Tips/Advice On Enclosure -Russian Tortoise

[Southernbellecn]

Hi everyone! Today is day 1 with my brand new baby Russian. He is maybe a couple months old since he is around 2 or 3 inches. His name is Mochi !

Just some info about him, I got him from a breeder here in Arizona. He was not incubated, he actually hatched naturally out of the ground.

I attached pictures of my enclosure for him. Its about 3.1 feet in length and 2 feet in width. I wanna say its close to 3 inches deep. I added an extra layer on substrate today to make sure my little digger has more.

Its cool spots are generally around 75 to 77. I did see the area near the leaves go to 80 today. And in the 90s under the lamp. Humidity has stayed between 36-40%. My house doesn't go over 77 and at night we drop it down to 73 at the very lowest.

You can't see in the photos but I have a window near his enclosure so natural light does come in the room. You can see where I put the lamp in the photos. I read you don't want it over the water or food areas. I'm using a deep dome with a Zoo Med power sun mercury vapor UVB? Says it provides UVA and UVB.

I'm using a cypress mulch currently. I do have some peat moss on hand. I did not add it in. So let me know if I should!

He has eaten some romaine lettuce and collard greens this morning. I tried adding some flower food topper but he didn't seem to care for that. I did not add the calcium powder with D3 I have today, but I will tomorrow. I was thinking of doing it every other day.

I soaked him last night when I got him. And once today. I did for around 20 minutes in slightly warm water. I only use drinking water for Mochi, not tap. I read that might be best for them. I plan to soak him every morning before feeding.

He isn't eating at the fake plant but loves going under it. I do plan to add a real succulent into his habitat. And his water dish is the most thin, shallow, thing I could find. I don't want a flipping risk.

His behavior is pretty active in the morning. He ate and then rest of the day so far is sleeping after he did some digging. He hasn't explored the whole thing yet. He pretty much goes under the fake leaves and right now he is under the wooden hide out. You can see the back area is clear. He was clawing at that so I taped some white paper as a strip to make it look more of a barrier. I don't want him stressed. I was thinking of replacing the paper with a wooden strip on the outside.

He was bobbing his head this morning but after doing some reading I think that's him just breathing. Eyes look clear. He only rubbed it once when he got some water in it from soak time. But stopped rubbing it after a few times. His walking looks strong.

The rocks in the enclosure aren't too small for him to eat. He has walked over them a couple times. Isnt bitting at them.

I have 2 hide outs as you can see. I was gonna pay attention to which one he prefers. But I can keep them both in.

I plan to get one of those kid plastic swimming pools. Add some substrate in it and take him outside on some days. Half in shade half in the sun.

I think I covered everything. I really want this one to be a happy and healthy tort. Any pointers or things you think I don't need please let me know! I would love tips to make his home better.

 

[Southernbellecn]

Hi everyone! Today is day 1 with my brand new baby Russian. He is maybe a couple months old since he is around 2 or 3 inches. His name is Mochi !

Just some info about him, I got him from a breeder here in Arizona. He was not incubated, he actually hatched naturally out of the ground.

I attached pictures of my enclosure for him. Its about 3.1 feet in length and 2 feet in width. I wanna say its close to 3 inches deep. I added an extra layer on substrate today to make sure my little digger has more.

Its cool spots are generally around 75 to 77. I did see the area near the leaves go to 80 today. And in the 90s under the lamp. Humidity has stayed between 36-40%. My house doesn't go over 77 and at night we drop it down to 73 at the very lowest.

You can't see in the photos but I have a window near his enclosure so natural light does come in the room. You can see where I put the lamp in the photos. I read you don't want it over the water or food areas. I'm using a deep dome with a Zoo Med power sun mercury vapor UVB? Says it provides UVA and UVB.

I'm using a cypress mulch currently. I do have some peat moss on hand. I did not add it in. So let me know if I should!

He has eaten some romaine lettuce and collard greens this morning. I tried adding some flower food topper but he didn't seem to care for that. I did not add the calcium powder with D3 I have today, but I will tomorrow. I was thinking of doing it every other day.

I soaked him last night when I got him. And once today. I did for around 20 minutes in slightly warm water. I only use drinking water for Mochi, not tap. I read that might be best for them. I plan to soak him every morning before feeding.

He isn't eating at the fake plant but loves going under it. I do plan to add a real succulent into his habitat. And his water dish is the most thin, shallow, thing I could find. I don't want a flipping risk.

