Looking for Sulcata babies in Southern Cali !

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ACD1sM

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Hello everyone !


I am looking to purchase my first sulcata baby but am looking for a reputable source to get them from. Would I be better off ordering online in California ? Does anyone know any legit breeders or Pet suppliers out here ? Thanks for the help ahead of time ! I am located in the orange county area :)
 

XXAPAINKILLERXX

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bought my 2 baby Sulcatas like 2 weeks ago at Reptile Finders on 1856 Pacific Coast Hwy Lomita, Ca 90717.. the guy Main guy there is really cool..think his name is Chuck but theres an older guy that really dont help and knows much.. might wanna check them out there if u like
 

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Angi

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I would contact Tom the dog trainer. I think he breeds them.
 

Tom

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So glad you came here first! There are several of us that breed them here, but the MAIN thing is that we start them right. Most places still keep them on rabbit pellets with no water bowl and many of them die months down the road due to the chronic dehydration they suffer when they first hatch and go to a pet store. Both Austin (AZ Sulcata) and me have some due in May. Katherine in Louisiana has some right now that look fantastic (she posted pics). KBaker in Michigan breeds some really healthy babies. And TylerStewart of Tortoisesupply.com has good ones too.

Who am I forgetting...?

Read this before you buy one from anyone. It will tell you what you need to know so your baby buying experience does not end in tragedy...
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-Hatchling-Failure-Syndrome#axzz1bv5qbbcz

And here's a care sheet so you can set up and test your enclosure BEFORE the baby comes home: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-How-To-Raise-Sulcata-Hatchlings-and-Babies#axzz1bv5qbbcz
 

cmosuna

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ACD1sM said:
Hello everyone !


I am looking to purchase my first sulcata baby but am looking for a reputable source to get them from. Would I be better off ordering online in California ? Does anyone know any legit breeders or Pet suppliers out here ? Thanks for the help ahead of time ! I am located in the orange county area :)

We live in Orange County, if you want a reputable breeder or store front try Reptile Island in Stanton. Great selection good prices, been dealing with them for years. If you want a great backyard breeder the try www.tortugavilla.com.
 

cmosuna

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I have yet to see babies available through a rescue. But of course plenty of big guys
 

Tom

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cmosuna said:
I have yet to see babies available through a rescue. But of course plenty of big guys

We have another SoCal resident looking to adopt an older male, but she's having no luck finding one. Do you know of a rescue anywhere in SoCal that has one?
 

cmosuna

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Tom said:
cmosuna said:
I have yet to see babies available through a rescue. But of course plenty of big guys

We have another SoCal resident looking to adopt an older male, but she's having no luck finding one. Do you know of a rescue anywhere in SoCal that has one?

It's the time of year, things are cooler so the big guys aren't as active (or troublesome). I haven't heard anything either during the winter but usually when things heat up around here they become readily available. If they want they can message me on my FB page and I'll let them know if anything comes up. I might be looking to rehome one of my males (they are fighting a lot) but for a minimal fee (to be used towards our rescue efforts like picking up that MBD sulcata yesterday).
 

ACD1sM

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Thanks for all of your help !


Tom- Do you ship ? I would be very interested in getting a healthy happy baby from you !

I would like to start small because 1. The experience of raising a young tortoise is what I have wanted for a very long time now. I have been very interested and have done about a year of research and now I am finally ready to buy. My friend and I are building a tort table this weekend.
2. I am in an apartment right now and would like a couple of years before I move to a big place so in that time the tort can be small and happy in a tort table until I am able to relocate.


I appreciate all of the suggestions !
 

ACD1sM

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I have actually been reading and getting tips off of this website for awhile before I actually made an account and started posting :)
 

ACD1sM

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Cant decide between Redfoot or Sulcata tho. Redfoot is prob a better idea :p
 

Tom

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Not trying to start a fight or hurt anyone's feelings, but I called Reptile Island. (I was curious) They have 5 or 6 baby sulcatas in stock now for $89.99. They keep them on alfalfa pellets or bark. He did mention that sometimes the bark is good because the don't eat it and they can raise the humidity, which he said, "... is good for the babies." No water bowl, and soak twice a week for babies. He said they have a tube type UV bulb and a heat bulb. The diet was a good mix of greens with calcium every other day.

