still give off some signs usually an I have more experience with them and their body language.. I am not very experienced with my torts and am constantly stressing myself out worrying if I'm doing the right thing or if they're happy.. Again, thank you all so much!

PS : I do have a tortoise experienced vet that I can take them in to if you all think that is what I should do! I just didn't know if it was a real problem, or if it was me freaking out or misunderstanding.
 

crimson_lotus

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Hello and welcome! Sounds like that Russian is in a better place with you, I'm sure he's happier already! Do you know how cold it gets for the Russian at night? Do you have a basking spot, or just the lightless ceramic heat emitter? I think you may want to dampen the substrate, if they're ever feeling dry or they want to cool down a bit they can dig into it.

For the sulcata, I believe urates should not be gritty and it could be a sign of dehydration. I don't have a sulcata so hopefully someone who does can let me know if I'm wrong or not. My type of tortoise actually does not secrete urates.

You're doing great with the daily soaking, he may have been dehydrated before you took him home. Do you have a water dish in his enclosure? Also, do you have anything in there to monitor the humidity, or the percentage in the humid hide? Humidity is very important for tortoises when they're young and it will promote smooth growth.

Would you be able to take a picture of the enclosures for us?
 

lismar79

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Second the above and will add that reptibark is perfectly fine for a russian or sully. I like the coir but is messy so I use both in layers. Uvb lights are the trickiest thing to figgure out but once you do its no longer a problem to mantain. Try feeding your lil sully fresh grass, if you can't get some buy some cat grass ( not catnip) from a pet store. My grocery store sells wheat grass. I use it in the winter time a lot.
 

Tidgy's Dad

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My Tidgy is a Greek, a cousin of your Russian and she won't eat grass or hay either. I think a lot of the Mediterranean species don't like it much.
It seems like Marley's life has improved a lot since you first got him.
Step by step we all make progress.
 

Andrea Emshousen

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Hello and welcome! Sounds like that Russian is in a better place with you, I'm sure he's happier already! Do you know how cold it gets for the Russian at night? Do you have a basking spot, or just the lightless ceramic heat emitter? I think you may want to dampen the substrate, if they're ever feeling dry or they want to cool down a bit they can dig into it.

For the sulcata, I believe urates should not be gritty and it could be a sign of dehydration. I don't have a sulcata so hopefully someone who does can let me know if I'm wrong or not. My type of tortoise actually does not secrete urates.

You're doing great with the daily soaking, he may have been dehydrated before you took him home. Do you have a water dish in his enclosure? Also, do you have anything in there to monitor the humidity, or the percentage in the humid hide? Humidity is very important for tortoises when they're young and it will promote smooth growth.

Would you be able to take a picture of the enclosures for us?

Thank you! I will start spraying his substrate to dampen it! & My room in general is pretty warm so the Russian's enclosure doesn't get below 70 degrees ever. The only heat source I have for the Russian is the lightless ceramic heat emitter.

I was afraid it might be dehydration which is why I've been trying to soak him as much as possible, as well as always providing water in his enclosure and now I am keeping his substrate damp as well. The sulcata tank does not have any sort of topper on it.. does that matter or no? I do have gauges saying the temp and humidity on both the warm and cool side of cage.
 

Andrea Emshousen

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Second the above and will add that reptibark is perfectly fine for a russian or sully. I like the coir but is messy so I use both in layers. Uvb lights are the trickiest thing to figgure out but once you do its no longer a problem to mantain. Try feeding your lil sully fresh grass, if you can't get some buy some cat grass ( not catnip) from a pet store. My grocery store sells wheat grass. I use it in the winter time a lot.

My grass is getting a bit long and we were ready to mow it so I think I'll go cut some tomorrow for both of the torts. Thank you for that suggestion! & Yes, the UV, heat, and humidity is what I struggle with the most besides diet which is tricky for me because I don't have a lot of the weeds and plants so I have to grow my own which makes me have to get grocery greens a lot along with ordering cactus pads, and things like herbal hay for them as well.
 

