Need help with my Mr.man

[800573d2]

So my wife and I purchased a baby sulcata from our local pet store and he seems to be a happy healthy little guy!! We both fell in love with him but we are running into many conflicting opinions about the care of our new friend. I'm hoping that I can get some suggestions and input every bit is greatly appreciated!

1.Substrate I have read that cypress mulch is great but where I live it's expensive to get and some sort of coconut fiber but my wife is very allergic to coconut so we can't use that. The only other option that I have found is topsoil which we don't have a problem using it just have a few questions about it our local garden store sells some but it's got some sort of forest mix and manure (the brand is
Whitney Farms Top Soil) and its not sterile? I don't know if any of that makes a difference and We were told to use a 50:50 mix of soil and sterile sand (builders sand) but was told that it can hurt Squirts shell?

Humidity we were told dry 0-20% but I've been reading a ton and it sounds like for hatchlings require around 80% we soak him every other day without fail but I don't want him to dehydrate.
Sorry for writing a book but we love our guy and want the absolute best!! Just FYI we live in ocean park Washington I know location can make a difference! Thank you all!

 

[Yvonne G]

Read the threads shown at the top of this page under "important threads":

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/forum-88.html

 

[800573d2]

I read those and my humidity question is answered but I don't understand what plain additive free soil is?
Thank you for the help!

 

[Zamric]

I read those and my humidity question is answered but I don't understand what plain additive free soil is?
Thank you for the help!

I use standard yard dirt in my enclosure. You just want to avoid any soils that have fertilizers and other additives (like those that help prevent grubs and other insects) Torts are sencitive to fertilizers and insectisides

 

[sibi]

I don't understand. Is your wife allergic to coconut fibers to the touch? If not, than using coco noir as a substrate along with organic soil would be the best solution. If she can't even touch coco noir without breaking out with some irritation, then using organic soil may be your only solution. Did you check to see the price of cypress mulch on the internet? As Tom's threads suggest, humidity is extremely important for baby sulcatas. They need about 80% in their enclosure, and warm soaks at least once a day...you can even do it twice a day; it won't hurt them. They actually love warm soaks.

So my wife and I purchased a baby sulcata from our local pet store and he seems to be a happy healthy little guy!! We both fell in love with him but we are running into many conflicting opinions about the care of our new friend. I'm hoping that I can get some suggestions and input every bit is greatly appreciated!

1.Substrate I have read that cypress mulch is great but where I live it's expensive to get and some sort of coconut fiber but my wife is very allergic to coconut so we can't use that. The only other option that I have found is topsoil which we don't have a problem using it just have a few questions about it our local garden store sells some but it's got some sort of forest mix and manure (the brand is
Whitney Farms Top Soil) and its not sterile? I don't know if any of that makes a difference and We were told to use a 50:50 mix of soil and sterile sand (builders sand) but was told that it can hurt Squirts shell?

Humidity we were told dry 0-20% but I've been reading a ton and it sounds like for hatchlings require around 80% we soak him every other day without fail but I don't want him to dehydrate.
Sorry for writing a book but we love our guy and want the absolute best!! Just FYI we live in ocean park Washington I know location can make a difference! Thank you all!

 

[Dizisdalife]

I wouldn't use any sand. If they ingest it (and they do ingest some substrate) it could cause digestive problems. They rub their eyes with they forearms, so if they have sand on them it can irritate, maybe scratch, the eyes. That being said, I have read where several members have used a mix of topsoil and sand without incident. I used coir and was real happy with it. Cypress mulch is good too and if you can't use coir then I recommend that you spend a few extra dollars and get it. It's not like you are going to need to change it out very often. The thing that we like about mulch or coir is that they hold mosture while giving the tort a dryer surface to romp around on. They also resist molds. I never had any mold issues and I kept my substrate swampy. If you are going to use a fogger or humidifier to maintain the humidity in your enclosure moisture retention may not be an issue. If you choose to use soil from the yard you probably should sterilize it with heat or cold. Then, after a month or two take a fecal sample to a Vet for examination. My tortoise was kept on yard dirt by the previous owner and came to me with pinworms.

One of the threads that I really liked and was not mentioned in the Important Threads above is on "closed chambers". I believe that some form of a close chamber is the best environment for baby sulcata.

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-32333.html

 

[MaggieofNarnia]

Not sure if it was mentioned above but I use organic peat moss in my enclosure and it works great. The only issue is is that I break out quite often when I touch it. If she is allergic to coconut, she may be allergic to peat moss as well. Peat moss is a type of absorbent moss. It was a relatively cheap option for me and ended up working great while keeping the humidity up and everything!

 

[L82lalaland]

We live in the San Diego area and have found the same issue with Cypress Mulch being hugely expensive. But I ran across it at PetSmart it was only 5$ a bag as apposed to 20$ at the other pet stores for the same size. I found that after wasting a whole lot of money trying to create a great environment for my little guys that never worked for me the 5$ was a bargin. You really don't need that much when they are little I bought two bags and still have one left but, I mixed it half and half with the coco coir. Hope this helps and congrats on the new member of your family, they really are great.

 

[CtTortoiseMom]

Cypress is pretty expensive everywhere especially if you need larger quantities of it. I order mine off of Amazon, it is pretty reasonable there.

In regards to not wanting your tortoise to be dehydrated just make sure it has access to water that it can drink freely from in his enclosure.

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Oops, where are my manners?! Hello and welcome!

 

[AZtortMom]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[800573d2]

Thank you all for the input and suggestions!! We ended up using an organic mulch with no additives like fertilizer ect. We set our little friends table this afternoon and are having a blast with it! Can't wait to spend many more years with Squirt!