spikesmomma
New Member
What sized tote should I get for a baby Sulcata. The guy sold me a 20 gal tank would be good enough but i wanna and some rizz to it but its not enough room. Spike looks unhappy and I’m unhappy he’s unhappy
What size tote?
- Thread starter spikesmomma
- Start date
Start here:
tortoiseforum.org
and here:
tortoiseforum.org
8. Enclosure size: Tortoises need HUGE enclosures. There are many pet reptile species that do just fine in smaller enclosures. Not tortoises. Much like horses, tortoises rely on locomotion to help keep things moving through the GI tract. We can see problems from this lack of motion in weather that is too hot or too cold, even with a large enclosure. A tortoise might sit still all day in the shade to avoid the scorching summer sun, or they might stay in their heated shelter all day on a cold cloudy day. This lack of walking can cause them to become constipated. Small enclosures can cause skeletal, muscular, and digestive problems for tortoises. Once you put down a food bowl, a water dish or two, a couple of hides, a potted plant or two, and some decorations, there is hardly any room left to walk in an enclosure that is too small. If you don't have room for a giant enclosure, then you don't have room for a tortoise. Its that simple. One of the worse thing people can say to me after hearing they need a bigger enclosure is: "Well I don't have space for that", or "Well I can't afford that...". I am no stranger to lack of space and lack of money. I've experienced both of those issues many times throughout my years. If you don't have space or money to house your animal correctly, then don't get that animal. If you already have the animal, then you need to do the right thing. Find the space and money, or give the animal to someone that has the space and resources to house it correctly. Does that sound too harsh? It isn't too harsh. What is too harsh is some poor tortoise suffering in a small enclosure, and suffering is what it is doing. Not cool. I want people to have a happy positive tortoise keeping experience, but tortoises are not for everyone. If you are low on funds or low on space, wait to get a tortoise until your situation is more suitable for a tortoise. If you long for a reptile pet with cheaper, smaller housing requirements, there are many good options for you. Don't get a tortoise and house it poorly. Please.
Enclosure Size:
Simply put: The bigger the better. I start babies in a 30x48 inch closed chamber. As a minimum, I would suggest no smaller than 36"x18" for a tiny hatchling, but you'll need to upgrade quickly. They need room to roam around. Once you put in the food and water bowls, the humid hide, and any decorations or potted plants, there is hardly any room left over to walk. Tortoises do not tend to do as well as some other types of reptiles when stuffed into small enclosures. They need room to roam inside their safe heated enclosures, and the floor is not a safe option. Don't think that you'll use a smaller enclosure, and just let Sheldon out to roam the floor for some exercise. This almost always ends in disaster. Its bad for your tortoise and impaction, sickness, injury, or death is the usual result. "But, but, but... I make it safe and supervise closely..." says every person until the day that disaster eventually strikes and they realize they were wrong. Its a terrible sickening feeling to hold a dead tortoise in your hand. Don't put yourself through this. Make a large enclosure. Don't have room for a large enclosure? Get a different pet that can live in a smaller enclosure that you have room for. Tortoises aren't good pets for everyone. For a sulcata, even 4x8' is only going to last a year or two. You might get three years with it for a star, leopard or slower growing sulcata, but that is optimistic. Outdoor enclosures can be even larger. Babies will NOT get lost or overwhelmed in 10x10 foot enclosure. In the wild they roam far greater distances than that.
Info For New People. Please Read This First.
Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...
tortoiseforum.org
The Best Way To Raise A Sulcata, Leopard, Or Star Tortoise
I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies? 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. Babies hatch during the...
tortoiseforum.org
8. Enclosure size: Tortoises need HUGE enclosures. There are many pet reptile species that do just fine in smaller enclosures. Not tortoises. Much like horses, tortoises rely on locomotion to help keep things moving through the GI tract. We can see problems from this lack of motion in weather that is too hot or too cold, even with a large enclosure. A tortoise might sit still all day in the shade to avoid the scorching summer sun, or they might stay in their heated shelter all day on a cold cloudy day. This lack of walking can cause them to become constipated. Small enclosures can cause skeletal, muscular, and digestive problems for tortoises. Once you put down a food bowl, a water dish or two, a couple of hides, a potted plant or two, and some decorations, there is hardly any room left to walk in an enclosure that is too small. If you don't have room for a giant enclosure, then you don't have room for a tortoise. Its that simple. One of the worse thing people can say to me after hearing they need a bigger enclosure is: "Well I don't have space for that", or "Well I can't afford that...". I am no stranger to lack of space and lack of money. I've experienced both of those issues many times throughout my years. If you don't have space or money to house your animal correctly, then don't get that animal. If you already have the animal, then you need to do the right thing. Find the space and money, or give the animal to someone that has the space and resources to house it correctly. Does that sound too harsh? It isn't too harsh. What is too harsh is some poor tortoise suffering in a small enclosure, and suffering is what it is doing. Not cool. I want people to have a happy positive tortoise keeping experience, but tortoises are not for everyone. If you are low on funds or low on space, wait to get a tortoise until your situation is more suitable for a tortoise. If you long for a reptile pet with cheaper, smaller housing requirements, there are many good options for you. Don't get a tortoise and house it poorly. Please.
Enclosure Size:
Simply put: The bigger the better. I start babies in a 30x48 inch closed chamber. As a minimum, I would suggest no smaller than 36"x18" for a tiny hatchling, but you'll need to upgrade quickly. They need room to roam around. Once you put in the food and water bowls, the humid hide, and any decorations or potted plants, there is hardly any room left over to walk. Tortoises do not tend to do as well as some other types of reptiles when stuffed into small enclosures. They need room to roam inside their safe heated enclosures, and the floor is not a safe option. Don't think that you'll use a smaller enclosure, and just let Sheldon out to roam the floor for some exercise. This almost always ends in disaster. Its bad for your tortoise and impaction, sickness, injury, or death is the usual result. "But, but, but... I make it safe and supervise closely..." says every person until the day that disaster eventually strikes and they realize they were wrong. Its a terrible sickening feeling to hold a dead tortoise in your hand. Don't put yourself through this. Make a large enclosure. Don't have room for a large enclosure? Get a different pet that can live in a smaller enclosure that you have room for. Tortoises aren't good pets for everyone. For a sulcata, even 4x8' is only going to last a year or two. You might get three years with it for a star, leopard or slower growing sulcata, but that is optimistic. Outdoor enclosures can be even larger. Babies will NOT get lost or overwhelmed in 10x10 foot enclosure. In the wild they roam far greater distances than that.
