Texas Tortoise hatchling Enclosure

Joined
Aug 30, 2018
Messages
59
Location (City and/or State)
Coahuila, Mexico
You can't set up the correct environment in the little plastic tub. You need to use the larger tank and the baby needs a basking lamp on one side so it can warm up. Damp substrate and a closed top should help with the humidity. It is not too big. In fact, it is the minimum size I would recommend.

Care for these is similar to care for Russians, but a bit more emphasis on humidity for a TT.
These should help:
Oh okay! Thanks for the advice, I will change the hatchling to the big one in no time, the problem was I didnt had enough dirt to fill the big terrarium.

I know it is not recommended, but I just found another hatchling about 10 minutes ago, can I set both of them in the same terrarium? What would be your advice in this one? I could set one in the big terrarium and the new one in the small plastic box.

Thanks for taking your time to write :) I really appreciate it.
 

Tom

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Oh okay! Thanks for the advice, I will change the hatchling to the big one in no time, the problem was I didnt had enough dirt to fill the big terrarium.

I know it is not recommended, but I just found another hatchling about 10 minutes ago, can I set both of them in the same terrarium? What would be your advice in this one? I could set one in the big terrarium and the new one in the small plastic box.

Thanks for taking your time to write :) I really appreciate it.
They should not live together as a pair. An hour or two while you set up another enclosure should be fine, but not long term. Groups of juveniles are usually fine, so go see if you can find one more and then they can live together.
 
Joined
Aug 30, 2018
Messages
59
Location (City and/or State)
Coahuila, Mexico
They should not live together as a pair. An hour or two while you set up another enclosure should be fine, but not long term. Groups of juveniles are usually fine, so go see if you can find one more and then they can live together.
I will keep looking in the garden :) we have a pair that laid eggs sometime ago and today we found their hideout had some fresh dirt dig out. I already went to homedepot and bought some stuff, i will upload a picture when its ready.

Do you have any idea why they cant be in pairs but only in groups?
 
Joined
Aug 30, 2018
Messages
59
Location (City and/or State)
Coahuila, Mexico
They should not live together as a pair. An hour or two while you set up another enclosure should be fine, but not long term. Groups of juveniles are usually fine, so go see if you can find one more and then they can live together.
What do you think? Each tortoise went to different hide in their own hahaha. I have a thermal pad that goes from the red hide almost to the coconut, and the terrarium its infront of a window. Im only missing the plate of water.
 

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Tom

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What do you think? Each tortoise went to different hide in their own hahaha. I have a thermal pad that goes from the red hide almost to the coconut, and the terrarium its infront of a window. Im only missing the plate of water.
Tank looks pretty good, but don't use a heating pad. Those are dangerous for tortoises. Their instinct when they get too warm is to dig down into the cooler earth away from the hot sun. With a heating pad, they just keep digging closer and closer to the heat. Many get burned or over heated.

All you need is a basking lamp on a timer for these guys. It should be getting 95-100 directly under the lamp and room temp is fine over night when the light is off. They can ge their UV if you make them an outdoor enclosure and let them sun for an hour two or three times a week.

Pairs are too personal. One wants the other to leave, and tells them so in tortoise language, but the submissive can't leave. Its very stressful on both. When you have a trio or more, its not so personal. They don't tend to focus on their one adversary. Pairs dynamics and very different than group dynamics.
 
Joined
Aug 30, 2018
Messages
59
Location (City and/or State)
Coahuila, Mexico
Tank looks pretty good, but don't use a heating pad. Those are dangerous for tortoises. Their instinct when they get too warm is to dig down into the cooler earth away from the hot sun. With a heating pad, they just keep digging closer and closer to the heat. Many get burned or over heated.

All you need is a basking lamp on a timer for these guys. It should be getting 95-100 directly under the lamp and room temp is fine over night when the light is off. They can ge their UV if you make them an outdoor enclosure and let them sun for an hour two or three times a week.

Pairs are too personal. One wants the other to leave, and tells them so in tortoise language, but the submissive can't leave. Its very stressful on both. When you have a trio or more, its not so personal. They don't tend to focus on their one adversary. Pairs dynamics and very different than group dynamics.
Oh this is a game changer, I didn't realize that they would keep digging down to get away from the warm, I will remove the heat pad, it wasnt directly beneath the hideout, it was outside and below the terrarium, there was no way for them to reach the pad directly. With that being said, how am I supposed to give them the humidity necessary? Because I need something warm and wet, or with only watering the plants and spraying water on the terrarium will work?

I tend to bath them over the sun, 30 minutes on water and then I left them 1 or 2 hours with some food, is this okay? Or should I bath them indoors?

Thank you again! I find comfort in following your advices and going to the right direction. :)
 

Tom

The Dog Trainer
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 9, 2010
Messages
63,269
Location (City and/or State)
Southern California
Oh this is a game changer, I didn't realize that they would keep digging down to get away from the warm, I will remove the heat pad, it wasnt directly beneath the hideout, it was outside and below the terrarium, there was no way for them to reach the pad directly. With that being said, how am I supposed to give them the humidity necessary? Because I need something warm and wet, or with only watering the plants and spraying water on the terrarium will work?

I tend to bath them over the sun, 30 minutes on water and then I left them 1 or 2 hours with some food, is this okay? Or should I bath them indoors?

Thank you again! I find comfort in following your advices and going to the right direction. :)
You give them humidity by using a thick, damp (not wet) substrate, and mostly covering the top of the enclosure. A large shallow water bowl will also help, and for the humid hide, you can dampen the substrate under it a bit more. Spraying the surface of the substrate doesn't do much for humidity, but it doesn't hurt either. You'll need to be dumping water into the substrate to maintain dampness. How much and how often varies tremendously and for a wide variety of reasons. You have to go by feel.

You can soak them while sunning them. I do this sometimes during hot weather, but make absolutely sure the water is not getting too hot or to cold, and make sure they have shade available at all times. When I do this I do it on a table where a roof line gradually covers the whole soaking tub in shade as the sun moves. Every few minutes I go and push the tubs farther into the sun while the shade continually creeps over their soaking tubs. I do it this way so that If I get distracted or forget them, they will end up in full shade and NOT full sun. I only do this on days when the outside temperature is over 90 degrees F, 32C. When its cooler than that, evaporative cooling keeps the water too cool. I also have a sheet of welded wire that I place over the soaking tubs so that a bird can't swoop down and snatch a baby out of the tub.
 
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