myk
Active Member
Love GardenState Tortoise
Small testudo marginata - question
- Thread starter vniveri25
- Start date
Please read the info provided and give your tortoise the best habitat and set up to thrive. Heat , light, calcium, diet, substrate, shallow warm water soaks in a high sided container, cuttlefish etc .. are all imperative to achieve a smooth shelled thriving tortoise.
Enjoy and ask questions as required.
Enjoy and ask questions as required.
> i have 25w UVB bulb 10.0 from ExoTerra, distance about 30 cm
Exo-Terra UVB lamps marked "100" are for the forest species, lamps appropriate for the most Testudo tortoises are marked "150".
Another thing, that ExoTerra makes CFL (coiled compact lamps) and tube lamps (which look like older weak T8 lamps). Common recommendation on this forum is to use T5 HO tube lamps for UVB (like Arcadia Desert 12% or ZooMed Reptisun 10.0). CFL can potentially cause eye problems (I take it for granted from Tom's words and don't have scientific proof for that or recommendations on how to use them safely), T8 lamps need to be put really low to provide meaningful UVB levels.
Exo-Terra UVB lamps marked "100" are for the forest species, lamps appropriate for the most Testudo tortoises are marked "150".
Another thing, that ExoTerra makes CFL (coiled compact lamps) and tube lamps (which look like older weak T8 lamps). Common recommendation on this forum is to use T5 HO tube lamps for UVB (like Arcadia Desert 12% or ZooMed Reptisun 10.0). CFL can potentially cause eye problems (I take it for granted from Tom's words and don't have scientific proof for that or recommendations on how to use them safely), T8 lamps need to be put really low to provide meaningful UVB levels.
vniveri25
Member
ahh now i see the differences. yes ExoTerra CFL - definitly hurts my eyes... i'll buy arcadia or reptisun, tube one. Thank you!
Looks like Arcadia is available here (don't forget to select 24W, 12%): https://www.imcages.com/oswietlenie...t5-uvb-kit-swietlowka-uv-24w-39w-54w-284.html
This lamp should be mounted at approximately 18 inches (45cm) over tortoise shell level.
vniveri25
Member
Ok thank you! So i'm going to order arcadia lamp, well it will take some time, there are here in poland too, i guess i will get it next week - so, use that rfl bulb 4h/d now or it is so dangerous that i should avoid it at all and wait for the new lamp?
I think, he can do a week without UVB just fine.
vniveri25
Member
So little update and also question - small guy is doing fine, yet i was "washing" him everyday for about 20-35 minutes, he's not drinking water at all, sometimes he's like trying to lick some stones. He became a little bit stressed from this washings, so i'm going to do that every other day. Food - he want's to eat pellets, hard to make him to eat any kind of herbs and stuff, some aloe, some opuntia, and few bites of rucola or corn salad(not sure about translation from polish) i'm waiting for dandelions in the garden. Also i have camera to see how he's handling while i'm at work, temperatures and humanidity levels are pretty easy to maintain with the new setup. I'm wondering about Mercury uva, ubv lamps. He's spending his time on heat gazing, then hides to one of he's hideouts, i was reading some old threads that mercury lamps are pretty nice, and the uvb emmission will be pretty straight to where he like's to gaze, so is the mercury lamp 80w a good idea too?
Bathing should be done in an opaque container and water should be warm at all times. If it cools down, that may be the reason for him to get out. Also, too high water level might stress him (should be up to the line between top and bottom shell).
He might be reluctant to eat anything but pellets, but you have to "insist". Gradually increase greens and veggies amounts. And don't worry, he won't starve himself to death.
Mercury vapour bulbs were recommended a while ago. However, they have a few drawbacks:
1. You can't provide 12 hours of heat without strong UVA/UVB, which is unnatural.
2. It could be tricky to achieve correct temperatures in the basking zone AND safe and efficient UVB output.
3. Some keepers reported inconsistent UVB output from this lamps and short lifespan.
4. Tortoises tend to get pyramiding under these lamps. Maybe because of excessive UVA or IR-A radiation.
5. These lamps easily overheat small enclosures and you can't control this without turning the lamp off, which shortens its lifespan and "blinking sun" is unnatural as well.
So, the recent recommendations are not to use them and stick to a combination of incandescent basking lamp and T5 fluorescent tubes for UVB.
vniveri25
Member
Ah ok now i understand! Thank you for that answer, so i'll stick to the tubes, and yes - that's what i do, but when he refuses to eat anything else i give him few pellets, i was worried about his starvation but if he won't do that thats good information!
He can be *very* stubborn. But eventually he will get used to the "normal food".
Also, continue experiment with offerings - radicchio (lettuce, which looks a pink/red ball) is usually well accepted and so is endive or squashes. Maybe some chickory, chard or green leaf lettuce (not "iceberg lettuce") or beet leaves.. Even a bit of spinach is okay.
myk
Active Member
Try romaine or red leaf lettuce,,also collard greens
vniveri25
Member
Hello friends! Update. Tortoise is growing well, he's 125g now and i would like to hibernate him for 5 days in this year. Well what i just saw yesterday on his shell, worried me a little bit i wanted to consult it with you here before i go to vet. Well does it look like some bacterial or fungus infecion or is this just a keratin stress marks?
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The_Four_Toed_Edward
Well-Known Member
I am curious, how did you end up with 5 days? I mean that is shorter than the prep time or the wake up time.
I would say that is doesn't look like bacterial or fungus infection.
vniveri25
Member
Well, its my first hibernation and his first too, its still young tortoise so i would like to do it as short as possible to learn about this process and don't kill my little friend, next one i'm going to make much longer
I doubt that 5 days brumation (hibernation) will be effective. When you put him in "low power" mode, 5 days may be not enough for him to wake up naturally (I've seen recommendation of 2-6 weeks for "short brumation"). How do you plan hibernating him? Outside or in the fridge?
vniveri25
Member
In the fridge, don't want to risk with the outside. Weather is changing too much and too fast here.
The_Four_Toed_Edward
Well-Known Member
Yes, the fridge method is a safe choice. I recommend that you go for at least two weeks of brumation to reduce stress and make it easier for him to wake up afterwards.
Have you checked out this thread by @Tom ?
Tom's Brumation Thread
Every fall we get bombarded here on the forum with all sorts of questions and problems regarding hibernation and tortoises "slowing down" for winter. The purpose of this thread is to talk about all aspects of this subject, to dispel some of the myths and mysteries, and give a "how to" list of...
tortoiseforum.org
vniveri25
Member
Yes i was reading this thread and i'm going to use it while i will start to prepare for the hibernation, i will think about it one more time, maby 5 days its not such a great idea, and i should do that 2 weeks, well if something bad will be going on i can finish hibernation earlier. About those shell marks, should i consider this as a keratine stress marks?
The_Four_Toed_Edward
Well-Known Member
I believe that those are the "white squiggly lines" that often get brought up here. @wellington can correct me if I am wrong, but basically we don't know what causes them, and they aren't a cause for concern.
My tortoise had them too when I soaked my tortoise daily back when he had bladder stones.
