hey everyone !

[ADVANceNA]

Hi everyone my name is brian and im 25 yrs old, residing here in southern california, and soon to be a sulcata father haha. I am currently building my future buddies table right now. its a simply 4ft x 4ft enclosure and its two feet deep. Id like to thank everyone for the great tips and guidlines to caring for these wonderful tortoises ! I have been lurking around on this site now for a couple of months or so doing all the research i can to see if the sulcata is right for me and if i am truly commited to giving it a wonderful life ..... and you know what ? ..... im gonna do it ! im so very excited to get the hatchling soon after his table is fully done and i can get all the temps and humidity just right. one question i do have though is what is everyones work schedule ? of course i wish i didnt have a job and can be with the little guy or girl 24/7, but realistically sulcata owners must have jobs. How long are peoples away from their buddy ? If need be im going to set up a sort of smaller table so i can bring the guy to work with me. thankyou again for your help and knowledge everyone !

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Brian:

Welcome to the forum!!

Just try to make your habitat as safe as possible, and it will be ok that you have to leave him to go to work.

You get up in the a.m. and turn on his light. Then you go into the kitchen and prepare the food plate. By this time the tortoise should be warmed up. Put out the food and place the tortoise in front of it.

Go about your business of getting ready for work, and check on the baby one last time before you leave.

Chances are the little guy is going to sleep all day anyway, so no worries.

You mainly have to worry about him trying to climb something and tipping over backwards, so keep a space between the walls and the "furniture." Also, don't use a water dish with steep sides, as they tip over backwards into the water when trying to climb out.

Good luck, and we need to see pictures when you get him!!

 

[jensgotfaith]

Welcome to the "family"! I just got my first Sulcata (notice I said "first"-LOL) but he's 6 years old. I still had a hard time leaving for work last Monday. We got him last Saturday and spent quite a bit of time out with him over the weekend. We are completely in love with him. As you've undoubtedly already seen here, there are so many people willing to share their knowledge. This is absolutely the best resource I have found.
So again, welcome!

 

[Tom]

Hello and welcome. Lots of sulcata lovers here. I'm in Santa Clarita, where are you? Once you are done with the indoor enclosure, you'll have to get to work on an outdoor one. Ha ha.

One of the great things about reptile pets, including tortoises, is that they don't care if you are home or not. As long has they have the right temps and environment, enough food and water, it doesn't matter to them if you are ever home.

I always tell new owners about the humidity/hydration thing for hatchlings too. You probably already know this since you've been hanging out here a while. Most of the info out there in the world is outdated and just plain wrong.

Early congrats on the new baby. I know you'll love it. Sulcatas are just the best tortoise out there, as long as you have room for an adult.

 

[ADVANceNA]

thanks everyone again for the warm welcome ! i am completely in love with sulcatas and cannot wait to get my little one ! after i was done with the enclosure and move on to the lighting i was thinking of having the lights on a timer to turn on around 540 545 so when i get up around 610 its warmed up in there and i can proceed to preparing his food and such (which i will be offering by hand and in a pile in his eating spot). also before i leave for work i would mist the enclosure and give him a nice warm soak. i will make sure to keep humidity a bit around the 80 mark and basking temps around 95 100 and the cooler side around 80 85, does all that sound about right ? for humidity i was thinking of using a coco fiber or mulch mix with topsoil and i will definitely not get a steep water dish and will try to keep obstacles to a minimum so he cant flip over. when i come home later in the day i would probably mist him and his enclosure a bit then play with him if hes up for it. Should i feed him a 2nd time in the day when i come home or 1 meal is adequate ? Also if i have a heating pad in his table should it be more toward his hiding oorrr where ? thanks everyone !

i am locted here in the city of cypress, southern california. cypress is maybe 15 min away from disneyland and in the opposite direction, long beach. anyone around ?

---

Hello and welcome. Lots of sulcata lovers here. I'm in Santa Clarita, where are you? Once you are done with the indoor enclosure, you'll have to get to work on an outdoor one. Ha ha.

