New Hermans Tortoise

[AZHermans]

Hello everyone. Noob here and I already posted an intro in that area. I am from Arizona and just got a new baby Hermans today. He is our new family friend. I have been all around looking for a Hermans and I finally found one. Couple questions though that don't seem to add up right for me. We bought a terrarium kit and everything through the pet store> I'm sure there was probably a better way to do this but oh well. This brings me to some questions. For the bedding, they gave us rabbit pellets! This cant be right? I would think he would rather be in some sort of soil mixture or bark or something?? Right? Also we have a basking rock, a hideout and is all inside a 20 gallon wide. There are 2 lamps, one for heat over the basking rock and another that is UV. How long should each lamp be on for?

Noob with Hermans so if anyone has advice, it would be much appreciated. Also I live in AZ in the dessert. So some vegetation might be hard for me to come by such as the wild flowers, dandelions and such... anyone else from a dessert that can share tips?

Anyways Thank you much! I like having a support group rather than a pet store, as I know they don't all know what they are talking about.

 

[wellington]

What I can tell you is first forget what the pet store told you. Pay attention to the advice from this forum. I don't know your species, but I will give you what I know that pertains to all torts husbandry. If the rock you got is an electric heat rock, return it and don't use it. They have burned too many animals. The rabbit pellets, return that also. Get cypress mulch, coconut coir or even plain dirt, not sand.Pellets is the worst substrate. If they sold you a coil UVB bulb, return that also, can damage eyes. Get a Che(ceramic heat emitter) for night time heat. They like it dark at night like in the wild. A MVB(mercury vapor bulb) is my fave for uvb, gives heat and the most uvb then any other bulb. You can also use the tube flourescent for uvb if you prefer. Get your tort outside in the warm weather as much as possible. However at least an hour 3 times a week will do also. Lights should be on inside for 12-14 hours. I have mine on for 12 hours when he isn't outside, which now, he is outside everyday for about 7 hours. Anything else I will leave for the Hermanns owners

 

[Eweezyfosheezy]

You need to get her off the rabbit pellets asap and change it to cypress mulch, sphagnum peat moss, coco coir, or orchid bark. Do you know the exact type of lights you are using? The lights should be on for 12- 14 hours. You can buy seeds from carolina pet supply that are for tortoises including your hermanns.

 

[AZHermans]

Thank you very much for the welcome and the two replies already. Yeah I figured the rabbit pellets were crap. I'll go look for your recommendations tomorrow morning for the substrate. As far as the bulbs go the UV light is Repti Glo 10.0 UVB 13W. It is in a coil, looks like a CFL bulb. This is also what they were using in the store I noticed too. The Heat bulb is a 50W Intense Basking Spot. The basking rock isn't an electric one. Its just some flat rock.

As far as getting him outside, I did ask the pet store guy about that as it was a concern of mine. I live in Arizona where daily it has been around 110-115 outside. Even the mornings are already 90. He said the sunlight is great for him BUT in the summer season it is brutal. That if I do take him outside, it should only be in the morning time early and try to keep him out of the direct sun light so he wont bake too much. Thoughts? It does get hotter than hell out here! Our night time lows are around 83 degrees. As far as inside, I keep the air around 78-80 daily/nightly.

I knew that my first step was to log onto a place like this and get REAL advice. Thanks again for the help!

 

[Tom]

...and what size is your tortoise? A 20 gal is okay for a hatchling, but if your tortoise is bigger than 2 or 3 inches, it's way too small. You can probably return that too. You can get a 50 gallon plastic storage bin from any hardware store for around $15. If hes bigger than that, you will need to build him something. Tortoises need lots of room to move. While you are there, you can get a giant bag of orchid bark for about 5 bucks instead of a tiny bag for $20 at the pet store. You should also pick up a couple of terra cotta plant saucers one for food and one for water. They are cheap and just get the size that's right for your tortoise. I like to buy a couple extras to have sitting around in case I ever drop one.

Good luck to you, and feel free to post some pics.

Oh yeah, did they tell you to warm water soak your tortoise at the pet store? I like to soak babies every day. If yours is around 3" or bigger, I would soak every other day for a couple of weeks until he gets settled in a bit and then cut it to twice a week as long as you see him drinking on his own. And don't forget to build him a big outdoor enclosure too.

 

[AZHermans]

...and what size is your tortoise? A 20 gal is okay for a hatchling, but if your tortoise is bigger than 2 or 3 inches, it's way too small. You can probably return that too. You can get a 50 gallon plastic storage bin from any hardware store for around $15. If hes bigger than that, you will need to build him something. Tortoises need lots of room to move. While you are there, you can get a giant bag of orchid bark for about 5 bucks instead of a tiny bag for $20 at the pet store. You should also pick up a couple of terra cotta plant saucers one for food and one for water. They are cheap and just get the size that's right for your tortoise. I like to buy a couple extras to have sitting around in case I ever drop one.

