Sulcata Tortoise Habitat - Home Backyard

[MyMartianHeart]

that tortoise has a nicer house than i do

[saggot420son]

wicked sick, what region are you located i want one outside pretty bad

[cnpike]

@saggot420son - Phoenix , Arizona. Great for the summer time. In winter, I have heat lamps in his house

[PixieVintage]

What a fantastic tortoise area. You have a beautiful lucky sulcata.

We have a leopard tortoise and they are wonderful pets. Not for everyone though as they are such specialist pets.

[cnpike]

@PixieVintage - Thank you for the comments -

[xDAGxSNIPERx]

My tortoises are like 1-2 years old but they are still 3in. They dont seem to grow.....

I brought them to the vet but he said there healthy. I live in arizona and i give them fried grass and sometimes some veggys and i always have water but they just dont seem to grow......

[xDAGxSNIPERx]

@xDAGxSNIPERx i meant dried not fried ^-^

[Mineshack]

@xDAGxSNIPERx You shouldn't really dry the grass as it takes out the goodness that helps them grow.

[cnpike]

@Mineshack - I have my main lawn that he primarily grazes on. I keep that good & green year round

[nathan7grind]

excuse me , my sulcata is still a baby , and i think it has a problem because its nose is wet .... i think he catches a cold , what should i do? please help!!! , its only been 2 months since i have 'em but i love my tortoises so much

[cnpike]

@nathan7grind - your tortoise might be ill, and you need to take it to a reptile veterinarian as soon as possible. Tortoises can come down with a disease called Runny Nose Syndrome (RNS) that is basically the tortoise's version of a cold or pneumonia. If the tortoise is not treated with antibiotics to cure the infection, it can die. Sulcata tortoises are particularly susceptible to developing RNS if they are kept in damp, cool climates.

[nathan7grind]

@cnpike vet bussiness is a success but another question . the doctor gave my tortoise some kind of a medicine (gas) that comes out from a machine . 1st the doctor closes the aquarium (with no water ofcourse) with a large cloth, then she puts some kind of a pipe to the aquarium , wait 5 minutes then done . is that antibiotics? and btw im in indonesia , tropical country so it has a warm climate for my tortoise

[cnpike]

@nathan7grind - not really sure about that one. Sounds like a respiratory treatment. Not sure if it's antibiotics though

[nathan7grind]

@cnpike thx now theyre cured but the vet told me to give various of meals , cuz i only gave them siomak (thats what we called in indonesia) , it has lots of calsium and i gave them everyday , so i start to give them caisim(and thats what we call too) , but when they take their 1st bite they dont want to take another bite . so what should i do , keep giving them caisim?

[cnpike]

@nathan7grind - I would keep trying the caisim, but if they keep refusing it, then you should change to something else. Try mustard greens, dandelion greens, collard greens, turnip greens, Kale, etc. Not sure what you call those in Indonesia - you can google it though

[nathan7grind]

@cnpike alright thx , and sorry for the questions too , im a new master of my tortoise so i need advices :-)

[cnpike]

@nathan7grind - anytime

[kingglass565]

I wanna see an update on Sheldon!!

[preachbuilding]

He has a nice shell ! & nice habitat !

[kingglass565]

Another thing, how could you tell what sex Sheldon is? I'm thinking mine is a male but not 100% sure.

[cnpike]

@kingglass565 - it's very difficult when they're less than about 12" in size. Typically, the males have a concave underside & the females flat. In mature sulcatas, the anal scutes (the two plates on the sulcata's bottom shell [plastron] that are located just in front of its tail) of a male generally form a wider angle than the anal scutes of a female, but this may not be 100 percent reliable with smaller tortoises.

[kingglass565]

@cnpike - does only eat grass from that lil spot?? And are those rocks all over the ground??

[cnpike]

@kingglass565 - I do have a larger lawn (about 500 sq ft) that he mostly eats from. The small one for him is concaved so when the automatic sprinkler system runs, it fills up about 4 inches deep for him to soak. Yes, the rocks are everywhere else there isn't grass & flagstone & pavers

[kingglass565]

@cnpike

No problem. Does Sheldon bury?

[cnpike]

@kingglass565 - not much at all. He has a couple spots in the yard where he has dug a small hole just big enough for him to sit in.

[kingglass565]

Sweet!!! I was like this is a nice habitat then you zoomed in and said his name... That's an awesome name!!!! I'm 15 and bought me a one year old sulacata tortoise. I have him in a cage for now. He's still small. I think this is great. The wall on the rift side.. Why is that??

[cnpike]

@kingglass565 - Thanks for the comment ! I have the small wall with blocks to keep my dog from going into Sheldon's area.

[avelkhemchan]

I have the exact same lid filled with water!

[mckricks1]

how much do they defecate i heard its a lot because they r so big, thats what i heard when i wanted to buy one and keep it indoors

[cnpike]

@mckricks1 - I wouldn't keep one indoors once it reaces about 8 to 10 inches in size. And yes, they defecate quite a bit. More than my Doberman

[thebeastisback1996]

I think you should get another tortoise. You have a great swetup and that guys needs a mate when he gets full grown.

[xarr0wsx]

im getting a sulcata tortoise (maybe 2 if its better) i need some tips and help on it.. im going to make it a wooden area on the grass and for it to sleep im going to bring it inside

[foxedin]

This is very nice! I'll refer to your video when making one for my sulcata. :D

[cnpike]

They'll pretty much eat most grass varieties (bermuda, fescue, wheatgrass, orchardgrass, etc). I imagine you can keep a juvenile indoors for a while. You would need a pretty large enclosure as it gets older. Keep in mind, they can get to be about 100 lbs. I can't imagine keeping one that size indoors.

[georgeman21222]

i like the habitat u provided ur lil gu .. how long have you had him.. i was thinking about getting one im not 100% sure how to care for it tho

[cnpike]

He's about 7 years old. Great pet to have. Pretty low maintenance. Ideally, habitat should be outdoors (depending on your climate) - they get very large. I have heat lamps in his house for the winter. There's tons of info online for care of Sulcatas. I think most importantly, don't get them on a "store-bought" produce diet. They get shell deficiencies. Mine strictly eats grass & a couple different plant varieties in my yard. Occasionally, for a treat, I'll give him fruit (but very little)

[georgeman21222]

@cnpike what kind of grass do you feed it ? and i know you can feed it dandilions but what else can you feed it ? as far as here where i live i cant keep him outside my back yard is all concrete and i have no fence

[Rolandbv]

Looks like Sheldon has a great area to roam! You did a good job with that smaller city backyard, any garden you can get together is the right move.

[cnpike]

Thank you very much - with a small yard in Phoenix, AZ , I was pretty limited

Thanks again

[noegoode]

This is looks awesome I bet sheldon really happy.