i have a baby sulcata tortoise. I received him in October at a exotic pet show. I’ve done some research on this forum to get the environment correct but I feel like I don’t know what I’m doing still. My substrate is coco coir. I have a 10.0 uvb bulb which is 18 inches long. I have a 150 watt bulb for the basking side and since it’s been so cold this winter here in Illinois I’ve been recently using a small heating pad on the opposite side and a 100 heat emmiter. Which at night the heating pad and heat emmiter stay on and the basking light goes off. The diet right now is endive, spring mix , dandelion and sometimes red chard. I’m working on getting him to eat grass but he’s so picky. He gets soaked every other day in warm water. He’s very active and is always hungry. I put calcium powder on his food a few times a week. And last but not least I have a cool mist humidifier that I have a tube going into the tank with which keeps the humidity level at about 80%. I’m at the vet right now because my baby sulcata recently starting swelling in his neck and back legs. They wanna take blood to see if it’s an infection but there saying his shell is really soft and want to give him a calcium and vitamin A injection. The vet also told me that he should have a 15%-20% humidy level in his cage because he is a desert tortoise. But it says everywhere to keep the humidity high?? I’m so confused. And I am at a reptile vet right now that has very good ratings. The only other reptile vet around me has horrible ratings.
Need help with baby sulcata
- Thread starter PaigeQ
- Start date
Ok so they gave him the calcium and vitamin A shots a sub q fluid shot and took blood. Waiting on the blood results. They also gave me medicine to put in his nose cause they think he might have a upper respiratory infection but if the blood count comes back high they want to do a different antibiotic
I don't know enough to really offer educated input yet, but I'm sure someone will be along soon enough.
What are the temperatures in the enclosure? Ambient air temperature, and the basking area temperature?
Can you post pictures of your tortoise and your enclosure?
What are the temperatures in the enclosure? Ambient air temperature, and the basking area temperature?
Can you post pictures of your tortoise and your enclosure?
Michael Malone
Active Member
I have saw some post on this forum telling u to not let the vets give vitamin shots cause it isn't good for them
But you should really verify my info with a more experienced person on here. I am not a professional by any means maybe the following people could give u some better info.
@Tom
@Yvonne G
@wellington
I And there are more just don't remember there names or the tip of my head. Good luck with little guy
But you should really verify my info with a more experienced person on here. I am not a professional by any means maybe the following people could give u some better info.
@Tom
@Yvonne G
@wellington
I And there are more just don't remember there names or the tip of my head. Good luck with little guy
Hello, glad you found the forum because here you really get the right informations about your tortoise.
Sulcatas are no desert species and they need high humidity to stay healthy. Your humidity is right but how are your temps, especially at night ? With hight humidity your tort need night temps that never drop below 80 F or the tort baby will get a respiration infect.
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The temp on the basking side is about 100 and the opposite side is about 80 right now. I called another vet and they told me he doesn’t need high humidity?? I’m so confused. They said a sulcata tortoise is from the dryest part of Africa where is rarely rains.
Bambam1989
Well-Known Member
Hello,
I'm afraid that your vet is working with outdated info.
Without humidity, your torts shell can become pyramided. Let me see if I can explain our reasons, someone with a better understanding like @Tom may need to correct me some.
Even though sulcatas come from a hot area of Africa, it would be more accurate to call them grassland torts. Baby torts hatch at the beginning of the rainy season (think monsoon). The rainy season lasts for about 3-4 months, during this time of year the torts do most of their growing. Yes, the rest of the year is very hot and dry but the torts spend much more time deep in their burrows where there is still humidity in the soil.
As tort keepers we want to try and replicate the time of year when they thrive the most. This is why humidity is such a good thing, especially when your tort is young and growing rapidly.
I hope this helps.
zoey vagner
Member
I thought mine needed dry as well, luckily I always used the coconut fiber substrate, my boy has some pyramiding but very minimal, I think I can thank the substrate for that. I only learned a year ago about humidity being important luckily hes only almost 8!
Welcome take a read here, how to raise a healthy Sully
First para..
Indoor housing:
It must be noted that we now know sulcatas babies hatch during the start of the rainy season in Africa. It is hot, humid, rainy, and marshy in some areas. Yes the area is dry for 8-9 months out of the year, but it is a swamp during hatching season. During the dry season, sulcatas spend the vast majority of their time underground in warm, humid burrows. Keeping your hatchling in a dry, desert-like enclosure, is a big mistake and an invitation to disaster. It is also very un-natural for these animals. Imagine what would happen to an earthworm in a hot, dry enclosure with dry substrate. The same thing happens to the INSIDE of a baby tortoise. Your enclosure should be maintained such that an earthworm could live in it just as well as a hatchling tortoise. A damp substrate, a water bowl, and a humid hide should all be pre-requisites. Along with this, warm temps day and night are necessary. Sulcatas and leopards are NOT prone to shell rot at all, and they do not get respiratory infections in these damp conditions as long as temps are kept up. I shoot for no lower than 80 degrees day or night year round. Adults can tolerate colder temps in some circumstances, but this care sheet is for hatchlings and babies and is aimed at helping them thrive, not just survive.
First para..
Indoor housing:
It must be noted that we now know sulcatas babies hatch during the start of the rainy season in Africa. It is hot, humid, rainy, and marshy in some areas. Yes the area is dry for 8-9 months out of the year, but it is a swamp during hatching season. During the dry season, sulcatas spend the vast majority of their time underground in warm, humid burrows. Keeping your hatchling in a dry, desert-like enclosure, is a big mistake and an invitation to disaster. It is also very un-natural for these animals. Imagine what would happen to an earthworm in a hot, dry enclosure with dry substrate. The same thing happens to the INSIDE of a baby tortoise. Your enclosure should be maintained such that an earthworm could live in it just as well as a hatchling tortoise. A damp substrate, a water bowl, and a humid hide should all be pre-requisites. Along with this, warm temps day and night are necessary. Sulcatas and leopards are NOT prone to shell rot at all, and they do not get respiratory infections in these damp conditions as long as temps are kept up. I shoot for no lower than 80 degrees day or night year round. Adults can tolerate colder temps in some circumstances, but this care sheet is for hatchlings and babies and is aimed at helping them thrive, not just survive.
Another thing the vet said to me was that his shell seemed soft to her. He’s definitely under 6 months of age. He’s getting uvb and calcium powder on his food. Is it normal to have a softer shell at this age or should I be worried?
Bambam1989
Well-Known Member
This depends. Is it a spongey soft or more of a plastic Tupperware lid soft
Bambam1989
Well-Known Member
I would not become concerned about it unless it becomes softer. Baby torts shells are often pliable like what you describe.
This is incorrect information and it demonstrates that vets know very little about proper tortoise care. There is no semester on "Tortoise Care" in vet school. They are both reading the same old, out-dated, incorrect vet texts. We've all been caring for this species all wrong for decades. Only recently have we figured out the problem and learned more about how they are actually living in the wild.
A large percentage of the babies that hatch annually die because of the things these two vets are telling you. The ones that survive are horribly disfigured from being grown in the wrong conditions. Call back both vets and invite them to come here and learn. "Hatchling Failure Syndrome" and pyramiding are caused by the conditions these vets are recommending to you.
Here is the correct care info. I hope its not too late:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
zoey vagner
Member
at 6 months, yes. young tortoises tend to have a softer shel to allow for flexibility in the egg they hatched out of. as long as the softness doesnt feel spongey the babe should be fine :]
