Alex and the Redfoot
Well-Known Member
Hello! I am a new owner too and understand your confusion. The best thing you can do now is to stick to this forum as a source of information. There can be some conflicting information too (Redfoot Care sheets is an example), but you can always ask a question and get the detailed answers. And "ask before you buy" thing works too and works well
Maybe I've missed that, but you didn't mention Mary Shelly's age (I guess 2-4 months). Some photos would be great too
At this age it's better to keep tortoises inside most of the time and you should focus on her indoors enclosure. To get the correct humidity of 80-85% and easily maintain temperature of 82-84F you need to make a cover (green house top, plastic box, plexiglass sheet or something). Then set up heating and lightning: ceramic heat emitter (CHE) with a thermostat first - with high humidity and low temperatures there is a risk of respiratory infection. UVB lamp is a second point. Basking lamp is not really required for redfoots, you can use LED bulb or strip instead.
And one more point on diet. You mentioned hibiscus leaves, what else do you feed her? Sometimes they might prefer a different kind of food (e.g. proteine instead of fiber) - fruit, mushrooms and ignore other edibles.
Any questions are welcome!
Maybe I've missed that, but you didn't mention Mary Shelly's age (I guess 2-4 months). Some photos would be great too
At this age it's better to keep tortoises inside most of the time and you should focus on her indoors enclosure. To get the correct humidity of 80-85% and easily maintain temperature of 82-84F you need to make a cover (green house top, plastic box, plexiglass sheet or something). Then set up heating and lightning: ceramic heat emitter (CHE) with a thermostat first - with high humidity and low temperatures there is a risk of respiratory infection. UVB lamp is a second point. Basking lamp is not really required for redfoots, you can use LED bulb or strip instead.
And one more point on diet. You mentioned hibiscus leaves, what else do you feed her? Sometimes they might prefer a different kind of food (e.g. proteine instead of fiber) - fruit, mushrooms and ignore other edibles.
Any questions are welcome!