Andrea Emshousen

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My Tidgy is a Greek, a cousin of your Russian and she won't eat grass or hay either. I think a lot of the Mediterranean species don't like it much.
It seems like Marley's life has improved a lot since you first got him.
Step by step we all make progress.

Good to know its not just Marley who won't eat his hays! & Thank you. I'm trying my best to give him the best life possible. :)
 

Tom

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For Marley:

Repti-bark is actually the best substrate for adult russians in my opinion, but you need to keep it damp. Not wet or soggy. Just lightly damp so that the lower layers hold some moisture in them. Substrate need to be 3-4 inches thick too. This will give you some moderate humidity, which is good.

The heating and lighting set up you have now can work, but how you apply it makes all the difference. There are four temperatures you need to know and monitor. Warm side, cool side, basking area and over night low. Can you tell us those?

Turning him loose in the back yard is a mistake and you will eventually lose him. Ask me how I know this... Make him a secure enclosure to get his outside time in.

Russians are not grass or grass hay eaters. They are broadleaf weed eaters. Still, you can use blended up grass hay, finely chopped grass, or soaked ZooMed pellets to amend and improve grocery store type foods. The herbal hay is great too.

Here is a russian care sheet and another thread to help:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
 

Tom

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For Littlefoot:

THere is nothing wrong with using large glass tanks for hatchlings and smaller sulcatas. I've been doing it that way, successfully, for many years. Glass tanks are actually better for them for the very reasons "they" say they are bad for them.

Sounds like you are doing pretty well with your sulcata. The only problem you might have is any damage that was done by the breeder before you got him. Only time will tell if that is the case.

Here is some sulcata info:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.78361/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...table-but-safe-outdoor-baby-enclosures.30683/
 

Andrea Emshousen

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For Marley:

Repti-bark is actually the best substrate for adult russians in my opinion, but you need to keep it damp. Not wet or soggy. Just lightly damp so that the lower layers hold some moisture in them. Substrate need to be 3-4 inches thick too. This will give you some moderate humidity, which is good.

The heating and lighting set up you have now can work, but how you apply it makes all the difference. There are four temperatures you need to know and monitor. Warm side, cool side, basking area and over night low. Can you tell us those?

Turning him loose in the back yard is a mistake and you will eventually lose him. Ask me how I know this... Make him a secure enclosure to get his outside time in.

Russians are not grass or grass hay eaters. They are broadleaf weed eaters. Still, you can use blended up grass hay, finely chopped grass, or soaked ZooMed pellets to amend and improve grocery store type foods. The herbal hay is great too.

Here is a russian care sheet and another thread to help:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/


Thank you! I have read over the beginner mistakes thread and found it helpful. I didn't know Repti-bark was the best and I can switch him back to that since he is on the coco coir right now. He seems to not mind the coco though and I thought it might be more softer/comfortable for him. Do you think I should switch or does it matter? :) I will start keeping it a bit damp as well.

I have talked to my dad about making an outside enclosure so I can give both the tortoises their outside time- separately of course. So that should be built this early summer hopefully! My dad just had shoulder surgery about a month and a half ago soo the building of some things are put off due to him being the majority of my help in that department.

I actually didn't know that I needed four temperature zones, so that seems to be another mistake I have made. I keep him in the high 90's for the warmer side and then his cooler side was around 80 or just below it. I can get exact temps tomorrow. I need to get him better gauges. For overnight, I used to keep his heat on overnight but I've read to not keep his heat on for the night time so I'm a bit confused on that, but no where in his enclosure ever gets below 70. Please tell me what to do on that subject because the light & heating is what I'm struggling with the most.
 

