new sulcata owner with questions

tsantos04

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Aug 2, 2014
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hello i am new to the forum and i have a few questions about my sulcata tortoise. his name is Rocky and he is about 7 years old, i have only had him for about 3 months. First, his shell seems to be chipping or peeling off. i dont know what to think of it. Should i be concerned or is this normal? also i i have an topless enclosure ( he likes to climb out of it) set up for him. i have the heat lamp and the coconut coir substrate is this all i need? and lastly i feed him a combo of Nature Zone tortoise bites, timothy hay, romaine lettuce, and i also try to let him graze for a few hours a day and i also give him calcium and multivitamin powders a few times a week. how often do they drink? and how often should i soak? any information would be greatly appreciated. thank you.
 

krh11b23

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Some drink more than others depending on your torts size depends on how often u should soak them
 

Dizisdalife

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Hi there, and welcome to the forum. It would help us all in answering your questions if we could see some pictures. It may take a while before you are able to post pictures so try searching for "chipped shell" or "peeling shell" to see if any post there are similar to the concern that you have . Many of the answers you seek are found in the sticky section at the beginning of the sulcata section. Lots of good information.
 

krh11b23

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I'm not sure but it could be burns from a heat lamp
 

krh11b23

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Also your tort looks big enough that it should be living outside and not in an indoor enclosure
 

tsantos04

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ok so it should be out all the time? what about at night. i live in kansas and it probably gets to around hiigh 60's- low 70's at night
 

krh11b23

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U can bring it in at night or build an outdoor heated night box or a heated dog house
 

Yvonne G

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Read the care sheets at the top of the Sulcata section. Yes, your tortoise is plenty big enough to live outside now. Naturally, for cold weather, you would have to provide either a heated, insulated shed, or bring him in and set him up indoors. But after living outside, the tortoise would be very unhappy indoors.

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tsantos04

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Aug 2, 2014
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thank u all for the info. i now keep rocky outside, and i turned my old doghouse into a tortoise house. he seems to be enjoying it out there. i do have a couple more questions for you guys though. i tend to see a few raccoons and possums in my yard from time to time is that something i should be worried about? also i read online they like to dig....do u tink he will dig his way out of the yard?
 

Reptilelove

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Welcome to the forum! Enjoy your sulcata i cant give much advice as i have hermanns but sulcatas are my fave species!
 

tsantos04

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It's getting worse. Can you guys give me an idea of what is goin in with my tortoises shell
 

Tom

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How are you heating the dog house?

Dog houses are generally not adequate because the door is much too open, and they are not insulated. That looks like the sort of desiccated carapace we typically see with someone using a dog house with a heat bulb.

They dig down to escape the heat. They don't dig up. He is not likely to dig "out" of the yard.
 

tsantos04

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Aug 2, 2014
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i decided to do away with the doghouse idea bucause i figured it was too small. it has been warm lately with lows aroud 70-75 so i just let him go where he wants in the back yard throughout the night. if it drops into the 60s or storms i bring him inside for the night.
 
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