ybaker
New Member
We got a Sulcata about a month ago. Kind of a random pet that my husband chose, but I absolutely LOVE Herman!!!! Even though he just stares at us, I can just see all the personality in him and can't wait til it all comes out. There are so many questions, that I don't even know where to start. First, some stats on Herman. My husband found the seller/breeder online. I didn't go with him to pick up Herman, so didn't ask the seller any questions - and likely wouldn't have known what questions to ask. I didn't know my husband was even thinking about a tortoise until the day he picked him up. The guy had several others available. He said they were about "2-4 years old". So - 1) we don't know how old Herman is. The seller said about 2, so we are going with that. He's about 3.5 pounds and probably about, eh, 9 inches long - maybe about the length of my foot. We weigh him weekly, but always forget to grab the tape measure. I don't know anything about how Herman was born or raised. From reading way too much online, he seems to have "some" pyramiding, but it doesn't look bad. Also, from reading way too much online, I have decided this forum will be my primary source of information for anything to do with Herman. Everything else is just so confusing - do this, no don't do that; feed them this, no don't feed them that, etc. This site has seemed fairly consistent in information - a gentleman named "Tom" is amazing!!! Anyway, I've always owned dogs and cats - I know what to feed them, I know what their needs are, etc. Tortoises - not so much. Oh, by the way, we live in Houston, TX - no problem with humidity and only about 3 months of weather below 50.
Like I said - so many questions.......I think I'll start with where he lives and normal behavior. We keep him in our backyard and let him roam around to explore. He has found a couple of favorite spots - in a corner on our patio and under a fire pit that we don't use. We are going to get him some sort of house - likely one of those igloo looking dog houses. My question - is that all he needs? Or, does he need some kind of enclosure? Or, is it up to me, and he can just roam and have a house? We started building an enclosure (pic below), but stopped, because I didn't know what to do next or if he even needed it. Food - we are sticking with the grass in the backyard for now until we learn more - with some cactus and romaine every so often.
Behavior - the first couple of days, he seemed to be very curious - walking around, checking the place out. Stopping every so often for some grass to eat. But, now, he just stays in his hiding spot. Most of the time, we have to get him out, put him in the yard before he starts walking around. He'll walk, find a good dining room and start eating. Then walk some more. Then, make it back to his hiding spot. He's skittish - sucks his head back in when we sit next to him - although, he does seem to be warming up to me - or maybe that's just my imagination. He poops somewhat normally/consistently - daily and it looks like dark lettuce wraps - normal, as far as I can tell. He pooped in his hiding spot the other day - is that normal? Again, I'm used to dogs, who typically don't poop where they sleep. He doesn't really seem sluggish - he can really move on the patio. And, put a bit of cactus in front of him - get out of the way. We try to just leave him alone - let him get used to the new place and us on his own. I know each tortoise is different and will have a different personality and a different "normal", but is the "hiding" normal? Is it just because he's in a new place?
So, those are my first 2 questions. I definitely have more, but I'll break those up into separate posts. Thanks so much for your help and for this site!!! It is a godsend!!
Like I said - so many questions.......I think I'll start with where he lives and normal behavior. We keep him in our backyard and let him roam around to explore. He has found a couple of favorite spots - in a corner on our patio and under a fire pit that we don't use. We are going to get him some sort of house - likely one of those igloo looking dog houses. My question - is that all he needs? Or, does he need some kind of enclosure? Or, is it up to me, and he can just roam and have a house? We started building an enclosure (pic below), but stopped, because I didn't know what to do next or if he even needed it. Food - we are sticking with the grass in the backyard for now until we learn more - with some cactus and romaine every so often.
Behavior - the first couple of days, he seemed to be very curious - walking around, checking the place out. Stopping every so often for some grass to eat. But, now, he just stays in his hiding spot. Most of the time, we have to get him out, put him in the yard before he starts walking around. He'll walk, find a good dining room and start eating. Then walk some more. Then, make it back to his hiding spot. He's skittish - sucks his head back in when we sit next to him - although, he does seem to be warming up to me - or maybe that's just my imagination. He poops somewhat normally/consistently - daily and it looks like dark lettuce wraps - normal, as far as I can tell. He pooped in his hiding spot the other day - is that normal? Again, I'm used to dogs, who typically don't poop where they sleep. He doesn't really seem sluggish - he can really move on the patio. And, put a bit of cactus in front of him - get out of the way. We try to just leave him alone - let him get used to the new place and us on his own. I know each tortoise is different and will have a different personality and a different "normal", but is the "hiding" normal? Is it just because he's in a new place?
So, those are my first 2 questions. I definitely have more, but I'll break those up into separate posts. Thanks so much for your help and for this site!!! It is a godsend!!