dry tortoise shell?

[Alex and the Redfoot]

i'll probably have to... get something set up for winter though. i think diaper + roam in house haha. is that okay?

No, roaming in the house is not a good idea. Getting a bunk bed to place a tortoise enclosure under it is probably better.

 

[Yingg]

No, roaming in the house is not a good idea. Getting a bunk bed to place a tortoise enclosure under it is probably better.

oh, may i ask why? and a bunk in the dorms isn't such a bad idea! though i'm worried for winter right now, since i'll go to college in august/sept 2025.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

oh, may i ask why? and a bunk in the dorms isn't such a bad idea! though i'm worried for winter right now, since i'll go to college in august/sept 2025.

This thread should give you the answers:

Should My Tortoise Be Allowed To Roam around on the Floor of my Room?

Ascott said: To let a tort roam our habitats or not? Always a question that will offer up a bunch of opinions, stories of what happened to some, stories of how dumb it is and success stories....so if you see the trend here, it is that folks do alot of different things based on their own lives...

tortoiseforum.org

Simply put, it's not safe or healthy.

A bunk bed in your room can help you to provide enough space in the winter, I didn't mean dorm room yet. But it's just an idea. Also, you can build L-shaped or two-level enclosure, use a kiddy pool and so on. Unused space in a laundry/storage room, basement or attic can be repurposed.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Yeah definitely no indoor free roaming I’m afraid, it can cause problems or injury down the line, it isn’t worth it. Your garden plans sound a good idea though! And hopefully you can have a bunk bed in your dorms with a bigger set up

 

[Yingg]

This thread should give you the answers:

Should My Tortoise Be Allowed To Roam around on the Floor of my Room?

Ascott said: To let a tort roam our habitats or not? Always a question that will offer up a bunch of opinions, stories of what happened to some, stories of how dumb it is and success stories....so if you see the trend here, it is that folks do alot of different things based on their own lives...

tortoiseforum.org

Simply put, it's not safe or healthy.

A bunk bed in your room can help you to provide enough space in the winter, I didn't mean dorm room yet. But it's just an idea. Also, you can build L-shaped or two-level enclosure, use a kiddy pool and so on. Unused space in a laundry/storage room, basement or attic can be repurposed.

oh my, i never realized all these things. okay, i'll stick to outdoors. that totally makes sense. a bunk bed seems like a marvelous idea and project for my DIY self, and my tortoise scratches a lot and i sleep with white noise, so, perfect idea! good news: i found a very reputable vet through some connections who has reasonable prices. $100 exam, $500 xray, and $300 blood work my teacher who used to be a vet says that she can keep my tortoise for a year while i go to college. Only a year though, which is already so kind of her. she says i'll have to get her back after a year. seems great, honestly. she loves animals and i don't doubt my tortoise will be great in her care. i'll probably send her money every month.

TORTOISE WALKING VIDEO

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

oh my, i never realized all these things. okay, i'll stick to outdoors. that totally makes sense. a bunk bed seems like a marvelous idea and project for my DIY self, and my tortoise scratches a lot and i sleep with white noise, so, perfect idea! good news: i found a very reputable vet through some connections who has reasonable prices. $100 exam, $500 xray, and $300 blood work my teacher who used to be a vet says that she can keep my tortoise for a year while i go to college. Only a year though, which is already so kind of her. she says i'll have to get her back after a year. seems great, honestly. she loves animals and i don't doubt my tortoise will be great in her care. i'll probably send her money every month.

TORTOISE WALKING VIDEO

This is wonderful news! Thank you further video too, her walking definitely isn’t normal but not as bad as I thought it potentially could have been, fingers crossed it’s just a matter of her building her muscles

 

[Yingg]

This is wonderful news! Thank you further video too, her walking definitely isn’t normal but not as bad as I thought it potentially could have been, fingers crossed it’s just a matter of her building her muscles

she's raised a fewwww mm off the ground. still a bit low though. i hope it's just muscle. last year, she used to straight up drag herself. her plastron was scratched. i think it's gotten a bit better. I really hope it isn't too awkward to ask my teacher to house my tortoise, and for a whole year at that.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

she's raised a fewwww mm off the ground. still a bit low though. i hope it's just muscle. last year, she used to straight up drag herself. her plastron was scratched. i think it's gotten a bit better. I really hope it isn't too awkward to ask my teacher to house my tortoise, and for a whole year at that.

