T. hermanni hercegovinensis preparation!

[Lindzanna]

First up, sorry this is long! I promise eventually I will pay with baby tortoise photos!
-
So... I am purchasing my first ever tortoise for my wife. She has wanted one for a long time, but I have been resisting as I would rather our first reptile be a bearded dragon. After much deliberation and as a birthday surprise I have decided to become a tortoise keeper! (I would have always been the carer anyway, she just wants to admire the tortie's beauty!)

I done extensive research both on here and various reputable websites. Hopefully enough. I have now ordered a Dalmatian Herman's from Chris (Hermanni Haven) whose posts I have seen on here. He/she should be arriving next week!

Here is what I have purchased so far:
1. Enclosure: Rubbermaid tub. I currently have one that is only 2ft x 1ft - I feel like this may be ok for a very small period at the beginning but I am thinking I miscalculated and should start bigger. I am currently searching for a better one that is more like 4x2ft and/or 40gal. I'm wondering how quickly I can switch to a home-made tortoise table?
2. Substrate: I have 'organic' top soil (has some poultry litter/earthworm casting and other organic fertilizer which seems pretty harmless to me but have attached ingredient list for your input). Will mix with coconut coir (I believe that's what I've bought - see photo) and layer for 4". Will top with 2" cypress mulch. Will keep substrate moist (will initially soak and then use a spray bottle on the tortoise/substrate 1-2 times daily.
3. Light/heat provision: regular 100W bulb in brooder hood, hung with Zoomed reptile lamp stand, attached to timer for 13 out of 24h on. (Question: do hatchlings benefit from more or less daylight than adults or does it not matter within the 12-14h range?) I also have a dimmer that could be attached to this instead of placing on the lamp stand.
4. Nighttime heat provision: Our house gets quite cool (50-65F) but I do have a space heater available for that room. Zoomed Repticare 100W CHE in hood with 'dimmer' so can provide under 100W power if needed. A pet shop told me I could lie this straight on a mesh lid with no problems...
5. Monitoring:
- Thermostat that can be attached to CHE. Should I place this at coolest part of tub to ensure that CHE turns on overnight if the temperature gets down to 70F?
- 2 cheap thermometer/humidity measures with probes that I can place at warm and cool end of enclosure
- ANGGO IR Infrared Non-contact Digital Temperature Gun so I can spot-check basking spot (95-100F) etc.
6. UVB: Exo Terra Repti-Glo 10.0 Fluorescent Lamp and a regular under-counter fixture (thanks for the heads up, Tortoise Forum, the pet shop wanted $95!). Definitely a no go for sitting on top of wire mesh? Do we know a minimum width of wire that stops UVB? Or should I just suck it up and fit it inside the enclosure?
7. Humid Hide: tupperware box, sphagnum moss (replace regularly as it will get gross)
8. Feeding/water: slate tile, porcelain dish.
9. Bath: bought some electrolyte powder (similar to Reptoboost in the UK) to add to bath 1-2 times weekly. Bought a dedicated dish bowl/tortie hot tub.

Help please! Making my plan has taken over 24 hours of solid research over a few weeks, so I would appreciate your input. I know if I get pyramidal growth or a sick baby in the next few years I will feel terrible because I know >90% of issues are husbandry based.

- Anna

 

[Minority2]

First up, sorry this is long! I promise eventually I will pay with baby tortoise photos!
-
So... I am purchasing my first ever tortoise for my wife. She has wanted one for a long time, but I have been resisting as I would rather our first reptile be a bearded dragon. After much deliberation and as a birthday surprise I have decided to become a tortoise keeper! (I would have always been the carer anyway, she just wants to admire the tortie's beauty!)

I done extensive research both on here and various reputable websites. Hopefully enough. I have now ordered a Dalmatian Herman's from Chris (Hermanni Haven) whose posts I have seen on here. He/she should be arriving next week!

Here is what I have purchased so far:
1. Enclosure: Rubbermaid tub. I currently have one that is only 2ft x 1ft - I feel like this may be ok for a very small period at the beginning but I am thinking I miscalculated and should start bigger. I am currently searching for a better one that is more like 4x2ft and/or 40gal. I'm wondering how quickly I can switch to a home-made tortoise table?
2. Substrate: I have 'organic' top soil (has some poultry litter/earthworm casting and other organic fertilizer which seems pretty harmless to me but have attached ingredient list for your input). Will mix with coconut coir (I believe that's what I've bought - see photo) and layer for 4". Will top with 2" cypress mulch. Will keep substrate moist (will initially soak and then use a spray bottle on the tortoise/substrate 1-2 times daily.
3. Light/heat provision: regular 100W bulb in brooder hood, hung with Zoomed reptile lamp stand, attached to timer for 13 out of 24h on. (Question: do hatchlings benefit from more or less daylight than adults or does it not matter within the 12-14h range?) I also have a dimmer that could be attached to this instead of placing on the lamp stand.
4. Nighttime heat provision: Our house gets quite cool (50-65F) but I do have a space heater available for that room. Zoomed Repticare 100W CHE in hood with 'dimmer' so can provide under 100W power if needed. A pet shop told me I could lie this straight on a mesh lid with no problems...
5. Monitoring:
- Thermostat that can be attached to CHE. Should I place this at coolest part of tub to ensure that CHE turns on overnight if the temperature gets down to 70F?
- 2 cheap thermometer/humidity measures with probes that I can place at warm and cool end of enclosure
- ANGGO IR Infrared Non-contact Digital Temperature Gun so I can spot-check basking spot (95-100F) etc.
6. UVB: Exo Terra Repti-Glo 10.0 Fluorescent Lamp and a regular under-counter fixture (thanks for the heads up, Tortoise Forum, the pet shop wanted $95!). Definitely a no go for sitting on top of wire mesh? Do we know a minimum width of wire that stops UVB? Or should I just suck it up and fit it inside the enclosure?
7. Humid Hide: tupperware box, sphagnum moss (replace regularly as it will get gross)
8. Feeding/water: slate tile, porcelain dish.
9. Bath: bought some electrolyte powder (similar to Reptoboost in the UK) to add to bath 1-2 times weekly. Bought a dedicated dish bowl/tortie hot tub.

