Baby Sulcata help!!!

[yaya]

i received my sulcata tortoise around july 21. he was around 6 weeks then. sprout (my sulcata) doesn't like his pellets or the hibiscus flowers that was in with his pellets. he doesn't like carrots, bell peppers. he loves clovers and kale and recently green beans and also zucchini. the temp in his tank goes from 75-90. and the humidity lowest is 50 and never pasts 65. recently i bought him a log and put it under the heat and sun lamp. since the log he spends most of his days during the day under his log sleeping. tends to come out more during the night. i spray in his tank and wet his bark to try and raise the humidity and i fail! also is okay to feed him in his tank?? lastly he really doesn't like to try new things its like hes picky LOL! he usually eats more when i let him out his tank, i was feeding him today and he was pooping and one poop was more a solid normal poop im use too and the others were more runny, is that normal or something i should be concerned about?. for his diet ive been trying to give him collard greens, spinach, zucchini, romaine lettuce, and green beans. he only eats the zucchini and green beans out of it! any tips or advice please!

 

[wellington]

His diet needs to be much better. No zucchini, no green beans. More grass, weeds, hibiscus, etc. you have to chop it up fine and mix with food you know he likes and slowly as he eats the better stuff, you take out the bad stuff. Tuff love and not giving in.
A closed chamber is needed and the temps at 80 for the lowest and 95-100 for the basking and a humidity of 80%. Easily achieved with a closed chamber. Spraying won't really do it specially with an open top enclosure.

 

[Taylor T.]

Can you post pictures of his enclosure? Temperature should be no lower than 80 degrees, and humidity should never go below 80% while he is still growing. What kind of pellets are they? He should NOT be fed carrots, zucchini, bell peppers, spinach, green beans, or any type of lettuce.

What type of bulb are you using? If it is a coil type bulb, those are bad for their eyes, and should be turned off immediately.

Read these, and come back with all your questions:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

 

[wellington]

A

Can you post pictures of his enclosure? Temperature should be no lower than 80 degrees, and humidity should never go below 80% while he is still growing. What kind of pellets are they? He should NOT be fed carrots, zucchini, bell peppers, spinach, green beans, or any type of lettuce.

What type of bulb are you using? If it is a coil type bulb, those are bad for their eyes, and should be turned off immediately.

Read these, and come back with all your questions:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

Actually not all lettuces are bad as long as it's a small part of their diet. The other foods, beans and zucchini isn't good, but carrots once in a while isn't bad neither is a very small amount of spinach. However, if you don't have to feed it, because you live in an area that you don't have cold snowy winters then don't feed it and stick with more natural stuff like cactus, weeds, grass, rose of Sharon, etc.

 

[yaya]

Can you post pictures of his enclosure? Temperature should be no lower than 80 degrees, and humidity should never go below 80% while he is still growing. What kind of pellets are they? He should NOT be fed carrots, zucchini, bell peppers, spinach, green beans, or any type of lettuce.

What type of bulb are you using? If it is a coil type bulb, those are bad for their eyes, and should be turned off immediately.

Read these, and come back with all your questions:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

 

[yaya]

His diet needs to be much better. No zucchini, no green beans. More grass, weeds, hibiscus, etc. you have to chop it up fine and mix with food you know he likes and slowly as he eats the better stuff, you take out the bad stuff. Tuff love and not giving in.
A closed chamber is needed and the temps at 80 for the lowest and 95-100 for the basking and a humidity of 80%. Easily achieved with a closed chamber. Spraying won't really do it specially with an open top enclosure.

i've received all this information from zoomed guide

 

[yaya]

A

Actually not all lettuces are bad as long as it's a small part of their diet. The other foods, beans and zucchini isn't good, but carrots once in a while isn't bad neither is a very small amount of spinach. However, if you don't have to feed it, because you live in an area that you don't have cold snowy winters then don't feed it and stick with more natural stuff like cactus, weeds, grass, rose of Sharon, etc.

his turtle food he won't eat except the ( i think) sweet potato in it

 

[Tom]

Hello and welcome. You've gotten some bad advice. You are not alone. Most of the care info for this species out in the world is wrong. The info is based off of 30 year old misconceptions of how they live in the wild.

You've got the wrong lights to start with. No red bulbs and no coil bulbs. They need it bright during the day and dark at night, but still warm…

Its all explained here:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

Here is the correct diet info:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

 

[yaya]

Hello and welcome. You've gotten some bad advice. You are not alone. Most of the care info for this species out in the world is wrong. The info is based off of 30 year old misconceptions of how they live in the wild.

You've got the wrong lights to start with. No red bulbs and no coil bulbs. They need it bright during the day and dark at night, but still warm…

Its all explained here:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

Here is the correct diet info:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

what lights do i use for him until i can provide the proper lights

 

[yaya]

Hello and welcome. You've gotten some bad advice. You are not alone. Most of the care info for this species out in the world is wrong. The info is based off of 30 year old misconceptions of how they live in the wild.

