hi all,
i had recently moved to an apartment and could not let my tortoise go outdoor to sun and play anymore, so would like some questions answered. he is outdoor all the time before i moved. He is a 13yr old indian star(maybe older but i kept him for 13yrs so always assume he's 13.) i saw that cypress mulch substrate is recommended for tortoises and so i uses zoomed's forest floor as its substrate now. also i had a exo terra reptile uvb 100 placed for him. did not put heating as its hot here all year round and previously when he is outdoor he does not have any heating as well. i place him to soak in warm water everyday for about 15 mins. Anyway here are the questions i wanted to ask:
1) Usually for indoor tortoises, how long does the substrate had to be change out? the bag of forest floor says every 6 months or when there's an ordor, but i was just wondering if anyone who uses the same substrate could roughly let me know how long could it last before i need to change so i could guage how much and when to get the substrate.
2) the uvb bulb, how long should i keep it on for? 6-8hrs or 12hrs?
3) how to stop him from trying to keep climbing out at the corners of his enclosure? i think he may not be used to being confine to a smaller area. he is not able to climb out but he could spend hours trying to climb at the corners. okay to let him do that? won't it tires him out badly?
4) is heating still needed? as it is more or less same as when he is outdoor with no heating.
5)he keeps stepping into his water dish and as a result the substrate would drop in. i am worried if ingesting the substrate would be a problem? how do i slove this problem?
i had recently moved to an apartment and could not let my tortoise go outdoor to sun and play anymore, so would like some questions answered. he is outdoor all the time before i moved. He is a 13yr old indian star(maybe older but i kept him for 13yrs so always assume he's 13.) i saw that cypress mulch substrate is recommended for tortoises and so i uses zoomed's forest floor as its substrate now. also i had a exo terra reptile uvb 100 placed for him. did not put heating as its hot here all year round and previously when he is outdoor he does not have any heating as well. i place him to soak in warm water everyday for about 15 mins. Anyway here are the questions i wanted to ask:
1) Usually for indoor tortoises, how long does the substrate had to be change out? the bag of forest floor says every 6 months or when there's an ordor, but i was just wondering if anyone who uses the same substrate could roughly let me know how long could it last before i need to change so i could guage how much and when to get the substrate.
2) the uvb bulb, how long should i keep it on for? 6-8hrs or 12hrs?
3) how to stop him from trying to keep climbing out at the corners of his enclosure? i think he may not be used to being confine to a smaller area. he is not able to climb out but he could spend hours trying to climb at the corners. okay to let him do that? won't it tires him out badly?
4) is heating still needed? as it is more or less same as when he is outdoor with no heating.
5)he keeps stepping into his water dish and as a result the substrate would drop in. i am worried if ingesting the substrate would be a problem? how do i slove this problem?