New Sulcata owner...

[TSchadel]

Hello All! I've become - to my surprise - a caretaker to a year old Sulcata named Irwin.
My daughter's boyfriend had given Irwin as a birthday to her last year (they did not live with me). Now a year and break-up later - my daughter asked me to take care of this cute lil guy for 6 months while she goes to an internship out of state. What that translates to is that I am now the owner! I live in the middle of Kansas in a rural little community of about 4,000. I was given Irwin in a 10 gallon aquarium with heat/uv lamps. I have had him for approximately 3 weeks now. They were feeding him spinach greens, Mellon tortoise bites and tortoise food they purchased at pet store.
I did some research about this guy, purchased a book on his care. I have since made a tortoise table for inside and a tortoise "run" in my backyard so Irwin can have more room to roam. He is still very cautious and a lot shy. I'm hoping that he will eventually "come out of his shell" so to speak. I've since been feeding him dandelions, grape leaves and other greens that I read in the book I purchased. I've been giving him soaks 3X a week and he stays in the backyard in his run while I'm at work. I'm really excited about Irwin joining my family. He is approximately 2 1/2 - 3 inches now. Still a lil guy. I have 2 small lap dogs and 2 cats - all who after the initial courisoty - now pretty much ignore him!
I hope to use this forum to help me be the best caretaker I can for this sweet, shy lil tortoise.

 

[TSchadel]

Here is his table.

 

[Jodie]

Congrats! That is a similar story to how I got started with torts. You are definitely on the right track improving his diet. He is very small for his age. Check out the care guide in the Sulcata section. High humidity is important.
I would like to tell you a story about dogs though. My dog ignored my tort for several years. Until the day she didn't. She chewed poor Mort up pretty bad. I was lucky and she didn't crush or puncture the shell. I have seen so many stories with a less happy ending. Please always keep you tortoise safe from the dogs. They should never be alone together.
Welcome to the forum.

 

[wellington]

Hello and Welcome. Please read Tom a threads below in my post. In an open table he is not getting the humidity he needs to grow smooth. Be careful with the books out there, most have old outdate wrong info. As for your cats and dogs, make sure they can not get to the tort. Specially the dogs. As much as you think they are ignoring him, if they can get to him, they will and he will be used as their chew toy. We have seen it here too many times. If you take the risk, the tortoise pays, dearly.

 

[Tom]

Here is the right care info.
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
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

The info in these threads will help you attain your stated goal.

A few things:
1. He is small for his size. This is due to incorrect diet, hydration and conditions.
2. Outside all day is not good for small ones.
3. Soak daily on a small one like this.
4. It will be very difficult to maintain good conditions in an open table. The book is wrong. Sorry.
5. No hay in the substrate.
6. Your family dogs are your tortoises greatest enemy. Keep them separated and never leave them unsupervised, even for one second.

Hope we can help.

 

[TSchadel]

Congrats! That is a similar story to how I got started with torts. You are definitely on the right track improving his diet. He is very small for his age. Check out the care guide in the Sulcata section. High humidity is important.
I would like to tell you a story about dogs though. My dog ignored my tort for several years. Until the day she didn't. She chewed poor Mort up pretty bad. I was lucky and she didn't crush or puncture the shell. I have seen so many stories with a less happy ending. Please always keep you tortoise safe from the dogs. They should never be alone together.
Welcome to the forum.

Yes - I am a little concerned about his size too. I'm not sure if he got adequate care during his first year. Hopefully he will start to "catch up". I do keep him in a closed room - away from my other animals. I go in and sit and pet him - but he is almost always in one of the 2 huts I have in there for him.

 

[TSchadel]

Hello and Welcome. Please read Tom a threads below in my post. In an open table he is not getting the humidity he needs to grow smooth. Be careful with the books out there, most have old outdate wrong info. As for your cats and dogs, make sure they can not get to the tort. Specially the dogs. As much as you think they are ignoring him, if they can get to him, they will and he will be used as their chew toy. We have seen it here too many times. If you take the risk, the tortoise pays, dearly.