You've got the wrong lights to start with. No red bulbs and no coil bulbs. They need it bright during the day and dark at night, but still warm…

Its all explained here:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

Here is the correct diet info:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

also can you provide pictures of the proper lights ?

 

[Tom]

what lights do i use for him until i can provide the proper lights

This time of year you don't need indoor UV if your tortoise gets out for some sunshine a few times per week.

I use a 65 watt flood bulb from the hardware store for daytime heat and basking. Raise or lower the fixture to get the correct temp under it, and set it on a timer (Also from the hardware store…) for about 12-13 hours. If the room stays 80 degrees, this is all you need. If the room drops below 80 degrees at night, then you'l need a CHE set on a thermostat to maintain a warm ambient temp.

A long florescent tube is an option to make things brighter, or if you want to add UV.

 

[yaya]

This time of year you don't need indoor UV if your tortoise gets out for some sunshine a few times per week.

I use a 65 watt flood bulb from the hardware store for daytime heat and basking. Raise or lower the fixture to get the correct temp under it, and set it on a timer (Also from the hardware store…) for about 12-13 hours. If the room stays 80 degrees, this is all you need. If the room drops below 80 degrees at night, then you'l need a CHE set on a thermostat to maintain a warm ambient temp.

A long florescent tube is an option to make things brighter, or if you want to add UV.

thank you so much !

 

[yaya]

Hello and welcome. You've gotten some bad advice. You are not alone. Most of the care info for this species out in the world is wrong. The info is based off of 30 year old misconceptions of how they live in the wild.

You've got the wrong lights to start with. No red bulbs and no coil bulbs. They need it bright during the day and dark at night, but still warm…

Its all explained here:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

Here is the correct diet info:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

i took sprout outside for 30-45 minutes and let him roam and eat the grass. he seemed like he had a burst on energy in this 93 degree weather . i picked some grass and flowers for him and put it in his cage , i also removed his log of the tank cause he has a tendency to go straight for it and sleep , i plan on adding it back around 6.i opened my blinds because i know the sun shines a lot in my room and i turned off both the lights which you said were bad. is it ok if i turn the red light on so at night he won't get too cold ?
i've also noticed he seems more willing to eat outside his cage

 

[Eduardo Hernandez]

Its best if he has his hide all the time. He is probably still getting used to you and his new enclosure, and not being able to hide adds to his stress. For night heat, get a ceramic heat emitter, as the red light won't really let him go to sleep and messes with their vision.

 

[yaya]

Its best if he has his hide all the time. He is probably still getting used to you and his new enclosure, and not being able to hide adds to his stress. For night heat, get a ceramic heat emitter, as the red light won't really let him go to sleep and messes with their vision.

should his log be placed on the cool or heat side

 

[Tom]

should his log be placed on the cool or heat side

Doesn't matter since the whole enclosure should be 80 or above. Put it where its convenient.

 

[Tom]

i took sprout outside for 30-45 minutes and let him roam and eat the grass. he seemed like he had a burst on energy in this 93 degree weather . i picked some grass and flowers for him and put it in his cage , i also removed his log of the tank cause he has a tendency to go straight for it and sleep , i plan on adding it back around 6.i opened my blinds because i know the sun shines a lot in my room and i turned off both the lights which you said were bad. is it ok if i turn the red light on so at night he won't get too cold ?
i've also noticed he seems more willing to eat outside his cage

He wants to eat outside the cage more because their appetite is linked to the light. Because you were using the wrong lighting (Not your fault. Please don't be offended.), the food and the world inside the cage didn't look right and there has been no day and night cycle, like there should be. Outside the cage with more "natural" lighting, the tortoise recognizes the food better and the daylight perks up the appetite. Also, those coil bulbs sometimes burn their eyes, so they stay hidden because it hurts. After a few days without that bulb burning his eyes, they should heal, and activity level should pick up.

You can use a regular household white bulb for heat and light until you have time to get to the hardware store and get all the right supplies. Your tortoise must have heat and light. Don't let it get cold day or night. Until you have the correct equipment, you can put the cage in a bathroom or closet and run a space heater to keep the whole room warm. Use great caution and monitor temps early and often. Most space heaters have a built in thermostat, but they aren't very accurate. Observe and adjust as needed.

At the hardware store, you'll need:
Terra cotta plant saucers for food and water. 6" ones should work well for now.
Digital appliance timers for your basking bulb and florescent UV tube that you'll be getting.
A digital thermometer/hygrometer or two.
Separate ceramic based light fixtures so the CHE can be over the middle of the tank and the basking bulb can be on one end.

Online you'll need:
150 watt CHE: https://www.lllreptile.com/products/36-zoo-med-150-watt-ceramic-heater
Thermostat to run it: https://www.lllreptile.com/products/13883-zilla-1000-watt-temperature-controller
UV tubes: http://www.lightyourreptiles.com

Then shoot over to Walmart and pick up a black dishwashing tub for $1.82. Flip it upside down, cut out a small door hole and dampen the substrate under it. This will be your humid hide.