Paper towels for Herman’s hatchling??

[SunnnyDay97]

Hi everyone, looking for substrate advice. My 3 month old Hermann’s tortoise recently got a respiratory infection, after a vet examination she also noticed he was a bit dehydrated and recommended me changing his current substrate (coconut fiber, she mentioned it was drying) to damp paper towels until he gets older. Is this okay??

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Hi everyone, looking for substrate advice. My 3 month old Hermann’s tortoise recently got a respiratory infection, after a vet examination she also noticed he was a bit dehydrated and recommended me changing his current substrate (coconut fiber, she mentioned it was drying) to damp paper towels until he gets older. Is this okay??

Hello!
No, paper towels are definitely not okay. Coco coir (coco peat) will work just fine - it has soil-like consistency for easy burrowing and holds moisture well, don't forget to hand pack it after you put it in the enclosure (from 5-6 inches down to 4 inches). Then pour water in in substrate once a week or so to keep it damp.

Your tortoise needs daily soaks in warm water to stay hydrated and a shallow water dish in the enclosure (terracotta saucers are cheap and good option).

And for the first 2-3 years tortoise should live in a closed type terrarium, not on the open tortoise table. You post some photos of your tortoise and its enclosure we can tell if any adjustments are needed.

This post has all required information on tortoise care: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/info-for-new-people-please-read-this-first.202363/ (also check Temperate species care sheet at the bottom of it for details on Hermanns tortoise).

 

[Tom]

Hi everyone, looking for substrate advice. My 3 month old Hermann’s tortoise recently got a respiratory infection, after a vet examination she also noticed he was a bit dehydrated and recommended me changing his current substrate (coconut fiber, she mentioned it was drying) to damp paper towels until he gets older. Is this okay??

Hello and welcome.

As you will see when you read the thread that Alex left for you, vets don't know tortoise care. Paper towels are not suitable ad are likely to be eaten by the tortoise.

Coco coir is an ideal substrate for baby hermanni, but you have to keep it damp. Don't let it dry out. You also need to use a closed chamber of one sort or another to keep humidity higher for babies.

Here is another thread explaining their care and housing:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

 

[SunnnyDay97]

Hello!
No, paper towels are definitely not okay. Coco coir (coco peat) will work just fine - it has soil-like consistency for easy burrowing and holds moisture well, don't forget to hand pack it after you put it in the enclosure (from 5-6 inches down to 4 inches). Then pour water in in substrate once a week or so to keep it damp.

Your tortoise needs daily soaks in warm water to stay hydrated and a shallow water dish in the enclosure (terracotta saucers are cheap and good option).

And for the first 2-3 years tortoise should live in a closed type terrarium, not on the open tortoise table. You post some photos of your tortoise and its enclosure we can tell if any adjustments are needed.

This post has all required information on tortoise care: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/info-for-new-people-please-read-this-first.202363/ (also check Temperate species care sheet at the bottom of it for details on Hermanns tortoise).

Okay thank you! I thought it sounded a little strange, here’s how the enclosure currently looks. There’s a humid hide inside of the log structure and I usually close the top of that side of the enclosure.

 

[TammyJ]

Hi and welcome to the forum!

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Okay thank you! I thought it sounded a little strange, here’s how the enclosure currently looks. There’s a humid hide inside of the log structure and I usually close the top of that side of the enclosure.

To make this enclosure suitable for a baby tortoise, you need to make some adjustments:
1. Convert it to a "closed chamber" to help with maintaining humidity and temperature. The simplest option is to use a greenhouse top over it.
2. Lightning needs some overhaul: you will need a flood type incandescent bulb for a basking area and a good source of UVB - T5 HO straight long tube (like ZooMed Reptisun 10.0 or Arcadia ProT5 Desert 12%). The bulb you use now doesn't provide neither large enough basking area nor enough UVB. Also, a LED bar/strip/bulb for ambient lightning over the enclosure will be great.

As it's summer now you can postpone buying a UVB lamp and take your tortoise outside for sunbathing: around 10-11AM or 3-4PM, for 15 minutes daily, always closely supervised and with shaded area available to him. Never put him under direct sun in the tub or container (in the shade it's okay but still keep your eye on him).

Any questions are welcome as well as checking the "shopping list" with us.

 

[Tom]

Okay thank you! I thought it sounded a little strange, here’s how the enclosure currently looks. There’s a humid hide inside of the log structure and I usually close the top of that side of the enclosure.

The substrate is much too dry, the open ended log hide is not a humid hide, and it is difficult to maintain the correct conditions in an open topped enclosure like that.

The care sheets the we linked for you will explain everything you need to do.

 

[SunnnyDay97]

Thank you for the feedback everyone! I’ll be implementing the mentioned changes over the next couple weeks