Meet Quavo! Sulcata tortoise in Riverside, CA

[Anissa young]

Hello! My name is Anissa and I am a brand new tortoise Mom! This forum has been so helpful to me already! Any advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[Big Charlie]

Welcome Anissa from another California sulcata owner. I suspect you will make many changes to your tort's enclosure.
Have you read these threads?
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/african-spurred-tortoise-sulcata-care-sheet.52524/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/sulcata-diet-sheet.64290/

 

[Anissa young]

I am going tomorrow to get the proper mulch. I’ve been reading that any type of “pellet” is not good. I’ve read that cypress mulch is the best option? What would you suggest? I am nervous also about the food.. I’ve seen a lot of conflicting info regarding the diet. I have a mix of greens (collard, mustard, Bok Choy, endive) but I’m seeing that plain ole grass is best? What do you suggest? Thank you so much for the threads!

 

[Big Charlie]

Many people use coco coir but it is very messy, so some people prefer fine grade orchid bark. I think you can get it at a nursery. Grass is a staple of the diet but most babies won't eat it. Some grocery greens are better than others. It's been a very long time since my guy was a hatchling. There are others here that have more experience with babies than me.

 

[Tom]

I am going tomorrow to get the proper mulch. I’ve been reading that any type of “pellet” is not good. I’ve read that cypress mulch is the best option? What would you suggest? I am nervous also about the food.. I’ve seen a lot of conflicting info regarding the diet. I have a mix of greens (collard, mustard, Bok Choy, endive) but I’m seeing that plain ole grass is best? What do you suggest? Thank you so much for the threads!

Hi Anissa. All of this is explained in those threads. The care info you got, including the recommendation to use that dry substrate is old, out-dated, and incorrect. Reads those threads for the correct care info, and make the changes ASAP for your baby.

Fine grade orchid bark is best. You can find it at local nurseries or at OSH. Usually not at HD or Lowes.

 

[Anissa young]

I ran out in a panic and got some cypress mulch as that is what I found available in such short notice. I will go to a local nursery tomorrow to see if they have the fine grade orchid bark. Thank you so much I really appreciate all of the help! Please forgive me as I am still new and I mean him no harm. I will learn as quickly as possible for his health and safety!

 

[Anissa young]

Here is an updated picture of his enclosure with the cypress mulch. I do have the heat lamp and uvb. Shallow water saucer and food saucer. I also have his area where he can burrow and keep cool. I do have the other half of the lid i just took it off for the moment.

 

[Tom]

Here is an updated picture of his enclosure with the cypress mulch. I do have the heat lamp and uvb. Shallow water saucer and food saucer. I also have his area where he can burrow and keep cool. I do have the other half of the lid i just took it off for the moment.

I hope it is clear that my intent here is to help you and not annoy you, but that tank is too small, you need a humid hide, the open screen top is going to let all your heat and humidity out, it looks like you've got a cfl bulb for UV, and I don't see any night heat in the pictures.

I have to be blunt and up front because you baby needs the correct conditions ASAP if it is to survive, and grow normally. Without night heat, it is likely to get sick. Without a good UV source (The cfl types are not good, and sometimes burn their eyes.), you could have some serious problems.

Those things need to be corrected right away. Babies have a small margin of error. I'm glad you found us, and even though this stuff might not be what you want to hear, the goal is to help your baby thrive, which will make you a happy tortoise owner in the end. Its just a pain in the rear now because somebody sold you all the wrong stuff and gave you the wrong info.

 

[Anissa young]

Oh no I’m not annoyed! I’m glad I found people who are willing to help!

I will work on creating a 4x8’ enclosure for him. I know now that even that size won’t last him longer than a year or so.
I will incorporate a humid hide for him.
And I will make sure I get the right type of lighting for him.

I will have an update tomorrow! Thank you again so much!

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Hi Anissa

 

[Tom]

Oh no I’m not annoyed! I’m glad I found people who are willing to help!

I will work on creating a 4x8’ enclosure for him. I know now that even that size won’t last him longer than a year or so.
I will incorporate a humid hide for him.
And I will make sure I get the right type of lighting for him.

