Hey there!

[Turtledude]

Hey guys/gals. Name is Ryan. First time tortoise owner here. I've been a turtle guy all my life and thought tortoises just weren't as cool as turtles until i was at a reptile show in tampa here a few weeks ago and started talking about sulcattas to one of the guys there. I felt bad for skimming past the tortoises and going for the turtles in books when i learned how cool sulcatas were and realized tortoises in general are just as cool.. actually maybe even a little cooler since you dont have to deal with the water aspect like turtles which means a little less work. So im the proud dad of a hatchling only 2-3 weeks old now. I'm still struggling to name him since he's going to outlive me and i figure he deserves an epic name for that alone lol. Very greatful to hear about this forum and be a part of it.

editics will come very soon

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Yes, the photo posting is a very good idea. We must have pictures of your new baby--and his crib, too!

Just curious: why did you choose Sulcata over other species?

Will your turtles mind giving up space for their new, soon-to-be-very-large cousin?

 

[egyptiandan]

Welcome to the forum Ryan

Danny

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Ryan:

to the forum!

 

[terracolson]

Welcome Papa Ryan

 

[TortieGal]

Welcome! glad you found us, you will find lots of great help here. Congradulations on your new baby can't wait to see pic's.

 

[terryo]

Welcome to the forum! What kind of water turtles do you have? Post pictures of them too!

 

[Turtledude]

Just curious: why did you choose Sulcata over other species?

Will your turtles mind giving up space for their new, soon-to-be-very-large cousin?

Well presently i am actually turtle-less. I most recently had a breeding colony of 6 adult Siebenrockiella Crassicollis which is an asian species in dire straits due to the Chineese foodmarkets(i'm not sure if tortoise guys/gals know about how horrible of a problem that is but, if not its worth looking up to be aware. they are making several species extinct in china and in the surrounding countries.) I also had 1 hatchling that died shortly after i got him that came with a skin fungus. i was pretty devestaded i couldnt keep the little guy alive but i had the full help of turtletimes and tried everything i could.

They were very hard to take care of for turtles. First there wasnt allot of people working with the species in the US so the majority of anyones stock had been imported and literaly rescued from death. the imported specimens the majority of us here had came with shellrot,worms, and mouth rot..basicly on deaths door from the start. 3 of mine had bad shellrot when i got them but i was very lucky enough to obtain 3 nice specimens. The information for the care of this species was not very good since they were uncommon to work with. Anyways i had them for a long time and did pretty good considering everything against me from the start. they lived, the places where they had shellrot that had to be scraped had started to fill in, and i got allot of enjoyment out of them. i had kept in contact with a fellow named Bill who was also working with the species and who specialized in Asian turtles. He wanted them, It was at a time when the burden and stress of upkeep was high, his setup was bigger and nicer than mine, so i shipped them off to him to live in turtle paradise.

I went to the reptile show pretty much knowing i would walk out with a turtle 'i just couldnt resist' even though i went there to 'just look'. I was all set to buy an eastern painted turtle after barely decided to not go with a mud turtle which i also love. So i was pricing the eastern painteds from table to table and then I got to talking to the Sulcatta guy... The idea of a big ole tortoise walking around always appealed to me. so i was drawn to them when i found out how big they got. Also when i found out that my new tort would outlive me it kinda blew my mind. the different turtle species i've worked with lived 20-40 years. Having a lifetime friend was a wonderful notion to me. With turtles, allot of us turtle guys pass around our turtles amongst ourselves. Some species are only available in private collections because they have been made extinct in their natural habbitat. i had come to know allot of turtle guys who did that so it just felt like the norm to me after i was in it for awhile. Even though i loved every turtle i ever had, the idea of trading up for this other awesome species you always wanted to try was cool. it can get out of hand though and next thing you know you have way too many turtles so you have to trade down and try some new species while you're at it, lol. after a while of that i got down to just the 6 siebs which were my favorites. After the siebenrocks i wanted a nice break of no additional animals for a bit which was hard but i have a cat and eventually got a little 10 gallon for tetras. I realize Sulcatas are not 'easy' to take care of by any means but these are alot easier than what i was used to with the turtles. I think i found the perfect pet for me since i cant live without a turtle-like creature in my life without starting to go through turtle withdraw lol. Sorry for the long post and thank you guys very much for the warm welcome Pics will be up by the end of the day and I look forward to seeing you guys around on here

 

[Turtledude]

As promised here are some pics

This is the pen they were in I picked mine out of at the reptile show.

