Introduction and Pictures

Krisp

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Joined
Jan 3, 2019
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1
Location (City and/or State)
Florida
Hello all! I am a brand new tortoise owner in south Florida. My husband surprised me with a baby sulcata for Christmas. He is almost three months old and weighs less than 3 oz. I named him/her Loh. I have been reading over this forum and some other sites to get info on caring for him. I have attached some photos of his enclosure. He came with a ten-gallon tank but I upgraded him to a twenty gallon long for now because I felt the ten was too small. I have covered the back and sides with cardboard to help him feel a bit more secure. The UVB light is on all day and I turn it off at night and turn on his heating pad. The tank is filled with cypress mulch that I sifted through to pull out the large chunks. I mist the mulch daily. I placed a terracotta pot in the corner with mulch inside, which he loves to sleep in. He has also made a burrow behind the pot and next to his heater. In the middle of the tank is a shallow terracotta dish with water. I was told he did not need water in the tank but after a lot of research, I decided he did. On the opposite side of the tank is his food dish. I placed it far from the light so the food would not wilt. I give him his pellet mixture with the proper amount of calcium 3 times a week. He is not a huge fan of that, though he will take a few bites. I give him dark greens every day and a variety of mixed veggies. I always let the food get room temp before giving it to him. He loves his veggies, as you can see in the picture! I also placed some cuttlebone and hibiscus leaves in there. I soak him daily in warm shallow water for 15-20 minutes. He seems very happy, occasionally coming out when he hears me. He will walk around his enclosure, munch on his food, drink some water, sleep in his pot and burrow behind his pot. He is just all around active and curious. Hopefully, I did not forget anything or load too many photos. I tried to choose the ones that were relevant, but it's difficult when they are all so cute! I welcome any advice, as I said, I'm brand new to this. I am happy to meet you all and have enjoyed looking over your posts. I look forward to hearing from you!

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Yvonne G

Old Timer
TFO Admin
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
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Jan 23, 2008
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93,449
Location (City and/or State)
Clovis, CA
Hi, and welcome!

I wouldn't feed the mixed vegetables. There are several items in that grouping that tortoises should eat sparingly (peas, corn, carrots green beans)

Please go to our sulcata section and read the threads pinned at the top of the section.
 

Maro2Bear

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
May 29, 2014
Messages
14,716
Location (City and/or State)
Glenn Dale, Maryland, USA
Greetings...and welcome.

Lots of great info in here.. https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/

Try making a nice dark “humid hide” out of a small Rubbermaid container. Take off the lid, flip it over, cut a small “cave entrance” so your Sully has a nice dark warm space to hide away in and feel secure.

The caresheet has a ton of info.. good luck

Ps - don’t forget to soak your Sully daily in a nice bowl of warm, shallow water.
 

Cheryl Hills

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Joined
Jan 1, 2016
Messages
2,334
Location (City and/or State)
Youngstown, Ohio
Things I see right off. The food dish is a flipping hazard. Just use a piece of slate. Your enclosure will not hold the temps and humidity that a baby salcata needs. It needs to be a closed chamber with the light inside. Uvb will not go through glass or screen. Try covering the tank with aluminum foil to keep temps and humidity right. The temps should be 80 degrees in the entire enclosure with a basking area of 95 to 100. Humidity should be 80% or better. These are just a few things that need changed right a way. Please read the links provided to you and come back with any questions.
Good luck
 

Ray--Opo

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5 Year Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Oct 14, 2017
Messages
7,101
Location (City and/or State)
Palm Bay Fl
Welcome you have the beginnings of a nice temporary enclosure. I didn't see what type of UVB light you are using. If it is one of the coil bulbs get rid of it. It is hard on their eyes. The best is a flouresnt tube type UVB and fixture. I see members here of one that they refer as a Arcadia. If you are using the coil bulb type in a single fixture you can buy a CHE (ceramic heating element) to use for the basking spot.
Ok I looked at the pics again make sure its not the coil type
I would also recommend a infrared temp gun. 20 or 30 bucks. You can spot check temps in different areas of the enclosure. A thermometer and hydrometer combined digital with external probes that you can put the probes in the tank. 5 or 6 bucks online. Good luck and being in Florida try to get your buddy outside for some of the Florida sun. Hopefully @Tom can suggest the coldest it can be for the little one. My sully is a1 1/2 and it was suggested to me no lower than 65.
Good luck with your new friend. Beware you will be bit by the tortoise love bug:)
 

dmmj

The member formerly known as captain awesome
10 Year Member!
Joined
Aug 15, 2008
Messages
19,670
Location (City and/or State)
CA
Greetings! & welcome to the forum. You may be using to much of the calcium powder it has a very strong smell. You just want to use the tiniest pinch when putting it on his food. Hope you enjoy the forum.
 

drew54

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 25, 2018
Messages
903
Location (City and/or State)
Indiana
I would make those changes suggested to its enclosure soon. Get those temps down and the humidity up. And Welcome!
 

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