Healthy Diet or Pyramid Bound?

Tank & Scooter

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My Sulcatas are 2 months old. I feed them this mix daily. I feed 33% chopped grass, 33% pre soaked (to soften) chopped Timothy hay, and 33% chopped romaine lettuce. Every 2 days I mix in carrot and cactus shaving. I always sprinkle baby tortoise Missouri pallets on top. I wanna know if this is healthy or i can do better ? Today they get their first watermelon ever. I gave them 2 strawberries 2 weeks ago but they didn't even try it. I'm only gonna feed fruit twice a month. 20180426_113312.jpg20180426_114531.jpg
 

wellington

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Fruit should not be fed at all. The rest of the diet isn't bad but more variety should be offered.
The pyramiding has to do with humidity. They should be in a closed chamber for two to three years with a humidity of 80%.
Also how many do you have? They should not be kept in pairs. If you have two and they are not in their own enclosure they need to be if not now real soon.
 

Tank & Scooter

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Pyramiding isn’t associated with diet but hydration. They need to be soaked in warm water like 105 degrees for 30 minutes a day as well as be kept in a closed chamber humid set up. Search the care sheets on here!
Ya I bath daily and I keep 2 waters. I keep water by food so they have cool water and water by heat lamp so they have warm water. The warm water evaporates and helps with humidity. I have hard time keeping above 60% humidity tho
 

Tank & Scooter

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Fruit should not be fed at all. The rest of the diet isn't bad but more variety should be offered.
The pyramiding has to do with humidity. They should be in a closed chamber for two to three years with a humidity of 80%.
Also how many do you have? They should not be kept in pairs. If you have two and they are not in their own enclosure they need to be if not now real soon.
I thought fruit once or twice a month was good. Also I knew pyrimiding was caused by humidity and food, but I thought food was the biggest reason. I thought all these people feed grocery products to their pets. I thought food was the biggest pyrimiding risk. That's why I feed mostly grass and Timothy hay
 

Tank & Scooter

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Ya I have 2. They are separate. I'm just waiting to have extra money to build my sister a nice tortoise table in her living room. I want something nice. Thinking of getting cheap table from Ikea and building off of that. So it will look nice, not just some home depot wood lol.
 

Jay Bagley

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Ya I have 2. They are separate. I'm just waiting to have extra money to build my sister a nice tortoise table in her living room. I want something nice. Thinking of getting cheap table from Ikea and building off of that. So it will look nice, not just some home depot wood lol.
All this wood came from home depot and lowes...lol. KIMG0023.jpg
 

Tank & Scooter

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All this wood came from home depot and lowes...lol. View attachment 236972
Awe man that looks nice, I don't have Carpenter skills like that. That's why I wanted to build off a table that already looks nice lol. Sucks I just lost my dad too. That dude could build anything. Wish I had his backup right about now .
 

Jay Bagley

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Awe man that looks nice, I don't have Carpenter skills like that. That's why I wanted to build off a table that already looks nice lol. Sucks I just lost my dad too. That dude could build anything. Wish I had his backup right about now .
I'm so very sorry to hear that you lost your father. Don't feel bad about not having any carpentry skills, I was just joking with you anyways. If I didn't have family or friends that knew how to build and fix things I would be up the creek without a paddle. I am horrible at building things, to be perfectly honest with you the only contributions I made to that tortoise table we're financing it. I also was there to retrieve tools, and hold things when they needed to be held.
 

Tank & Scooter

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I'm so very sorry to hear that you lost your father. Don't feel bad about not having any carpentry skills, I was just joking with you anyways. If I didn't have family or friends that knew how to build and fix things I would be up the creek without a paddle. I am horrible at building things, to be perfectly honest with you the only contributions I made to that tortoise table we're financing it. I also was there to retrieve tools, and hold things when they needed to be held.
Thanks appreciate it. It's funny you say that. I was just thinking exactly what you replied. About helping someone build it. I would help my pops work on everything. I wish i woulda paid more attention and ask more questions. When you said grabbing tools, that was me lol. I was my dad tool grabber[emoji16][emoji106]
 

Jay Bagley

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Thanks appreciate it. It's funny you say that. I was just thinking exactly what you replied. About helping someone build it. I would help my pops work on everything. I wish i woulda paid more attention and ask more questions. When you said grabbing tools, that was me lol. I was my dad tool grabber[emoji16][emoji106]
No problem man. Whatever you end up building or buying, post some pictures. I look forward to seeing it.
 

TechnoCheese

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Ya I have 2. They are separate. I'm just waiting to have extra money to build my sister a nice tortoise table in her living room. I want something nice. Thinking of getting cheap table from Ikea and building off of that. So it will look nice, not just some home depot wood lol.

Just a heads up, tables don’t work for sulcatas. You need to have a closed chamber, which is likely why you can’t keep higher than 60% humidity in your current enclosure. Make sure that, whatever enclosure you use, it is completely covered and enclosed, because it’s impossible to keep good heat and humidity in an open one.
 

Jay Bagley

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TechnoCheese is so right. I am applying maximal effort, but only achieving minimal humidity in my table. If you're going to spend the money, might as well do it right the first time. I really wish I would have.
 

Tank & Scooter

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That's exactly what I'm talking about. I struggle with humidity in a closed enclosure. How am I gonna manage outside. For some reason I feel like I'll get shell warping if they don't get sun. Will they warp ? Don't know why I feel like that lol. So should I just give them like 30 min sun time every couple days and wait couple years and then give them all day sun time ?
 

teresaf

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Any table you start just line it with a shower curtain or pond liner and build a frame up over it 4 plastic cover. A thick plastic cover like tent will hold the humidity and heat in. The only time that food has anything to do with pyramiding is having plenty of food during times of drought. If you don't plan on keeping your tortoises small, dry and unhealthy then feed to your heart's content. With the humidity where it's supposed to be for small growing tortoises they'll never be pyramided. In the wild baby tortoises stay in the ground most of the time where it's moist until they get bigger and there is less risk of predators carrying them off. Captive-bred ones for years were being kept way too dry and a lot of them died. The ones that didn't die would grow pyramided. especially in the northern states. In the search bar at the top of the four I'm here type in "closed chamber" and read all about them. Don't worry. Most of us didn't know that they didn't get along well in pairs... : (
 

Tank & Scooter

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Hey guys do any of you hang your ceramic bulbs without the metal basket/guard ? It blocks a lot of the light from my uvb uva bulb. I already took to guard off my uvb bulb and enclosure got way brighter. Thinking off taking guard off ceramic bulb. What effect you think it will have? I know the basket directs heat/ light. You think without guard enclosre will heat up more ?
 

Tank & Scooter

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I have 50 gallon tub from Wal-Mart with 100 watt ceramic bulb. I also gotta keep ceramic bulb really low to have correct temps and basket blocks my hole view.
 

wellington

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Fruit is not good for sulcatas and really not good for babies. Low/no humidity causes pyramiding along with the artificial heat sources we have too use.
They need a closed chamber until they are 10 inches long then they can move outside with a humid hide. For the first year take them outside for 1/2 hour daily or every other day. They don't need uvb inside if you can take them outside. After the first year you can extend their time outside to an hour or two. By 2 1/2 to 3 years they are probably the size to live outside.
 
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