My brother snapped this one of me holding my new little buddy right after i bought him at the table

my bed is right next to the aquarium and i sleep with my head lined up with him. i wake up late allot so i need to be able to wake up and make sure he hasn't flipped which he seems to love to do. We watch eachother sleep allot which i think is cool even though for right now i'm sure he would rather have a hide spot enclosed on 3 ends where i couldnt see in.

It was 9pmish when i took this so he was just woken up from sleeping and had some dirt from burrowing on him.

His current temprary set up. i thought i did good at first from some caresheets i came across but now i realise it needs an overhaul. the left side of the tank is a 50/50 mix of sterilized topsoil and playsand which i like for burrow making and holding in moisture. the middle layer is dreaded alfalpha pellets which i read was great from some care sheets but i have since read that they can mold quickly with moisture, create respitory problems from being so dry and powdery when broken down, dry out the tort, its bad if they eat it from the vegetable protein if i remember correctly, and they can develop malformalities from walking on it as hatchlings. so its getting replaced with cypress mulch. i like that middle layer because he doesnt try to burrow in it and thus prevents him from burrowing to his heating pad under his warm spot on the right. i went with the heating pad with layers on top and a UVB light on top because i wanted him to have his warmth if needed at night when the lights off and didnt want to mess with ceramic heaters. Also i need to ditch this 30 gallon aquarium and get a big ole rubbermaid instead for circulation ive been reading. his food dish is the tiny one in the middle with some bermuda grass chopped up and soaked overnight which he has so far been eating even though i heard they arent really supposed to like it as hatchlings. the one on the warm side is his water dish which he will bask in and drink from. the brightest point of the light is actually not in the center but still he likes to bask in his water dish almost an equal amount of time as the brightest spot.

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Well. I'd have to give this post an A+ for demonstrating basic Sulcata knowledge and a clear indication of willingness to analyze and evaluate every detail as you create the best possible environment for your new "buddy". Well done!

Now, get going on that naming thing.

 

[Turtledude]

Well. I'd have to give this post an A+ for demonstrating basic Sulcata knowledge and a clear indication of willingness to analyze and evaluate every detail as you create the best possible environment for your new "buddy". Well done!

Now, get going on that naming thing.

Thank you so very much! You guys/gals are the warmest bunch i have come across on any internet forum i have been on. Its very refreshing to be here! I have never felt such a welcome.

I've had a hard time deciding on a name. But its been too long with no name so i went Googling. I finally have one i'm sticking with. It's 'Zell' which means wise and peaceful.

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Zellco, Zellman, Zellkins, Zellosaurus, Zellocipede. It does have a nice ring, but in my opinion (which you are free to disregard ), you should add something to make it a little more grand.

Zell Rex, maybe?

 

[terryo]

I don't know anything about Sulcata's Ryan, but just check the water that's under the heat light, because it might get too hot. I'm saying this because it happened to one of my boxie enclosures. I had the water under the heat emitter, and didn't realize how hot it got. Your little guy is adorable, by the way.

 

[N2TORTS]

Hey guys/gals. Name is Ryan.

Hello Ryan .... welcome! .. You'll love this place. Lots of great info and fun tort folks. You've done your homework...although I will remind you in years to come , your tort will be one massive digging, BBQ,furniture "you name it" .. moving machine! They get BIG...and very very strong! I use 100lb stumps for fencing and " harley" got big enough to move them no problem!...Now they are lag bolted and strapped together!

as far as the name .... " rippley" ... hows a good ring to it ..!
aka Ryan's lil " rippley"
Enjoy your new buddy!
JD ~
the torts
@ sally the U2

 

[terracolson]

I look forward to watching him grow!!

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Wow, I never get tired of looking at photos of full-grown Sulcahtas...(terra).

Harley looks like a guy who could move 100 lb. stumps!

 

[N2TORTS]

Wow, I never get tired of looking at photos of full-grown Sulcahtas...(terra).

Harley looks like a guy who could move 100 lb. stumps!

Did you say Stumps or Humps..???

