How to get a sulcata to grow?

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Aug 17, 2017
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Hello everyone. I'm feeling a bit lost with our Rosie , we adopted "her" last summer (2018) and the guy we got her from said he believed she was around 3 years old but he wasn't positive because he had got her from someone who had her and 3 others in a small aquarium.

"She " pretty much lives out side unless the weather gets chilly then I bring her In side to heat emitter and uvb bulb . She has a small shallow water pan in her out door enclosure and o also soak her 2-3 times a week. Her diet mostly consists of grass but 3 days a week she gets snacks mixed with mazuri pellets in it .

My concern is that in the year I have had her she hasn't seamed to grow any ? Am I totally messing this up? What can I do to make it better IMG_20191008_140112906_HDR.jpg IMG_20190924_142329021.jpg
 

Yvonne G

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She's very small for three. Being raised from hatchling in the correct conditions goes a very long way towards how well they grow.

I think you should go back to square 1 and set this tortoise up indoors in a closed enclosure with LOTS of humidity. And soak it daily for at least a half hour.
 

Tom

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Outside all day slows down the growth of smaller ones tremendously. So does not being started correctly after hatching, which is the case for most of the babies hatched in this country. Also, I don't know what your definition of "chilly" is, but they need to be kept no lower than 80 at night. There is no "chilly" where they come from.
 

Relic

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One thing you might consider is keeping a log of her weight and length, so you KNOW what's going on. I weigh my 3 yr old yellowfoot weekly and measure his shell length every 6 months. It's nice to see steady growth, but it's better to KNOW exactly what's happening, instead of just guessing. And your post is ironic since most folks want to slow down the growth of their sulcata!
 
Joined
Aug 17, 2017
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Cleveland tx
Thank yall for replying . I wouldntw mind the slow growth but I just felt like she was small compared to all the other photos I see, so that got me worried.
Is there anyway I could do square 1 out side? We don't have enough room in our new house to do inside . I will start soaking her everyday though

Chilly for me was below 80 at night she goes in a plastic tote that we rigged up for nights. We are currently building a house with heat for outside cause the tote I feel is to small for her to stay in longer than night. Days here so far for fall is 85-97
 
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