New owner questions!

[moonlight]

I recently purchased a hatchling sulcata (1 1/2" long) and I need some help with diet etc. Just figured I'd add that yes I am aware that they live for an extremely long time and grow to be 100+ pounds.

The guy I bought him (I just decided it was a male, I really have no idea) said to feed him rabit pellets (which would also serve as substrate) and greens daily (like a salad mix). He said to sprinkle calcium on a couple times a week. He also said they didn't need a water dish, just spray water on their fresh veggies. However after I did further research this doesn't seem to be the case. I bought my little guy at an animal expo and the guy helped me pick out a light etc. However he had me get a UVA lamp, I believe it's UVB I need?

Anyways any information on proper diet would be helpful. I put some Oxbow timothy hay in his cage, but he doesn't seem to be eating it. I went out and bought some collard greens and watercress.

What bedding is reccomended for the cage?

Any other information would be great.

 

[SIXTY_TOO]

Hi and welcome.
I have a hatchling too, and I thought that rabbit pallets were not a good idea, because they can get moldy and cause problems with their respiratory. When I got Grand Pappy, they also told me rabbit pallets and romaine lettace, but after researching I found that grasses and weeds, with some hibiscus (sp?) flowers and leaves, also mulberry leaves would be ideal. I don't think market greens is the way to go, unless it is in very small quantities (like a treat) no fruit. Plenty of sunshine is a must. Also you will need to soak him in warm water 2-3 a week. Hope this helps. This is a great site to learn what is needed to raise your little fella. ( I'm still learning too )

 

[moonlight]

Hi I don't know where exactly I'm going to get untreated live grass/weeds, however I can get hay. What is hibiscus? I don't know where I'm going to get mulberry leaves either. As far as sunshine goes, it's fall now and here we don't get much but rain, so that's why I need to figure out what bulb is best. I just soaked him yesterday he looked very cute .

 

[JustAnja]

Hi I don't know where exactly I'm going to get untreated live grass/weeds, however I can get hay. What is hibiscus? I don't know where I'm going to get mulberry leaves either. As far as sunshine goes, it's fall now and here we don't get much but rain, so that's why I need to figure out what bulb is best. I just soaked him yesterday he looked very cute .

Check out www.reptileeats.com (all organic) and www.reptigreens.com. (all organic) They ship out appropriate weeds/grasses/greens etc in packages. You will want to check out the grassland mix at reptileeats.com for a Sulcata. They make a small package for babies you can order. Hibiscus is a flower, and the torts love the leaves and flowers off of it. You can check into ordering a fruitless mulberry tree online, that way you dont have the messy fruit falling everywhere and just have the leaves for your tort to enjoy.

Do you have a calcium supplement powder to add to the foods? If not you will need to pick some up and sprinkle the food 2-3 times per week.

Oh and yes you will need to pick up a UVB bulb. You can get one at any petstore or order it online. A 10.0 UVB will last you a while, and needs to be less than 12 inches above the tortoise.


The hay you can grind up in a blender or coffee grinder and mix in with his other foods to ensure he is getting plenty of fiber. Stay away from fruits, Sulcatas dont digest them very well. An occasional treat of a small piece of strawberry is ok, just not very often.


You need to make sure he has a balanced high fiver, low protein diet.

 

[moonlight]

Thanks for the information, I will get a UVB bulb later today. I have a question about the food websites. Is it fresh food? If so how long does it last?

I will pick up some calcium supplement along with the UVB later today.

Thanks!

 

[moonlight]

Also what brand of calcium is best? When I had my sugar glider I bought repti-cal (I believe it was called) is this an acceptable supplement?

 

[Crazy1]

Welcome moonlight. Here are a couple of sites that may be of interest.
http://www.africantortoise.com/
http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/rept.../home.earthlink.net/~rednine/sulcatacare.html
http://www.tortoisetrust.org/care/csulcata.html

 

[JustAnja]

Reptical is fine. The foods are fresh picked and packed. Mine last about 2 weeks in the fridge in a tupperware container with a damp paper towel in with them. They are shipped overnight or 2 day at most.