His behavior is pretty active in the morning. He ate and then rest of the day so far is sleeping after he did some digging. He hasn't explored the whole thing yet. He pretty much goes under the fake leaves and right now he is under the wooden hide out. You can see the back area is clear. He was clawing at that so I taped some white paper as a strip to make it look more of a barrier. I don't want him stressed. I was thinking of replacing the paper with a wooden strip on the outside.

He was bobbing his head this morning but after doing some reading I think that's him just breathing. Eyes look clear. He only rubbed it once when he got some water in it from soak time. But stopped rubbing it after a few times. His walking looks strong.

The rocks in the enclosure aren't too small for him to eat. He has walked over them a couple times. Isnt bitting at them.

I have 2 hide outs as you can see. I was gonna pay attention to which one he prefers. But I can keep them both in.

I plan to get one of those kid plastic swimming pools. Add some substrate in it and take him outside on some days. Half in shade half in the sun.

I think I covered everything. I really want this one to be a happy and healthy tort. Any pointers or things you think I don't need please let me know! I would love tips to make his home better.

OH I forgot to add, I haven't seen him basking under the lamp yet. Like I said before he keeps digging under and sleeping.

 

[Tom]

Hi everyone! Today is day 1 with my brand new baby Russian. He is maybe a couple months old since he is around 2 or 3 inches. His name is Mochi !

Just some info about him, I got him from a breeder here in Arizona. He was not incubated, he actually hatched naturally out of the ground.

I attached pictures of my enclosure for him. Its about 3.1 feet in length and 2 feet in width. I wanna say its close to 3 inches deep. I added an extra layer on substrate today to make sure my little digger has more.

Its cool spots are generally around 75 to 77. I did see the area near the leaves go to 80 today. And in the 90s under the lamp. Humidity has stayed between 36-40%. My house doesn't go over 77 and at night we drop it down to 73 at the very lowest.

You can't see in the photos but I have a window near his enclosure so natural light does come in the room. You can see where I put the lamp in the photos. I read you don't want it over the water or food areas. I'm using a deep dome with a Zoo Med power sun mercury vapor UVB? Says it provides UVA and UVB.

I'm using a cypress mulch currently. I do have some peat moss on hand. I did not add it in. So let me know if I should!

He has eaten some romaine lettuce and collard greens this morning. I tried adding some flower food topper but he didn't seem to care for that. I did not add the calcium powder with D3 I have today, but I will tomorrow. I was thinking of doing it every other day.

I soaked him last night when I got him. And once today. I did for around 20 minutes in slightly warm water. I only use drinking water for Mochi, not tap. I read that might be best for them. I plan to soak him every morning before feeding.

He isn't eating at the fake plant but loves going under it. I do plan to add a real succulent into his habitat. And his water dish is the most thin, shallow, thing I could find. I don't want a flipping risk.

His behavior is pretty active in the morning. He ate and then rest of the day so far is sleeping after he did some digging. He hasn't explored the whole thing yet. He pretty much goes under the fake leaves and right now he is under the wooden hide out. You can see the back area is clear. He was clawing at that so I taped some white paper as a strip to make it look more of a barrier. I don't want him stressed. I was thinking of replacing the paper with a wooden strip on the outside.

He was bobbing his head this morning but after doing some reading I think that's him just breathing. Eyes look clear. He only rubbed it once when he got some water in it from soak time. But stopped rubbing it after a few times. His walking looks strong.

The rocks in the enclosure aren't too small for him to eat. He has walked over them a couple times. Isnt bitting at them.

I have 2 hide outs as you can see. I was gonna pay attention to which one he prefers. But I can keep them both in.

I plan to get one of those kid plastic swimming pools. Add some substrate in it and take him outside on some days. Half in shade half in the sun.

I think I covered everything. I really want this one to be a happy and healthy tort. Any pointers or things you think I don't need please let me know! I would love tips to make his home better.

Over all a great effort. You are doing much better than most. I'll post the issues I see, but that's because I'm nit picky.

-Don't use the moss. It does nothing and they eat it.
-Mine all try to eat the plastic plants and this can cause impaction if they do. I don't use them for this reason.
-MVBs should not be used over tortoises for a variety of reasons. They aren't reliable and they cause pyramiding in growing babies. Use an incandescent flood bulb instead and an HO UV tube for UV.
There are four elements to heating and lighting:

1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt incandescent floods from the hardware store. Some people will need bigger, or smaller wattage bulbs. Let your thermometer be your guide. I run them on a timer for about 12 hours and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb. You need to check the temp with a thermometer directly under the bulb and get it to around 95-100F (36-37C).
2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species. You'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT, as long as your house stays above 60F (15-16C) at night.
3. Light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. Strip or screw-in bulb types are both fine.
4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. In colder climates, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. I like the 12% HO bulbs from Arcadia. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html

-Get away from the grocery store foods. Use natural food like weeds, leaves and flowers.
-No tortoise likes new food when you first offer them. It takes a lengthy introduction process to get them eating anything new. Its worth the time and effort. In a few weeks your tortoise will love that flower topper stuff.