Here's my opinion: The diet, heat and UV all sound good. The rabbit pellets, lack of water and infrequent soaks are a total deal breaker for me. There is no way to know just how dehydrated those babies might be and IF there is any dehydration related internal organ damage or not. I would not buy one there. I would get one cheaper directly from a breeder who keeps them well hydrated, humid and soaks daily. Plus in a pet shop no one has time to sun all those animals. And who knows how old the UV bulb is. Most breeders are going to be sunning their babies right up until they sell. I do. Katherine does. I'm pretty sure Austin does. You do, don't you, Austin? So this place is better than most pet shops, but still not good enough to satisfy me enough to feel okay about recommending them.
 

Urtle

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Tom said:
Not trying to start a fight or hurt anyone's feelings, but I called Reptile Island. (I was curious) They have 5 or 6 baby sulcatas in stock now for $89.99. They keep them on alfalfa pellets or bark. He did mention that sometimes the bark is good because the don't eat it and they can raise the humidity, which he said, "... is good for the babies." No water bowl, and soak twice a week for babies. He said they have a tube type UV bulb and a heat bulb. The diet was a good mix of greens with calcium every other day.

Here's my opinion: The diet, heat and UV all sound good. The rabbit pellets, lack of water and infrequent soaks are a total deal breaker for me. There is no way to know just how dehydrated those babies might be and IF there is any dehydration related internal organ damage or not. I would not buy one there. I would get one cheaper directly from a breeder who keeps them well hydrated, humid and soaks daily. Plus in a pet shop no one has time to sun all those animals. And who knows how old the UV bulb is. Most breeders are going to be sunning their babies right up until they sell. I do. Katherine does. I'm pretty sure Austin does. You do, don't you, Austin? So this place is better than most pet shops, but still not good enough to satisfy me enough to feel okay about recommending them.

Tom please let me know when you have babies ready again :)
 

cmosuna

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ACD1sM said:
Thanks for all of your help !


Tom- Do you ship ? I would be very interested in getting a healthy happy baby from you !

I would like to start small because 1. The experience of raising a young tortoise is what I have wanted for a very long time now. I have been very interested and have done about a year of research and now I am finally ready to buy. My friend and I are building a tort table this weekend.
2. I am in an apartment right now and would like a couple of years before I move to a big place so in that time the tort can be small and happy in a tort table until I am able to relocate.


I appreciate all of the suggestions !

If you are in an apartment start with a RedFoot, there is no guarantee what your position or residence will be in 2 years (and as you may have read within a couple of years your Sulcata will need a lot more room then you can provide). Where as a redfoot takes much much longer to outgrow your inside setup.

Urtle said:
Tom said:
Not trying to start a fight or hurt anyone's feelings, but I called Reptile Island. (I was curious) They have 5 or 6 baby sulcatas in stock now for $89.99. They keep them on alfalfa pellets or bark. He did mention that sometimes the bark is good because the don't eat it and they can raise the humidity, which he said, "... is good for the babies." No water bowl, and soak twice a week for babies. He said they have a tube type UV bulb and a heat bulb. The diet was a good mix of greens with calcium every other day.

Here's my opinion: The diet, heat and UV all sound good. The rabbit pellets, lack of water and infrequent soaks are a total deal breaker for me. There is no way to know just how dehydrated those babies might be and IF there is any dehydration related internal organ damage or not. I would not buy one there. I would get one cheaper directly from a breeder who keeps them well hydrated, humid and soaks daily. Plus in a pet shop no one has time to sun all those animals. And who knows how old the UV bulb is. Most breeders are going to be sunning their babies right up until they sell. I do. Katherine does. I'm pretty sure Austin does. You do, don't you, Austin? So this place is better than most pet shops, but still not good enough to satisfy me enough to feel okay about recommending them.

Tom please let me know when you have babies ready again :)

No hurt feelings, I have been dealing with them for quite awhile now and much of that is contrary to what I have observed in person over hundreds of visits. Also I have zero affiliation with their store other than the fact that they are close to me and was recommending someone good in the southland (because I have been to them all and this is way above what else is out there), most are down right scary.
 

Tom

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ACD1sM said:
Tom- Do you ship ? I would be very interested in getting a healthy happy baby from you !

I would like to start small because 1. The experience of raising a young tortoise is what I have wanted for a very long time now. I have been very interested and have done about a year of research and now I am finally ready to buy. My friend and I are building a tort table this weekend.
2. I am in an apartment right now and would like a couple of years before I move to a big place so in that time the tort can be small and happy in a tort table until I am able to relocate.