 

[moonlight]

Is cypress mulch a bad bedding? I picked some up from the store, I read somewhere that it was ok for sulcatas.

 

[celticvampyre]

Is cypress mulch a bad bedding? I picked some up from the store, I read somewhere that it was ok for sulcatas.

I had a question on bedding too. I can get hay and aspen easily but I don't know if it's ok for him to be on either of those. He has been on rabbit pellets for these past four years.

 

[JustAnja]

An ideal substrate would be a 50/50 mix of play sand and coco husk bedding. You could do 50/50 with play sand and cypress mulch as well. I really dont suggest using hay as a bedding because they are supposed to be eating hay and I dont like mixing bedding hay and eating hay since they could eat hay with poop on it.

 

[moonlight]

What kind of play sand? Is that the actual brand name?

 

[JustAnja]

What kind of play sand? Is that the actual brand name?

You can pick it up at any Home Depot, Lowes, etc etc. Any place like that. Just ask for play sand and they will know what your talking about. Its supposed to be the cleanest sand you can buy since its normally used in kids sand boxes and play areas.

 

[reptileeats]

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[TortGirl]

An ideal substrate would be a 50/50 mix of play sand and coco husk bedding. You could do 50/50 with play sand and cypress mulch as well. I really dont suggest using hay as a bedding because they are supposed to be eating hay and I dont like mixing bedding hay and eating hay since they could eat hay with poop on it.

Coco husk as in Bed a Beast? Would 50/50 mix of play sand and organic soil work just as well?

Agnieszka

 

[Crazy1]

An ideal substrate would be a 50/50 mix of play sand and coco husk bedding. You could do 50/50 with play sand and cypress mulch as well. I really dont suggest using hay as a bedding because they are supposed to be eating hay and I dont like mixing bedding hay and eating hay since they could eat hay with poop on it.

Coco husk as in Bed a Beast? Would 50/50 mix of play sand and organic soil work just as well?

Agnieszka

Yes as in bed a beast- and 50/50 mix of play sand and organic soil would be fine.

 

[janiedough]

I am a new owner so I will tack this on. I have read numerous websites and threads, but I still have diet questions.

Percival, my Sulcata, is only 7" long and he is in aspen bedding which he sometimes eats. I think he was eating it at first because I refused to give him fruit - I think he was spoiled on it by his previous owner and was not going to eat the turnip greens I put in his dish.

I take him out for an hour or two everyday to eat grass and clover and get some sunshine. He also roams around like crazy. I feed him about one leaf of turnip greens a day which is all he will eat - if I put more he lets it dry up and doesn't touch it. I also have a hibiscus plant - how many leaves and flowers should I be feeding him of that?

I guess I am just trying to make sure his diet is balanced. I haven't bought a cactus yet, but are those just supposed to be treats or what?

Between the mix of grass, clovers, aspen bedding, turnip greens and hibiscus about how much of these should he be eating a day? He is a stubborn booger, and I have a feeling he is holding out for fruit, but I am determined to get him on a good diet.

Also - do I need soak him - I know it is recommended for hatchings, but he is older than that right? I have a saucer big enough and easily accessible to him full of water which I put him in a few times a week, but he gives me an ugly looks and gets out of it almost immediately. I have never seen him drink...so should I soak him?

 

[janiedough]

oh and I took him for a "walk" today - I brought him to the park to go graze

he ate bark off of some oak trees - is that ok?

 

[drgnfly2265]

I was the same way when I first got Bowser ( my sulcata ). For the floor of his pen I got this green liner that is like a felt material. I'm not sure what it is made out of but I got it from a pet store. When it gets dirty all I have to do is take it out and wash it with the water hose then let it dry. I love to use it because it's reusable, saving me money, and Bowser doesn't try to eat it. That's it. It's the best thing that I found so far.
When he is in the house I feed him all the hay and alfalfa he wants. I just make sure that there is a constant pile in there. And then he gets his handful of romaine lettuce that has carrots in it once a day. When he goes outside he eats grass, weeds, and flowers. He loves it sooo... much outside.

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1 Sulcata (Bowser)

www.myspace.com/bowsertortoise