I will have an update tomorrow! Thank you again so much!

We are here to talk tortoises, so please ask lots and lots of questions. All of us love to see people achieve success and happiness with their little baby tortoises, so don't hesitate to make us explain every detail for you.

 

[Yvonne G]

Welcome!

 

[Anissa young]

Here is a day and night heat source that I was looking to get for Quavo since I have the incorrect UV source. Does this look like something that would work for him?

 

[Tom]

Here is a day and night heat source that I was looking to get for Quavo since I have the incorrect UV source. Does this look like something that would work for him?

Those are not a good way to go. Tortoises have better color vision than we do, so when you look in the enclosure and see everything all red, so do they. It needs to be dark at night, not red. Likewise, it needs to look "sunny" during the day, and not red.

For night and ambient heat, ceramic heating elements set on a thermostat are the best way to go. Like these:
http://www.lllreptile.com/products/35-zoo-med-100-watt-ceramic-heater
http://www.lllreptile.com/products/13883-zilla-1000-watt-temperature-controller

 

[Anissa young]

Great! I will definitely get those. And is that for UVB also? Or what do you reccommend that doesn’t have cfl?

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Hello, Anissa, and a very warm welcome to Tortoise Forum to you and Quavo.
Get a uvb strip bulb and separate basking lamp or go with an MVB (mercury vapour bulb) which is light,heat and UVB all in one.

 

[teresaf]

A lot of us here went through the same thing that you're going through now. Buying and returning and buying and returning stuff to the store again is a real pain. Once you have it set just right you won't have to ever do it again and you'll know how to do it. I found the biggest help for myself was the thermometers / hygrometers. Amazon has some nice thermometer hygrometers where the probe goes into the tank but not the mechanism... I would get two so that you can check them against each other in the future. Some folks use temp guns but I found them too much of a hassle. The ones with the probes that go inside the tank stay there and all you have to do is walk past the tank and you know with a glance that you're tort is at the right temperatures. Asparagus fern Works inside really well for us that don't have a green thumb. They don't tend to eat it and it stays nice-looking longer.

The biggest thing that'll kill a baby the fastest is not being warm enough or being too hot. Keep temps above 80 in EVERY location of your enclosure. If there's even one area in your enclosure that's below 80 he's guaranteed to find it and then he'll get sick. Babies are very fragile.

Ideally you want the low-end to be 80 and above and the hot spot for Basking should be 95 to 100 an inch from the floor of the enclosure. Humidity should be high for babies. 70% to 80% would be nice. Guarantee your temps are stable before you worry about humidity though. Humidity + cold will kill a tortoise pretty quickly. To bring humidity up you need to cover the enclosure completely almost airtight. you don't have to worry about air (every time you open it you're exchanging air). Then dump water in that substrate. Sometimes several Cups have to be used.

Later as he grows you can use clay pot saucers which come in multiple sizes for his water and food dishes. You can find those at garage sales or off Craigslist. Don't put his water against the wall or you'll be rinsing it out a lot. They tend to wander the walls and they'll run right through the water tracking the mulch or coco choir into it. Well that's all I got for right now hope it helps! Congratulations on your new baby...

 

[Anissa young]

Thank you so much! This makes me feel so much better. I’ve created a humid hide for him that he seems to really like! I purchased a thermometer and in the farthest corner from the basking area I’m at 85 degrees and my humidity is at 70. I saw a nice poop today and that made me very happy!! I also put some grass over his other greens and he ate a good chunk of it. I soaked him today and he liked it!

So I will say today was a good day!

 

[Alaskamike]

Welcome.
The learning curve is steep - but once you hammer out the basics it get easier.
Good fortune to you & your little sully.

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Thank you so much! This makes me feel so much better. I’ve created a humid hide for him that he seems to really like! I purchased a thermometer and in the farthest corner from the basking area I’m at 85 degrees and my humidity is at 70. I saw a nice poop today and that made me very happy!! I also put some grass over his other greens and he ate a good chunk of it. I soaked him today and he liked it!

So I will say today was a good day!

Isn't it great when we tort keepers are so happy to see poop?