Andrea Emshousen

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For Littlefoot:

THere is nothing wrong with using large glass tanks for hatchlings and smaller sulcatas. I've been doing it that way, successfully, for many years. Glass tanks are actually better for them for the very reasons "they" say they are bad for them.

Sounds like you are doing pretty well with your sulcata. The only problem you might have is any damage that was done by the breeder before you got him. Only time will tell if that is the case.

Here is some sulcata info:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.78361/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...table-but-safe-outdoor-baby-enclosures.30683/

Thank you for the reassuring words! Honestly! It means so much because for some reason I have it drilled into my head that I'm doing the absolute worst job and that they aren't happy, but I honestly think its just me being a worry wart because like I've said this is the first time I've ever had to care for tortoises where as I was raised around small animals, dogs, cats, farm animals, birds.. so I'm far more comfortable and experienced with their care. I'm determined to not give up and to do everything I can to help both of my torts thrive though. My goal is just for them to be healthy and happy here with me. :) Thank you for the threads you linked in. I do take my time and read all of them, while writing down anything I think I'll forget so again, thank you for taking your time to help me!

I feel like the my sulcata's tank is ALWAYS drying out so quickly though and I am literally always going in my pet room to feel his substrate and spray it down. Is there anyway to contain the moisture a bit more? I know you don't want it SOAKED, but its like desert dry if I let it go for too long which I think it might be because I lowered the lighting in attempt to make the basking spot hotter around 100.. but the warm/hot side is still only in the low 90's and it scares me to lower the light anymore just because it'll dry it out even more and I'm home a lot usually but the days I'm not I want to ensure he is okay. I don't have a topper on it at all, so is that a factor in it? I can go buy one if it'll help.

Also, is there anything you can do to encourage your torts to eat? I feel like my sulcata is not eating enough at all.. For example, yesterday I gave him one endive leaf with a mustard green leaf and tore a bit of a collard green leaf off to give him as well. I put it all in his feeding area ( a big tile I lay it on because I felt like he wasn't wanting to climb into his reptile dish to eat ) and sprinkled it with the Herbal Hay... later that day I brought him up a dandelion I picked from my yard as a treat and when I placed it in his cage he hadn't ate anything and it had been a few hours. This morning, I woke up and he had eaten several bites from the endive but that was it. The mustard green, collard green, and dandelion was untouched including the herbal hay on top.
 

Tom

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Thank you! I have read over the beginner mistakes thread and found it helpful. I didn't know Repti-bark was the best and I can switch him back to that since he is on the coco coir right now. He seems to not mind the coco though and I thought it might be more softer/comfortable for him. Do you think I should switch or does it matter? :) I will start keeping it a bit damp as well.

I have talked to my dad about making an outside enclosure so I can give both the tortoises their outside time- separately of course. So that should be built this early summer hopefully! My dad just had shoulder surgery about a month and a half ago soo the building of some things are put off due to him being the majority of my help in that department.

I actually didn't know that I needed four temperature zones, so that seems to be another mistake I have made. I keep him in the high 90's for the warmer side and then his cooler side was around 80 or just below it. I can get exact temps tomorrow. I need to get him better gauges. For overnight, I used to keep his heat on overnight but I've read to not keep his heat on for the night time so I'm a bit confused on that, but no where in his enclosure ever gets below 70. Please tell me what to do on that subject because the light & heating is what I'm struggling with the most.


Either coir or orchid bark is fine. I like coir for babies and orchid bark for adults, but both are fine for both.

70 at night is fine for a russian. No need for night heat in that case. High 90's is good for a basking area. Might be a little warm for the warm side, but observation of your tortoises behavior will answer that for you. Does Marley seem to mostly hang out on the cool side? Mostly on the warm side? Spending time in both areas?
 

