need baby russian substrate help!

[lillyhurt]

Hello! I received my baby russian tort 3 days ago and every time they go into their enclosure, they get super messy and their face gets covered in the substrate (as they love burrowing). i’m a little worried because i don’t want any issues with their health and my fear is that the substrate could lead to eye issues, breathing issues (like getting in their nose), and/or intestinal issues. i’ve done so much research and decided on using a coco coir brick mixed with reptisand (about 60-70% coco coir and 30-40% sand) but they get so messy and i am so nervous they’re gonna get sick or worse! i wanna hear any advice possible as they love to burrow and seem to like the substrate but i do see them wipe their eyes periodically and i really don’t want them to hurt their eyes. i also saw a coco coir fiber in their poop and have pulled it out of their mouth before so i don’t want to continue having it in there if it isn’t safe. the substrate is moist and humidity is always around 50-70% so i don’t know what else to do. any help is much appreciated!!

 

[wellington]

Sand should not be used as it can cause eye and impaction problems
You can use fine grade orchid or fir bark.
How many do you have? Tortoises should not be housed in pairs.
Single or groups are fine. As adults only one male for a group of females.

 

[lillyhurt]

i only have one but don’t know the gender yet hence using “they” lol. and okay i’ll get rid of sand, so many places have said sand is good for burrowing but i should’ve known better than that. do you think replacing coco coir with the orchid bark would be good or using a mix of things? thank you so much for your help!

Sand should not be used as it can cause eye and impaction problems
You can use fine grade orchid or fir bark.
How many do you have? Tortoises should not be housed in pairs.
Single or groups are fine. As adults only one male for a group of females.

 

[wellington]

I like coconut coir, however, my leopard did not really dig in so wasn't a big mess for me.
Seeing yours does dig in, even bark over the coir, you will still have the mess.
I think if you could find fine grade orchid or fir bark, it would work good for you.
Some people will use sand and recommend it. Because there is a risk with it, most of us don't recommend it because we wouldn't make our tortoises take that risk.

 

[lillyhurt]

I like coconut coir, however, my leopard did not really dig in so wasn't a big mess for me.
Seeing yours does dig in, even bark over the coir, you will still have the mess.
I think if you could find fine grade orchid or fir bark, it would work good for you.
Some people will use sand and recommend it. Because there is a risk with it, most of us don't recommend it because we wouldn't make our tortoises take that risk.

now i get it thank you so so so much for your help!!! i feel so awful for putting my torty through that i wish i knew better you’re a life saver!!

 

[wellington]

now i get it thank you so so so much for your help!!! i feel so awful for putting my torty through that i wish i knew better you’re a life saver!!

You are not alone. Many of us wish we knew better before some of the things we did or didn't do.

 

[lillyhurt]

You are not alone. Many of us wish we knew better before some of the things we did or didn't do.

so should i use only orchid bark or mix it with something? also, will it bring bugs into the enclosure because i have heard of that happening but not sure if its from orchid bark or something else. thank you!

 

[wellington]

You can use just the bark or if you want, you can try it over plain coconut coir. I think you will be happier with just the bark
Bake the bark at 250 for around 3 hours. This will kill any eggs and help keep bugs away for around a year or so if you spot clean daily.