All this and more is here:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

 

[Southernbellecn]

Hi everyone! Today is day 1 with my brand new baby Russian. He is maybe a couple months old since he is around 2 or 3 inches. His name is Mochi !

Just some info about him, I got him from a breeder here in Arizona. He was not incubated, he actually hatched naturally out of the ground.

I attached pictures of my enclosure for him. Its about 3.1 feet in length and 2 feet in width. I wanna say its close to 3 inches deep. I added an extra layer on substrate today to make sure my little digger has more.

Its cool spots are generally around 75 to 77. I did see the area near the leaves go to 80 today. And in the 90s under the lamp. Humidity has stayed between 36-40%. My house doesn't go over 77 and at night we drop it down to 73 at the very lowest.

You can't see in the photos but I have a window near his enclosure so natural light does come in the room. You can see where I put the lamp in the photos. I read you don't want it over the water or food areas. I'm using a deep dome with a Zoo Med power sun mercury vapor UVB? Says it provides UVA and UVB.

I'm using a cypress mulch currently. I do have some peat moss on hand. I did not add it in. So let me know if I should!

He has eaten some romaine lettuce and collard greens this morning. I tried adding some flower food topper but he didn't seem to care for that. I did not add the calcium powder with D3 I have today, but I will tomorrow. I was thinking of doing it every other day.

I soaked him last night when I got him. And once today. I did for around 20 minutes in slightly warm water. I only use drinking water for Mochi, not tap. I read that might be best for them. I plan to soak him every morning before feeding.

He isn't eating at the fake plant but loves going under it. I do plan to add a real succulent into his habitat. And his water dish is the most thin, shallow, thing I could find. I don't want a flipping risk.

His behavior is pretty active in the morning. He ate and then rest of the day so far is sleeping after he did some digging. He hasn't explored the whole thing yet. He pretty much goes under the fake leaves and right now he is under the wooden hide out. You can see the back area is clear. He was clawing at that so I taped some white paper as a strip to make it look more of a barrier. I don't want him stressed. I was thinking of replacing the paper with a wooden strip on the outside.

He was bobbing his head this morning but after doing some reading I think that's him just breathing. Eyes look clear. He only rubbed it once when he got some water in it from soak time. But stopped rubbing it after a few times. His walking looks strong.

The rocks in the enclosure aren't too small for him to eat. He has walked over them a couple times. Isnt bitting at them.

I have 2 hide outs as you can see. I was gonna pay attention to which one he prefers. But I can keep them both in.

I plan to get one of those kid plastic swimming pools. Add some substrate in it and take him outside on some days. Half in shade half in the sun.

I think I covered everything. I really want this one to be a happy and healthy tort. Any pointers or things you think I don't need please let me know! I would love tips to make his home better.

OH I forgot to add, I haven't seen him Basking under the lamp yet. Like I said before he keeps digging under and sleeping.

Over all a great effort. You are doing much better than most. I'll post the issues I see, but that's because I'm nit picky.

-Don't use the moss. It does nothing and they eat it.
-Mine all try to eat the plastic plants and this can cause impaction if they do. I don't use them for this reason.
-MVBs should not be used over tortoises for a variety of reasons. They aren't reliable and they cause pyramiding in growing babies. Use an incandescent flood bulb instead and an HO UV tube for UV.
There are four elements to heating and lighting:

1. Basking bulb. I use 65 watt incandescent floods from the hardware store. Some people will need bigger, or smaller wattage bulbs. Let your thermometer be your guide. I run them on a timer for about 12 hours and adjust the height to get the correct basking temp under them. I also like to use a flat rock of some sort directly under the bulb. You need to check the temp with a thermometer directly under the bulb and get it to around 95-100F (36-37C).
2. Ambient heat maintenance. I use ceramic heating elements or radiant heat panels set on thermostats to maintain ambient above 80 degrees day and night for tropical species. You'd only need day heat for a temperate species like Testudo or DT, as long as your house stays above 60F (15-16C) at night.
3. Light. I use LEDs for this purpose. Something in the 5000-6500K color range will look the best. Most bulbs at the store are in the 2500K range and they look yellowish. Strip or screw-in bulb types are both fine.
4. UV. If you can get your tortoise outside for an hour 2 or 3 times a week, you won't need indoor UV. In colder climates, get one of the newer HO type fluorescent tubes. Which type will depend on mounting height. 5.0 bulbs make almost no UV. I like the 12% HO bulbs from Arcadia. You need a meter to check this: https://www.solarmeter.com/model65.html

-Get away from the grocery store foods. Use natural food like weeds, leaves and flowers.
-No tortoise likes new food when you first offer them. It takes a lengthy introduction process to get them eating anything new. Its worth the time and effort. In a few weeks your tortoise will love that flower topper stuff.