I have him in a room by himself - closed away from my other pets. I do have a humidity/thermometer gage and the humidity is normally at 45-50%. I will absolutely read your thread. I want to be the best caretaker I can for him. Thanks!

 

[TSchadel]

Here is the right care info.
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
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

The info in these threads will help you attain your stated goal.

A few things:
1. He is small for his size. This is due to incorrect diet, hydration and conditions.
2. Outside all day is not good for small ones.
3. Soak daily on a small one like this.
4. It will be very difficult to maintain good conditions in an open table. The book is wrong. Sorry.
5. No hay in the substrate.
6. Your family dogs are your tortoises greatest enemy. Keep them separated and never leave them unsupervised, even for one second.

Hope we can help.

1. How long should he be outside?
2. I will start to soak daily.
3. How can I close my table - put a lid w/screen on it?
4. On the substrate - I used about an 1" of regular outside dirt, then the remainder with coconut fiber mixed with Tom's Hay (which is what the pet store told me to do).
5. I have not ever left the other animals unsupervised or alone with Irwin - I will be doubly diligent to not

 

[Odin's Gma]

1. How long should he be outside?
2. I will start to soak daily.
3. How can I close my table - put a lid w/screen on it?
4. On the substrate - I used about an 1" of regular outside dirt, then the remainder with coconut fiber mixed with Tom's Hay (which is what the pet store told me to do).
5. I have not ever left the other animals unsupervised or alone with Irwin - I will be doubly diligent to not

Welcome! Ours was a surprise for me too. My son and girlfriend bought him and he lives with us. They knew I was a sucker for a pretty face and I have taken on the bulk of his care. Not that they don't want to or won't do it, I just happen to be the gardening and research geek in the house and i'm better at it.
Ours is a little over a year now and also a little guy.

1. Weather permitting (Minnesota), we take ours out daily. Sometimes as little as 30 minutes, sometime for hours. Always supervised and with a lovely little underground burrow and lots of shade to escape the heat.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/the-mighty-odins-first-outdoor-habitat-playpen.118155/

3.We bought a simple piece of plexiglass that covers most of the table and water the trays and garden daily.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/indoor-enclosure-all-input-welcome.108222/#post-1007892

And here is our winter food journey. Indoor gardening is a must in MN with an eating machine like Odin!
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/gmas-indoor-winter-gardening-and-sulcata-brag-thread.112815/

 

[johnandjade]

hello and welcome from bonnie Scotland! happy tortin'

 

[Tom]

1. How long should he be outside?
2. I will start to soak daily.
3. How can I close my table - put a lid w/screen on it?
4. On the substrate - I used about an 1" of regular outside dirt, then the remainder with coconut fiber mixed with Tom's Hay (which is what the pet store told me to do).
5. I have not ever left the other animals unsupervised or alone with Irwin - I will be doubly diligent to not

1. At his size, with his lack of growth so far, I would do no more than an hour or two a day. I don't leave them out all day until they are 5-6".
2. Good. This will make a difference.
3. I think you need to make a closed chamber. One member has posted pics of a green house type apparatus over a table. The main point is that if the enclosure is open to colder dry room air, there will be no way to maintain African monsoon season type conditions in there. Here are two examples:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/closed-chambers.32333/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/2015-growth-experiment.119874/
4. Dirt is fine, coconut fiber is good. Hay will mold if kept damp and your substrate should be kept warm and damp. (Pet stores are notortious for dispensing bad info for tortoises.
5. Your response is music to my ears here. Many people just do not realize what can go wrong, or they really believe that their loving family pet would never harm another animal. Most people don't figure this one out until its too late and their tortoises pay the price. I'm happy to hear your tortoise will be safe.