Good luck to you, and feel free to post some pics.

Oh yeah, did they tell you to warm water soak your tortoise at the pet store? I like to soak babies every day. If yours is around 3" or bigger, I would soak every other day for a couple of weeks until he gets settled in a bit and then cut it to twice a week as long as you see him drinking on his own. And don't forget to build him a big outdoor enclosure too.

Thanks for the reply! Mine is still very small. He is maybe and inch and a half or so. Today is the first day and I water soaked him already this evening. I plan to do it everyday until he gets a bit bigger. He really seemed to enjoy it and so far, other than the rabbit pellets >=| he seems to be happy.

I know we aren't suppose to handle them much, but I let him out and let him walk around the place as much as I can. I keep a close eye on him and have no other pets so he seems pretty safe. But I figure he can at least feel free to roam around and explore a bit. I just make sure there is nothing around that he can get to that could harm him. So far like I said he seems really happy! Maybe just joyed to be with a loving owner and outta the pet store! lol.

Right now he has that enclosure because due to many in the US now, we had to down size and are in an apartment now. Until we can get back where we were financially. But I do plan to give him a nice outdoor area when we have a home. I will need to read up on that because its so hot out here. I want to make sure he would have a area to seek refuge from the heat!.

I did find it funny though. He was pretty active all day checking out his new home and walked all around the new enclosure (which I thought was good he got to know his new surroundings). But as soon as it was "lights out" it was like he knew right away. He crawled to his hide and seemed like he went to sleep right away (never moved a bit). I just thought it was funny.

Also... I do have a 5yo. He is currently away on vacation with grandma and grandpa. This is his first per that I am teaching him how to take care of. Other than the expected wash hands and handle gently, any other tips? My son seems to be a good apple (so far ) and the turtle isn't kept in his room. So I don't need to worry about him getting to the tortoise if we aren't around to watch him around him. Just thought I would throw that out there as well.

Thank you all for the advice. I will get some pics up soon and look forward to sharing our experiences with you all!

 

[TortieLuver]

I wouldn't use that bulb. One of my favorites is the powersun. Also I live in Arizona and all of my tortoises stay outside 24/7. With the right outdoor environment/setup of sun, shade, trees, hiding areas, natural grasses and weeds along with a house they truly thrive best outside even in the hot summer AS long as you have the correct setup

 

[AZHermans]

I wouldn't use that bulb. One of my favorites is the powersun. Also I live in Arizona and all of my tortoises stay outside 24/7. With the right outdoor environment/setup of sun, shade, trees, hiding areas, natural grasses and weeds along with a house they truly thrive best outside even in the hot summer AS long as you have the correct setup

Thanks Christy! I assume you mean the UVB? I'm going to go get a new bulb first thing tomorrow along with the new substrate. Its good to hear you can keep them outside. When I brought it up to the guy earlier he was like "I wouldn't take him out in the heat at all, maybe early morning." He said he would FRY. But good to know we can let him roam around outside. I know that is best for him! You may have already posted, and I'll search for them, but I'd love to see pictures of your outdoor setup.

 

[Talka]

But I figure he can at least feel free to roam around and explore a bit. I just make sure there is nothing around that he can get to that could harm him.

Negative. If you do want to let him roam (not recommended for a hatchling, for sure) make sure the area he's roaming in has been thoroughly mopped and swept, or vacuumed. Not a hair or particle in sight. He might get curious and eat something dangerous, and at his size you might not be able to see what it is that he ate.

 

[AZHermans]

But I figure he can at least feel free to roam around and explore a bit. I just make sure there is nothing around that he can get to that could harm him.

Negative. If you do want to let him roam (not recommended for a hatchling, for sure) make sure the area he's roaming in has been thoroughly mopped and swept, or vacuumed. Not a hair or particle in sight. He might get curious and eat something dangerous, and at his size you might not be able to see what it is that he ate.

Good to know! Thank you!

 

[AZHermans]

So one more question. Right now I have the UVB bulb and the Basking Spot light. I was reading that the powersun UVB bulbs emit the UVA UVB and Heat. Could I get away with only using this bulb?

 

[Eweezyfosheezy]

So one more question. Right now I have the UVB bulb and the Basking Spot light. I was reading that the powersun UVB bulbs emit the UVA UVB and Heat. Could I get away with only using this bulb?

Yes you can they work really well.