Frank & Pea's new enclosure.

[chandlerledray]

Before :

After:

The only problem I'm really having is getting the temps right. Right now the two temps are 79.7 and 72.7, how can I get them up?

 

[Meg90]

you need to point those bulbs straight down. The angled placement is why you are loosing heat. Also, don't space them out like that. You want them concentrated on one end of the enclosure so you get a range of temps so that the torts can thermoregulate.

 

[chandlerledray]

Okay, so I should put the two silver coloured ones near each other and then point them straight down? In just one area, like the middle?

 

[Meg90]

Pick one side. If they are in the middle, the whole enclosure is basically the same temperature. Try that, and keep an eye on temps. Once positioned correctly, you may not need all three. The whole idea is for a hot side, and a cool side.

 

[Yvonne G]

Much, much better!! Good job! Now you have to tweek the light situation a bit more. Is there any way you can put a couple of plant hooks in the ceiling and hang the lights from a chain? They're still up too high to be doing any good heat/wise. The clamps just don't allow good positioning. If you wanted to spend some $$ on a light stand, here's a link:

http://www.google.com/products?client=fi...CCgQrQQwAA

I have the small light stand placed between two habitats and it works very well. The light shines straight down and I can have it as close or as far from the floor as it wish.

In this size habitat I see no reason why you would have to separate the two tortoises...that is, unless you see the bigger one bullying the smaller one.

(It might be a little hard for the small tortoise to walk on those large chunks. Maybe put a layer over them of something smaller...cypress mulch or something)

 

[dreadyA]

You already got some good tips from Meg. But I just wanna say good job on the improvment. Its best for your lil ones.
I agree. point the lights down. Its also a good idea to add something to ensure your lights don't fall. It could be dangerous.But good improvement & it also looks waay better in your room

 

[chandlerledray]

Okay, I re-positioned the lights and this seems to be working a lot better.
As the temps are going up, so far it's 83.6 and 73.5, is the positioning better?

 

[ChiKat]

Awww look at all that space! Great job
Did you build the new tort table?

 

[chandlerledray]

Yeah I did! It was well, well worth it and only took about an hour to make (and only 30 $!)

 

[ChiKat]

Hmm I might have to build one then. I was going to buy a large bin but I like the dimensions of your table, and how it's a perfect rectangle. The bin I'm looking at is kind of oddly shaped.
Did you follow directions from anywhere?

eta: Want to come build me one?

 

[chandlerledray]

Yeah, I was looking at the christmas tree rubbermaid boxes and I considered it, but then I thought this will be better and not that hard to do.

No, I didn't follow anything, I just measured the spot where it's going to sit on and brought it out 6 inches from there and then figured out measurements from that. It was kinda cool, the guy at Home Depot cut all the wood for me so all I had to do was put it together!
I would highly recommend it, it's super easy and from the looks of it they love it :]

 

[ChiKat]

Great, thanks!
What kind of wood is that? (I literally know nothing about these kinds of things...)
Did you use the same type of wood for the bottom?

Sorry for all the questions, but now I really want to build a tort table! You've inspired me!

 

[chandlerledray]

I just used regular plywood, they usually have scraps in the back if you ask someone they can help you out and it's much cheaper, I got 3 pieces of 4 x 2
the base is one 4 x 2, the long sides is a 4 x 2 cut horizontally, and the short sides is a horizontal piece cut in half. And then you should have one 4x2 cut horizontal piece left over, which is a 3 x 1.

 

[Kadaan]

I didn't see the 'Before' tag when I opened the thread and cringed at the first photo. Then I saw the label and scrolled down to the 'After' photos, and it's a HUGE HUGE HUGE HUGE improvement, excellent job!

If you still have the screen cover from the glass tank, you can put that across the hot end of the tort table and rest the lamp on that, so it points straight down like Meg suggested. If there's a 'hotspot' directly under the lamp, you shouldn't need 3 bulbs. Maybe 1 UVB on for 12h and 1 CHE/Infrared heat lamp on at night if the temperature gets too low (<65-70) at night. When the lamps are pointed at angles they're not quite as effective.

