Big new enclosure help!

Niteflower06

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20181222_125422.jpg 20190102_134947.jpg Hi all! My darling boyfriend has taken quite an interest in my young yellow foot tort and decided to have a very nice, large new home built for him and a future friend as a pretty cool Christmas gift!! Ive only owned a tortoise for a little over a year now and certainly do not know everything, but we read alot and watch alot of videos and are asking tons of questions! Ive used top soil, coco coil and peat moss prior as the main base substrates in a few set ups and they ALL have attracted or grown flying knat bugs that are defiantly not welcome inside the home! ( sorry boiling and freezing is out of the question for the amount that is being used and i dont feel that it does anything anyhow!)
This new set up is approx 6 ft long and 4 ft wide and 14 inches tall. We planned on lining it with rubber mats and with a durable carpet on top of the rubber. We are considering using a sand mix as the primary bedding/substrate but am not sure what to mix it with to discourage bugs but will help some moisture unless we could simply add a humidifier instead? Boyfriend wants to utilize hay vs moss which I am not sure about for red/ yellow foots in their hide spots.
We have a ceramic heat coil, and a 100w basking lamp and just purchased a tube strip uvb to replace the smaller ubv coil bulb. Approximately how close should we hang the lamps to the tortoise? We will of course be adding a few hide spots and fake plants/leaves to create a jungle look.

Feed back and suggestions are much appreciated thank you!
 

Yvonne G

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If I'm understanding correctly, you're planning to get your YF tortoise a 'friend' in the future? Please don't. If you want another tortoise for YOU, do that, but don't get one to put with your existing tortoise. Get one and set him up in his own enclosure. Tortoises neither need nor want a 'friend.' They're solitary and territorial. It is stressful to have another tortoise in his territory - stressful on both of them - the one can't get out and the other can't get rid of him.

Living with bugs in a moist environment is just one of the things you have to deal with. Sand causes impaction and should not be used. and hay will mold. Your YF tortoise should live in a warm, humid environment, and that environment, unfortunately, is also where the gnats like to live. I like orchid bark (the small particles) best. You can keep it moist and it doesn't sour or mold, and if they accidentally eat it, it doesn't cause impaction.
 

Niteflower06

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Thank you for the input, I am also an avid equestrian and am aware that hay cannot be wet and will mold hence we were planning on keeping it to the dryer section of the enclosure. I am also aware that everyone has their own ways of doing things and no one on here I believe is an " expert" on what is going to make an animal happy. Providing what is crucial to the tortoise's well being is paramount otherwise, we would not be having such a pet who takes up an entire room.:D :tort:
 

Yvonne G

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Thank you for the input, I am also an avid equestrian and am aware that hay cannot be wet and will mold hence we were planning on keeping it to the dryer section of the enclosure. I am also aware that everyone has their own ways of doing things and no one on here I believe is an " expert" on what is going to make an animal happy. Providing what is crucial to the tortoise's well being is paramount otherwise, we would not be having such a pet who takes up an entire room.:D :tort:

There shouldn't be a "dryer section" of the enclosure.
 

Niteflower06

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There shouldn't be a "dryer section" of the enclosure.
Again, thanks for YOUR input, Im not however sold on what you have to say to me nor am I going to keep this going without any other sourced proof as to what you are stating... via photos, sourced websites and or books. Are we not to create an environment that simulates a cooler area for these animals to escape the "light" we are providing, which, is a totally natural for them to do? Do you want sun beaming down on you all day and constantly being wet with no escape? No! This animal comes from a region where there are wet and dry spells/seasons and from what I gather, they are also prone to shell rot if left in too wet of conditions. Speaking of wet conditions, there are a lot of water sources in the rain forest and if I'm not mistaken, there is a great bit of sandy soil along with tree bark, leaf litter, dozens of plant species along with grasses that DO indeed dry up and resemble dried hay. Needless to say, my boyfriend and I are providing this animal with a VERY nice large home with no corners cut. NAMASTE
 

Redfoot NERD

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Don't know where you've looked @Niteflower06 ... but Yellowfoot tortoises are Amazon JUNGLE creatures where it is wet ALL THE TIME !

Try cypress mulch alone as a substrate.

Research the flora of that region.. and then duplicate that - using the format ( BALANCE the parameters ) in the Redfoot Caresheet above.

Is 20 years and F3 hatchlings enough experience for you ?
 

Redfoot NERD

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@Niteflower06 - Would you agree that .. making babies means "something-is-right-in-the-system" ?

What I'm sharing here is ONLY for illustration purposes.. hopefully for you to acknowledge that maybe.. just maybe there is a way that has been proven to work. As a side note.. I've been known to take a picture or 2 of some of the tortoises and turtles that have gone thru my hands since 1998.

In 2005 I hatched the first redfoot tortoises - these are examples of what followed for some years on - http://smg.photobucket.com/user/clemmysman/library/1turtletaryredfoots/RF HATCHLINGS?sort=4&page=1
 

Toddrickfl1

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I think this is another case of someone wanting people to tell them what they want to hear. Thiss person actually posted asking for feedback and suggestions. Then literally started arguing with the first person to provide that, and told them their wrong. Then took off? Lol
 

Redfoot NERD

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I think this is another case of someone wanting people to tell them what they want to hear. Thiss person actually posted asking for feedback and suggestions. Then literally started arguing with the first person to provide that, and told them their wrong. Then took off? Lol

Yep....some people's kids! I've been dealing with them for about 15 years now.