Yes I do ship, but we should talk. A healthy well started sulcata grows like a bad weed. It will be hard to maintain that in an apartment. Its not my place to tell you how to live, just want to warn you that they can get pretty big in just two years. All of mine move outside well before then. Its not impossible, but it will be a challenge. Also, a closed chamber will serve you much better than a tortoise table. It is nearly impossible to maintain the necessary conditions in an open topped table. All your beneficial heat and humidity just float out into the room. I think tables are great for older, smaller species like russians for example, but not for raising babies. This will be true for redfoot babies too. No harm in changing your mind and going with a species that you think will suit you better. Redfoots are great. I don't keep them because I don't think I can provide a good environment for them once they need to move outside. Too dry where I am. Have you considered raising a baby hermanns or russian? They are very hardy and have great personalities usually.



cmosuna said:
No hurt feelings, I have been dealing with them for quite awhile now and much of that is contrary to what I have observed in person over hundreds of visits. Also I have zero affiliation with their store other than the fact that they are close to me and was recommending someone good in the southland (because I have been to them all and this is way above what else is out there), most are down right scary.


What have you observed differently than what the man on the phone told me? Again, just curious. Always looking for good reptile stores.
 

cmosuna

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Tom said:
ACD1sM said:
Tom- Do you ship ? I would be very interested in getting a healthy happy baby from you !

I would like to start small because 1. The experience of raising a young tortoise is what I have wanted for a very long time now. I have been very interested and have done about a year of research and now I am finally ready to buy. My friend and I are building a tort table this weekend.
2. I am in an apartment right now and would like a couple of years before I move to a big place so in that time the tort can be small and happy in a tort table until I am able to relocate.

Yes I do ship, but we should talk. A healthy well started sulcata grows like a bad weed. It will be hard to maintain that in an apartment. Its not my place to tell you how to live, just want to warn you that they can get pretty big in just two years. All of mine move outside well before then. Its not impossible, but it will be a challenge. Also, a closed chamber will serve you much better than a tortoise table. It is nearly impossible to maintain the necessary conditions in an open topped table. All your beneficial heat and humidity just float out into the room. I think tables are great for older, smaller species like russians for example, but not for raising babies.



cmosuna said:
No hurt feelings, I have been dealing with them for quite awhile now and much of that is contrary to what I have observed in person over hundreds of visits. Also I have zero affiliation with their store other than the fact that they are close to me and was recommending someone good in the southland (because I have been to them all and this is way above what else is out there), most are down right scary.


What have you observed differently than what the man on the phone told me? Again, just curious. Always looking for good reptile stores.





They have always seemed visually and vocally a lot bigger about hydration. The owner is very tedious when it comes to lighting and UV's (no they do not make it outside but most shops do not). I do however agree about the pellets. I have asked him about them before and he did tell me they were not rabbit alfalfa pellets but something else I am not remembering now. The biggest reason I know so much about them is I had an very colicy baby and my only relief was pushing her in the stroller. Well we spent a lot of time walking around their shop in the summer lol. I saw everything and asked a million questions. Some days we would spend 3 or 4 hours walking around there, so we got into a lot of detail. Even got them to do some help with local schools ie education, in classroom setups. They are good people. But if you want that killer backyard breeder then www.tortugavilla.com. Paul is insane about tortoise care, his home is amazing. We got our first sullies from him and he is so ridiculous about care and making sure we were educated and ready.
 

bigred

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cmosuna said:
ACD1sM said:
Hello everyone !


I am looking to purchase my first sulcata baby but am looking for a reputable source to get them from. Would I be better off ordering online in California ? Does anyone know any legit breeders or Pet suppliers out here ? Thanks for the help ahead of time ! I am located in the orange county area :)

We live in Orange County, if you want a reputable breeder or store front try Reptile Island in Stanton. Great selection good prices, been dealing with them for years. If you want a great backyard breeder the try www.tortugavilla.com.

I kow the people at tortugavilla- Good people
 

cmosuna

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bigred said:
cmosuna said:
ACD1sM said:
Hello everyone !


I am looking to purchase my first sulcata baby but am looking for a reputable source to get them from. Would I be better off ordering online in California ? Does anyone know any legit breeders or Pet suppliers out here ? Thanks for the help ahead of time ! I am located in the orange county area :)

We live in Orange County, if you want a reputable breeder or store front try Reptile Island in Stanton. Great selection good prices, been dealing with them for years. If you want a great backyard breeder the try www.tortugavilla.com.

I kow the people at tortugavilla- Good people

Yeah they are crazy tort folks. Even has it painted on his Jeep and everything. We went to his house to pick out our first torts and his outdoor enclosures (also on his site) are amazing.
 

BrookeB

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If I had to do it all over I would get my baby from one of the breeders here (like tom) my baby sully is fine and just great but I worry about the 2 weeks befor I got her... would be nice to KNOW she got soaks and all that :)
 
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