Humidity?

[Ayler]

Hi! I'm a new first time owner of a russian tortoise. I read a lot about russian tortoises and thought I knew a lot about taking care of them. I bought my russian tortoise and got the impression that the pet store seller didn't really know a lot about the tortoise - he didn't give me the right information about what I needed to buy for the cage (I had to tell him that I needed UVA, UVB, a hiding place, thermometer and a hydrometer). I took my tortoise home and read the care-sheet I got from the pet store. Turns out I got confused because the instructions seemed to be missing a lot of important details (mentioned calsium but didn't mention UV light and so on). So I wen't on the internet again and found this site - and got a lot smarter Turns out I have the wrong UVB light (spiral), too small a cage and I probably need to spice my "bedding/soil" a little.
But I still have a question about the humidity. I have read that the humidity should be about 40% or less for adults and more for babys. I also read posts about how to keep the humidity so moist - spray the bedding and such. I live in the Faroe Islands and the humidity is normally about 45-50% - a lot of ocean and rain. I tried to naturally "dehumidify" (shut the doors when the air was damp and such) and got down to about 40%. Do I still need to spray/dampen the cage? Or is 40% enough when he drinks when he is thirsty and soaks?

My tortoise eats well, drinks ocasually, seems very curious and energetic, poops and pees and isn't afraid of me (anymore). I also soak him/her in water. The shell is about 4-5 cm (2 inches) long. The basking spot is about 35-40 degrees celsius and the cold spot is 20 degrees. The night time temperature is about 19-20 degrees. I have a timer on the lights and they are turned on 13 hours each day (from 9:00/9AM to 22:00/10PM). I will change the UVB light as soon as possible. It can take some time as it is only one pet store in the Faroes and if they don't have the right one then I have to buy online - and it usually takes a while to ship. An outdoor enclosure is not possible as the outdoor temperature can easily go down to 10 degrees celsius in the sommer - and of course colder at night. A hot sommer day is only 15-17 degress in the shadows, so it don't think I can keep him/her out part time eather.

Thanks for every thread in this forum! I learn lots and lots about how to handle my little guy/girl
The pictures are of my tortoise before I bought him/her and the day after. She/he seem settled already. I have had him/her for 3 days now

 

[mike taylor]

Well let's see ..... The water and food bowls need to go . The bedding needs to go . Terracotta plants saucers work good for food and water bowls . As for bedding coco choir and cypress mulch works great for holding humidity . Home Depot is your friend . I really only buy food for my snakes from pet stores . You can build a cheaper enclosure yourself . If you read the care sheets in the Russian tortoise section you can't go wrong .

 

[Ayler]

The first picture is of the tortoise when he/she was in the pet store BEFORE I bought him/her. Now I have a shallow water disk/bowl and a smaller shallow food disk/bowl. I feed him/her in the bowl and on the rock in the second picture The tortoise has no problem walking on, through and of the water disk - the water doesn't come higher than up to his/her neck when the bowl is full. As mentioned I also plan on getting new bedding I have read the care sheets but I haven't found anything about damping the bedding if the humidity is right. I don't want to make it better for bacteria if it isn't nessesary

 

[leigti]

Well let's see ..... The water and food bowls need to go . The bedding needs to go . Terracotta plants saucers work good for food and water bowls . As for bedding coco choir and cypress mulch works great for holding humidity . Home Depot is your friend . I really only buy food for my snakes from pet stores . You can build a cheaper enclosure yourself . If you read the care sheets in the Russian tortoise section you can't go wrong .

I think possibly the first picture was taken at the pet store. I don't know if there is a Home Depot where this person lives. I would definitely recommend coconut coir as a substrate. It should be a little damp but not soggy. Baby Russian tortoises need more humidity then adults. And they need to stay warm. 80°F. Sorry I don't know what that is in Celsius :-( Cold temperatures in the high humidity can lead to a respiratory infection. There is a lot to take in at first and hatchlings need very specific care. Look at the care sheets and keep asking questions. Welcome to the forum.

 

[johnsonnboswell]

Changing the bedding to something that holds moisture will help with the humidity. He needs to be able to burrow into that moisture. Spraying doesn't do much on the deeper level.

Pet stores are usually misinformed. Their advice is geared toward selling equipment, not long term care. It takes some of us longer to figure that out, so you're ahead already.

 

[Ayler]

I have turned the heat up in the room and wet the bedding that I have now to humidify a little. We don't really have a 'home depot' store here but I will look in the stores that we do have - maybe I will find someting

My tortoise got s red eye today he/she looked healty and 5 min later he/she had a red ring around one eye. I got scared at turned the UVB coil bulb off right away. 10 min later the red had almost dissapeared and now it is gone. I didn't get a picture of it, but the ring around the eye was almost "blood" red in colour. It this usually caused by coil bulbs or is this probably something else? He seems healty and he had a good apetite - he even pooped and acted energetic while the eye was still a little red.

 

[johnsonnboswell]

Coil bulbs are dangerous. They damage eyes. Don't use it at all. Turn it off & and don't use it again even for a minute. Even if you can't replace it immediately, don't use it.

 

[Ayler]

I will get a UVB tube buld today or tomorrow. The coil bulb is removed to never return
I went looking for bedding/soil today. Turns out I can choose between two kinds. One is a clear no no. Can I use a topsoil with lime? The pH is 6.

 

[Tom]

Here is how to care for them. Temperatures, heating and lighting and substrates are covered here:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...or-other-herbivorous-tortoise-species.107734/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

You should not wet the bedding you have, and I would not use topsoil.

They can go weeks without UV, so don't worry too much about not having any UV bulb temporarily.

 

[Ayler]

As I live in a small and fairly isolated country (population: about 49.000 people) the products I can buy are fairly limited (demand and supply). So the only thing I can find for bedding is soil with lime (pH is 6). The landscape in the Faroes isn't so ritch in soil - the soil doesn't go deep and is often full in rocks and plant roots, so I don't see that as an ideal option. Is lime dangerous dor tortoises? I tried to search older posts but every time lime was mentioned it didn't seem like a problem.. It is worth mentioning that the soil with lime didn't have any other additives

 

[johnsonnboswell]

Can you find coconut coir or orchid bark?

 

[Ayler]

Can you find coconut coir or orchid bark?

No. I could buy sand, top soil with additives and without and pine bark. They had some bark in the pet store (I don't remember what kind - I didn't really look because I was adwised against buying them when I was there last) but it was expensive. I can take a look at them next time I go to the capital (Friday probably).

 

[Richabi]

Welcome ayler my Russian is of the same age as yours mine is on orchid bark and I was told to get the humidity between 50 70 % when I change his water in the morning I dampen the substrate and stir it up to bring the wet substrate to the top to keep the humidity up I think im right in what I'm doing