Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm new to the forum, so it's great to see a lot of people who are clearly devoted to all things herp-related. This is going to be a bit long, so I'm sorry!

After conducting a lot of research (or what I thought was a lot at the time), I purchased a redfoot in mid-May. My boyfriend and I were thinking about buying from a private breeder, but we felt compelled to rescue a captive-bred tort from the local Petsmart...we absolutely love him, and I've spent as much time as I can learning about how to keep him healthy and as content as a tortoise can be.

I also have the aquarium setup right now. We were told at the time that a 20-gallon tank would be fine (his carapace is just about 6". We've now realized that he could use more room, although he is in good health (we're treating him for a respiratory problem he's had since the pet store incident, but he's slowly improving). Do you have any suggestions about the size of the enclosure? Unfortunately, I am apartment-bound and will be for a few years...so I would like to make something large enough that can last for awhile. I understand that he won't be full-grown for another decade or so (the vet estimated that he's about two years old, and we had a second vet who guessed between 1 and 2 years)...I do take him outside for an hour every day when the weather is warm enough here in the Pacific Northwest. He grazes in the local park, which doesn't use pesticides or synthetic fertilizers. When it's too cold, he takes supervised strolls around the apartment. I try to make his diet as varied as possible (mustard greens, dandelion, collard, some kale, papaya, sweet potato, berries, zucchini, clover, etc). He gets an enforced soak at least 3 times per week (we have some trouble keeping the humidity high in the tank, although we do have a misting system from Big Apple Herp).

So, the basic questions: what size enclosure would be appropriate to keep him in? What should I include in it in terms of hiding spots, plants, etc? Do you have any other recommendations about keeping redfoots healthy as they mature?

Thank you so much! Again, I apologize for the length of this post.

Answered a little ways down. You can get to it by selecting the attached link.
Link

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Ed
Tortoise_Keepers-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

If you have the room.. get a 45" kids plastic swimming pool.. you can use cypress mulch as a substrate..(it retains moisture well) and get a piece of slate and direct your heat lamp on it and it will act as a feeding place and a "basking" place.. mine outside go to the sunny side of their enclosure after they eat!

Include a shallow drinking/soaking dish big enough to sit in.

A hiding place.. and be sure to include a form of high protein/low fat food once a week.. and you're good!

Have you seen this site?

www.tortoisetrust.org/articles/feeding_redfoots.html

They are fantastic critters.. good choice.. good luck!

Terry

Thanks for your advice! I really appreciate it (and Ndugu, the tort, thanks you, too). I definitely am enamored with redfoots, so I hope to give mine a long and healthy life.