Conflicting research

[Tina Marie]

Hi everyone - I have come to a final (somewhat) decision - a friend listened to me on and one about tortoises and suggested I look toward the Redfoot - as we live in a suburb of New Orleans - can I say hot - humid - and they seem to thrive here - so, I am getting everything together for her and have a couple of questions - 1) UV lights - some say yes, some no - thoughts? 2) soaking - I read on a link from a thread here that it's not really necessary? as long as I mist and provide a water dish (which I have) and a final (well??) 3) what about evacuation - not now - but later when she is an adult? how do you all handle evacuation? - kisses - this is the best place - I read every chance I get

Thank you so much - I am counting down the days.

 

[DixieParadise]

Tina,
You are doing the right thing by doing your research. I have two RFs, myself.
Welcome to the forum. You will find many people here to help you.

P.S. I am a Saints fan...have been since 1968. Love your city...I am glad you are thinking that far ahead for evacuations. I would just put a kit together for your Tort, just like you do for yourself. You will get it figured out.

 

[Angi]

I don't have Redfoots, but I think you will need a lot of lights etc...Someone else will chime in on that. I do live in an area where we have to evacuate because of fire every few years. I have not done it with my torts yet. I got my CDTs less than two years ago and I later got a box turtle. I have rubbermade boxes ready to go. I can pack them in the car in the boxes with substaight and bring lights, food, dishes etc... in a seperate box. I don't think it will be that hard. The dogs are more difficult.

My husbands grandma lived in New Orleans when Katrina hit. She evacuated early, lost everything and never went back. Her daughter and grandaughter did. The pictures of her home were awful. Very scary. You got to have a plan that includes all your animals. Good luck.

 

[Madkins007]

UVB light or supplemental vitamin D- not needed if the torts can get outside in your area for even only about an hour a week over several exposures. If you plan on doing it inside for more than a few months at a time, it really seems helpful even though several people have decent results without it.

Soaking- A healthy, hydrated tortoise does not need soaking, but many (probably MOST) captive tortoises are at least a little dehydrated. One way to KNOW for a tort over about a year old is to apply the formula "Length (in cms) to the 3rd power, times 0.191 equals the expected minimum wight in grams". Even if the tort is underweight, soaking may not be a good answer if the tortoise is stressed by the process.

Evacuation- A Red-foot can tolerate pretty harsh conditions for short periods. Toss it in a cooler and take it with you as much as you can. As long as the temps, humidity, etc. are not too out of line, they can pretty much be boxed up for a week if absolutely necessary.

If you have not seen it yet, you can find some helpful stuff at http://www.tortoiselibrary.com

 

[Tina Marie]

Thank you all so much - fears are lessening quite quickly - now, is it a commonplace and safe practice to buy over the internet? I found a little one at Turtle Source. (Can I even say this?)

 

[DixieParadise]

I sent you a private message. Good luck on your search for the perfect Tort for you,

 

[Madkins007]

Rather than buying from such an impersonal source, you may want to try some of the members here. If you DO buy from an on-line store, check out their reputations first. Sadly, some of the heaviest advertised places are also the worse to buy from.

I am not positive, but I believe that cdmay or allegraf have some babies available, and theirs are great!

 

[HLogic]

Thank you all so much - fears are lessening quite quickly - now, is it a commonplace and safe practice to buy over the internet? I found a little one at Turtle Source. (Can I even say this?)

I know the owner personally and although a little pricier than average you can be assured of a quality animal.

 

[Madkins007]

Thanks for that info, Art! There is a popular but distasteful source that seems to operate under several names, at least one of which is similar to Turtle Source, so I was not sure.

 

[HLogic]

So that there is no confusion: theturtlesource.com