Tom

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I feel like the my sulcata's tank is ALWAYS drying out so quickly though and I am literally always going in my pet room to feel his substrate and spray it down. Is there anyway to contain the moisture a bit more? I know you don't want it SOAKED, but its like desert dry if I let it go for too long which I think it might be because I lowered the lighting in attempt to make the basking spot hotter around 100.. but the warm/hot side is still only in the low 90's and it scares me to lower the light anymore just because it'll dry it out even more and I'm home a lot usually but the days I'm not I want to ensure he is okay. I don't have a topper on it at all, so is that a factor in it? I can go buy one if it'll help.

Also, is there anything you can do to encourage your torts to eat? I feel like my sulcata is not eating enough at all.. For example, yesterday I gave him one endive leaf with a mustard green leaf and tore a bit of a collard green leaf off to give him as well. I put it all in his feeding area ( a big tile I lay it on because I felt like he wasn't wanting to climb into his reptile dish to eat ) and sprinkled it with the Herbal Hay... later that day I brought him up a dandelion I picked from my yard as a treat and when I placed it in his cage he hadn't ate anything and it had been a few hours. This morning, I woke up and he had eaten several bites from the endive but that was it. The mustard green, collard green, and dandelion was untouched including the herbal hay on top.

There is no way to stop the tank from drying out with an open top. You need a closed chamber.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/closed-chambers.32333/

About the appetite: Tell me your four temps and what equipment you are using to get them. What are you using for night heat? Are you using a coil bulb? Do you know how the breeder started this baby right after it hatched? Warm humid and soaked daily, or dry and on rabbit pellets and soaked once a week?
 

Andrea Emshousen

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Either coir or orchid bark is fine. I like coir for babies and orchid bark for adults, but both are fine for both.

70 at night is fine for a russian. No need for night heat in that case. High 90's is good for a basking area. Might be a little warm for the warm side, but observation of your tortoises behavior will answer that for you. Does Marley seem to mostly hang out on the cool side? Mostly on the warm side? Spending time in both areas?

Marley goes in all areas of his cage. He sleeps in his hide which is in the cooler side, but in the daytime he is out in the warmer side under his uv light and walking around. He's actually pretty active and loves digging.. haha.
 

Andrea Emshousen

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There is no way to stop the tank from drying out with an open top. You need a closed chamber.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/closed-chambers.32333/

About the appetite: Tell me your four temps and what equipment you are using to get them. What are you using for night heat? Are you using a coil bulb? Do you know how the breeder started this baby right after it hatched? Warm humid and soaked daily, or dry and on rabbit pellets and soaked once a week?

About the appetite : He did actually eat more today! I offered him a piece of romaine lettuce which I tried straying away from because I read to not feed it heavily, but he LOVES it so I knew it'd at least get him to eat and I put the herbal hay on top. I also gave him a small piece of kale with herbal hay on top as well. He ate most of the lettuce and was nibbling on the kale the last time I checked on him. His cool side is just above 80, his warm side is low 90's and I try to get his basking spot to as close to 100 as possible but its a bit tricky. I do have a coil uv light which I read was bad but didn't know that before purchasing, so I can replace if needed and I have a heat bulb as well but not sure what kind.. again did not know there was such a difference in different bulbs when I purchased them. :/ Those are the only two lights I have though. I keep my sulcata's heat on overnight so it never gets below 80. Unfortunatly, I don't know much about how the breeder cared for them. He really didn't seem to care too much on the care for them.. and told me my sulcata tortoise would take 50 years to reach full size which I read was not true at all when I had gotten home. He also basically told me to go to the grocery store for the food, but he did say I could get plants from outside too but wasn't specific at all. He told me the tank was okay, and that he needed the lights. He didn't mention the substrate or keeping it damp, and he didn't tell me the temperatures.. I think he may have said something about it to my dad about " dry and warm " .. but I can't remember because there was a lot of people and commotion, plus he was rude about it. I didn't see how he housed them because he already had them in their little travel cages at the Reptile Show which was a plastic carrier with a paper towel in the bottom which felt like it may have been dampened.
 

