Russian Tortoise Help…?
Well my Russian tortoise is 9 years old and lives in a plastic enclosure, i want to get a bigger one but not a vivarium or a tortoise table, any ideas of what to get him, has to be quite big though. And what can i feed him? and what kinda things can i use to make his cage more interesting, thank you 
an alternative to a tortoise table is a large rubbermaid tub, your tortoise needs a space area of 2ft by 4ft and should have
a heat lamp
a uv lamp
a substrate 50/50 mix of top soil and play sand
a hide
this is just a basic list, you can make things more interesting by putting in small rocks
small branches these are to climb over as tortoises love to climb, you can also grow grass on trays, they are easy to water and maintain and if they look a bit trampled you put them on a window sill and they recover quite well,
we made a hide out of small branches rather than the ones you buy the tortoise loves it and it is something different, we also change the enclosure around about once a month so our tortoises have to explore for food, and the enclosure change seems to keep them entertained for a while.
feeding should consist of 90% weeds and grasses and other things like salad should only be used as a supplement here is a booklet you can download to see what weeds to feed http://www.tlady.clara.net/id16.htm here is another site which you will find useful http://www.russiantortoise.org/ it will show you how to care for your russian tortoise the last site i am giving you has lots of really good article on tortoise keeping so is worth a look http://www.tortoisetrust.org/ hope you find these useful best of luck honey
October 6th, 2009 at 1:01 pm
i would go to petsmart or petco or any where thaat would cell cages. you can feed him greens and small rodents
References :
October 6th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
You can use almost anything as long as there is nothing toxic in it. It is difficult to find anything ready made that will be large enough. Since you have him in a plastic enclosure, can’t you make an addition to this?
Here is a list of edible plants that you can put in with him.
http://www.anapsid.org/resources/edible.html
Good foods are dandelion greens, escarole lettuce, mustard greens, squash, mushrooms, endive. Kale and bok choy can be fed once a week or so. Alfalfa leaves (not sprouts) and timothy hay can be fed as well. No rodents or insects. A Russian tortoise is an herbivore!
Good luck!
References :
October 6th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
Well i think the best way for you to go is to go out and try to find a large rubber maid like tub to keep your tortoise in. And to make it more interesting try to find some plants that you can put in there. And feed him a lot of greens such as lettuce and spring mix which i found works well
References :
russian tortiose owner
October 6th, 2009 at 2:01 pm
i have 2 russian tortoses. they live in a large wooden enclosure in my room. they have a heat lamp and a heater and they are very happy. so what i did is i went to home depot and bought some sturdy pine (or some other kind of cheap wood) and just built a pretty large pen. it was fairly inexpensive; about 40-70 thats about the cheapest enclosure your going to get. it’s also the best enclosure you could provide and you can make it as big as you want so i would suggest you should build em’ a home instead of just buying him an expenisive aquarium that will shorten his life span. good luck!
References :
i own tortoises and i have for many years now.
October 6th, 2009 at 2:15 pm
I don’t understand why you don’t want a tortoise table set up. The only alternative you have is to use an indoor cage designed for rabbits, but in my opinion they are very expensive. You could build a tortoise table of any size you wish for very little money.
You can make your tortoises environment more interesting by using a nice deep substrate of play sand and soil, try to make it a few inches in depth. You can also put slate and pebbles in the enclosure for your tortoise to climb over. They also need sheltered hidey places such as plant pots on their side. Don’t put the substrate flat, create lumps and bumps to break it all up a bit.
Your russian tortoise should be fed 100% weeds therefore no fruit or vegetables. You can buy weed seed mixes on the internet for your tortoise, alternatively you can look for weeds yourself in your garden. Your tortoise also needs a good calcium and vitamin powder. I suggest you use nutrabol every 3 days. On other days you can use limestone/calcium carbonate powder sprinkled on his weeds. You can also leave a small dish of it in his enclosure so he can eat it when he needs it. Cuttlefish bone is another good source of calcium for your tortoise, though some will not eat it but its worth a try.
For all these things to benefit your tortoise you need to make sure he is getting a good supply of uv light. If you use tubes make sure you change them every 6 months or so. Alternatively you can use a combined heat and uv bulb. Though they appear expensive they do last twice as long as tubes and offer your tortoise the very best uv available. I use a 100W megaray for mine and they love it and are 200% more active because of it. Also check your basking temperature it should be in the low 30’s (degrees celcius) and remember that the temperature of his enclosure shouldn’t be the same throughout. Tortoise need cooler areas to allow them to adjust their own body temperature when needed.
Here are a few useful links.
http://www.shelledwarriors.co.uk/forum/
http://www.tortoisetrust.org/backidx.html
http://www.herpvetconnection.com/uk.shtml
http://www.kimbosreptileworld.co.uk/
References :
Breeder of Russian Tortoises
October 6th, 2009 at 2:25 pm
Get a rabbit cage … unless your tortoise is to big … you can get "play stix" from pets at home … bend it into a fun shape and the crawl under and over it.
All tortoises are herbivores and NEVER eat meat. It can seriously damage them.
Good Luck
References :
Own 2 Tortoises
October 6th, 2009 at 3:02 pm
an alternative to a tortoise table is a large rubbermaid tub, your tortoise needs a space area of 2ft by 4ft and should have
a heat lamp
a uv lamp
a substrate 50/50 mix of top soil and play sand
a hide
this is just a basic list, you can make things more interesting by putting in small rocks
small branches these are to climb over as tortoises love to climb, you can also grow grass on trays, they are easy to water and maintain and if they look a bit trampled you put them on a window sill and they recover quite well,
we made a hide out of small branches rather than the ones you buy the tortoise loves it and it is something different, we also change the enclosure around about once a month so our tortoises have to explore for food, and the enclosure change seems to keep them entertained for a while.
feeding should consist of 90% weeds and grasses and other things like salad should only be used as a supplement here is a booklet you can download to see what weeds to feed http://www.tlady.clara.net/id16.htm here is another site which you will find useful http://www.russiantortoise.org/ it will show you how to care for your russian tortoise the last site i am giving you has lots of really good article on tortoise keeping so is worth a look http://www.tortoisetrust.org/ hope you find these useful best of luck honey
References :
owned and loved herman and spur thigh for over 30 years