All this and more is here:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

Thank you Tom!

Where do you like to get your weeds, flowers, and leaves from? I feel nervous to just buy a plant from a store. I don't want any pesticides or anything extra on it. My backyard isn't the best place to plant things. I want to change that next summer though.

 

[Dragon]

Hi everyone! Today is day 1 with my brand new baby Russian. He is maybe a couple months old since he is around 2 or 3 inches. His name is Mochi !

Just some info about him, I got him from a breeder here in Arizona. He was not incubated, he actually hatched naturally out of the ground.

I attached pictures of my enclosure for him. Its about 3.1 feet in length and 2 feet in width. I wanna say its close to 3 inches deep. I added an extra layer on substrate today to make sure my little digger has more.

Its cool spots are generally around 75 to 77. I did see the area near the leaves go to 80 today. And in the 90s under the lamp. Humidity has stayed between 36-40%. My house doesn't go over 77 and at night we drop it down to 73 at the very lowest.

You can't see in the photos but I have a window near his enclosure so natural light does come in the room. You can see where I put the lamp in the photos. I read you don't want it over the water or food areas. I'm using a deep dome with a Zoo Med power sun mercury vapor UVB? Says it provides UVA and UVB.

I'm using a cypress mulch currently. I do have some peat moss on hand. I did not add it in. So let me know if I should!

He has eaten some romaine lettuce and collard greens this morning. I tried adding some flower food topper but he didn't seem to care for that. I did not add the calcium powder with D3 I have today, but I will tomorrow. I was thinking of doing it every other day.

I soaked him last night when I got him. And once today. I did for around 20 minutes in slightly warm water. I only use drinking water for Mochi, not tap. I read that might be best for them. I plan to soak him every morning before feeding.

He isn't eating at the fake plant but loves going under it. I do plan to add a real succulent into his habitat. And his water dish is the most thin, shallow, thing I could find. I don't want a flipping risk.

His behavior is pretty active in the morning. He ate and then rest of the day so far is sleeping after he did some digging. He hasn't explored the whole thing yet. He pretty much goes under the fake leaves and right now he is under the wooden hide out. You can see the back area is clear. He was clawing at that so I taped some white paper as a strip to make it look more of a barrier. I don't want him stressed. I was thinking of replacing the paper with a wooden strip on the outside.

He was bobbing his head this morning but after doing some reading I think that's him just breathing. Eyes look clear. He only rubbed it once when he got some water in it from soak time. But stopped rubbing it after a few times. His walking looks strong.

The rocks in the enclosure aren't too small for him to eat. He has walked over them a couple times. Isnt bitting at them.

I have 2 hide outs as you can see. I was gonna pay attention to which one he prefers. But I can keep them both in.

I plan to get one of those kid plastic swimming pools. Add some substrate in it and take him outside on some days. Half in shade half in the sun.

I think I covered everything. I really want this one to be a happy and healthy tort. Any pointers or things you think I don't need please let me know! I would love tips to make his home better.

your habbatat looks a lot line mine...only bigger....we have an adult tort...and need to make sissys inside structure biger, which we plan to do as soon as we can... Iv only had her for 2 weeks so cant really give you any advice....i'll have to ask about the rocks....I didnt know she needed some...and like you i want her to have the safest, happyest home she can get.... I love nothing more then spoiling my various animal children...lol ( iv never gotten over the empty nest syndroum )lol so spike lets me have pets lol I did have to promise not to get any more after he let me have my tort though...I have 2 dogs a cat and a parriket besides my tort sissy lol 5 is his limit!! lol as he says this IS NOT A ZOO!! lol as much as he grumbles sometimes hes very good at helping me take care of everybody and making sure they all have everything they need as well as a few goodies and toys. so far i havent heard of anything as far as toys for torts.... maybe a few good sized rocks would help keep her from getting board.... I might try a fake tree....and watch to be sure she dosnt try to eat it....im not sure how i would put a real plant in her house...I dont know that she would be able to reach a plant even in a small flower pot....Theres no dirt in her inside house.( she dosnt have an outside one yet....since its cold and snowy here now.