Idgy Russian Tortoise new baby

[jenlewisbodine]

Hi. My husband and I got our girl from PetSmart (hopefully saving her). She has been captive her entire life. We were told she was five months old. NOT POSSIBLE. but we are having a hard time reading her scutes.
We have her in a kid pool we scrubbed and filled with coconut husk and shredded paper until we get alfalfa and husks later in the month. She is completely set up with lamps and hygrometer. She is well fed but I fed her broccoli because I read that was ok. But now I find out it’s horrible. There’s so much I want to ask. We know a lot and are doing so much right, but mistakes like giving her broccoli opened me up to ask questions to an audience. Her environment is healthy and good for her. But does a Russian who was most likely never wintered before need to be wintered? How do I really read her scutes? She goes outside for at least 2-3 hrs, but has light on her enclosure. She seems very happy and healthy. Can you tell me more please? I love her so so much.
Thank you.
Jennifer

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Hello and welcome to the forum! I do hate to be the barer of bad news here, but unfortunately the set up you currently have isn’t a suitable enclosure. But fear not! I’ll talk you through an example of an appropriate set up, including the right equipment and levels🙂

This is one way to come up with an appropriate indoor set up, including the appropriate indoor uv

Basking light should be an incandescent floodlight(example attached) on a 12 hour timer.

Basking temperature directly under the floodlight should be 95-100f. The rest of the enclosure should be ranging 75-80 during the day.

You may also wish to add ambient lighting on the same timer, providing shady areas with hides and safe plants.

Then CHE/CHE’s(ceramic heat emitters) always on a thermostat, for night heat if your house drops below 60’s at night. Set the thermostat for a night temperature place the probe in their cooler end, plug the che into it and the thermostat into the mains, it’ll be plugged in 24/7 but will only turn on when the temperature drops.

Uv should be a t5 fluorescent tube, avoid the compact and coil uv bulbs, they don’t give out enough uv and can hurt the tortoises eyes. The uv can be on a 4 hour timer from noon. I’ve attached examples of the two brands to go for and some examples of how to mount them.

With lighting always avoid anything labelled halogen or mercury vapour.

For substrates, either coco coir, dampened and packed down by hand as a base, with a layer of orchid(fir not pine) bark or forest floor on top, or just the orchid bark/forest floor. Never use anything with sand mixed in, no top soils and no kinds of moss. The problem with top soil is unless you’ve composted it yourself, you don’t know what kind of plants have gone into it, it could be something toxic. Sand can irritate the eyes and be an impaction risk, moss is an impaction risk too.
The husk you are using has also been known to cause impactions, the hay you plan to add won’t work as a substrate, it’s prone to moulding.

You want to aim to have the bottom layer of substrate damp, to do this pour lukewarm water into the corners, not loads but enough to dampen the entire bottom layer. To stop that top layer getting a little too dry/dusty, mix the substrate now n then or give the top a spray. Check your monitors and substrate to do the pours as and when needed.

I’d personally recommend you make your own base to go as big as you possibly can for the space you have, roaming room is vital for tortoise health, it aids in digestion and builds muscle strength. The closer you can get to an 8x4 size the better. If they have a large secure outdoor enclosure(which is also important because free roams outside are risky too)then you may get away with a bit smaller for inside, they still need a decent amount of roaming room though.

When making your base, just make sure the material is safe, some use flower beds, or take a large bookcase, take out the shelves and lie flat, or just make their own, for all these options I’d line with cheap pond liner to protect the base, making sure the liner goes up the sides too and make sure those sides are deep enough! They can be professional escape artists😂

I’ve also included examples of stands people make/buy to hang their lighting, use a temperature gun to determine how high the basking bulb needs to be, the uv I suggested needs to be mounted 18-20 inches from the substrate.

For a water dish a shallow terracotta saucer is considered safest, they have grip in the event your tortoise flips themselves, most pet store options are a known hazard.

I’d also always recommend getting your hands on a temp gun, they’re SO handy when setting up a new environment or for checking your monitors are correct🙂

Also you may find this link below useful for some food ideas! you can buy seeds online and plant in organic soil(free of chemicals) in a planter the tortoise doesn’t have access to, and forage from them as they grow😊

The Tortoise Table - Home

The Tortoise Table plant database and resource site for Tortoise owners

www.thetortoisetable.org.uk

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Oh as for wintering her, you don’t have to, if she never has, she’ll be fine to not hibernate imo🙂
She’s definitely not 5months, she’s looks to be an adult from the photos, so over 3, but there’s no way to read scutes or know exact age without knowing her hatch date, we’re guessing at best.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Oh if you do use ceramics don’t use the domes you have! They don’t look the right size for a CHE

 

[Tom]

