Suggestions please. Substrate.

[kambcba]

What can I put in my salcutas house please? As in on the floor. I know certain substrate is not good for them. Someone suggested dirt, but it is just way too dusty. What about some chopped hay? Certainly won’t hurt him if he eats it.

 

[wellington]

Most don't use substrate for a large tortoise in a night box.

 

[Tom]

What can I put in my salcutas house please? As in on the floor. I know certain substrate is not good for them. Someone suggested dirt, but it is just way too dusty. What about some chopped hay? Certainly won’t hurt him if he eats it.

When you say "house", are you referring to his heated night box, or does this tortoise have a large heated indoor area?

 

[kambcba]

When you say "house", are you referring to his heated night box, or does this tortoise have a large heated indoor area?

His insulated, heated night box with radiator and heat pad lol. And WiFi temp probe so I can check the temp.

 

[Tom]

His insulated, heated night box with radiator and heat pad lol. And WiFi temp probe so I can check the temp.

If you are using a heat mat, you really can't use substrate or hay. I've used plain dirt for two decades and I don't find it dusty inside their houses. They live in dirt burrows in the wild too. Any kind of substrate will get dusty if you don't keep it damp. I have this problem in my waterproof night boxes with orchid bark for my stars. I have to wet it constantly. You can't wet the substrate in a wooden box that isn't waterproofed or the box will rot.

Dry dirt is really the best way to go.