Meet Ernest T./Ernestine

[manmythlegend]

Hello everyone! Just wanted to start this off by introducing you to Ernest T./Ernestine, depending on its eventual sex, our new Leopard tortoise hatchling. We got it from @Neal on 9/5/14, about 2 weeks post dig out from some nest it appears he'd missed in his tortoise yard.
Its current weight is 1.16 oz (33 grams) and its plastron is currently 2" (5.1cm) head to tail.
Ernest T. spends its days outdoors in a concrete block enclosure that is partially shaded and his nights indoors in a enclosed 50 gallon Rubbermaid stock tank. I'm still trying to establish a routine with Ernest and will post more once it's established.
Thanks for looking

 

[Carol S]

Such a cute little hatchling. I think Leopard tortoises are so pretty.

 

[wellington]

Congrats, nice looking leopard.

 

[Tactical Tort]

Adorable Leo! They are so cool! Congrats!

 

[verda]

Aww congrats on your new baby, such a cutie. ^_^

 

[manmythlegend]

Took Ernest T out to spend some time in the great outdoors today.

 

[Moozillion]

Beautiful!!!

 

[manmythlegend]

After spending a day outside, Ernest T is a tired tortoise but I'm not done with him yet!

After I soaked him and sat him back in his indoor enclosure, he couldn't get away from me fast enough!

 

[manmythlegend]

I'm fishing for some expert opinions of my setup and husbandry practices in regards to the likelihood of Ernest T pyramiding with the way I'm doing things currently.

This is the indoor enclosure. I realize it's not much to look at but I didn't want to spend a lot of money for a temporary thing. Keep in mind it only has to last until he goes outside full time. As you can see, he's having his morning soak. Let's rundown a few things about this setup-

The glass is from an old coffee table. It doesn't cover the entire tub so I had to improvise with some plywood on the other end to achieve a closed chamber environment. There is a peanut shaped hole in the plywood that the light (75w Reptisun) and CHE (60w) sit over. The plywood is thin and started to buckle from the heat and humidity so I put a couple of pieces of large tile over it to help weigh it down. This sits in front of a huge south facing window and temps can get up into the low 100s F (37-40C) mid-afternoon with the electrics turned off. I figure if the passive solar can help with the cost of heating this enclosure, why not use it? Don't worry, Ernest is usually outside when the temps get this high in the enclosure. I consistently get overnight temps no lower than 83ish (28-30C) using the CHE. Temperatures are measured on each end with a wired thermometer and a wireless weather station transmitter.

The substrate is a peat moss/organic top soil/coconut coir mix, about 2 inchs deep. There is coir only inside the dish tub hide that's on the "warm end" under the lights. I planted Ch-ch-ch-chia in there to give Ernest something to crawl through. I believe fighting to get though the sprouts exercises him more than tromping along bare ground and it holds humidity lower in the enclosure.

You can see the slate tile I have laid on top of the dishpan in the bottom right of the image. The blue thingy is a plastic tray I got from my job (Operating Room Registered Nurse at a community hospital) filled with aquarium gravel so that it is shallow enough for Ernest to easily get in and out. As you can see, the substrate is pretty wet and the walls are dripping in there with condensation on the top glass. I didn't spray the enclosure before these were taken, this is the way it always is. I do spray in there but I hadn't done it prior to this photo. My humidity readings are always 70% or higher on both the weather station and the wired hygrometer.

Feeding time has consisted mainly of dandelion greens so far but other things have been added in here and there. Stuff like rose petals, sliced rose hips and leaves, the green tops of strawberries, shredded carrot, hibiscus leaves, a few yard flowers and weeds here and there, diced opuntia pads, chopped green beans and small amounts of moistened Mazuri pellets have all been fed at one point or another since his arrival. Water is available at all times, even outside. He's gained about 2 grams since 09/06/14 and is 35gms.

He gets soaked in 83-94F degree water (measured with a digital "instant read" kitchen thermometer) for 30 minutes twice a day, right before he goes out and again when he comes back in for the night. I know most people say, "fill just to the bridge of the shell" but I tend to fill the soak tub almost an inch and a half or more with water. He can stick his head up and breath with no trouble and his feet touch the bottom but it's much deeper than other people seem to recommend. I keep an eye on him to make sure he's okay and doesn't drown himself.

He is put outside in the mornings around 9:30-10:00 and stays out until 6:30ish. When he's outside we spray down the whole enclosure several times during the day. He hides under a log with 3 inch (8cm) deep grass around it most of the time when he's outside, trying to keep cool. Here's a couple of images when I brought him in tonight.