Help please! Making my plan has taken over 24 hours of solid research over a few weeks, so I would appreciate your input. I know if I get pyramidal growth or a sick baby in the next few years I will feel terrible because I know >90% of issues are husbandry based.

- Anna

1. Minimum of a 4 x 2 ft enclosure for a single hatchling. Can you please include picture(s) of your current enclosure, lighting, and heating setup?

2. The organic soil mix you have is not safe. Perlite and organic fertilizers such as worm castings can cause impaction if eaten. Personally, I would return all those pet branded products and buy some grow quality bulk coco coir and or fine orchid/fir bark instead. You'll get quality, quantity, and save more money in the process.

Question, why are you mixing so many different substrates together? Did someone suggest this to you?

3. What specific 100 watt bulb are you using?

4/5. Require more picture(s) and information before I can give additional input.

6. UV(B) rays will be blocked by any physical object. The finer the mesh, the more UV(B) rays get blocked out. It can make a weak UV index rated bulb become much less effective in the process. I usually recommend cutting sections out of the mesh unless the grating is large.

7. I personally don't recommend sphagnum moss. I don't want tortoises getting comfortable with eating their own substrate.

8. What is the porcelain dish for? Is it shallow enough to accommodate young tortoises?

9. I don't think this is necessary for healthy tortoises. A balanced diet is all they need. The proportion of sugars and additives in the powder may not be a good thing for a young tortoise. A simple carrot or unflavored Pedialite is the usually recommendation for soaking sick tortoises.

 

[tinytortoise]

From what I've gathered as long as your room isn't getting below 65~F at night you probably don't need the heat at night. Just UV and basking. Space heater in the room if it's cold is probably enough for Hermann's tortoise. This is based on what I've read, as I'm a soon to be keeper as well! Congrats on your first!

 

[Lindzanna]

Thank you so much for your replies. It took me a while to get things together and take some photos, so here there are. Little tortoise (Ivan/Ivy) is here and settling in well so we just want to make sure we're getting things right!

1. Bought a Christmas box (4.5ft x 1.8ft x 1.2ft). Photos of set up attached.
2. Switched to 4in layer coconut coir and 2in layer orchid bark
3. Had an LED bulb that wasn't very warm so now using an Ace Hardware 65W floodlight
4/5. -
6. I put the UVB inside the cage. However, it is at the cool end which doesn't make tons of sense to me, but it's the best way it fit.
7. -
8. Porcelain dish for water. Used a slightly bigger one as a temporary bath (placed it on top of the basking spot to keep the water warm during bathtime) - not left in the cage afterwards.
9. -

Any thoughts? Hope I upload the photos OK...

 

[tinytortoise]

Hey,

Looking good.
If you don't already you'll want a hygrometer. The setup is nice but you have to ensure there is proper humidity - above 70% all the time. I went with this one.

With your UVB, I can't see exactly where it shines, but you need the bulb within 20 inches of the basking spot, as your tortoise basks to soak that all in- he/she won't go bask in the cold just for UVB - as they don't comprehend the difference. My UVB is hanging right below, secured to my lid, the basking lamp - so it covers the whole area. They don't have to be right next to eachother but it's essential that the UVB is provided on the basking, your ReptiGlo 10.0 bulb has a 20 inch effective range.

My baby seems to really enjoy digging, maybe consider some areas with less/no bark or a mixture of the lower levels of substrate with your bark. I'm not using bark at the moment, just organic top soil with no additives. My only concern is all the sharp edges & splinters, I'd consider mixing the whole thing up with a bit of the lower levels of dirt to vary in consistency. It looks like you have soil underneath so should be easy to play with.

Past that, it really looks to be coming together! Hope you're enjoying the young one!

 

[drew54]

I think you did what I had to do for the uvb light.

This was my enclosure progression for my sulcata hatchling.

1. Cut panels out for mesh left middle to attach uvb


2. Used zip ties to attach Uvb inside on hot side above food dish


3. Put tin foil underneath the panels Reattached panels using zip ties gorilla taped all edges to seal and put a plastic shower curtain over to keep humidity up.



Zip ties were my best friend. the tin foil is going to get on your nerves quick. Before I attached the plastic panels I cut out I used tin foil to cover it all. It doesn't do well at all. Held temps ok and raised the humidity slightly, but it was annoying having to fix it all the time.