Reptile & Amphibian Forums

In addition to my gazillion questions below, yet another one has emerged! How often can/should I handle him? Obviously at least to soak him, but beyond that? Is he too young to let walk around the room? I am resisting the urge to pick him up every time I pass his cage, but is a gratuitous handling once a day too much?

Wow, lot of questions. I would guess if the tort is 3 inches its between 6 and 12 months old. I wouldn't reecommend light 24 hours a day although if the hide is dark enough it wouldn't be a big problem. I use ceramic heat emitters which give off no light but provide heat. During the day the flourescent lights and basking light go on by a timer and off each evening. Redfoots do not need a lot of light. In fact I almost never see one under the basking light where as my leopards will sit under the basking light. I would make the mulch deep enough that they can snuggle up in it. Mine is about 1 to 2 inches deep all over. I mix the cypress mulch with bed a beast which is sort of like peat moss. Holds in some moisture and makes it softer. When my guys were hatchlings they would often almost completely cover themselves in the mulch. Now they are content to just snuggle in. As far as temps 60 may be a little cold for a young redfoot. You may find him acting more sluggish if too cool. As far as wandering around give it a try. I put mine out on the floor every evening. Feed them on a towel and almost gaurenteed to poop then. Then they can roam the floor without worry. Sometimes they will wander around for as long as an hour and other times they almost immediately go for cover under the couch or bookshelf. As soon as their wandering stops I put them back in their pens since I figure they are getting no further exercise at that point. Just to save myself some trouble the room is turtle proofed. I put a frame under the couch made from wood about 4 inches smaller than the couch. This way when they crawl uner they are within easy reach. Same with under radiators and other difficult to reach places. Also got a 9 inch gate for the door to the room to prevent wandering too far. If gate is down everyone knows they are loose in the room so no accidents
Tom

Any advice on how often/how long to soak and how often to feed? You're right on the burrowing - he spent all night buried in his hideaway under the mulch, and after I took him out this morning and set him in the water, he went back after ten or so minutes.

Here's the little guy:

And my oh-so-interested dog (don't worry, I know about dogs and turtles - my family lost our Russian to the family dog when I was growing up, so NO CONTACT!):

And the currect set-up:

The cardboard around the outside is because he kept scratching at the glass, which I read is common in glass containers, so I jimmy-rigged that to help stop it. Since then I have moved the water dish more to the middle because the water was freezing, in hopes that the heat lamp would help keep it a bit warmer. The cardboard box is a temporary hideaway, because the pet store was out of those half-"u" logs.

With the setup you have I can't see the necessity of any soakings.

Feed as often as you like as long as it is mostly a plant based diet.

With the setup you have you are going to see quick development because it looks ideal. You will probably run into a problem when it gets bigger because duplicating that setup on a larger scale becomes more difficult.

btw, your photographs are fantastic. I really liked them.

>>Any advice on how often/how long to soak and how often to feed? You're right on the burrowing - he spent all night buried in his hideaway under the mulch, and after I took him out this morning and set him in the water, he went back after ten or so minutes.
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>>Here's the little guy:
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>>And my oh-so-interested dog (don't worry, I know about dogs and turtles - my family lost our Russian to the family dog when I was growing up, so NO CONTACT!):
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>>And the currect set-up:
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>>The cardboard around the outside is because he kept scratching at the glass, which I read is common in glass containers, so I jimmy-rigged that to help stop it. Since then I have moved the water dish more to the middle because the water was freezing, in hopes that the heat lamp would help keep it a bit warmer. The cardboard box is a temporary hideaway, because the pet store was out of those half-"u" logs.
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Ed @ Tortoise Keepers
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

Thanks! He's gorgeous, huh?

One more question on the food...I was reading that in addition to leafy greens and the occassional fruit (no bananas, but not sure why - ideas?), you should introduce mealworms, worms, or pinkies into the diet for protien. Is this the case, and if so, should I do it now? I can't imagine that he could get much of a chunk out of a pinkie with his tiny mouth.

Any ideas on how old he is? I have been told anywhere from 1 month to 6 months based on his approx. 3-inch long shell.