Humidity Confusion

[FlapJackrage]

Humidity

What percent humidity should I keep his habitat at? Some people say too much humidity can cause respiratory problems.

 

[DanaLachney]

RE: Humidity

There is a difference between cold humidity and warm humidity though

 

[Arizona Sulcata]

RE: Humidity

1st off welcome! 2nd its depends on the species of tort you have and perhaps more importantly the age. So what do you have?

 

[wellington]

RE: Humidity

Agree with Arizona Sulcata. Age and species of tort.

 

[StudentoftheReptile]

RE: Humidity

2nd its depends on the species of tort you have and perhaps more importantly the age. So what do you have?

Agree with Arizona Sulcata. Age and species of tort.

I'm assuming, since they posted in the Sulcata section, the species in question is...[drum roll] a sulcata!

 

[Tom]

RE: Humidity

2nd its depends on the species of tort you have and perhaps more importantly the age. So what do you have?

Agree with Arizona Sulcata. Age and species of tort.

I'm assuming, since they posted in the Sulcata section, the species in question is...[drum roll] a sulcata!

HEY! I'm supposed to be the sarcastic one...


Welcome FlapJackrage. We are on the forefront of a new wave of tortoise knowledge. For many years people kept baby sulcatas far too dry and that is why they pyramided, and in some cases died. I can tell you for a FACT that very high humidity will NOT cause respiratory infections as long as they are kept warm. For years many people tried to simulate the hot dry above ground daytime temps of the dry season where sulcatas come from. The problem is that babies hatch during the rainy season where things tend to be warm humid and swampy, or "marshy" as my friend from Senegal puts it. The other problem is that NO ONE knows where the hatchlings go or what they do. Sightings and study of wild hatchlings is almost non-existent, so "simulating" any "wild" conditions is really guesswork. Process of elimination tells me that babies stay hidden in warm humid areas.

Since we don't really know what the wild babies do or don't do, what we are left with is what does, and what does NOT work in captivity. I can tell you from many years of personal experience with dozens of hatchling tortoises of several species that "dry" does not work and "wet" does.

Here are some threads with more explanation.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Helpful-Threads#axzz1qZZrEoW5

 

[tortadise]

RE: Humidity

I would agree. My friend in south Africa has a theory on the hatchlings leopards and sulcatas thy I tend to make an agreeable status with. During the rainy season the savannah grass grows a bit taller and it's believed that the wee hatchlings chomp away at the base of these grasses as well as live in them. In a sense they are living in a lower part of the Eco system in the Savannah's grass. Staying very humid and sheltered from large predatory birds, and mammals. Also the sun beaming through the tall grass allows rapid shell growth and hardening for quick natural survival. It's as said a theory but a believable one to me. So really humid is really good for this species. Really humid humid for species like chacos, Egyptians and bowsprits is a different story. But those natural regions differ from sulcatas.

 

[Yvonne G]

RE: Humidity

Hi Flapjackrage:

Welcome to the Tortoise Forum!!

What would you like us to call you?

and may we know appx. where in the world you are?

I use orchid bark as substrate. I pour a pitcherfull of water over it and mix it up with my hands. The top quickly dries out, but it stays moist underneath. I have to pour more water every couple days. I also have moist sphagnum moss in their hiding place. I'm not real fond of that because, being in the shade of the hide, it gets pretty cold to touch. But they do use it and burrow into the moist moss.

 

[Neal]

RE: Humidity

What percent humidity should I keep his habitat at? Some people say too much humidity can cause respiratory problems.

I will agree with the above statements that, if kept warm, high humidity will not cause respiratory issues. There are several threads on the forum related to this topic, and it's been pretty well tested and tried in a variety of situations.

As far as what percent humidity you should keep his habitat at, I would consider the topic debatable whether or not humidity is necessary for the tortoise. But, for good measure, at the very least, a humid hide with a constant ambient humidity range of anywhere between 50% - 100% seems to work well.

 

[dmarcus]

RE: Humidity

Welcome to the forum... I agree with the above posts...

 

[Arizona Sulcata]

RE: Humidity

I'm assuming, since they posted in the Sulcata section, the species in question is...[drum roll] a sulcata!

Haha oops...

 

[FlapJackrage]

I do research and it seems like everyone says to keep it moist or everyone says to keep the habitat dry for my Sulcata. He is 3 years old. I've been keeping it pretty dry in there for him, but people say if you keep it dry he could start pyramiding, but if I keep it humid people say he can get respiratory problems. I spray him with water very often though, and spray a little mist on the substrate-still ends up to be very dry- and soak him 4 times a week. So what should it be? Dry or humid? and if Humid, what percent humidity?

 

[FlapJackrage]

RE: Humidity

Alright thank you guys! I really enjoy the tort forum. Really helpful.

 

[FlapJackrage]

RE: Humidity

Hi Flapjackrage:

Welcome to the Tortoise Forum!!

What would you like us to call you?

and may we know appx. where in the world you are?

I use orchid bark as substrate. I pour a pitcherfull of water over it and mix it up with my hands. The top quickly dries out, but it stays moist underneath. I have to pour more water every couple days. I also have moist sphagnum moss in their hiding place. I'm not real fond of that because, being in the shade of the hide, it gets pretty cold to touch. But they do use it and burrow into the moist moss.

My name is Christopher and I live in Southern California. I use coconut bark substrate. I have sphagnum moss I'm just debating in whether to use it. But I think I will.

 

[dmmj]

Tortoises don't get RI's from it being humid by itself, they get RI's from being cold and wet, warm and wet is what you want to shoot for.

 

[Eweezyfosheezy]

In my experience keeping it humid is always better for younger sulcatas. But how big is your tortoise? Can you post some pics of him? For a baby tortoise I keep the humidity at 70-80% but since yours is 3 years old you shouldnt have to do that depending on how big he is. What do you use as his substrate?

 

[Arizona Sulcata]

Warm and humid all the way!! 70-80% and you'll have one healthy tort. Cold and humid will give you the RI hence the confusion.

 

[FlapJackrage]

Here he is. His name is Panzer.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Christopher:

Because your tortoise is already 3 years old, the time to prevent pyramiding by using the humidity method is pretty much past. We encourage folks who have brand new baby tortoises, hatchlings, to use the humid method. So you don't have to worry too much about keeping the substrate moist at this stage. Just be sure to have water available to the tortoise, and maybe give him a warm soak about once a week.