Sorry in advance for the length of this but I am trying my best
I have recently been given an 8 lb, what I am told is a 10 year old...., Sulcata named Harley. His shell is sunken & pyramided. I have been perusing this site for a few days now (thank you all for such great info sharing!!!!) Trying to come up with the best environment for Harley, whom I have a big crush on.
This is what I got going on now:
Harley is about 12 inches long & he has a 54†x 34†table. I have a ceramic Infrared heat emitter & a UVB 150 bulb.
Currently using cypress & coir mix
Have a large (paint tray, it just seemed to work….) water dish & change daily
A hiding box with Moss was just built & has the approved misted moss in it (just got Harley two days ago)
Harley has a good amount of fresh hay down all the time & have given him dandelion, fresh grasses, & mulberry leaves. He is not a fan of hay, so I have hidden pumpkin chunks in to entice the appeal. The people who I got him from were just giving him Romaine every other day & putting him in the yard every few days to graze for about 30 mins.
I have Cuttlebones in with him & he seems to really like them.
I will be building him an outdoor paradise when winter is over & have plans to build him a “while the humans are at work†room in my basement, so that he can roam more. This will be in a secure heated room that is about 10x8. I do take him for supervised exercise in the house daily now & he scoots pretty well.
CONCERNS:
Harley has a large “shelf†bottom shell under his head. It hinders him from being able to eat flat leaves or short piles off the ground. Is this normal? I have seen pictures but it is hard to tell from many angles (I am attaching pictures of this area)
Heating his table- has become my challenge for the past few day, I was given two lamps with him one had the daylight uvb bulb & the other was a low heat bulb that did not do much. I just put the ceramic in & so far it is 75 degrees & rising. I am shooting for 85…? He has both a light & a dim area, plus his moist box I might add another heating lamp if the ceramic doesn’t heat this up. My lid is wood with a plastic metallic reflector backing (looks like bubble wrapped covered aluminum foil.) How do some of you heat large tables effectively? I like the idea of the ceramic so he can have night time & still have the heat.
And of Course his Shell….. I am misting him a few times a day & am going to soak him two times a week, should this be more? I am giving him calcium powder in his pumpkin twice a week as planned & he has his cuttlebones, which are hard for him to get at with that under growth under his head… I worry about the pressure that might be on him in the flat concaved area of his shell. It is not rounded at all, mostly flat- How can I help promote healthy growth? & is there a way at all to help this at this stage?????
Size- I am concerned that he is small for his age. Any tips on additional things to help him along would be much appreciated!
Thanks in advance- Lisa & Harley from Ohio
I have recently been given an 8 lb, what I am told is a 10 year old...., Sulcata named Harley. His shell is sunken & pyramided. I have been perusing this site for a few days now (thank you all for such great info sharing!!!!) Trying to come up with the best environment for Harley, whom I have a big crush on.
This is what I got going on now:
Harley is about 12 inches long & he has a 54†x 34†table. I have a ceramic Infrared heat emitter & a UVB 150 bulb.
Currently using cypress & coir mix
Have a large (paint tray, it just seemed to work….) water dish & change daily
A hiding box with Moss was just built & has the approved misted moss in it (just got Harley two days ago)
Harley has a good amount of fresh hay down all the time & have given him dandelion, fresh grasses, & mulberry leaves. He is not a fan of hay, so I have hidden pumpkin chunks in to entice the appeal. The people who I got him from were just giving him Romaine every other day & putting him in the yard every few days to graze for about 30 mins.
I have Cuttlebones in with him & he seems to really like them.
I will be building him an outdoor paradise when winter is over & have plans to build him a “while the humans are at work†room in my basement, so that he can roam more. This will be in a secure heated room that is about 10x8. I do take him for supervised exercise in the house daily now & he scoots pretty well.
CONCERNS:
Harley has a large “shelf†bottom shell under his head. It hinders him from being able to eat flat leaves or short piles off the ground. Is this normal? I have seen pictures but it is hard to tell from many angles (I am attaching pictures of this area)
Heating his table- has become my challenge for the past few day, I was given two lamps with him one had the daylight uvb bulb & the other was a low heat bulb that did not do much. I just put the ceramic in & so far it is 75 degrees & rising. I am shooting for 85…? He has both a light & a dim area, plus his moist box I might add another heating lamp if the ceramic doesn’t heat this up. My lid is wood with a plastic metallic reflector backing (looks like bubble wrapped covered aluminum foil.) How do some of you heat large tables effectively? I like the idea of the ceramic so he can have night time & still have the heat.
And of Course his Shell….. I am misting him a few times a day & am going to soak him two times a week, should this be more? I am giving him calcium powder in his pumpkin twice a week as planned & he has his cuttlebones, which are hard for him to get at with that under growth under his head… I worry about the pressure that might be on him in the flat concaved area of his shell. It is not rounded at all, mostly flat- How can I help promote healthy growth? & is there a way at all to help this at this stage?????
Size- I am concerned that he is small for his age. Any tips on additional things to help him along would be much appreciated!
Thanks in advance- Lisa & Harley from Ohio