One of the great things about reptile pets, including tortoises, is that they don't care if you are home or not. As long has they have the right temps and environment, enough food and water, it doesn't matter to them if you are ever home.

I always tell new owners about the humidity/hydration thing for hatchlings too. You probably already know this since you've been hanging out here a while. Most of the info out there in the world is outdated and just plain wrong.

Early congrats on the new baby. I know you'll love it. Sulcatas are just the best tortoise out there, as long as you have room for an adult.

hey tom you seem to be quite the guru here when it comes to all of this. thankyou for the warm welcomes and im sure you get tons of PM's about various things, so i hope its not to much if i sometimes PM you if i have a specific question or inquiry. Thanks ! ill also get pics up as soon as i have acquired my new family member !

 

[moswen]

Haha party at brian's office, it's bring your tort to work day-- EVERY day! I'm like you but I stay at home with my daughter, I was afraid to go to the grocery store for fear they would flip and die before I got back!

Good luck, we'll want pics, and I'm SOOOO proud to have you do your research and not buy on impulse!! I'll admit, I'm a victim of impulse buying and I'm sure most of us have done it, but it's nice to see someone do their research!

Welcome!

 

[Tom]

I'm no guru. I'm just a guy that couldn't raise a smooth tortoise for 20 years. Now, with the help and input of several others, I've figured it out. Now my mission is to spread the word, so other people don't have to go through what I did.

Your plan and your set-up sound good to me, but you probably don't need a heating pad. At this point I still prefer overhead heat and light, but I have an experiment in the works to try some belly heat. I won't have an answer for a year or two though. Don't forget a humid hide box or two. Here's a link to what I mean. http://tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Humid-Hide-Boxes This is an important step in maintaining hydration, humidity and preventing pyramiding.

Feel free to PM me anytime, but generally I prefer to do business on the forum where every one else, including me can learn from it too. Many times I get corrected or learn things that I didn't know. Sometimes its good to get multiple opinions as well. My way of doing it isn't the only way, and I've gotten some really good suggestions from other peoples responses. This forum is full of some really knowledgeable and experienced keepers.

 

[ADVANceNA]

@ moswen - i am totally scred he/she will flip over while im at work hence the whole wanting to bring it here to work with me ! hahaha but i gather if there is not an obstacles or things my friend can flip over from then we should be fine .... but yes party in my laboratory !!

@tom - a guru AND modest ?! great combo hahaha im only joking though but yes you are correct i should share questions in public forum so we all benefit from some good input and opinion. ill most likely stay with the overhead lighting/heating and such but the heating pad question was mainly for night time temps. Im still a bit unsure what sleeping temps should be. 70-75 ? Should the lights be off to recreate natural conditions of sun going up and down and leave a warming pad so it stays relatively warm still ooorrrr its alright to leave a lower watt bulb for night time.

i cant wait to get the sulcata and share with everyone !

 

[Tom]

I like night temps to be 75-80 for hatchlings and youngin's, especially with all that moisture and humidity.

It should be dark at night, but you can use cheap red or blue "night" bulbs from the hardware store or a Ceramic Heating Element (CHE). I have a reptile room now and heat the whole thing, but my old set-up for in the house was a small 60 watt CHE on 24/7 AND a basking light on a timer. In the winter, I set it for 11 hours and gradually get up to 13 or so hours in the summer. Most people just set it for 12 hours and leave it alone. I put these two heat sources right next to each other on one side of the enclosure and this was, of course, the warm side.

Just make sure to check your temps with a remote probed thermometer AND an infared heat gun. It all depends on the temps in your house. There are 4 temps to be concerned with. For baby sulcatas I like: Night 75-80, cool side 75-80, warm side 80-90, basking spot 100-110. Just don't let them drop below 75 very often or for very long with all that moisture around. I've never heard of it happening, but in theory, you could induce a respiratory infection if temps are too low for too long while damp.

 

[ADVANceNA]

thanks a lot ! ill be sure to check those out. thankyou thankou everyone for a warm welcome, updates will be coming soon