I purchased a little baby Russian tortoise on feb 7. He is so darn cute! Well, we say he, but I have no idea if it is male or female. Now I'm worried about what and how much I am feeding him. He loves kale, but I just read that kale should be used sparingly. That is what I've been giving him most. He eats the dandelion greens and romaine lettuce. He was munching on grated carrots this morning. Also, he is tiny but will empty that food dish even if I fill it very full. So it looks like the rule of thumb is to feed it what it can eat in 20 min. Is that once a day? I'll have to change what time I feed him then. I usually fill his bowl before I leave in the morning so I have no idea how long it is taking him to eat it. It just seems like a lot of food for a tiny tortoise.
Feeding my baby russian
- Thread starter mestacey
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tortoisetime565
Well-Known Member
My Russians eat a lot too! But sometimes when I feed them again they aren't hungry. For baby tortoises it is good to feed them every day. As well as soak them. 
Hi Stacey, and welcome to the Forum!
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Hello Stacey welcome to the TFO from AZ . Stacey we do except pictures of the RT in its enclosure . Good luck with your new tort .
Yes, please I would love to see a picture of your baby Russian!
Here is a care sheet I typed up for russians. It includes feeding suggestions: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-80698.html
There is no need to restrict their food, if you house them correctly and feed the right stuff.
There is no need to restrict their food, if you house them correctly and feed the right stuff.
Tom said:
. This is Spike. I really wanted to name him/her Sochi since I got it the day of opening ceremonies and I thought it was a gender neutral name. And, after all, he is a Russian! But I was overruled by my 7 year old son.And this is his enclosure. He is behind the log trying to bury himself.
My thought was to have him as a classroom pet, but we are enjoying him way too much for me to keep him at school. If I can get another enclosure that my special needs preschoolers can't get into but can still see him , I might bring him back and forth. But for now I just keep him at home. Oh, we live in San Diego.
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Stacey
You've done a great job on the enclosure. It looks great . But don't for- get that a tort can see out it will want out , you may want to put a border around the outside of the enclosure . But I'll bet its fun to watch your 7 yr old with the tort . Good luck !
You've done a great job on the enclosure. It looks great . But don't for- get that a tort can see out it will want out , you may want to put a border around the outside of the enclosure . But I'll bet its fun to watch your 7 yr old with the tort . Good luck !
Spike is sooo cute! Thanks for posting a picture I always enjoy seeing baby Russians .
Yeah, I noticed him in a corner with his legs moving like he was trying to climb through the glass...so I was going to put some duct tape at least in the corners for now. My son loves him, which is good because spike may outlive me. Lol
I would suggest taping a cardboard border around the outside of the glass to benefit your tort. I also think your substrate needs to be deeper so it can hold more moisture and so it provides more digging room.
Also buy a digital temperature/humidity gauge that will memorize your highs and lows.
The log could be a potential flipping problem. At the very least I would move the log away from the light. That way if he flips he will have more time to right himself before overheating.
Regarding the light, I feel that the screen may be blocking the majority of the UV for your tortoise.
If your humidity is not high enough, then covering the top of the enclosure will increase your humidity.
Because your Russian is young, check with Tom's link for juvenile Russians care.
Good luck.
Also buy a digital temperature/humidity gauge that will memorize your highs and lows.
The log could be a potential flipping problem. At the very least I would move the log away from the light. That way if he flips he will have more time to right himself before overheating.
Regarding the light, I feel that the screen may be blocking the majority of the UV for your tortoise.
If your humidity is not high enough, then covering the top of the enclosure will increase your humidity.
Because your Russian is young, check with Tom's link for juvenile Russians care.
Good luck.
Well, I have a 10 year old cat, so I want the enclosure covered. I wonder if there is a way to keep him safe but not block his UV light?
The cool side stays around 70 degrees and the warm side is at 90. I had read somewhere that Russians need a dry environment. Is that not true? I was going to put more substrate in anyway because he has really been burying himself at night.
I had also not heard about soaking them in my prior research. So spike gets his first soak today. Warm water, 1/3 of the way up his shell, right? For how long?
The cool side stays around 70 degrees and the warm side is at 90. I had read somewhere that Russians need a dry environment. Is that not true? I was going to put more substrate in anyway because he has really been burying himself at night.
I had also not heard about soaking them in my prior research. So spike gets his first soak today. Warm water, 1/3 of the way up his shell, right? For how long?
paarthurnax.tortoise
Member
mestacey said:
I read somewhere that you can use the shape of their cloacas to sex them...at least, that is what I did for my Russian tortoise! If the cloaca is shaped more like a slit, and is towards the tip of his tail, it's a boy, and if the cloaca sort of looks like an asterisks (or a sphincter), it's a girl! Hopefully that helps
Milinda
Member
Hi! Your post made me laugh so. I am also a teacher and got our tortoise for a "class pet." But, I have also fallen in love with ours and think I will now keep it at home. They are just so darn cute when they are this little. I thought I might bring mine back and forth as well, but it seems like a hassle, and I am afraid the kids will drop it if I let them hold it. This is a photo of our tortoise. I am just getting the cage area the way I like it. At first, I had it in a plastic container from Target, but it seemed too small, so now it is in a large cement tray. I think when it gets bigger, we will make a tortoise garden and put it out there. What do you teach? I live in LA, so not far from you!
Welcome!
