- Joined
- Jul 15, 2008
- Messages
- 1
Okay so I wanted to get a new pet, and someone suggested to me a russian tortoise. I thought about it, did a little (definitely not enough) research and bought one. Now i'm lost.
I have done a lot of research and I keep coming up with different answers to my questions. So i want answers from people who know, and have a russian tortoise and can tell me exactly what i need to do.
The lady at petco told me to keep the humidity level at 70%, but then she said if its too high he ( I named him Donatello) will get shell rot. To me 70% is very moist, and very hard to maintain with the heat lamp, and most websites say between 40 and 65%... so which is it?
Another website told me romaine lettuce was really bad for tortoises and I should keep him on a strict diet of iceberg lettuce. This seemed really odd to me because iceberg lettuce has no nutritional value. So I've been feeding him a base of romaine lettuce, zucchini, green bell peppers, napoles, and carrots and every time I feed him I add something different like collards, hibiscus flowers and leaves, turnip greens, or mustard greens. Is this right? and how often am I supposed to feed my little guy? Right now I make him a fresh bowl of food before I go to work and before I go to bed. He typically only eats the food in the afternoon so do I stop feeding him at night?
I don't understand all the differences between the vitamins and lights either. I've been scraping cuttlebone into his food, and I'm using a light that puts out uva rays, but doesn't he need more vitamins and both uva and uvb rays?
I like to handle my tortoise, but one website told me not to, and another said I should handle him for at least 3 hours a day. How much should I really handle him?
I'm having a turtle table built for him, once I get some advice on how big and deep it should be. I have a spare bedroom where I intend on keeping the table, so I was thin king about the size of the top of a picnic table, and about 8 inches deep. Is this too much for one turtle?
I would greatly appreciate any advice and help anyone can give me. I've grown to love my little guy, and I want to be the best "mommy" I can be for him!
thank you!
I have done a lot of research and I keep coming up with different answers to my questions. So i want answers from people who know, and have a russian tortoise and can tell me exactly what i need to do.
The lady at petco told me to keep the humidity level at 70%, but then she said if its too high he ( I named him Donatello) will get shell rot. To me 70% is very moist, and very hard to maintain with the heat lamp, and most websites say between 40 and 65%... so which is it?
Another website told me romaine lettuce was really bad for tortoises and I should keep him on a strict diet of iceberg lettuce. This seemed really odd to me because iceberg lettuce has no nutritional value. So I've been feeding him a base of romaine lettuce, zucchini, green bell peppers, napoles, and carrots and every time I feed him I add something different like collards, hibiscus flowers and leaves, turnip greens, or mustard greens. Is this right? and how often am I supposed to feed my little guy? Right now I make him a fresh bowl of food before I go to work and before I go to bed. He typically only eats the food in the afternoon so do I stop feeding him at night?
I don't understand all the differences between the vitamins and lights either. I've been scraping cuttlebone into his food, and I'm using a light that puts out uva rays, but doesn't he need more vitamins and both uva and uvb rays?
I like to handle my tortoise, but one website told me not to, and another said I should handle him for at least 3 hours a day. How much should I really handle him?
I'm having a turtle table built for him, once I get some advice on how big and deep it should be. I have a spare bedroom where I intend on keeping the table, so I was thin king about the size of the top of a picnic table, and about 8 inches deep. Is this too much for one turtle?
I would greatly appreciate any advice and help anyone can give me. I've grown to love my little guy, and I want to be the best "mommy" I can be for him!
thank you!