Hi. My husband and I got our girl from PetSmart (hopefully saving her). She has been captive her entire life. We were told she was five months old. NOT POSSIBLE. but we are having a hard time reading her scutes.
We have her in a kid pool we scrubbed and filled with coconut husk and shredded paper until we get alfalfa and husks later in the month. She is completely set up with lamps and hygrometer. She is well fed but I fed her broccoli because I read that was ok. But now I find out it’s horrible. There’s so much I want to ask. We know a lot and are doing so much right, but mistakes like giving her broccoli opened me up to ask questions to an audience. Her environment is healthy and good for her. But does a Russian who was most likely never wintered before need to be wintered? How do I really read her scutes? She goes outside for at least 2-3 hrs, but has light on her enclosure. She seems very happy and healthy. Can you tell me more please? I love her so so much.
Thank you.
Jennifer

Hello and welcome.

This tortoises is probably 10 years old. There is really no well to tell, and counting the growth lines on the scutes is a guess at best. This is a wild caught tortoise. It has not been captive its whole life.

A little broccoli now and then is fine. Don't feel bad.

I will link the care sheet and all the info you need to care for this tortoise correctly. Most of the care info out in the world is wrong.

This tortoise brumated every year until it was captured and brought into the pet trade. Even if you try to keep it up, it will most likely want to brumate. You need to decide whichaway you want to go with that and take the appropriate steps.

Give this a read through at least twice. There is a heating and lighting breakdown and a temperate species care sheet ear the bottom. Questions are welcome.

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...

tortoiseforum.org

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

I should’ve also added if you have her in an outdoor enclosure for a few hours of natural sunlight daily, then you probably won’t need the indoor uv😊

 

[jenlewisbodine]

Hello and welcome.

This tortoises is probably 10 years old. There is really no well to tell, and counting the growth lines on the scutes is a guess at best. This is a wild caught tortoise. It has not been captive its whole life.

A little broccoli now and then is fine. Don't feel bad.

I will link the care sheet and all the info you need to care for this tortoise correctly. Most of the care info out in the world is wrong.

This tortoise brumated every year until it was captured and brought into the pet trade. Even if you try to keep it up, it will most likely want to brumate. You need to decide whichaway you want to go with that and take the appropriate steps.

Give this a read through at least twice. There is a heating and lighting breakdown and a temperate species care sheet ear the bottom. Questions are welcome.

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...

tortoiseforum.org

Thank you for all of your help. But his do you know my tortoise brumated every year til she was ‘captured’. How do you know that she was wild?

 

[wellington]

Thank you for all of your help. But his do you know my tortoise brumated every year til she was ‘captured’. How do you know that she was wild?

Because in the wild that's what they do in winter, they brumate
We know she was Wild caught because that's what the big box stores get in Russians. They always lie about the ages and they do poorly at their care and info.

 

[wellington]

A humid hide area is all that's really needed for an adult Russian or all over humidity of around 50%.

 

[jenlewisbodine]

Because in the wild that's what they do in winter, they brumate
We know she was Wild caught because that's what the big box stores get in Russians. They always lie about the ages and they do poorly at their care and info.

Ty so much. I know they brumate every year. I don’t want to sound like a smart Ellic. I was just wondered how yall Know that. Thank you for the clarification. And oh gosh. They all do this? Why didn’t I know this? Of gosh how cruel.

 

[jenlewisbodine]

Because in the wild that's what they do in winter, they brumate
We know she was Wild caught because that's what the big box stores get in Russians. They always lie about the ages and they do poorly at their care and info.

 

[wellington]

I work for an aquarium fish store for years now. The one warehouse we would get fish from had reptiles, tortoises and hamsters, guinea pigs, etc. No, the small animals and tortoises are not kept nicely. This warehouse also supplied big box pet store chains. I wouldn't necessarily trust PETA, but I have seen it with my own eyes. Big chain Pet stores are the worst places to buy small animals and fish. The private owned ones are much better but even some of those are all about the money, not the animal. Yes, some breeders also are about the money. Raising a tortoise from hatchling the right way isn't the cheapest way and the reason so many don't do it right.

 

[jenlewisbodine]

I work for an aquarium fish store for years now. The one warehouse we would get fish from had reptiles, tortoises and hamsters, guinea pigs, etc. No, the small animals and tortoises are not kept nicely. This warehouse also supplied big box pet store chains. I wouldn't necessarily trust PETA, but I have seen it with my own eyes. Big chain Pet stores are the worst places to buy small animals and fish. The private owned ones are much better but even some of those are all about the money, not the animal. Yes, some breeders also are about the money. Raising a tortoise from hatchling the right way isn't the cheapest way and the reason so many don't do it right.

Thank you. I hate this. My baby is so special but I can tell has been traumatized