I was in a ( big chain ) pet-store shortly after the Reptiles mag. published my first article on "Keeping and Breeding Redfoot Tortoises ( 2008 ) - it was on the 'rack' close to a redfoot in a small.. dry aquarium with no place to hide from the bright lights. The thermometer read 72F and there was what looked like multi-colored cereal in a dish that was too tall to reach and a similar water-dish!!!
I asked to see the "tortoise expert"... and up waddles this high-school kid that was obviously 'proud' of his title. I turned to the article and handed it to him and asked him if he had read it or ever heard of the author. He said - "Yeah it's cool!.. but no.. had not heard of the author. I would have been amazed / impressed if he had.

I handed him one of my cards --- he looked at it.................... take a wild guess what he did then @Toddrickfl1 ?
 

Gillian M

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A very warm welcome to the forum!

Please remember to post pics of your tort. :tort::)
 

Toddrickfl1

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Yep....some people's kids! I've been dealing with them for about 15 years now.

I was in a ( big chain ) pet-store shortly after the Reptiles mag. published my first article on "Keeping and Breeding Redfoot Tortoises ( 2008 ) - it was on the 'rack' close to a redfoot in a small.. dry aquarium with no place to hide from the bright lights. The thermometer read 72F and there was what looked like multi-colored cereal in a dish that was too tall to reach and a similar water-dish!!!
I asked to see the "tortoise expert"... and up waddles this high-school kid that was obviously 'proud' of his title. I turned to the article and handed it to him and asked him if he had read it or ever heard of the author. He said - "Yeah it's cool!.. but no.. had not heard of the author. I would have been amazed / impressed if he had.

I handed him one of my cards --- he looked at it.................... take a wild guess what he did then @Toddrickfl1 ?
Started telling you it was wrong?
 

Redfoot NERD

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Started telling you it was wrong?

Well first I asked him where he got his care advice from - [ I knew he was going to say the company ] - then is when I showed him the article and then handed him my card.. showing that "I" was the author. Not sure if it registered with him or not. I asked him if he saw that I was the author. He looked up at me... and handed my card back to me!!! And then just wondered off.....

Now if you were him and had that experience wouldn't you at least have a couple - if not several - questions? I know I would.
I'm not judging the kid.. it amazes me that a 'multi-$$$' company would have him representing them.

I know... it's only about "Old Dead Presidents" [ $$$$ ]
 

Levi the Leopard

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NERD, if that had been ME (my first job was at a big chain pet store in the animal dept) I'd have added your # to my contacts and kept you there for hours asking you everything I could think of.. Ha!

Then again, that's kinda what I've always done. Learned from those who knew more than me and sought out mentors to teach/show me things in the areas I'm interested in. Hmm.. Maybe he wasn't really interested in tortoises.

I think the OP is gone but for anyone reading along:

I've found that setting up bioactive substrates really help with the knats/ bugs in the house. I think I'm going on 5 years with them now. And although I don't keep tortoises in the house anymore, I still have other warm/humid critters.
Truth be told, setting it up can take more work, $ and has trial and error period. BUT the pay off long term is sooo worth it.
No bug issues, beautiful enclosures and happy animals.
 

Toddrickfl1

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NERD, if that had been ME (my first job was at a big chain pet store in the animal dept) I'd have added your # to my contacts and kept you there for hours asking you everything I could think of.. Ha!

Then again, that's kinda what I've always done. Learned from those who knew more than me and sought out mentors to teach/show me things in the areas I'm interested in. Hmm.. Maybe he wasn't really interested in tortoises.

I think the OP is gone but for anyone reading along:

I've found that setting up bioactive substrates really help with the knats/ bugs in the house. I think I'm going on 5 years with them now. And although I don't keep tortoises in the house anymore, I still have other warm/humid critters.
Truth be told, setting it up can take more work, $ and has trial and error period. BUT the pay off long term is sooo worth it.
No bug issues, beautiful enclosures and happy animals.
I'm definitely interested in learning more about bioactive substrate. Would you consider making a thread when you got some time?
 

Levi the Leopard

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If I can, I will. Till then, check out:

Josh's frogs
&
The Bio Dude

They've been my biggest informational resources. I've never purchased from them, haven't needed to. But they explain the how, what & why very well.
 

DanB

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OMG you guys can be harsh, I for one am glad she is not just taking one persons opinion as gospel.

Why shouldn't there be a dry section?

Where does it say that if you ask for suggestions you HAVE to follow them?

If I tell you I'm an expert on the sky and that its falling are you just going to believe me?
 

Redfoot NERD

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@DanB - do you think there is a dry spot in the jungle where yellowfoot tortoises live ?

No one said she had to follow anything - but when you ask for 'help' on a subject you have no experience on it usually means you at least consider the response... don't you think? Instead she started arguing...
 

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