Sleepy Tortoise

[MaryandTrouble]

I feel like this might be newbie panic but I'm a little nervous about my Russian.
He seems a little less active than I was expecting for a tortoise indoors and kept at a warm temperature. He also trusts me a lot for an animal I've had so short a time, readily going to sleep right next to me with his head resting on the blanket under him. Is this normal behavior for a tortoise?

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

To me, all of that sounds normal for a tortoise that is a little too cold. What are your temperatures like (highs and lows)? What is your enclosure lighting like (how much of the enclosure is brightly light, how long is the light on for)?

 

[MaryandTrouble]

I have UVA/UVB bulb on about twelve to thirteen hours of the day. I also have a heat lamp and the warm side of the enclosure is usually around 85-90 degrees. The cooler side is around seventy the last time I checked, but the thermometer I got when I got his enclosure broke and I won't be able to get another one til payday on Friday. He has some shadowed areas from plants, though he used the the hide box I have him to climb so I had to take that out. Now we are on the ground floor and the floor is rather cold, but I have an electric heated blanket on the floor when he's out so he can stay warm. He still eats and I see him drink every day, so I'm not too worried about him being unhealthy, but are the temperatures too low? Do I need more heat sources?

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

Most people recommend a higher basking temperature than 85-90 for Russians. Without knowing how low your lows are, I can't recommend for the rest, but you need to be watching those temperatures too. You potentially need more heat sources, but without temperature data, no one can say. Does he have the ability to dig down into substrate at night if you won't provide him a hide?

Is he under and electric blanket or on top? Bottom heat isn't particularly natural for a tortoise - if the heat is coming from the bottom but the air above is still cold he still may be too cold. You should keep track of the carapace height temperature.

 

[dmmj]

it also sounds like the tortoise is too cold to me as well what are your four temperatures? basking cool warm overall

 

[MaryandTrouble]

He sits on top of the blanket, so I'll see if I can keep track of the carapace temp as well, thanks! And he can dig down into the substrate, it's a few inches deep and there's plenty if hay. I see him dig in sometime to the point where he's almost completely covered.

 

[Lyn W]

When you let him wander around the room the floor temp is also colder than the rest of the room so he could be getting chilled.

 

[Lyn W]

I have UVA/UVB bulb on about twelve to thirteen hours of the day. I also have a heat lamp and the warm side of the enclosure is usually around 85-90 degrees. The cooler side is around seventy the last time I checked, but the thermometer I got when I got his enclosure broke and I won't be able to get another one til payday on Friday. He has some shadowed areas from plants, though he used the the hide box I have him to climb so I had to take that out. Now we are on the ground floor and the floor is rather cold, but I have an electric heated blanket on the floor when he's out so he can stay warm. He still eats and I see him drink every day, so I'm not too worried about him being unhealthy, but are the temperatures too low? Do I need more heat sources?

He could do with a hide in his enclosure to give him somewhere to go to feel more secure. An upturned plastic tub/bowl with a door cut in it would be harder for him to climb up. Are you using anything for night heat?

 

[MaryandTrouble]

He could do with a hide in his enclosure to give him somewhere to go to feel more secure. An upturned plastic tub/bowl with a door cut in it would be harder for him to climb up. Are you using anything for night heat?

I have a cloth cover over the cooler half of the enclosure and there is a wall of plants to block himself from view if he wants to hide. But I can look into the plastic tub thing, see if that works. And yes, I have a heat lamp with a reddened bulb that warms him day and night.

 

[MaryandTrouble]

I reworked the enclosure a little bit and put the hide back it against a different wall to try to prevent climbing. I also think I'm going to get another heat source along with the new thermometer, just to make sure it's warm enough for him. Here's a pic of the new layout!

 

[Lyn W]

Hi again Mary,
Torts can see colour and they like red food so the red lamp will confuse him and he may try to eat anything coloured by it. Also torts need darkness to sleep. I use a ceramic heat emitted (CHE) run through a thermostat which turns the CHE on and off to stop it getting too hot or cold . The CHE just gives heat and no light.
Mine are similar to this the CHE just fits into a bulb holder

 

[MaryandTrouble]

Thanks for the tip! Inn going to get a black bulb for my head lamp