New marginated and sulcata owner :)

[Jen H.]

HI! I recently received a marginated and a sulcata....both only a few weeks old. I've got them both in a tank right now. I'm going to jump straight in with a question.....Tomorrows project is will hopefully leave me with a outdoor raised planter type of enclosure for them,, Any suggestions on wood, sealant, liner and substrate I should use?? Also, I would like to grow some great food for them... I read something about tortoise seeds?
Thanks, Jen

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Hello Jen welcome to the TFO from AZ . Here we don't like to to see torts of different types in the same enclosure . It's not good for the torts . And Sulcata s don't play well with other torts . So when do we get to see the Picts of your torts and their enclosures . Have a great tort day. !


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[ALDABRAMAN]

Welcome to TFO!

 

[kanalomele]

Welcome to TFO. You will definitely have some obstacles to overcome with your current plan. The sulcata will very very quickly outgrow the Maginated and the enclosure. I would suggest starting them off in separate enclosures that can grow at their individual pace. As for seeds, there are several companies that blend seeds for specific species to use. Carolinapetsupply.com is one of them as is tortoisesupply.com and several UK based sites. I would suppest a quick google search would turn up even more.

 

[Jen H.]

I know that they cannot be raised/kept together, I do have them together right now which is why I'm jumping straight into building. Will a raised 2x4' enclosure for each one be ok for a while??? and substrate???.....there are sooooooooo many mixed answers on the internet on which to use.

 

[bouaboua]

Hello and Welcome. I like both species and own both species. Good to have you here.

 

[yillt]

Welcome to the TFO. I love marginateds and think you made the right choice of tort. My second favourites are Aldabra and sulcata so another great choice. I do think you should separate them as the marginateds grow very large but not nearly as large as the sulcatas.

 

[Blakem]

Tyler Stewart has a great selection of mixed seeds, as well as individual. I recently bought clover, African grazer grass mix, and Italian dandelion.


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Here's some great plant identification websites I use.

http://www.tlady.clara.net/TortGuide/diet.htm#plantlist

http://africantortoise.com/edible_landscaping.htm

http://m.thetortoisetable.org.uk/m/plants_19.asp

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Jen, and welcome to the Forum!

The marginated can stay in that size habitat for quite a while, however the sulcata will outgrow it very quickly.

Whatever weeds grow in your area would be good to have in the habitat...fillaree, puncture vine, prickly lettuce, etc. Then you can also buy the seeds that are sold especially for tortoises, like from carolinapetsupply.com or tortoisesupply.com. You can also visit any feed store and buy pasture seed mix.

 

[Jen H.]

Thank you Yvonne! What do you recommend I fill them with? I was told a mixture of organic potting soil, moss and Cyprus mulch bedding.....?

 

[pam]

Welcome

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Yvonne G.
Oh boy where do I get "Prickly Lettuce" ? Sorry Yvonne I couldn't resist !


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[lismar79]

For outside I use organic top soil or just plane dirt from the yard.I have a little area for cypres mulch but not much since I want more weeds for feeding. I bought this seed mix & it grows reallllllly fast.
http://www.tortoisesupply.com/TestudoMix
For inside I use coco coir & fir bark. Hope that helps.

 

[tortadise]

Welcome

 

[Tom]

Hello and welcome.

2x4 is too small for outdoors. Go Big! At least 4x8'. Tanks are fine indoors as long as they are big enough. Tortoises should not be housed in pairs and species should not ever be mixed. You are running a big risk there.

Here is how I like to house and feed sulcata babies:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

And here are a couple more threads that might help you:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/pairs.34837/