 

[Neal]

A couple of things I noted:

The temperatures in enclosures by windows tend to fluctuate more than enclosures next to interior walls. You may want to consider moving the enclosure away from the window, or just be sure to monitor the environmental conditions more frequently now that we'll start to cool off over the next few weeks.

The diet sounds pretty good. I would recommend throwing some spring mix, escarole and other greens in there from time to time. Offering a random wide selection of foods is a good practice in my opinion.

I personally would not leave a small tortoise outside all day everyday until he is a bit bigger. In my experience, I've had better success raising tortoises primarily indoors in controlled settings. Things like increased appetite, activity levels, and faster growth are some of my observations when comparing tortoises raising primarily indoors vs. primarily outdoors. If you're happy with the results you're seeing, then keep it up and share your results with us.

 

[manmythlegend]

I put the lights and CHE on a thermostat over the weekend which shuts everything down when temperatures reach 110F as an added security measure. I haven't seen the temps get anywhere near that since I started partially closing the blinds but I figured it's better to be safe. I intentionally put the enclosure in front of the window to enable passive heating because someone is here constantly and it really helps with the electric bills if you can shut everything off for a big chunk of the day. The light level is adjusted by blinds now so it isn't actually full sunshine, just thin bands of sunshine broken up by larger bands of shade. Temps bump up into the upper 90s midday, no warmer.

He's had a couple of days where he ate mostly prickly pear pads, another day or two of hibiscus leaves and another day where I'd pruned my roses and they got the leaves, petals and some chopped up rose hips. There have also been some things I've pulled from the yard to feed them, a few small chunks of Mazuri, thawed frozen green peas, red peppers, shredded carrots... his diet has actually been VERY varied! Remember, he's only been here 17 days and he's already had all these things thrown in his food dish.

This last trip to Sprouts was supposed to be either Endive or Escarole (whichever was cheaper) but I didn't make it there first. When I got off work, I had another bunch of dandelion greens waiting for me and so they (Ernest shares his groceries with an Ornate Uromastyx named "Otis" and that's why I keep using "they") get another week of dandelion greens.

I will restrict the outside time from here on. What size do you usually like to start leaving them outside for any length of time? How long and often would you allow a hatchling to stay outdoors for D3 production? I have calcium with D3 for Otis, should I give some to Ernest too and keep him inside full time? I see your point about having more control on their environment and agree that inside would be better but isn't natural sunlight better for them? That was the reason behind putting him outside- natural sunlight exposure.

 

[Neal]

Sunlight is great for them, but for what they need for D3 production 30 minutes to an hour of sunlight every few days seems to be plenty.

I usually get mine more outside time after 4 inches. I've not noted any difference in growth patterns after that size, so I use that as a rule of thumb.

 

[manmythlegend]

Alright, thanks again Neal! Ernest seems to be doing well and I'll keep you posted.

 

[manmythlegend]

Ernest T's weight was 33 g on delivery (09/06/14). I weighed him again on 10/22/14 and he tipped the scales at 54 g! That's 21 g he's gained since arrival!
I enclosed a few pics to give you a 360 degree view of his carapace which seems to be coming along quite smoothly.

 

[Neal]

Looks like you're doing a good job with him/her. Keep it up!

 

[manmythlegend]

Thanks @Neal !!! I'm trying my best to ensure a healthy tort with a smooth shell.

 

[manmythlegend]

Happy 2015 everyone!
Ernest T's weight as of a week ago is 103 g! That's 70 g he's gained since arrival. His carapace is growing really smoothly and he eats like a pig.

 

[gingerbee]

Nice-looking little guy! Congratulations!

 

[Kathy Coles]

You mentioned aquarium gravel. I would ditch that because it is the right size to get swallowed. A clay plant saucer would work well for a water dish.

 

[manmythlegend]

As you can see, Ernest T gained another 26 grams since the last weigh-in. He seems to be steadily growing at approximately 25ish grams a month and his carapace is still smooth.
As you can see from his salad plate, this week he's eating shredded leaves from a hollyhock (Alcea rosea) that I cut back to the ground in the back yard, mixed with a shredded yellow hibiscus flower. I tend to switch out his chow from week to week. The prior week he'd been eating mustard greens and the week before that he was munching endive. I throw random flowers, frozen mixed veggies and frozen green peas, fresh strawberry tops, etc. into the mix every other day or so for variety and give him a sprinkle of calcium with D3 once a week. Occasionally I get lazy and moisten some Mazuri for him to smear around everywhere as he munches away at it.