Tom

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Turn the coil light off immediately. When their eyes are burning its tends to shut the appetite off.

He needs it warm at night, but still dark. You need to invest in a Ceramic Heating Element and a thermostat. Like these:
http://www.lllreptile.com/products/36-zoo-med-150-watt-ceramic-heater
http://www.lllreptile.com/products/13883-zilla-1000-watt-temperature-controller

No "infrared" or colored bulbs.

For daytime heat and basking a regular flood bulb from the hardware store works great. I use 65 watt ones in my closed chambers, but you might need more in a larger open tank.

For UV, real outdoor access to sun is best. Indoors use a long florescent tube or a mercury vapor bulb, like the Powersun. Which florescent tube to use depends on the mounting height.
 

johnsonnboswell

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You have a terrific attitude and willingness to learn and do what it takes. I will add a little to what others have said. Instead of misting, just pour the water into the habitat. Think of it as a garden bed. The moisture needs to get to the bottom layers. Pouring will deliver much more water much faster.

Make a secure place outdoors. They need that outdoor time and sunlight. Make it easy on yourself and them so you don't have to devote so much time and attention to be out with them. They won't get out much if you have to be with them watching every second. It's fun and charming for a while, but it gets old fast. You can still watch while they're in the pen, but you can relax.
 

Andrea Emshousen

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Turn the coil light off immediately. When their eyes are burning its tends to shut the appetite off.

He needs it warm at night, but still dark. You need to invest in a Ceramic Heating Element and a thermostat. Like these:
http://www.lllreptile.com/products/36-zoo-med-150-watt-ceramic-heater
http://www.lllreptile.com/products/13883-zilla-1000-watt-temperature-controller

No "infrared" or colored bulbs.

For daytime heat and basking a regular flood bulb from the hardware store works great. I use 65 watt ones in my closed chambers, but you might need more in a larger open tank.

For UV, real outdoor access to sun is best. Indoors use a long florescent tube or a mercury vapor bulb, like the Powersun. Which florescent tube to use depends on the mounting height.


I will go turn the coil one off as soon as I post this reply! Thank you for telling me that.

I will also look into getting a ceramic heating element and a thermostat, as well as a florescent tube for UV. I've been taking the torts outside in my backyard for little bits of time during the day ( its only so short because I have to literally follow them around and stand right by them so I can keep my eye on them) and I know you told me to build a secure enclosure outside which I have talked to my dad about and is going to happen as soon as he can start building again due to him just having shoulder surgery about a month ago. My boyfriend lives in California, but will be here with me from the end of May to the beginning of August so he will be a big help in building enclosures for the torts as well as building my rabbit an outside run. Haha we will be very busy.
 

Andrea Emshousen

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Apr 7, 2015
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You have a terrific attitude and willingness to learn and do what it takes. I will add a little to what others have said. Instead of misting, just pour the water into the habitat. Think of it as a garden bed. The moisture needs to get to the bottom layers. Pouring will deliver much more water much faster.

Make a secure place outdoors. They need that outdoor time and sunlight. Make it easy on yourself and them so you don't have to devote so much time and attention to be out with them. They won't get out much if you have to be with them watching every second. It's fun and charming for a while, but it gets old fast. You can still watch while they're in the pen, but you can relax.


Thank you so much! I have poured the water a few times, but was afraid I was going to get it too soaked. I know it has to be very damp, just didn't want to pour too much but I will go back to the pouring method if you think it is best!

I replied to Tom's comment above about the outside enclosure: I have talked to my dad about it and we are going to build one this summer. My dad just had shoulder surgery a month ago and I'm a 19 year old girl so I'm not too experienced in the construction department.. haha. My boyfriend will be visiting me from the end of May to the beginning of August so he will be able to help me with building the outside enclosure and a rabbit run for my bunny.. We're definitely going to be quite busy with the animals this summer! LOL.

Thank you again for your kind words and your advice.
 
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