 

[ChiKat]

How did you attach the liner to the wood? (under the substrate)

 

[terryo]

I have a few of these that I use for water turtle's:
http://www.carolinapetsupply.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=44&products_id=365

That was a great up-grade.

 

[-ryan-]

Good improvements! Don't be afraid to put some water in the substrate. You don't want it to be completely dry or else it won't be doing them much good.

As for the lights, go back to home depot and get a scrap piece of 2x4 that you can attach as kind of a cross member across the top of the enclosure. You can then clip clamp lamps to this piece of wood and get those bulbs good and close to the tortoises. You might then find that you only need one of those clamp lamps in conjunction with the mercury vapor bulb. I would situate it so that you can aim one or two of the clamp lamps directly at the ground, probably about 8-12" away from the surface of the substrate. Right now they are just up too high so all of the heat is going up before it reaches the ground. You want a nice basking spot that is in the mid 90's or so, but then they need the rest of the enclosure to cool down. You can also make a nice humid shelter using a rubbermaid bin. It doesn't have to be a big one, just big enough for the two tortoises to fit comfortably in and be able to move around in. This you can cut an entry hole in and fill up with dirt, moss, coconut husk bedding, etc... anything that will hold moisture well. Then you can place that halfway between the warm side and the cool side and it will give them a nice retreat that will somewhat simulate the conditions of the burrows they build in the wild.

It looks like you are really making great strides, so keep up the good work! Now you also have the necessary skills to build a larger table in a few years when the tortoises get bigger. The good thing is, you can build their larger enclosure using the same kind of plan, just with 4'x8' sheets of thicker plywood. Don't worry too much about that right now though... you are doing a lot of good for them with the new setup. Just work on the temps.

How is the little guy doing now?

 

[chandlerledray]

oh, actually I was thinking of something I could line the bottom with so it wouldn't be so hard to clean out every now and then and I thought of a drop cloth for painting rooms and stuff, so I went to walmart and got one and it works perfectly, just have to cut the cloth in half, (so you get two uses out of 1) and line the bottom before putting the substrate in.

---

Thank you!
I have a water dish thing in it, and it has a little slope so pea can get in and out easily.

I haven't thought of the humidity yet, wait so can I put the rubbermaid in the corner of the table somewhere or in the middle? and how big of a container is big enough?

The idea with the wood across is great!! I do have some extra wood so that'll come handy.

Pea is alright, he still sleeps all day, and doesn't eat. Well I don't know if he's sleeping most of the time but his eyes are shut 95% of the day.
This afternoon I'm calling the local vet who specializes in them to make an appointment, just to see what's going on with him. Better safe then sorry really.

 

[-ryan-]

Yeah, you can't be too careful. Some tortoises just fail to thrive, so get him to a vet to see what they think might be going on. In the meantime you are doing well trying to make his situation better. Sometimes it takes getting some extra heat on them, so get those heat lamps setup closer and see how he does with that too. The rubbermaid container can go in the middle or in a corner. Since it will be humid, you probably don't want it all the way in the cool side. If you put it in the middle it will also create a nice line-of-sight barrier for the tortoises. It just has to be big enough that the tortoises can get in and move around. Like a shoe box size, but not clear or opaque.

Good luck!

 

[chandlerledray]

Okay, I just got back from taking Pea to the vet. :/
The vet said that he is pretty sick, he's very very very tiny for his age and his shell is still soft.
I told her about how he hasn't been eating and eyes have been shut for a week now. She said he is weak and that's why he has his eyes shut, she took him back and gave him a shot and now he's being force fed once a day until he eats on his own.
She said he has a 50/50 chance of getting better...:/
I'm pretty upset, the poor little guy.
What do you think? Will he start getting better being on medications?