long time tortoise owner new-time tortoise learner

[bat]

Hello!! I'm Bat. I've owned a russian tortoise for a long time (about 20 years) but it is only recently that I've begun to learn about proper tortoise care. I was given my tort, Tina, as a gift when I was still an elementary school student, and my family never really learned about how to properly care for Tina - and certainly never taught me about it. After taking Tina with me to my post-grad job, I've started realizing that there's a lot I need to learn so that Tina can hopefully live for many years more. Right now I have Tina in a wood enclosure with glass sides, and am trying to figure out how to keep her warm (I only have a UVB light at the moment).

(I've attached a photo of Tina from a few months ago. Since then I've learned that her claws and beak are overgrown, and have been working to fix that.)

 

[wellington]

Tina needs a minimum enclosure of a 4x8 foot and bigger if possible. She also needs to live outside when weather is nice.
Inside she needs a tube florescent for uvb.
Incandescent flood bulb for basking that reaches temps of 95-100 and a ceramic heat emitter for time time heat if it drops below 70 at night
Yes, beak and nails drastically need trimming. Glad you are working on it.

 

[bat]

Tina needs a minimum enclosure of a 4x8 foot and bigger if possible. She also needs to live outside when weather is nice.
Inside she needs a tube florescent for uvb.
Incandescent flood bulb for basking that reaches temps of 95-100 and a ceramic heat emitter for time time heat if it drops below 70 at night
Yes, beak and nails drastically need trimming. Glad you are working on it.

Thank you for the advice. Right now it's somewhat colder here, but I can look into an outside enclosure for my balcony (I live in an apartment, so no yard) when it gets warm again. And I'll look into the heat sources you mentioned - I do have a uvb light for Tina, but I know she needs more.

 

[zolasmum]

Welcome. It's great that you are now working on improving Tina's life, and I'm sure she will appreciate it. We have a Hermanns tortoise who is 23 now, and we had very little appropriate advice for many years .
I think Tina will be very happy that you are now working on improving her life in general - and this forum is the best place anywhere to get up to date information and advice.
Best wishes from Angie

 

[TammyJ]

Welcome to the forum, you and your tortoise Tina.

 

[Yvonne G]

Welcome!

 

[SinLA]

Welcome, ya the first thing I saw was that beak, and its not even a face shot. can you provide some more photos, people may be able to give advice...

 

[Cathie G]

Hello I have a little Russian too. 🤗I wish I had found this site sooner also. They helped me clarify what I was doing right and wrong. Both are important. You must be doing something right to have a 20 year old or so. Welcome 🤗

 

[Lyn W]

Hi and welcome.
The Information for new people thread under FAQs will tell you all the do's and don'ts and includes a caresheet for Temperate/Mediterranean species which you'll also find in the Species Specific threads. If you read those you'll see how you can greatly improve life for your tort, but also ask as many questions as you like. I've been a member for 10 years and still learn new things from the wonderful people here.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Many of us kept tortoises decades ago with no guidance. Or helpful information.
Welcome to the forum.

 

[_The_Beast_]

Welcome! I have a Russian as well, though only three months old right now. This forum is a really great learning resource. Let us know how the beak and nail trimming go

 

[EppsDynasty]

@bat ....Kudos to you for admitting to yourself that Tina needs a better quality of life. Just remember that one change at a time will get you to the Happy Life Tina deserves. It can get overwhelming when so many things are not exactly right, but 1 thing at a time will get you there. It sounds like you really care about Tina so this means your HOME, this Forum is not like any other. You can interact with true tort people and get TRUE feedback on any situation you find yourself in.
WELCOME HOME bat.

 

[Tom]

Hello!! I'm Bat. I've owned a russian tortoise for a long time (about 20 years) but it is only recently that I've begun to learn about proper tortoise care. I was given my tort, Tina, as a gift when I was still an elementary school student, and my family never really learned about how to properly care for Tina - and certainly never taught me about it. After taking Tina with me to my post-grad job, I've started realizing that there's a lot I need to learn so that Tina can hopefully live for many years more. Right now I have Tina in a wood enclosure with glass sides, and am trying to figure out how to keep her warm (I only have a UVB light at the moment).

(I've attached a photo of Tina from a few months ago. Since then I've learned that her claws and beak are overgrown, and have been working to fix that.)

View attachment 365543

Hello and welcome!

Here are a couple of threads to get you started, and questions are welcome.

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

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

 

[bat]

I took a photo today to share. Her beak is still a work in progress but ever since beginning the trims Tina has been a much happier tortoise. You can't see her back legs in this photo, but they are also still WIPs - I am waiting for the quicks to retreat before finishing trimming there.

 

[zolasmum]

Tina really looks happier and more alert - you've made a wonderful start. Please carry on sending photos of her progress.
Angie

 

[EppsDynasty]

I took a photo today to share. Her beak is still a work in progress but ever since beginning the trims Tina has been a much happier tortoise. You can't see her back legs in this photo, but they are also still WIPs - I am waiting for the quicks to retreat before finishing trimming there.

View attachment 365588

Providing aid and comfort to an animal in need is one of life's greatest gifts. Continue to listen and learn, great job Bat.

 

[bat]

Trimmed Tina's beak again. Does it need to be trimmed more? It's getting to the point where I'm nervous to use cuticle cutters and only using the nail file.

 

[zolasmum]

You've done a really good job, and I'm sure Tina appreciates it. She has obviously been very co-operative, compared with my Zola. I would suggest you leave it for a bit - put her food on a rough surface,to help it even off, and give her a cuttlefish bone so she can chew on that if she wants - it may settle down well, and if ,in a while, you think it needs more filing, you know just how to do it ! She looks great.
Angie

 

[Maggie3fan]

Trimmed Tina's beak again. Does it need to be trimmed more? It's getting to the point where I'm nervous to use cuticle cutters and only using the nail file.View attachment 365831

You are good at that! I use a dremmel tool used by nail techs...it's easier and quicker...you might look into that

 

[Megatron's Mom]

Wow you did an amazing job trimming her up.