JD~
the torts'
@sally2

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Boy, that female defnitely looks "at ease."

Probably left a hollow in the ground...

 

[Turtledude]

Zellco, Zellman, Zellkins, Zellosaurus, Zellocipede. It does have a nice ring, but in my opinion (which you are free to disregard ), you should add something to make it a little more grand.

Zell Rex, maybe?

ok thats like a wierd omen to me. Zell Rex it is. My first turtle ever was a 3 striped mud turtle named Rex. second was a RES named Tex. Too cool! I actually have a picture too. granted, this in my sisters room so excuse the pink carpeting but the skateboard and koopa troopa are mine haha! I must've been 10-12 when this was snapped. So Zell-Rex it is and ill pronounce it as one word to add a little spice to the name. I'm also copyrighting it so no drug manufactures steal the name lol, just kidding. Thanks!

I don't know anything about Sulcata's Ryan, but just check the water that's under the heat light, because it might get too hot. I'm saying this because it happened to one of my boxie enclosures. I had the water under the heat emitter, and didn't realize how hot it got. Your little guy is adorable, by the way.

Thank You! I will check the temp a little after the lights come back on so i can get a good idea of the real temp.

Hello Ryan .... welcome! .. You'll love this place. Lots of great info and fun tort folks. You've done your homework...although I will remind you in years to come , your tort will be one massive digging, BBQ,furniture "you name it" .. moving machine! They get BIG...and very very strong! I use 100lb stumps for fencing and " harley" got big enough to move them no problem!...Now they are lag bolted and strapped together!

The BIG part is what I was hoping for and I've heard they can burrow under house foundations and soil the integrity of your house...wow! i heard a possible answer to that is burrying chainlink fence to keep them in but do any of you know how deep it takes or if that is a good preventitive(if that is even a real word) for sure? + 100 points by the way for ingenuity and keeping a nice asthetic appeal going. How deep do you burry the the stumps? I might just steal that idea when the time comes

Did you say Stumps or Humps..??? Tongue

Bomp-shikka-wow-wah, lol. I'm not a pervert or sexual deviant or anything but tortoises going at it always make me chuckle/giggle. I can't wait for mine to get that big! I find myself singing the 'Little shop of horrors' song 'oh, please grow for me' like my brother did for his iguana. it worked too. that thing is huuuge!

 

[N2TORTS]

Zellco, Zellman, Zellkins, Zellosaurus, Zellocipede. It does have a nice ring, but in my opinion (which you are free to disregard ), you should add something to make it a little more grand.

Zell Rex, maybe?

ok thats like a wierd omen to me. Zell Rex it is. My first turtle ever was a 3 striped mud turtle named Rex. second was a RES named Tex. Too cool! I actually have a picture too. granted, this in my sisters room so excuse the pink carpeting but the skateboard and koopa troopa are mine haha! I must've been 10-12 when this was snapped. So Zell-Rex it is and ill pronounce it as one word to add a little spice to the name. I'm also copyrighting it so no drug manufactures steal the name lol, just kidding. Thanks!

I don't know anything about Sulcata's Ryan, but just check the water that's under the heat light, because it might get too hot. I'm saying this because it happened to one of my boxie enclosures. I had the water under the heat emitter, and didn't realize how hot it got. Your little guy is adorable, by the way.

Thank You! I will check the temp a little after the lights come back on so i can get a good idea of the real temp.

Hello Ryan .... welcome! .. You'll love this place. Lots of great info and fun tort folks. You've done your homework...although I will remind you in years to come , your tort will be one massive digging, BBQ,furniture "you name it" .. moving machine! They get BIG...and very very strong! I use 100lb stumps for fencing and " harley" got big enough to move them no problem!...Now they are lag bolted and strapped together!

The BIG part is what I was hoping for and I've heard they can burrow under house foundations and soil the integrity of your house...wow! i heard a possible answer to that is burrying chainlink fence to keep them in but do any of you know how deep it takes or if that is a good preventitive(if that is even a real word) for sure? + 100 points by the way for ingenuity and keeping a nice asthetic appeal going. How deep do you burry the the stumps? I might just steal that idea when the time comes

Ryan,
Here is Harleys House 5'x5' ...and the " stump barrier" even around the pond, he never did learn how to swim!