Cypress mulch wetness
- Thread starter Fire_bug80
- Start date
Fire_bug80
Active Member
Wow. Great set up and tort
Maddoggy
Active Member
You may want to reconsider owning a sulcata tortoise if a 9x3x3 is to large for your accommodations.These guys grow large and grow fast.This forum is built on responsible tortoise keeping by responsible tortoise keepers and it takes a special commitment to own and properly house a giant tortoise.
Maddoggy, I agree completely. The walks are over 1/4 mile now when Stump is in an exploring mood when s/he chooses to go outside. Inside my wife's office is about 20' square and s/he also uses a 15x30 sunroom with another house that will be finished in the spring. Stump will need about 1-1 1/2 acre mowed and fenced properly when large. The enclosure planned for this spring outside is 40'x40' with cover from predators adjacent his log home -w- landscape lighting and split duct unit. 9x3x3 is not sufficient for these giants in my short 10 months of observation. It will be about 4lbs or so @ 1 year.
Choosing to go down the ramp for a walk in July.
Choosing to go down the ramp for a walk in July.
This is Stump's log home that will be insulated and finished for spring. 4'x4' as an outside daytime burrow. Will be fully insulated -w- 2" foam, split duct unit on rear side for AC/Heat and custom glass. Like a model timber frame home. If things go well, when fully grown he will live in a small log home 16'x16' burrow on a properly fenced 1 - 1 1/2 acre in PA. Lots of space is required. I don't think my wife or I can leave Stump outside all night until years from now. We would be worried sick even with cameras, etc.
I have noticed, Stump is stubborn as f*&^ and will bug my wife continuously and pace the door if s/he wants to go outside. It has been 20 degrees, 35 degrees, snow on the ground last week, no matter. We make sure that carapace temps do not go lower than 75 or so and have one of those stupid costume sweaters that seems to help hold the heat in decent.
Right now s/he chose to settle in by the wood stove on the hearth... carapace is 95deg.
This was today outside. 50degrees ish.
Maddoggy
Active Member
When I die I want to come back to life as one of your tortoises!!
Fire_bug80
Active Member
Is 93 too high during the day?
In my recent experience no. I have measured carapace temperatures over 115 and s/he often chooses to stay there. The big thing for us is, if it wants water it is there, if it wants to leave the heat it can. Other than that, Stump knows what to do.
Fire_bug80
Active Member
Yesterday I lowered my CHE and Basking Light about 6in. Box gets up to 93 in the middle 82 at night on warm side.
93 is a good daytime ambient for a sulcata.
Fire_bug80
Active Member
Tom, in other posts you have mentioned to keep soaks and humidity high until they are 8”. Is that the plastron ppl are using as measuring the tort?
Incorrect. I recommend having them live primarily indoors when they are little and they can be moved outside full time once they reach 8-10 inches. That was my rule of thumb several years ago, but in recent years I've changed my thoughts on that. Now I think it is better to leave them indoors in their closed chambers as much and as long as possible. At some point they are just too large to be inside, but I drag it out as long as I can. Now I make a large outdoor enclosure and when they start getting too big to be indoors, then I put them outside all day in favorable weather, and leave them inside at night. Eventually, they are just too big to be coming back inside.
Babies should be soaked every day, and I taper that down as they gain size. Daily soaks would be good for any size or age, but that is not "necessary" once they start getting larger. The more soaking the better for any size or age.
Pyramiding is caused by growth in conditions that are too dry. Someone here years ago started putting size and age limits on how long they need high humidity, but I don't agree with that. They need high humidity for as long as they are growing. For people like me in dry climates, this is a challenge. Once my tortoises are too large to live inside, I end up humidifying their night boxes and they walk around in the dry air all day. This helps, but South Florida or Louisiana weather would be better.
Fire_bug80
Active Member
It was a post from 2013. My tort has went from 73g to 125g today, since I took the advice and made the humid box on 11-09!! Crazy, he’s an eating machine. I feed him 4x a day. Always hungry
That's awesome! Please, please post a photo of the setup. I'd love to see what is working for you guys.
Many people are skeptical. Many are reluctant to change because they spent so much money and worked so hard on the wrong type of enclosure. I can totally understand that, BUT... Everyone who bites the bullet and switches to a closed chamber says the same thing.
This applies even in humid South Florida. A certain YT personality there likes to recommend keeping them in tubs or open topped enclosures. Many new members come here explaining how their baby is kept outside in the open air "on the lanai". I have been able to convince many of them to switch, and every single one of them has thanked me, and can't understand how or why it works so much better. But it does.
Fire_bug80
Active Member
Currently lol
Fire_bug80
Active Member
So these measurements are the plastron? Or carapace when you are talking 8-10”?
