Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello all, I just aquired a small russian tortoise in a trade. He is 2 1/2" long. The former owner said they paid $150 for him at a pet store. I have him set up in a 100 gal. aquarium with cypress mulch and a log type hide. All he does is hide. He did not eat any of the romain offered to him today. This is the second day I've had him. I have an overhead uv flo. bulb and basking light on during the day and a black light at night. (both basking spots are about 115-120F) My questions are: Is it normal to hide when new and not eat? For how long? Do you think he is wild caught? Captive hatched? Captive bred? Does he need the night heat lamp? What is an acceptable night time temp? Can he be kept with other tortoise species? Like a mixed group of russians, redfoots, etc.? Thank you for your help.

>>This is the second day I've had him.

Hatchlings can be shy.

>>I have an overhead uv flo. bulb and basking light on during the day and a black light at night. (both basking spots are about 115-120F)

That's too high a temp. I checked the basking spot for my hatchlings the other day because I noticed they avoided being directly under the light. It was 110. I put in a lower-wattage bulb and reduced the temp to about 97. They basked at the edge of the spot, but not directly under it. A hatchling has very little body mass and probably finds the high temps overwhelming.

>> My questions are: Is it normal to hide when new and not eat? For how long? Do you think he is wild caught? Captive hatched? Captive bred?

If the shell is only 2.5" long, then it could be captive bred (or captive hatched - some people say that happens). I've never seen a wild caught russian less than 4", but I'm not in the pet trade. Like I said above, hatchlings can be shy for awhile, so be patient.

>>Does he need the night heat lamp? What is an acceptable night time temp?

If the temperatures get no lower than about 65-70 then you don't need a night heat lamp. Adults can tolerate even lower temperatures.

>> Can he be kept with other tortoise species? Like a mixed group of russians, redfoots, etc.? Thank you for your help.

NO NO NO.

NO.

:->

The environmental needs and personalities of the different torts just don't mix that well. So play it safe and keep him in a separate enclosure.

Try soaking the little guy in shallow water (less than a half inch) for about 10 minutes. Sometimes they are dehydrated. Do this about once a week. Also make sure part of his enclosure has a humid area.

It could also be that the cypress mulch creates a difficult environment for the little guy. Try creating a flat, open area near the basking spot. Just the spot light over a flat piece of tile and a couple more feet of space with no mulch. Then use the mulch in the corners to provide a hiding area with a little humidity on side. That way he has a chance to get out in the open without crawling over that jungle of mulch.

Best of luck.

See www.russiantortoise.net for details. There is also a book by Ed Pirog on russian torts.

Photo of my hatchling fresh out of the egg:

Try mixing in some colorful foods with the romaine. A little bit of shredded carrot or yellow squash. They also love dandelion and clover flowers. Don't forget to add a dusting of calcium/d3 powder once he starts eating regularly.

Hi, Thanks for the reply! I removed the night light and lowered the wattage in his basking light. I now have a surface temp. of 99F. I moved all the mulch to the ends of the aquarium, and put two 12"X12" floor tiles in the middle of the aquarium under the light and near his hide. Now he can get to his basking spot and food/water without climbing through all the mulch. I gave him a soak for about 10 min. Should I wrap the glass with something so he can't see out? I've heard glass aquariums can stress out tortoises, any truth to that? Well, he's back in his hide for the night. I'll offer him some food tommorow. Thanks again

You can wrap the glass if you think he's bothered by it. I've seen tortoises who don't care, and I've seen tortoises who constantly try to crawl thru wooden walls. Sometimes I don't think it's the glass, it's the barrier.