Yikes! Long lasting birthday present!

Tesoro13

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Feb 13, 2017
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Salt lake City, Utah
Hey all! I hope everyone is having a great day. My name is Megan and I am the proud owner of a baby Sulcata Tortoise named Gus. Gus was a birthday present from my fiance about a month ago. Trust me its shocking to open your door to FedEx not knowing what is going on. I love my fiance but he did no research on the company he ordered my Gus from. When it comes to animals I already am in the double digits and I don't want that to ever change. My grandparents had a sulcata but besides what I've read online and heard from pet store people (all different and contradicting of course) I feel so clueless. I don't want to sound like I'm not ready for what I'm in for but I do feel a tad overwhelmed. I don't think I have the habitat set up right, no info was included with Gus and I am planning on getting him to the vet to have a check up. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! The baby is just not even 3 inches and weighs slightly under 2 grams. Shell is a bit soft. Bit lethargic but eating and going to the bathroom regularly. Thanks in advance!
 

DutchieAmanda

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Oct 21, 2014
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Hi Megan, welcome to the forum!
That's indeed a suprising gift to get, especially because sulcatas become very large bulldozers in a few years!
On the species specific part of the forum, there is great info on how to raise a healthy sulcata. Forget all the info from pet stores...
I hope 2 grams is a mistake, and that it should be 20 grams, otherwise you'd have a really light tortoise!
 

Tidgy's Dad

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Pearly

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Hi and Welcome!:)
Hello Megan! Welcome from Texas. I too became almost an accidental tort keeper (never in 1000000 yrs would i think of ever owning any reptiles). I think I like your fiancé for being creative-minded. I love people who do crazy stuff like that. Your little baby sully sounds like a very resilient little dude (or dudette), it great that she's eating! Keep her/him warm, coolest spot of the enclosure air temp at 80F with your regular basking spot. I hearon here that this is the best thing for raising tiny babies. They need to be kept warm and very humid. But this is where my sulcata "know how" ends. My babies (well! Juveniles by now!) are S.American forest species- the Redfooted and require little different care. We have so many sulcata keepers here, you'll be getting best advise, just stick around
 

Yvonne G

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Welcome to the Forum, Megan! You can't go wrong if you set your new baby up according to the stickies we have posted at the top of the Sulcata section.
 

Gillian M

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A very warm welcome to the forum, @Tesoro13 . :)

What a surprise from your fiance. Very sweet of him. ;)

Any pics of your tort and his/her enclosure?
 
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