 

[TSchadel]

1. At his size, with his lack of growth so far, I would do no more than an hour or two a day. I don't leave them out all day until they are 5-6".
2. Good. This will make a difference.
3. I think you need to make a closed chamber. One member has posted pics of a green house type apparatus over a table. The main point is that if the enclosure is open to colder dry room air, there will be no way to maintain African monsoon season type conditions in there. Here are two examples:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/closed-chambers.32333/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/2015-growth-experiment.119874/
4. Dirt is fine, coconut fiber is good. Hay will mold if kept damp and your substrate should be kept warm and damp. (Pet stores are notortious for dispensing bad info for tortoises.
5. Your response is music to my ears here. Many people just do not realize what can go wrong, or they really believe that their loving family pet would never harm another animal. Most people don't figure this one out until its too late and their tortoises pay the price. I'm happy to hear your tortoise will be safe.

Thanks for all this MUCH NEEDED information. I went home for lunch today and picked some geranium leaves and also a beginning flower buds and dandelions. After the normal hide-n-seek when I come in - he gobbled up the geranium leaves and several little buds before heading off to the basking stone. I've been looking at all the home-grown gardens and think i will be doing that during the winter months.
More questions if you don't mind:
1. I do have 2 hiding "huts" for Irwin in his table now. One is log material and I soak it 2-3x per week. The other is a "Frog House" that I had in my backyard - a terracotta bowl turned upside down with a door in it. I also wet that down 2/3x per week. Is this acceptable?
2. I'm not sure when I will be able to get a closed chamber made for the table as my bro-in-law is out for several months (he made my table for me but is on the road a lot) so I'm hoping I can get by with doing "tricks".
3. What is a good humidity level?
4. The room his is in now I have closed the air conditioner off to - it has two corner windows on both sides. It stays pretty warm in there. Kansas is pretty humid (not like Florida - but also not dry like Arizona). My humidity gage stays between 40-50% humidity.

 

[bouaboua]

Welcome and congrats! ! ! ! !

Good to have you here! ! ! ! !

 

[johnandjade]

a quick fix to cover table i've read is to use kitchen foil or a damp towel but not under bulbs. plexiglass is a cheep way and looks nice, yet again not under bulbs.... plexi and glass both block the 'good rays'

sorry cant be more help :/

 

[TSchadel]

Welcome and congrats! ! ! ! !

Good to have you here! ! ! ! !

THANKS!! I'm really wanting to do the best I can for lil Irwin. I'm pretty sure he was not cared for properly up to now because of his pyramid shell. I asked my daughter how old he was and she said her boyfriend got him for her last September - but she didn't know how old he was when she got him. He has grown probably 1 1/2 his size since he got him. So I'm thinking he is a little over a year.....

 

[TSchadel]

a quick fix to cover table i've read is to use kitchen foil or a damp towel but not under bulbs. plexiglass is a cheep way and looks nice, yet again not under bulbs.... plexi and glass both block the 'good rays'

sorry cant be more help :/

I think I will try the foil because the way I have my blubs attached to the table I don't think I can do plexi.

 

[johnandjade]

perhaps a 'tent' over full table could be option? i'll try post a link for you to have a look and see if any options are feasible for you to pinch

 

[johnandjade]

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/Closed-"Chambers".32333/

 

[TSchadel]

perhaps a 'tent' over full table could be option? i'll try post a link for you to have a look and see if any options are feasible for you to pinch

oh yes please do!!!! I will go to my local hardware store after work and get some plastic. I'm on a budget - but I really want lil Irwin to get the care he needs.
Also - if my daughter thinks she's getting him back when she comes home from her internship in Florida - she better think again!! lol - I've absolutely bonded with him in these past 3 weeks that I have had him...

 

[TSchadel]

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/index.php?threads/Closed-"Chambers".32333/

Question - Irwin is at least a year old. Does he need to have a closed table? I thought that was just for hatchlings - not juveniles. Or is Irwin still considered a hatchling?