questions questions questions.

[fashionpriest]

hahhaa, they are indeed!

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omg, that is a fantastic idea... i need to go and try reorder that from tank maker.... while using the ecosoil, is it better to keep the moist 1/4 part of the soil in the basking area or the cool side of the tank where he always sleeps? and does this apply for both my star and greek?

 

[stells]

I house my star in a table top enclosure with a megaray lamp.... one side of the enclosure is a dry area... then the other side where the lamp hangs in the humid area.... for substrate have a layer of topsoil with a layer of coconut bark on top in the humid area which is sprayed each morning.... On the dry side i use readigrass but aspen would work just as well... night time temps don't drop below 18 C

Stars can be extremely shy until they have gotten established into their home... so keep handling to a minimum...and allow it some time.... just picking up for bathing and daily checks...

Food.... mine eats edible weeds and plants and also has a couple of grass days each week... plus one day per week where i offer pellets...

Hope that helps a little

 

[fashionpriest]

thanks kelly,
but this is what i hve decided when my two housings arrive for my tortoise.
i am going to get 2 photo developing trays and put hays on it and build a shelter on half of it.
the rest of the tank i am either gonna use a terranium carpet (first choice) or corncob grain.
any advise on that?
the pet shop guy told me soil mixtures often cause pimples and such for the tortoise eyes. in hk during summer it goes up to 34 deg and winter it only drops to 15deg max

 

[Stazz]

The pet shop guy must be on crack, as I use organic soil for my Jordanian Greek Tallula and shes never ever evever had a problem. Many people use natural dirt or organic soil, its a good thing to use I don't know about corncob grain, but if its what I thik it is, then a big no Your baby would more than likely eat it !!!!

 

[stells]

I wouldn't use the corncob grain... it doesn't have good reports.... i have used soil with mine for well over a year and with my other tortoise's for 3 years.... and the only time i had eye trouble was when i included sand in the mix... since being on just plain sterilised topsoil i have had no problem at all... and the star loves to dig into the soil and with the carpet you have mentioned that just won't happen... the hay you will have to watch... it has a habit of going dusty and mouldy and this could lead to problems with your tortoise both respiratory and eyes etc.... a humid area is preferable with this species and you won't acheive that with the substrates you have mentioned...

I am about to remodel my stars table a little and plant up some seed trays with grass to see how that goes

 

[fashionpriest]

oh damn, thanks guys.... i think soil it will be then. should i just have a section where he hides topped with soil and the rest with carpet or the full with carpet? why do they take forever to open their eyes and it feels like it is stuck to each other. is it because of too much uv and basking light?
i am keeping the desired temperature with the uv light 24hrs and the basking light on for about 9hrs

 

[stells]

They don't need UV 24 hours a day... mine are on a 12 hour cycle... this could be part of the reason yours is being so shy... i would forget the carpet completely and go for the soil in 1/2 and see if you can maybe track down some Aspen for the other 1/2.... if you put a layer of playbark/reptibark on top of the soil it helps to trap in some humidity... also a decent sized water bowl will help...