Baby's first home!

[TashaR]

I am bringing home my hatchling Marginated Tortoise on Sunday, so I am trying to make sure that everything is set up for him when he gets here.

Here is his enclosure. He gets to share a stand with my yellow belly slider turtles, lucky little guy.

I'm running a 100 watt Zoo Met PowerSun bulb on the left, above the log hide out. That'll be on 7 am - 8 pm. On the right I'm using a 75 watt Exo-Terra Heat-Glo Infra-Red Heat Lamp for night heat (so 8 pm to 7am).

I need to add two shallow dishes for food and water, so I'll stop at the store on Saturday and pick up something suitable for that.

Suggestions for improvement are welcome!

 

[Marty333]

Omg I was looking at the top one and I was like is She CRAZY! Are you going to have a water bowl and food bowl? Maybe another hide and some fake plants to spruce it up a bit

 

[TashaR]

LOL Yes, I know that tortoises don't swim. The tank on top is for my sliders, who do love to swim.

Yes, I'm going to add a shallow water dish and a food dish. I'm going to get a few small pots too and try to grow some seeds along the back so my baby has some fresh greens to nibble on.


I hope Chevy is feeling okay -- I read the thread about him but I'm really new to tortoises and didn't have any good advice.

 

[tortoisenerd]

You need some way to vertically adjust the MVB to adjust the temps...lamp stands are great. Run the bulb and see what kind of temp gradient you get with it before you put the tort in. How big is the tank and how big of a tort? I'd like to see hides in each temp gradient, at least three. A slate tile is good for food (not a dish with sides to it), as it wears down the beak & nails. What is your night room temp? You may not need heat. Either way, you don't want to just place fixture on top of tank screens because you need to adjust them based on ambient conditions. Measure with an accurate thermometer like a temp gun...not those probes that take 30 min for a read out. What kind of substrate? I'd add some depth to it. Hopefully something moist.

 

[TashaR]

Thanks Kate!

It's a 20 gallon long and the tortoise is a hatchling....maybe two inches at this point.

I'm running the lights starting tonight, so I can get a read on the temperatures before I bring the tortoise home. I looked at the lamp stands, but wasn't sure they were necessary...I'll pick one up if the temperature is not good.

The guy I'm getting Emmett from recommended a slate tile as well, but not in place of a food dish. If it can work for both, though, I'll definitely just do that.

Night room temp is 68 degrees, but I was told that that might be too cold for the hatchling, which is why I got the heat lamp. It's just a 75 watt so there would still be the cooler area under the MVB bulb during the night.

I can add more substrate; I planned to mist it daily. It's a repti-bark substrate, and the only reason I got it is because it's what he's on right now and I didn't want to drop him into a totally new environment. I've heard good things about cypress mulch and other potential substrates that I'd like to switch to once he's settled.

 

[tortoisenerd]

Even if the temp you measure with it at that height is good, it needs to be adjustable for when your room temp changes (and even humidity changes will change the temp with the thermostat set the same). A 2 inch hatchling will quickly outgrow a 20 long tank, so start planning for a table or stock tank or similar. I love using a slate tile in a corner for food. If you don't have something that large, the food ends up all over. Works very well on the nails, and as they pick up the food, it wears down the beak. I don't like putting rocks under the basking spot because with the lights we use they do get hotter than rocks in the sun. Glad you will change it once he is settled, but honestly, I would introduce him to the enclosure you want him to stay in for months. If first you bring him home to something, and then make changes, that is more changes. He's going to know he's in a new enclosure, even if its the same substrate. Check the temps are night with that red bulb. You don't want too much about 70 F because they need a night temp drop, but yeah, a bit more than 68 F is good.