New baby Russian tortoise help~

Stephrachlau91

New Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2019
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Missouri
Hey guys! I’m new to raising my own tortoises. I’ve help friends in the past with their own but now that I have my own hatchling I am worried I am doing something wrong.
Can anyone give me tips on how to care for a Russian tortoise baby? I constantly read things that contradict what I’ve read previously and it’s making me worry I’m not caring for this little one enough.

thanks!

0D5AEE3B-9912-405A-B341-2C085753B087.jpeg
 

KarenSoCal

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Low desert 50 mi SE of Palm Springs CA
Hi! And welcome to TFO!

Congrats...you have landed on the absolute best site to learn about your new baby.

First off, everything you have heard from petstores, reading FaceBook, or even most vets...forget it all! Petstore employees don't always (read that, RARELY) have much knowledge about the critters they sell, and they want money. They want you to buy their products despite that the products are overpriced and do a poor or even dangerous job.

FB pages on torts seem, to me, to be new keepers trying to educate even newer keepers, and much of their "advice" is just plain wrong.

Vets (non-exotics ones) don't know much about torts either. They mean well, but there are no semesters on tortoises. If they study anything on them, they are learning from old outdated textbooks that are just not up to speed in recent discoveries.

So here on TFO, we have real people who have been keeping all kinds of tortoises for decades, studying diets, living conditions, medications, normal and unusual behaviors, breeding, eggs, hatchlings, and housing. They have done their own experiments, have reliable data, and they don't get a penny for their time helping all of us with every type of concern.

So if you're convinced, stay with us and ask your questions. If you want other opinions, ask on FB or whatever, but please come here and run it by us before changing or buying anything.

My first suggestion is to look at the pinned threads at the top of each subforum. Here are some caresheets on Russians, and many members have Russians of every age stage. Read these, then come back with questions.

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/


https://tortoiseforum.org/forums/tortoise-enclosures.7/
 

Stephrachlau91

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Joined
Oct 20, 2019
Messages
10
Location (City and/or State)
Missouri
Thank you! Those helped me but I just wanted more input on if I should keep high humidity or not. I’ve read/heard multiple things with the babies so I’m super scared of doing the wrong thing for him.
 

Yvonne G

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Thank you! Those helped me but I just wanted more input on if I should keep high humidity or not. I’ve read/heard multiple things with the babies so I’m super scared of doing the wrong thing for him.
Mediterranean tortoises (Russian) don't need the high humidity we talk about here on the Forum. That's mainly for leopards, sulcatas, etc. You can get by with a humid hide for your baby Russian.
 

Stephrachlau91

New Member
Joined
Oct 20, 2019
Messages
10
Location (City and/or State)
Missouri
Mediterranean tortoises (Russian) don't need the high humidity we talk about here on the Forum. That's mainly for leopards, sulcatas, etc. You can get by with a humid hide for your baby Russian.
AH! Okay. So I don’t need to worry about keeping his tank wet or anything? It seems like his light dries everything out so I mist it every time that I take him out to soak.
 

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