Hi, i'm new to all of this so please be gentle!!

We got our new Horsefield on Saturday (after doing alot of internet reading!).  I think Harry Potter (our sons' choice of name) has settled in to his new home quite well although there are a few small issues I would like some advice on.

I really didn't want to get a viv for him to live in as i've read so many comments on various websites that there not very good for their health & well being.  I was however talked in to buying one from the man who runs the reptile centre, mainly due a few reasons that I thought would be valid i.e our 4 year old son catching himself on the basking lamp or knocking it over into the tortoise table or onto the floor and smashing etc.  We set up the viv when we got home, making a warm side with basking lamp and a cooler side with his little log pile house type thing, we have the appropriate uvb light and have set these on a timer for 10-12 hours each day (during the day when our central heating is low).  I have left the viv doors slightly open on each side, to let air circulate and we have added more holes accross the top, but have made sure it is located well out of a draught.  We have managed to maintain a daytime hotside temp of around 86-90 oF and a nighttime temp of 66-70oF.  Harry ate all of his food on Sunday (no calcium added) but didn't touch it yesterday (calcium added)  i'm going to put in some cutlefish today to see if this can tempt him.  I've not seen him drink anything yet and don't think his water has gone down any, but I did give him a 10 minute bath on Sunday morning which he seemed to enjoy.  He did a few poo's on Sunday but again nothing yeterday.  Our main concern was the amount he seems to sleep?  He is always snuggled up under his little shelter, if we get him out, he goes straight back in and buries his head again.  Is this normal or is it because he is still quite young?  (09 hatchling).  He doesn't seem interested in basking under the lamp at all.  We have made a little tortoise type table for him to come out of his viv for a few hours when we are home and he toddles around this and climbs over the rocks and shells we have put in their but i'm wondering if this is because we don't put his shelter in there so he's got knowhere the hid.  Next summer I intend to put him outside during warm days as much as possible and by then hopefully our son will be used to it enough to get rid of the viv and permanently have Harry on a tortoise table.  Hope that all makes sense,  all of your comments and help would be very much appreciated.

Thanks Emma x 

Hi Emma,

My guess is he is hiding in his viv to escape the heat. Vivariums really are NOT a good idea especially for temperate tortoises like horsfields and they will dig down to try and find a cool spot, you really need to set up some type of table top for him on a permanent basis. He will generally slow down this time of year anyway i know my babies do. As for him having a poop it doesnt matter if he doesnt go everyday just as long as when he does its not runny at all? He should also have nice creamy white urates. The main concern here is getting him out of the vivarium!

Ali

Hi Emma

If you have concerns about the lamp you could consider a large guinea pig cage as a home for your tortoise. The more I use these, the more I like them. Well ventilated, easy to clean and the cage part means you can keep the tortoises and the family safe. If you get one of the big ones you can usually mount the lamp inside the bars at a safe distance.

There are a couple of guinea pig/ rabbit cage setups here:

http://www.tortoise-protection-group.org.uk/site/58.asp?thissection=17

Hi Dave,

Thanks for your reply, i'm currently watching a large indoor rabbit cage on ebay which finishes in a few hours so think I might give that a go.  Just wondering if the heat from the lamps will be ok on the plastic bottom of the cage?  What do you think?

Thanks again

Emma

Hi Emma

Wont be a problem if you ise a soil based sunstrate in the cahe, it'll dissipate the heat.

Hi Emma

Wont be a problem if you use a soil based sunstrate in the cage it'll dissipate the heat.

Thanks Dave

Hi My Horsfield is kept in one of those cages and when we first got him he was really sluggish, we have recently changed his lighting to one of those reptiglo combined heat and light lamps and this seems to have really helped Trevor marches all over the place now, he digs climbs and is very alert for long periods.  Im not sure if you could use one of these in a viv maybe with the top off completely?? Also what is Harry (love the name by the way) Potter eating, Trevor refused to eat anything but dandelions and plantain when we first got him, but now he eats Ice plant, Pansies, Nettles, Budlea, carnations, Hebe... Well I could go on and on but basically anything you offer him.  Great site "The tortois table" I really couldn't have coped with out it.

Kerry

Hi Kerry,

Harry is currently eating most things I put in front of him!  He loves watercress, mixed leaf lettuce and kale (although I dont give him too much kale), he's had a tiny amount of cucumber once and loved it although I think I might leave that as a once a month treat.  I've got some weed seeds and flowers growing, but not growing too quickly so until they do he's on shop bought food.  I had a good look around the garden on saturday and all of the dandelions, clover and weeds seem to have gone now.  I was wondering if next summer these could be frozen so I can defrost them and give them to Harry over next winter?  Has anybody tried this before?  I weighed Harry lastnight and he's put 4 gramms on over the last 2 weeks, is this ok?

Hi

My neighbour recomended freezing weeds but we think they may go mushy, I suppose it depends what you freeze.  I posted this question when I first got Trevor.  Ice plant and thistles are apparently good to freeze (Well thats what my neighbour told me, but there again I wont let her forget that she too told me to feed him worms!!!) Bless her she is old and has had her tortoise for years. I am still feeding trevor lots of fresh stuff, he likes winter pansys and hebe, there are a few dandelions still about, lots of thistles and nettles. I brought him dried flower mix too (Its called lucky reptile and has lots of dried flowers that he is able to eat) Not sure if it is very nutritional after its dried though.  Have you had a look at the web site "The tortoise table"?  Its fab and shows you what is available to pick now.  Just be carefull with shop brought plants as they probably treat them with lots of nasty chemicals, that you won't want Harry to eat.  Its hard to find fresh food over winter and Im sure its going to get worse soon. Hopefully Trevor will be hibernating next year.  As far as the weight thing go's I will let someone more experienced answer that as Trevor is still tiny he has hardly grown at all but i havent weighed him recently, so not sure, sorry.  I do know that my friends tortoise is about three times as big as Trevor and they are the same age, the difference is he is fed pellet food and kept in a viv, I hope tortoises are supposed to grow very slowly as Trevor eats loads and is still small.  hope this all makes sense.

Kerry

hey your tortoise is only hiding because horefeilds when young love to sleep and hide as they are vunrable