Tortoiseowner93
New Member
- Joined
- Mar 13, 2017
- Messages
- 6
Hi.
I got 2 horsefield tortoise yesterday and I was just looking for a little help and advice. The two tortoise, we have been told, are around a year old.
We keep them in a Vivarium that was built and put together for us by the man at the reptile shop, who installed the UV light, heat lamp and thermostat.
My first question is what temperature should I keep the viv? The thermostat we have is currently set to 26 degrees Celsius and the heat lamp turns back on if the temperature drops 0.5 degrees below this. Is this a suitable temperature? Both of the tortoises spend a lot of their time trying to burrow in the back corner of the viv, on the side of the heat lamp. Is this normal or does it mean that the viv is too hot/too cold? The consistent temperature staya the same way overnight, is this okay or should I be dropping the temperature overnight?
Also, what sort of things should I be feeding the tortoise? We have been feeding them Kale, spinach, rocket and yesterday they had some grated carrot too. Are these good food sources? As I have read that fresh weeds, such as dandelion, from the garden are much better. We also have some calcium powder to add to their food, how often should I be adding this? I was told that they were previously having it added every 3 or so weeks.
Finally, I have questions in regards to the substrate being used. I believe we currently have wood chips, which I have read aren't they best as horsfields like to dig and burrow and I have witnessed this first hand. What is a suitable alternative to the current substrate we have, that won't irritate the tortoises but will also allow them to dig more freely?
I have attached a couple of pictures of their current set up. Thank you in advance for any help and advice!
I got 2 horsefield tortoise yesterday and I was just looking for a little help and advice. The two tortoise, we have been told, are around a year old.
We keep them in a Vivarium that was built and put together for us by the man at the reptile shop, who installed the UV light, heat lamp and thermostat.
My first question is what temperature should I keep the viv? The thermostat we have is currently set to 26 degrees Celsius and the heat lamp turns back on if the temperature drops 0.5 degrees below this. Is this a suitable temperature? Both of the tortoises spend a lot of their time trying to burrow in the back corner of the viv, on the side of the heat lamp. Is this normal or does it mean that the viv is too hot/too cold? The consistent temperature staya the same way overnight, is this okay or should I be dropping the temperature overnight?
Also, what sort of things should I be feeding the tortoise? We have been feeding them Kale, spinach, rocket and yesterday they had some grated carrot too. Are these good food sources? As I have read that fresh weeds, such as dandelion, from the garden are much better. We also have some calcium powder to add to their food, how often should I be adding this? I was told that they were previously having it added every 3 or so weeks.
Finally, I have questions in regards to the substrate being used. I believe we currently have wood chips, which I have read aren't they best as horsfields like to dig and burrow and I have witnessed this first hand. What is a suitable alternative to the current substrate we have, that won't irritate the tortoises but will also allow them to dig more freely?
I have attached a couple of pictures of their current set up. Thank you in advance for any help and advice!