It’s encouraging that it’s improved! Even if it’s only slightly, it’s a step in the right direction

 

[Chefdenoel10]

oh my, i never realized all these things. okay, i'll stick to outdoors. that totally makes sense. a bunk bed seems like a marvelous idea and project for my DIY self, and my tortoise scratches a lot and i sleep with white noise, so, perfect idea! good news: i found a very reputable vet through some connections who has reasonable prices. $100 exam, $500 xray, and $300 blood work my teacher who used to be a vet says that she can keep my tortoise for a year while i go to college. Only a year though, which is already so kind of her. she says i'll have to get her back after a year. seems great, honestly. she loves animals and i don't doubt my tortoise will be great in her care. i'll probably send her money every month.

TORTOISE WALKING VIDEO

Oooooo!!!!!
Sweet pea… I’m sorry to have to tell you this buuut…..
Your baby NEEDS his nails trimmed
BIG TIME.
Not only is it uncomfortable but he risks the chance of ripping one of them off on something one day….
Sorry I had to tell you that..
I still love you though!!!

 

[Yingg]

Oooooo!!!!!
Sweet pea… I’m sorry to have to tell you this buuut…..
Your baby NEEDS his nails trimmed
BIG TIME.
Not only is it uncomfortable but he risks the chance of ripping one of them off on something one day….
Sorry I had to tell you that..
I still love you though!!!

oh dear, i never noticed. let me go do that while she's inside. thanks!

funnily enough, she's actually missing a toe. i believe i got her like that, haha.

 

[Chefdenoel10]

You can always use one of those mail filers that is battery powered. If she will sit still for it, you can get the job done in 10min.
This very well maybe her “walking problem”.
Picture this :
You have really long CURLED finger and toe nails (as a human)….
Now… try to use a type writer..
See if you can COMFORTABLY walk around…
I hope this helps.
You could even have the vet do it..

 

[Yingg]

You can always use one of those mail filers that is battery powered. If she will sit still for it, you can get the job done in 10min.
This very well maybe her “walking problem”.
Picture this :
You have really long CURLED finger and toe nails (as a human)….
Now… try to use a type writer..
See if you can COMFORTABLY walk around…
I hope this helps.
You could even have the vet do it..

hi! is this enough? i tried and she seemed pretty alright with me.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

hi! is this enough? i tried and she seemed pretty alright with me.

It looks okay to me - the rest should wear off when she walks outside.

 

[Yingg]

It looks okay to me - the rest should wear off when she walks outside.

will i accidentally cut into the blood vessel? how far can i cut without worry? thanks so much for everyone's help by the way

 

[COmtnLady]

will i accidentally cut into the blood vessel? how far can i cut without worry? thanks so much for everyone's help by the way

Yes. It took quite a while for them to get way too long, so you will have to allow "the quick" to withdraw a little then trim them again,. You'll need to do again, then wait, then again, over a period of a couple months to avoid cutting into sensitive tissues.(which also opens her up to infections).

Why didn't the vet say something about her nails when you were there last month?
.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

will i accidentally cut into the blood vessel? how far can i cut without worry? thanks so much for everyone's help by the way

You can see a darker area inside the nail - that's where blood vessels are. Leave a couple of millimeters between this part and the edge of the nail. Yet, I think you have filed enough for her to walk normally so nails will be naturally kept in shape.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Yeah you’ve done a pretty good job trimming them! I’d leave them as they are now and hopefully they’ll start wearing down

 

[Yingg]

Yeah you’ve done a pretty good job trimming them! I’d leave them as they are now and hopefully they’ll start wearing down

i've set the basking lamp to stay on between 87 and 95 degrees. is the arcadia light supposed to be very warm to the touch? otherwise, this is what i have. i'll add some decor, maybe tomorrow since i'm tired of hauling all this up the stairs.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Basking light shouldn’t theoretically need to be on a thermostat if you secure at the right height for the desired basking temp directly underneath of 95-100(this is where a temp gun is useful) but any ceramics will need running on a thermostat.
The basking light will feel hot to the touch, definitely don’t touch the bulb directly, I am also noticing your dome is being held by a clamp, the clamps have been known to fail unfortunately which makes them a hazard, I’d get yourself a stand, or better yet make one out of some timber, screw to the side of the enclosure, then hang it using chain, you can get them on rolls and chain clipssomething like the photos

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Also if you aren’t using any ambient lighting, make sure the room is nice and well lit during the day, though an led over the enclosure would be ideal